NON-DISCRIMINATION POLICY
AMDA strictly prohibits discrimination against any person on the basis of race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or status, marital, parental, familial, veteran, or military service status, political affiliation, age, or disability. As explained in all the AMDA Code of Conduct policies, if a student is found to be in violation of any such policies, they are subject to disciplinary sanctions ranging from a disciplinary warning up to and including dismissal.

PHILOSOPHY AND STANDARDS REGARDING CASTING PRACTICES
At AMDA, we are committed to creating and upholding the best standards and practices regarding casting for our students in our classrooms, on our stages, and for our on-camera work. We hope one day soon to see these standards and practices realized across platforms for performing artists including Broadway, national and international stages, film and television. Click here to view our full casting policy.

LIVED NAME & PRONOUN POLICY
LIVED NAMES: AMDA firmly believes that everyone should be addressed by the name with which they would like to be referred, and which authentically reflects their identity. AMDA acknowledges the importance that a change of name may have to students during their time with us, and therefore the institution allows for students to provide a lived first and middle name that is different from their legal name. At this time, last names/surnames can be changed only with legal name change documentation.

PRONOUNS: An individual’s pronouns are not a preference. They are a statement of fact, and a form of self-expression and self-affirmation. Accordingly, students may indicate pronouns to be used within the College & Conservatory’s information systems. This includes AMDA’s Learning Management System (Canvas), as well as Student Information System (Campus Nexus). Pronouns may be added, edited, or removed at any time during enrollment. In cases when government verification is involved, such as federal loan processing, a student’s sex assigned at birth may also be required. In all cases, AMDA strives to approach this with care and discretion. While students may make changes to their pronouns within Canvas at any time during enrollment within the account settings, changes to pronouns on the student record can only be made on the administrative level.

RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCE POLICY
AMDA College will make good faith efforts to provide reasonable religious accommodations to students whose sincerely held religious beliefs conflict with a school policy, procedure, or other academic requirement. Requests should be made as early as possible to allow sufficient time to engage in an interactive process. Please note: To receive a religious accommodation, one's religious tradition must require religious observance. This policy guarantees that students are not unduly prevented from observing their spiritual beliefs or practices; however, students should seek to make arrangements in advance with the appropriate instructors/administrators at the start of a semester/start of a rehearsal process. Requests will generally be approved unless they would result in an undue hardship on the institution.

Religious Accommodation Categories
• Housing
• Dining
• Academics
• Classes
• Productions

Requests for religious/cultural observance accommodations should be submitted using this form. This request should include relevant information such as

• description of the accommodation you are requesting;
• the reason you need an accommodation; and
• how does the accommodation help resolve the conflict between your religious beliefs or  practices and an AMDA policy, procedure, or other requirement.

Once a request is submitted, AMDA will initiate an interactive process to determine if the request can be accommodated and, if not, what, if any, alternative arrangements can be made. AMDA may request that the student provide information to support the need for an accommodation based on the student's religious belief. 

AMDA will also consult with the appropriate stakeholders related to the student's request. Reasonable religious accommodation requests will be made on a case‐by‐case basis, taking into account factors including but not limited to the:

• nature of the accommodation requested,
• duration of the request,
• timeliness of the request,
• alternative accommodations,
• financial impact,
• academic impact, and
• other related factors.

REPORTING BIAS INCIDENTS
A hate-bias incident is an act of conduct, speech, or expression motivated, in whole or in part, by intolerance, bias, or prejudice against another. Unlike a hate crime, the act is not a criminal act; like a hate crime, the act is motivated by prejudice. It differs from a hate crime in that no criminal activity is involved but its effect is to discriminate, demean, embarrass, assign stereotype, harass, or exclude individuals because of their actual or perceived identities, including but not limited to: race, ethnicity, national origin, language, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, age, veteran status, or religion. Examples of hate-bias incidents may include but are not limited to: speech, gestures, epithets, direct insults, graffiti, harassment, etc. Hate-bias incidents can occur even if harm is unintentional or the act is meant as a joke or prank. This definition is not meant to inhibit classroom discussion of sensitive or controversial topics related to the above. This definition is also intentionally broad to reflect AMDA’s values.

The expression of viewpoints and disagreements on political or social issues is permitted at AMDA, and therefore not subject to disciplinary action. However, the expression of such opinions can have harmful impacts regardless of intention, and in some cases may undervalue personal rights, dehumanize individuals, and adversely affect someone's sense of belonging. In such cases, this protocol will be used in whole or in part as a means of promoting greater awareness of the impact of our words and behaviors, and allowing for restoration following harm - even when it is unintentional.

AMDA is committed to addressing incidents of hate-bias and needs your assistance in bringing these incidents to our attention. If you believe that you have been a target of or witness to a hate-bias incident, please report via this form. By documenting incidents, we can better protect and educate our community, and best enable the college and conservatory to prevent this behavior and to address it properly when it occurs.

Reports will be kept confidential to the extent possible unless it requires judicial or administrative action. AMDA has a zero tolerance policy for retaliation for those who report incidents (see Non-Retaliation Policy). Upon notification and awareness of allegations of hate-bias incident, AMDA will take immediate safety and security measures and appropriate action to assess, and/or investigate what occurred.

Once an incident is reported, you will receive an acknowledgement of the report either from the Vice President of Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion, or from one of their designees, within 3 business days, wherein they will notify you of next steps and available resources.

PREVENTION AND EDUCATION
AMDA actively strives to prevent bias incidents from occurring through policy, education, and training through offices such as the Office of Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion, Human Resources, Accessibility Services, Student Success and Student Affairs. As a member of the AMDA community, it is essential that you take an active role in reporting hate-bias-related acts as they will not be tolerated. Reporting these offenses will help AMDA identify problem areas to improve our campus climate.