Code of Conduct

Last Updated: May 14, 2024

Who Can Use This Program

iCouldBe.org inc. (iCouldBe) is an online mentoring program whose mission is to provide high school students with an online community of professional mentors, empowering teens to thrive in school, plan for future careers, and achieve in life. The iCouldBe program (the "Program") is intended for youth and adults. Adults (mentors) must be at least 21 years old or a matriculated college student who is at least 18 years old or member of the military who is at least 18 years old. Youth (mentees) must be at least 13 years of age. If a youth under the age of 13 wishes to use the iCouldBe Program their parent or guardian must first provide consent to iCouldBe.

Acceptance of Terms

PLEASE READ THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS CAREFULLY BEFORE USING THE PROGRAM.

As used in the document the terms "we", "us" and "our" refer to iCouldBe.org inc. ("iCouldBe").

By registering for the iCouldBe Program and using the pages on this website, you become a member of the Program (a "Member") and you agree to abide by these Terms and Conditions including the Code of Conduct (the "Terms") for as long as you continue to be a Member. If you do not agree to these Terms, please do not use the iCouldBe Program. We reserve the right, at our discretion, to change, modify, add, or remove portions of these Terms at any time. The Last Updated field at the top of this page indicates when these Terms were last modified. Please check these Terms periodically for changes. Your continued use of the Program subsequent to the posting of changes to these Terms will signify your acceptance of these changes.

Terms of Use

All Members of the iCouldBe community agree to abide by this Code of Conduct. Your use of iCouldBe may be terminated at any time for conduct or actions that we consider inappropriate or in violation of this Code of Conduct.

iCouldBe is a safe community that encourages users to build trust, to give thoughtful, personalized feedback, guidance and praise, and to treat one another with mutual respect. We foster an environment where mentees have an unlimited capacity to learn, grow and flourish under the care of supportive, dedicated and communicative mentors.

We Tolerate Only Mutual Respect

We welcome people of any race, color, creed, religion, national origin, ethnicity, sex, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, immigration status, military service, mental or physical disability, political affiliation, personal appearance, height or weight, family responsibilities/familial status including caregiver status, parental status, domestic violence victim status, matriculation and any or all other characteristics/classifications protected under federal, state or local law.

We encourage discussion and exchange of academic success strategies, career exploration and post-secondary educational exploration and planning as well as the development of personal life skills in a constructive supportive context.

We do not allow threatening, defamatory, abusive or similar statements that in iCouldBe's opinion do not adhere to our standards of respect or this Code of Conduct. We do not allow sexually explicit material in conversations.

We do not allow Members to share their passwords with other Members or share their user names and passwords with individuals who are not Members of iCouldBe, with the exception of sharing passwords with parents or program administrators.

In order to ensure a safe environment for our youth, iCouldBe does not allow Mentors and Mentees to share personally identifying information with each other, nor do we allow Mentees to share personally identifying information with other Mentees.

All Members who use the online iCouldBe program who are Mentors are prohibited from meeting in person or having any external communication that is not directly through the iCouldBe.org site with Mentees participating in the program, with the exception of in-person or other programs directly managed by iCouldBe or an iCouldBe partner organization.

If a Mentee has reached the legal age of eighteen years old they can request from iCouldBe the personal information to contact their mentor directly.

We Allow Only Legal Actions

Interaction between Members for improper or illegal purposes, or that encourages, promotes or provides instructional information about illegal or improper activities, is strictly prohibited.

You may not use the Program to distribute unauthorized copies of copyrighted or trademarked material, or trade secrets including photos, artwork, text, recordings, designs or computer programs without the prior consent of the owner of such right. In addition, we do not allow the trading or swapping of images that are offensive, oppressive, sexually explicit, obscene or vulgar.

You are not permitted to remove or modify any copyright, trademark or other proprietary rights notice from iCouldBe or any third-party content that you may access through your use of iCouldBe.

iCouldBe may immediately terminate access to the Program by any user who interferes with another Member's use of iCouldBe or causes damage to iCouldBe, by any means available.

iCouldBe does not allow any user to frame, mirror, scrape, copy or otherwise replicate any part of iCouldBe without our express prior written consent. iCouldBe does not allow users to reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble or otherwise attempt to discover and use the source code of the Program; nor do we allow you to modify, adapt, translate or create derivative works based upon the iCouldBe Program or any part thereof, without express written permission.

iCouldBe only permits the use of its curriculum for your own personal, non-commercial use. You may not otherwise copy, reproduce, retransmit, distribute, publish, broadcast, commercially exploit or otherwise transfer any material, nor may you modify or create derivatives works of the curriculum material without the prior written permission of iCouldBe or in the case of third-party materials, the owner of that content.

All information a Member is told or learns about another Member is confidential. Sharing that information with others may be a violation of the law, with the exceptions of reports of physical, sexual, emotional abuse and other life-threatening situations.

iCouldBe reserves the right to release information to the proper authorities, because of a violation of our Terms, Code of Conduct, policies and standards or because of unlawful acts, if the information is subpoenaed, and if we deem it necessary and/or appropriate. Possible evidence of use of this site for illegal purposes will be provided to law enforcement authorities.

For the protection of the teens that use the Program, communications via this Program are monitored and no Member (Mentee, Mentor or Administrator) should assume a right to privacy.

iCouldBe claims no responsibility for users' remarks. We cannot guarantee the content of comments that you will receive while you are online and other people's comments may be offensive, harmful or inaccurate. iCouldBe does not condone remarks or statements that are not respectful and iCouldBe reserves the right to suspend or terminate any user for any reason, including comments and remarks that make iCouldBe an unsafe space or uncomfortable for others.

All Members are strictly prohibited from impersonating and/or falsely claiming an affiliation with any iCouldBe employee, agent, affiliate, contractor, third-party supplier, licensor or partner representatives.

We Do Not Allow Unauthorized Commercial Actions

We encourage communication between our Members, but posting or transmitting of unauthorized or unsolicited advertising, promotional materials, or any other forms of solicitation (including but not limited to, "junk mail" or "chain letters") to other Members of iCouldBe is not allowed.

Information You Submit

iCouldBe may collect information from its Members at several different points in our Program. When you agree to this Terms of Use and Code of Conduct you are also agreeing to the terms of the Privacy Policy including use of anonymized data to improve the program and for research purposes. Please refer to our Privacy Policy for information about what data is collected, how it is used and how it is protected.

Disclaimers and Limitation of Liability

ICOULDBE SHALL HAVE THE RIGHT, BUT NOT THE OBLIGATION, TO REMOVE ANY MATERIAL POSTED IN ALL AREAS OF THE PROGRAM THAT IN ITS SOLE OPINION VIOLATES, OR IS ALLEGED TO VIOLATE, THE LAW, THESE TERMS, OR ANY POLICY OF ICOULDBE. NOTWITHSTANDING THIS RIGHT OF THE PROGRAM, YOU REMAIN SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONTENT OF THE MATERIALS YOU POST IN ALL AREAS OF THE PROGRAM AND IN YOUR PRIVATE E-MAIL MESSAGES.

THE PROGRAM DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, OR USEFULNESS OF ANY INFORMATION ON THE PROGRAM AND NEITHER ADOPTS NOR ENDORSES NOR IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY OR RELIABILITY OF ANY OPINION, ADVICE, OR STATEMENT MADE BY PARTIES OTHER THAN THE PROGRAM.

WARNING - PLEASE READ THIS: It is possible that other Members or unauthorized users (including but not limited to "hackers") may post or transmit offensive or obscene materials on the Program and that you may be involuntarily exposed to such offensive and obscene materials. It also is remotely possible for others to obtain personal information about you due to your use of the Program, and that the recipient may use such information to harass or injure you. The Program is not responsible for the use of any personal information that you disclose on the Program. Please carefully select the type of information that you post on the Program or release to others.

The Program has been optimized for use with the latest version of Microsoft Edge and Chrome on a personal computer. Use of other browsers and devices may not provide full functionality.

Disclaimer of Guarantees, Promises or Assurances

THIS PROGRAM IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS AND GRANTS NO GUARANTEES, PROMISES OR ASSURANCES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED. THE PROGRAM SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIMS ANY IMPLIED GUARANTEES, PROMISES OR ASSURANCES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. WE DO NOT GUARANTEE, PROMISE OR ASSURE THAT THIS PROGRAM WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, UNINTERCEPTED BY A THIRD-PARTY OR ERROR FREE NOR DO WE GUARANTEE, PROMISE OR ASSURE THAT ANY PARTICULAR SOFTWARE OR HARDWARE WILL BE COMPATIBLE WITH ICOULDBE. THE PROGRAM DISCLAIMS LIABILITY FOR, AND NO GUARANTEE, PROMISE OR ASSURANCE IS MADE WITH RESPECT TO, CONNECTIVITY AND AVAILABILITY.

Your only remedy with respect to any dissatisfaction with the Program, these Terms or any policy of iCouldBe in operating this Program or any content or information that has been transmitted through the Program, is to cease using iCouldBe and terminate your membership.

Under no circumstances, including, but not limited to, negligence, shall we be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special or consequential damages, including without limitation, bodily injury, emotional distress, and/or any other damages that result from the use of, or the inability to use, the iCouldBe Program, even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages. You agree that any claim related to your use of iCouldBe must be brought within one (1) year from the date the claim arose, and that you will neither bring, or participate in, any class action or other class proceeding in connection with any dispute related to these Terms or your use of the Program.

In no event shall our total liability to you for all damages, losses and causes of action, whether in contract, tort (including, but not limited to, negligence) or otherwise, exceed the amount paid by you, if any, for accessing this site. iCouldBe does not guarantee that all Members (mentors and/or mentees) will actively be using the Program.

Proprietary Rights

The Program contains information that is proprietary to us, our Affiliates, licensors, suppliers, Program Partners and our Members. iCouldBe owns and retains other proprietary rights in the Program. The Program contains the copyrighted material and trademarks of the Program. We invoke full proprietary intellectually property rights including but not limited to copyright, trademark and patent protection over these materials.

Our trade name, iCouldBe, and all related trademarks and service marks and any associated trade names, trademarks, service marks and logos are the property of iCouldBe. All trademarks and service marks on iCouldBe not owned by us are the property of their respective owners. You may not use our trade names, trademarks and service marks in connection with any product or service that is not ours, or in any manner that is likely to cause confusion. Nothing contained on iCouldBe should be understood as granting any license or right to use any trade names, trademarks or service marks without express prior written consent of iCouldBe or the respective owner.

PLEASE NOTE THAT UNAUTHORIZED USE OF ANY SERVICE OR PRODUCT, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY CONTENT OR SOFTWARE USED BY THE SERVICES, MAY SUBJECT YOU TO CIVIL AND CRIMINAL PENALTIES, (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, POSSIBLE MONETARY DAMAGES), INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, FOR COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE: © 2024 iCouldBe.org
All curriculum content or other materials available on this Site, including but not limited to the iCouldBe curriculum and activities, all code, images, text, layouts, arrangements, displays, illustrations, HTML files and other content are the property of iCouldBe and are protected by copyright, trademark, patent and/or other proprietary intellectual property rights under the United States and foreign laws. You may view material on the Site only for your own personal, non-commercial use. You may not otherwise copy, reproduce, retransmit, distribute, publish, broadcast, commercially exploit or otherwise transfer any material, nor may you modify or create derivatives works of the material without the prior written permission of iCouldBe or in the case of third-party materials, the owner of that content. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from iCouldBe is strictly prohibited.

Claims of Copyright Infringement

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (the "DMCA") provides recourse for copyright owners who believe that material appearing on the Internet infringes their rights under U.S. copyright law. If you believe in good faith that materials available on the Program infringe your copyright, you (or your agent) may send us a notice requesting that we remove the material or block access to it. If you believe in good faith that someone has wrongly filed a notice of copyright infringement against you, the DMCA permits you to send us a counter-notice. Notices and counter-notices must meet the then-current statutory requirements imposed by the DMCA. See http://www.copyright.gov for details. Notices and counter-notices should be sent by email to compliance@icouldbe.org or regular mail to icouldbe.org inc. 222 Broadway, 19th Floor, New York, NY 10038, USA.

General Provisions

iCouldBe is owned and operated by iCouldBe.org Inc., whose address is 222 Broadway, 19th Floor, New York, NY 10038, USA.

Possible evidence of use of this site for illegal purposes will be provided to law enforcement authorities.

The Terms are in effect as long as you are a Member of the Program. You may terminate your membership at any time by discontinuing use of the Program and destroying all materials obtained through your use of the Program and all related documentation and all copies and installations thereof, whether made under these Terms or otherwise. Your membership and access to the Program may be terminated immediately without notice from us if in our sole discretion you fail to comply with any of these Terms or any policy of iCouldBe. Upon termination, you must cease use of the iCouldBe.org website and destroy all Materials obtained from the Program and all copies thereof, whether made under these terms or otherwise. If your access to the Program is terminated by iCouldBe, you agree that you will not have the right to bring claims against iCouldBe, our employees, agents, affiliates, contractors, third-party suppliers, licensors and partners with respect to such termination.

Questions or Complaints

If you have questions or complaints regarding the Program, these Terms or any iCouldBe policy, please contact iCouldBe.org support via email to compliance@icouldbe.org or by mail: iCouldBe.org Inc., 222 Broadway, 19th Floor, New York, NY 10038.

Filing and Ajudication of Grievances

iCouldBe volunteer mentors funded by the AmeriCorps VGF grant who believe they were subjected to treatment in violation of any civil rights laws, regulations, or this policy, or have been subject to retaliation for opposing discrimination or participating in discrimination complaint proceedings (e.g., filing a complainant or acting as a witness) in any AmeriCorps program or project, may contact AmeriCorps’ Civil Rights and Employment Branch at (202) 606-3461 or eo@americorps.gov. iCouldBe volunteer mentors must contact AmeriCorps’ Civil Rights and Employment Branch within 45 calendar days of an occurrence of discrimination or harassing conduct to initiate an inquiry.

iCouldBe volunteer mentors are not required to use a program, project, or sponsor dispute resolution process before contacting AmeriCorps’ Civil Rights and Employment Branch. While Recipients are expected to take prompt action to effectively address iCouldBe volunteer mentor complaints, Recipients cannot institute policies requiring any such matters be handled “in house.” If a volunteer mentor chooses to pursue another dispute resolution or complaint procedure, it does not suspend the 45 calendar-day time limit for contacting AmeriCorps’ Civil Rights and Employment Branch. Discrimination and harassment claims must be brought to the attention of CRE within 45 calendar days of the occurrence or the knowledge and discovery of the occurrence giving rise to the claim. Claims pursued after this timeframe may not be accepted for investigation of a formal complaint of discrimination. Volunteers may contact AmeriCorps’ Civil Rights and Employment Branch at eo@americorps.gov for information or assistance.

Prohibited Activities

As a recipient of an AmeriCorps Volunteer Generation Fund grant, iCouldBe requires that all volunteer mentors comply with the following section on prohibited activities while participating in any work or activity on behalf of iCouldBe. If anyone sees any prohibited activity occur in the iCouldBe program notify us by sending an email to compliance@icouldbe.org.

iCouldBe volunteers may not engage in the following activities (see 45 CFR § 2520.65):

  1. Attempting to influence legislation;
  2. Organizing or engaging in protests, petitions, boycotts, or strikes;
  3. Assisting, promoting, or deterring union organizing;
  4. Impairing existing contracts for services or collective bargaining agreements;
  5. Engaging in partisan political activities, or other activities designed to influence the outcome of an election to any public office;
  6. Participating in, or endorsing, events or activities that are likely to include advocacy for or against political parties, political platforms, political candidates, proposed legislation, or elected officials;
  7. Engaging in religious instruction, conducting worship services, providing instruction as part of a program that includes mandatory religious instruction or worship, constructing or operating facilities devoted to religious instruction or worship, maintaining facilities primarily or inherently devoted to religious instruction or worship, or engaging in any form of religious proselytization;
  8. Providing a direct benefit to—
    • A business organized for profit;
    • A labor union;
    • A partisan political organization;
    • A nonprofit organization that fails to comply with the restrictions contained in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 related to engaging in political activities or substantial amount of lobbying except that nothing in these provisions shall be construed to prevent participants from engaging in advocacy activities undertaken at their own initiative; and
    • An organization engaged in the religious activities described in paragraph C. 7. above, unless AmeriCorps assistance is not used to support those religious activities;
  9. Conducting a voter registration drive or using AmeriCorps funds to conduct a voter registration drive;
  10. Providing abortion services or referrals for receipt of such services; and
  11. Such other activities as AmeriCorps may prohibit.

Individuals may exercise their rights as private citizens and may participate in the activities listed above on their initiative, on non-AmeriCorps time, and using non-Corporation funds. Individuals should not wear the AmeriCorps logo while doing so.

Drug Free Workplace

iCouldBe will comply with the requirements of the Drug-Free Workplace Act (41 U.S.C. § 701 et seq.) (AC V.B.8)

  • The unlawful manufacture, distribution, dispensation, possession, or use of a controlled substance is prohibited while serving as an iCouldBe AmeriCorps volunteer mentor.
  • iCouldBe AmeriCorps funded volunteer mentors must abide by the terms of this prohibition and must notify the program director of any conviction under a criminal drug statute no later than 5 days after such a conviction.
  • Specific actions will be taken against volunteers for violations of this prohibition, including personnel actions up to and including termination, and/or the requirement to satisfactorily participate in a drug abuse assistance or rehabilitation program.

Accessibility

iCouldBe will ensure that no qualified disabled individual shall, solely on the basis of his or her disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any of its programs, services, or activities as provided by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). iCouldBe further ensures that every effort will be made to provide nondiscrimination in all of its programs or activities regardless of the funding source.

Reasonable Accommodation Plan for Volunteer Mentors

iCouldBe will follow ADA requirements and will engage in an interactive dialogue with the individual with a disability concerning reasonable accommodations and will discuss a four-step plan including:

  • State whether the volunteer is a “qualified individual with a disability” as defined by the ADA;
  • Outline the Volunteer Mentor’s essential virtual mentoring functions needing accommodation;
  • Recommend types of accommodation; consideration will be given to the preference of the volunteer, however, iCouldBe has the right to select among the alternatives available; and
  • Determine whether any accommodation causes an undue hardship or poses a direct threat to iCouldBe.