Community Standards

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Being a part of the Trinity community means keeping Christ at the center of all we do.

Scripture sets the overall parameters for Christian community which include love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, tolerance,and self-control.

In relationships with each other, community members are expected to practice compassion, to bear one another’s burdens, to forgive one another, and to encourage one another. In relation to the material world, they are expected to exercise good stewardship and appropriate use of resources.

These expectations are in contrast to sins such as jealousy, conceit, greed, the sowing of discord, and the expressing of prejudice based on race, creed, ethnic origin, sex, and/or socioeconomic status. All such sins are an affront to God and are destructive to community.

Scripture does not provide specific teaching regarding all human behavior. Consequently, controversy regarding individual practices has arisen throughout the history of the church. Any set of community standards may contain elements with which some of its members disagree. Nevertheless, out of a desire to encourage an environment appropriate to its purposes, respect for its heritage, and concern for the values of its constituency, Trinity has established the following on- and off-campus behavioral guidelines for all full- and part-time students:

Practices which are specifically forbidden in Scripture will not be condoned such as dishonesty, theft, abortion, premarital sex, adultery, homosexual behavior, profanity, gossip, pornography, and infringement upon the rights of others.
Scripture explicitly teaches respect for governmental authority. Students are therefore expected to uphold the laws of the local community, the state, and the nation except on those occasions where an obedience to civil authority would require behavior directly in conflict with other scriptural principles.
In a Christian academic community, academic dishonesty, including cheating, plagiarism, and misappropriation of library materials, is regarded as a serious violation.
Abuse of one’s body is inappropriate for a Christian. Accordingly, students will be required to refrain from the possession or use of harmful substances such as tobacco, non-prescribed stimulants and depressants, and hallucinogenic drugs.
Gambling and the possession or use of intoxicants (i.e., alcoholic beverages) have been regarded by many in the college and its constituency as practices which are questionable and encourage exposure to demeaning social surroundings. They are not allowed. In addition, social dancing is neither condoned nor encouraged. It too, has been viewed by many as a questionable activity and therefore is not permitted on campus.
In order to facilitate orderly community life, students are expected to abide by other procedural rules and regulations as announced.

Scripture should be our guide at all times. During the summer and winter inter-semester breaks, the student is not under the community expectations unless he or she represents Trinity in an official capacity, resides on campus, or is visiting on campus. The university also reserves the right to refuse continuation to a student who is involved in activities or has committed actions during the summer or winter inter-semester breaks which may be deemed by the administration as potentially impacting the safety of students on campus or having ongoing consequences which violate scriptural principles or community expectations.

Statement of Community Expectations

As a Christian community, Trinity International University has characteristics and structures which express its nature, enhance its purpose, and provide for the life and growth of its members. The distinctives of the Trinity community include commitment to the authority of the Word of God, the dignity of persons, and the mutual support of fellow believers.

Membership in the Trinity community offers unique privileges and implies unique responsibilities. These privileges include opportunities for academic, personal, and spiritual growth within a sound and balanced setting. These responsibilities involve both general patterns of community lifestyle and particular requirements regarding specific activities. The standards of the college are very demanding, beyond normal societal standards. In signing an application for admission, students assume the responsibility to maintain the Trinity Community Expectations as outlined below and others as announced. These standards, much like the “training rules” of an athletic team, allow students to affirm the authenticity of their commitment to the community, to learn to trust themselves and to let their word be trusted—that is to grow in integrity—by maintaining congruence between their life and these high standards.

Our characteristics of community life are based upon:

Principles derived from Scripture
Insights discerned from various academic disciplines
Awareness of contemporary societal trends
Appreciation for the evangelical heritage of the college and its constituency

Policy on Drug and Alcohol Abuse

All Trinity students are expected to maintain standards of conduct which exclude the possession, use, and distribution of alcohol, tobacco, and nonprescription drugs both on and off campus. Alcohol and drug consumption cause a number of changes in behavior ranging from impaired judgment and coordination to inhibiting a person’s ability to learn and use higher mental functions. Repeated use can lead to dependence, and long-term use will cause permanent damage to the brain, liver, and other vital organs and may lead to death.

Counseling services for drug and substance abuse are available through Trinity’s Counseling Center. Along with individual counseling for drug and/or substance abuse, the Counseling Center, in cooperation with the Dean of Student’s office, will schedule forums as needed to address issues in this area which they believe would be pertinent to the Trinity student body at large. Information regarding off-campus substance abuse counseling services and rehabilitation programs can be obtained at the Counseling Center and/or the Health Services Office information rack.

Trinity will enforce the full extent of local, state, and federal laws toward those who unlawfully possess, use, or distribute illicit drugs and alcohol on campus. Any student who is using drugs or is in a room/vehicle in which drug use is occurring is subject to immediate dismissal by the institution Student Hearing Committee. The school also reserves the right to require a student to submit to a full drug test if there is reasonable suspicion deemed by the Dean of Students that the student may be involved in some form of chemical abuse. Refusal by the student to submit to the test within 24 hours of the request could result in dismissal from college.

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Community Standards

Being a part of the Trinity community means keeping Christ at the center of all we do.

Statement of Community Expectations

Policy on Drug and Alcohol Abuse

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