Loop Community Guidelines and Code of Conduct

  • Welcome. We're so glad to have you as part of the ISTE Loop community!

    Our mission is to facilitate professional learning, networking and collaboration through new connections between colleagues.

    As part of a Loop community, you will interact with other participants in a series of conversations. ISTE Loop creates one-on-one connections between people in a cohort, providing videoconference rooms where they can chat. Matches are based on mutual professional interests, and “Loopers” are free to talk about whatever they want.

    Loop does not provide a public community space or discussion forum; all conversations are one-on-one and private. There is no record of conversations (including the meeting chat), except for log in time and duration of the meeting.

    We value data privacy and security, and as such, ISTE Loop provides a safe place to grow. With that in mind, we also want to ensure that the Loop community remains positive, inclusive, forward-thinking and supportive.

    The members of your Loop cohort may come from different countries, cultures, backgrounds and professions. Because we likely understand things differently, it’s important for all of us to be conscious of how we communicate with each other. It's also a wonderful opportunity for us to learn about each other.

    We are committed to making Loop a respectful and safe experience for everyone, regardless of identity. To help us do that, please review the community values and guidelines below.

  • Our collective community values

    • Courtesy and respect. We choose to be kind and polite to one another. We don't have to agree on everything, but we encourage all members to be constructive and tactful when sharing their opinions. This extends to respect for other Loopers’ time and energy, including keeping appointments and showing up on time.
    • Thoughtful language. We choose to be mindful of how our words and tone might be understood. We encourage common-sense professional workplace standards for written and in-person communication. Beyond that, we believe that warmth and empathy go a long way; our mission is to foster connections and empathy is a big part of that.

  • What we encourage you to do in Loop meetings

    • Honor your commitments and show up on time.
      • The biggest complaint we get from Loopers by far is that their meeting partner didn’t show up. When you opt in for a Loop meeting, you’re booking a private appointment with a colleague whose time is just as valuable as your own.
      • If you must cancel after a match has been made, you can use the Loop dashboard, but it’s courteous to also contact your meeting partner directly to let them know. You can find your meeting partner’s email listed in their profile, which is always included in your meeting invitation.
    • Discuss your shared interests.
      • This may sound obvious since Loop matches you with colleagues based on your shared interests, but it’s worth remembering. Your time is valuable, so use it to cover the topics that matter to you and your partner. Need more ideas? Check out your meeting partner’s current interests described in their profile! You can always follow up with someone to chat again later if you didn’t have enough time during your initial scheduled meeting.
    • Share resources and best practices.
      • If you’re using particular tools or strategies that might be useful to a colleague, now is the time to share. And if you’re looking for new resources for your own work, now is the time to ask.
    • Share your challenges and ask for help.
      • Feel free to share the challenges you’re going through (or questions you have) and ask for advice and guidance. It’s likely that others are going through or have gone through the same experience. You can also ask for feedback on your work as long as you aren’t explicitly sharing this work in a self-promotional way. (See “Self promotion” under “What we do not allow” below.)
    • Build connections.
      • Get to know your Loop partner! This isn’t an office meeting with a strict agenda. It’s a chance to have a human conversation with a new colleague.
      • Plan collaborations. Talk about your projects and plan future discussions if it looks like there’s room to work together in the future.

  • What we do not allow:

    • Self-promotion.
      • Loop is a professional networking platform and we encourage collaboration and sharing between colleagues. You may make connections that lead to future professional opportunities or share information about a product/service for feedback. We want you to make those connections, but we ask you to remember that Loop is not a social network or a job board.
      • Self-promotional activities that aren’t allowed:
        • Promotion of products/services offered by you or your employer.
        • Recruitment for your organization.
        • Campaigning for a position at another organization.
        • Any type of spam.
    • Being rude, hateful or insulting.
    • Nonconsensual publishing of private correspondence. The shared expectation in ISTE Loop is that what you talk about stays between you and your new colleague in an anonymous way. If you want to share something from your conversation, ask first.
    • Harassing other members. This includes:
      • Offensive comments or jokes related to gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race or religion.
      • Deliberate intimidation, stalking or following.
      • Threats of violence.
      • Unwelcome attention of any kind, including sexual attention.
      • Continued one-on-one communication after requests to cease.

  • Responses to any behavior that violates this code of conduct:

    If you have an experience with someone in Loop that violates this code of conduct, please contact the ISTE Loop team at loop@iste.org to report the incident.

    We take these matters very seriously, and we commit to responding to any reports within three business days.

    If a member engages in behavior that violates this code of conduct, they may be given a warning or removed from the community, depending on the severity of the behavior. If a member is asked to stop any behavior, they are expected to comply immediately.

    We know that Loopers are professional, respectful and kind. If you use common sense and good judgment, you’re already following the code of conduct.

    Thank you for being part of our community!

    Warmly,

    The ISTE Loop team