Misconduct Reporting

Within the scholastic bowl community, the term “misconduct” generally describes any behavior, action, or speech that makes any member of the community (a player, coach, competition staffer, administrator, or spectator) feel unsafe, threatened, discriminated against, or otherwise disrespected. Many quizbowl organizations, including the IHSSBCA, maintain ethical guidelines and/or honor codes that detail misconduct and how it should be addressed.

If you are in immediate fear for your safety or are witness to a crime, contact 911 immediately. You can reach the national Suicide and Crisis Hotline by calling 988 or by texting HOME to 741741. You can reach the National Sexual Assault Hotline by calling 800-656-4673 (HOPE), or by opening an online chat at online.rainn.org.

A multi-organizational reporting form for misconduct in scholastic bowl settings is maintained at this Google Form. Information about using the misconduct reporting form is available at qbmisconduct.com. The form is directly monitored by administrative members of ACF, PACE, NAQT, and the national quizbowl Discord server, and the information can be forwarded to state organizations like the IHSSBCA where appropriate.

If you need to report misconduct only to the IHSSBCA, contact the IHSSBCA Ombudsperson. The Ombudsperson is an elected official who serves as a representative of the Illinois scholastic bowl community, and is a point of contact for misconduct issues arising within Illinois scholastic bowl. Find the current Ombudsperson’s contact information on this page.