Accessibility

Belonging and Community

We seek to create a sense of community within each of our alternative breaks, which welcomes and values each member’s full humanity, and within which each member can feel a strong sense of belonging. We encourage all who participate in alternative breaks to be intentional in their role in creating this community.

Each Branch Out team will create a community agreement that will set standards of action so that everyone feels that they belong, including ways that the team will respond if challenging situations arise or actions or remarks that make individuals feel unsafe take place. 

Child and Family Care

While we wish to accommodate all parents and caregivers on our breaks, we are unfortunately unable to provide childcare or care for other family members. Only students and W&M staff or faculty are eligible to attend alternative breaks, so family members cannot accompany you on breaks. Remote alternative breaks, when available,  may provide the flexibility to accommodate student parents and caregivers.

Citizenship

Branch Out welcomes students of all nationalities and citizenship statuses and does not require any of our community members to disclose their citizenship status. We may work with community partners who focus on citizenship- and immigration-related issues. If you are interested in participating in these breaks but have related concerns, feel free to contact Branch Out coordinators or Melody Porter (mcporter@wm.edu). 

You’ll sometimes hear us talk about fostering active citizenship, or community collaboration. For us, an active citizen is someone who centers community in their values and actions, seeing themself as part of a greater whole, regardless of citizenship status in any country.

Content Warnings

Because Branch Out involves learning about and working closely with social injustice, breaks may involve discussion and service closely aligned with topics that may be upsetting or triggering for some participants. Accompanying each of our break descriptions is a list of potential, specific triggers participants may encounter. Some situations and themes may be upsetting and unanticipated or unexpectedly triggering. Site Leaders are here to support participants and open to have conversations about break topics and content for those who have concerns.

Financial Access

All Branch Out alternative breaks are free to both participants and site leaders. We understand that many students have jobs and that breaks and break-related activities may come into conflict with these schedules. However, certain events and meetings are considered mandatory, including our Site Leader class and retreat (for Site Leaders), pre- and post-break meetings for all,  and the break itself. If you have concerns about time conflicts or financial inaccessibility related to this, please be in touch with us.

Food

In effort to maintain our value of sustainability and to build understanding, we shop for food as a group and keep to a budget of $5 per person per day. Sustenance and fueling oneself is of paramount importance, so if site leaders need to deviate from their budgets for everyone’s wellbeing, they will do so.  We accommodate peoples’ dietary needs as reported on their application. In addition, we aim to respect the differences people have in their relationships to food, so please let us know how we can best support you.

Gender and Sexuality

Branch Out accepts and welcomes individuals of all gender identities and sexualities. We encourage all participants to challenge their normative ideas of the “gender binary.” Most breaks feature shared sleeping areas for all participants. In some cases, sleeping areas are divided by lifestyle preferences (e.g. waking up early/going to bed late). We also do not enforce any gendered restrooms within the housing facility. We also ask that you share your preferred pronouns on your application, and with your team members, if you like.

Low Hearing and Low Vision Participants

We recognize that low-vision and low-hearing diagnoses affect all individuals differently and thus accommodations can vary widely from person to person. We are committed to working with people on an individual basis to ensure that their needs are being met in order to have a positive alternative break experience in which they can meet their full potential. For pre- and post-break meetings:

• Meetings can be recorded by the site leader in a video format that can be slowed down, paused, and rewinded
• Recordings and videos presented will have captions or a transcript will be distributed to accompany the video
• Large text educational materials or activities will be available and provided upon request

Please reach out and hold us accountable if these expectations are not being met. 

Physical Accessibility and Housing

Service in some breaks can be physically and emotionally demanding. We are committed to adapting service activities to individuals’ physical limits and will work with community partners in advance to ensure that participants are able to be physically comfortable experiencing as much of the break as possible. Each break description includes a description of the service planned for the break, so prospective participants can choose which experiences are most appealing for them.

Many of our sleeping arrangements include sleeping in sleeping bags on floors or couches. Specific housing information is included in each break description. If a couch or bed is available, preference will be given to those who express this need. All site leaders will be equipped with an emergency plan for any physical emergencies. Because travel itself can be taxing on the body, we occasionally offer remote alternative breaks for those who are not comfortable traveling.

Religious Commitments

Branch Out is a secular program. We welcome all perspectives and backgrounds while fostering an environment within which participants can analyze, challenge, and/or deepen their beliefs of all natures, including religious traditions and identities. In addition, we make an effort to schedule all events around religious holidays, but if there still remains a conflict, please contact us for a conversation about rescheduling.

We welcome participants who wish to honor religious commitments during break periods. Please consult with your site leaders to ensure you’re able to do so on your break.

Sexual Misconduct

Branch Out strongly condemns sexual violence on, during, and after our Breaks and works to create a safe environment where such misconduct does not occur. If such an incident does occur, please know that Branch Out coordinators are mandatory reporters, while Site Leaders are not. During their training, Site Leaders receive information about how to create a supportive environment for survivors, and how to respond to sexual violence if it occurs. Specific guidelines can also be discussed with participants during pre-trip meetings and/or outlined in the community agreement. Many on-campus resources are also ready to support you, including the Haven, the Counseling Center, and campus ministries, as well as local support organizations in many host communities. Please consult William & Mary's resources and information about reporting sexual violence.

We work alongside some community partners that address topics of eradicating sexual violence and supporting survivors of sexual violence. Please refer to our list of content warnings associated with each break. If other parts of a break, like sleeping arrangements, may be triggering to you, please have a conversation with your Site Leader so that they may help you feel safe and welcome. 

Substance Use

Branch Out Alternative Breaks is an alcohol- and drug-free program. Substance-free trips allow participants to focus on the purpose and learning goals of the program and contribute to the safety and well-being of all participants, the group, and the community in which they are serving. They also express respect for the community and the host organizations with whom alternative breakers serve and interact. All participants and leaders in Branch Out Alternative Breaks programs are not to possess, purchase or consume alcoholic beverages and/or illegal drugs while participating in an alternative break trip. Alcohol and drugs are not a part of any official Branch Out team activities, including team meetings and fundraising. Nicotine and Marijuana usage follows in accordance with their respective university guidelines. Please refer to our Substance-Free Policy for more information.

Virtual Access

We recognize the economic burden of virtual learning and will not make any assumptions about an individual’s access to wifi and a computer that is compatible with zoom learning.

 Most site leaders have the ability to host pre-trip meetings on zoom in addition to in-person, and participants can reserve spaces from Swem Library to ensure stable connection.