Article V: Student Conduct Code Procedures

The following procedures pertain to all disciplinary proceedings excluding Sexual Misconduct. The Sexual Misconduct Policy is located under Rick Management Policies of this handbook.

A. Charges and Student Conduct Staff Hearings

1. Any member of the college community may file charges against a student for violations of the Student Code. A charge shall be prepared in writing and directed to the Student Conduct Administrator. Any charge should be submitted as soon as possible after the event takes place, preferably within 30 days, excluding official academic breaks.
2. The Student Conduct Administrator may conduct an investigation to determine if the charges have merit and/or if they can be disposed of administratively by mutual consent of the parties involved on a basis acceptable to the Student Conduct Administrator. Such disposition shall be final and there shall be no subsequent proceedings. If the charges are not admitted and/or cannot be disposed of by mutual consent, the Student Conduct Administrator may later serve in the same matter as the Student Conduct Staff or a member thereof. If the student admits violating institutional rules, but sanctions are not agreed to, subsequent process, including a hearing if necessary, shall be limited to determining the appropriate sanction(s). The accused student may, alternatively, opt to appear before the Student Judiciary.
3. All charges shall be presented to the Accused Student in written form. A time shall be set for a Student Conduct Staff Hearing, not less than twenty-four hours, though the student may wave the time limit to have a more immediate hearing, nor more than fifteen calendar days after the student has been notified. Maximum time limits for scheduling of Student Conduct Staff Hearings may be extended at the discretion of the Student Conduct Administrator.
4. Student Conduct Staff Hearings shall be conducted by a Student Conduct Staff member according to the following guidelines except as provided by article IV(A)(6) below:
   1. Student Conduct Staff Hearings normally shall be conducted in private.
   2. The Complainant, Accused Student and their advisors, if any, shall be allowed to attend the entire portion of the Student Conduct Staff Hearing at which information is received (excluding deliberations). Admission of any other person to the Student Conduct Staff Hearing shall be at the discretion of the Student Conduct Staff and/or its Student Conduct Administrator.
   3. In Student Conduct Staff Hearings involving more than one Accused Student, the Student Conduct Administrator, in his or her discretion, may permit the Student Conduct Staff Hearings concerning each student to be conducted either separately or jointly.
   4. The Complainant and the Accused Student have the right to be assisted by an advisor they choose, at their own expense. The advisor must be a member of the college community and may not be an attorney (with the exception of Sexual Misconduct Hearings. See Sexual Misconduct Policy for more details). The Complainant and/or the Accused Student is responsible for presenting his or her own information, and therefore, advisors are not permitted to speak or to participate directly in any Student Conduct Staff Hearing before a Student Conduct Staff member. A student should select as an advisor a person whose schedule allows attendance at the scheduled date and time for the Student Conduct Staff Hearing because delays will not normally be allowed due to the scheduling conflicts of an advisor.
   5. Pertinent records, exhibits, and written statements (including Student Impact Statements) may be accepted as information for consideration by Student Conduct Staff at the discretion of the chairperson.
   6. All procedural questions are subject to the final decision of the Student Conduct Staff.
   7. After the portion of the Student Conduct Staff Hearing concludes in which all pertinent information has been received, the Student Conduct Staff shall determine (by majority vote if the Student Conduct Staff consists of more than one person) whether the Accused Student has violated each section of the Student Code which the student is charged with violating.
   8. The Student Conduct Staff’s determination shall be made on the basis of whether it is more likely than not that the Accused Student violated the Student Code.
   9. Formal rules of process, procedure, and/or technical rules of evidence, such as are applied in criminal or civil court, are not used in Student Code proceedings.
5. If an Accused Student, with notice, does not appear before a Student Conduct Board Hearing, the information in support of the charges shall be presented and considered even if the Accused Student is not present.
6. The Student Conduct Staff may accommodate concerns for the personal safety, well-being, and/or fears of confrontation of the Complainant, Accused Student, and/or other witness during the hearing by providing separate facilities, by using a visual screen, and/or by permitting participation by telephone, videophone, closed circuit television, video conferencing, videotape, audio tape, written statement, or other means, where and as determined in the sole judgment of the Vice President and Dean of Student Life.

B. Sanctions

1. The following sanctions may be imposed upon any student found to have violated the Student Code:
   1. Warning—A notice in writing to the student that the student is violating or has violated institutional regulations.
   2. Probation—A written reprimand for violation of specified regulations. Probation is for a designated period of time and includes the probability of more severe disciplinary sanctions if the student is found to violate any institutional regulation(s) during the probationary period.
   3. Loss of Privileges—Denial of specified privileges for a designated period of time.
   4. Fines—Previously established and published fines may be imposed.
   5. Restitution—Compensation for loss, damage, or injury. This may take the form of appropriate service and/or monetary or material replacement.
   6. Discretionary Sanctions—Work assignments, essays, service to the college, or other related discretionary assignments.
   7. Residence Hall Relocation—Relocation of the student from one room or residence hall to another room or residence hall either for a definite period of time, or indefinitely.
   8. Residence Hall Suspension—Separation of the student from the residence halls for a definite period of time, after which the student is eligible to return. Conditions for readmission may be specified.
   9. Residence Hall Expulsion—Permanent separation of the student from the residence halls.
   10. College Suspension—Separation of the student from the college for a definite period of time, after which the student is eligible to return. Conditions for readmission may be specified.
   11. College Expulsion—Permanent separation of the student from the college.
2. Withholding Degree—The College may withhold awarding a degree otherwise earned until the completion of the process set forth in this Student Conduct Code, including the completion of all sanctions imposed, if any.
3. More than one of the sanctions listed above may be imposed for any single violation.
4. The following sanctions may be imposed upon groups or organizations:
   1. Those sanctions listed above in article IV (B) (1) (a)–(f).
   2. Loss of selected rights and privileges for a specified period of time.
   3. Deactivation. Loss of all privileges, including college recognition, for a specified period of time.
5. In each case in which a Student Conduct Staff Hearing determines that a student and/or group or organization has violated the Student Code, the sanction(s) shall be determined and imposed by the Student Conduct Administrator. In cases in which persons other than, or in addition to, the Student Conduct Administrator have been authorized to serve as Student Conduct Staff, the recommendation of the Student Conduct Staff shall be considered by the Student Conduct Administrator in determining and imposing sanctions. The Student Conduct Administrator is not limited to sanctions recommended by members of the Student Conduct Staff. Following the Student Conduct Board Hearing, the Student Conduct Staff and the Student Conduct Administrator shall advise the Accused Student, group and/or organization in writing of its determination and of the sanction(s) imposed, if any.

C. Interim Suspension

Although students are ordinarily disciplined through the judicial process involving the Student Conduct Staff, the College administration may invoke sanctions, including suspension from the College, in certain circumstances.

1. Upon verbal or written notification of charges, a student may be suspended pending the hearing and determination thereof, only when the continued presence of such student would constitute an immediate danger to the safety of person or property on the premises of the College.
2. In the event of such a suspension, the student upon request shall have the right to a hearing before the Student Judiciary within five days after said demand with respect to the basis for such suspension.
3. A student who is dismissed is immediately denied use of any campus services or facilities and may not participate in campus-sponsored activities. Keys belonging to the College, especially to the residence hall room, must be turned in at the Student Life Office, the student I.D. card and vehicle decal must be returned to the Student Life Office, and the premises must be vacated within 48 hours of dismissal.
4. The Dean of Student Life must authorize any exceptions. Failure to complete this process will jeopardize readmission to the College.
5. The interim suspension does not replace the regular process, which shall proceed on the normal schedule, up to and through a Student Conduct Staff Hearing, if required. However, the student should be notified in writing of this action and the reasons for the suspension. The notice should include the time, date, and place of a subsequent hearing at which the student may show cause why his or her continued presence on the campus does not constitute a threat [and at which they may contest whether a campus rule was violated].

D. Appeals

1. A decision reached by the Student Conduct Staff or a sanction imposed by the Student Conduct Administrator may be appealed by the Accused Student(s) or Complainant(s) within 48 hours of the decision. Appeals involving Category 1 offenses will be heard by an Appellate Board of Student Conduct Staff. Appeals involving Category 2 offenses, or cases involving habitual or egregious offenses of either Category 1 or Category 2 offenses will be heard by the Student Judiciary. Any such appeals shall be in writing and shall be delivered to the Student Conduct Administrator or his or her designee.
2. Except as required to explain the basis of new information, an appeal shall be limited to a review of the written record of the Student Conduct Staff Hearing and supporting documents for one or more of the following purposes:
   1. To determine whether the Student Conduct Staff Hearing was conducted fairly in light of the charges and information presented, and in conformity with prescribed procedures giving the complaining party a reasonable opportunity to prepare and to present information that the Student Code was violated, and giving the Accused Student a reasonable opportunity to prepare and to present a response to those allegations. Deviations from designated procedures will not be a basis for sustaining an appeal unless significant prejudice results.
   2. To determine whether the decision reached regarding the Accused Student was based on substantial information, that is, whether there were facts in the case that, if believed by the fact finder, were sufficient to establish that a violation of the Student Code occurred.
   3. To determine whether the sanction(s) imposed were appropriate for the violation of the Student Code which the student was found to have committed.
   4. To consider new information, sufficient to alter a decision or other relevant facts not brought out in the original hearing, because such information and/or facts were not known to the person appealing at the time of the original Student Conduct Staff Hearing.
3. If an appeal is upheld by the Appellate Board, the decision rendered by the Appellate Board shall be considered final and binding upon all involved.
4. If an appeal is not upheld by the Appellate Board, the decision reached by the Student Conduct Staff will stand and will be considered final and binding by all involved.
5. Should the Student Judiciary hear an appellate case the decision rendered by the Judiciary shall be considered final and binding upon all involved.
6. Only in cases involving potential Residence Hall Suspension or Expulsion, or Suspension or Expulsion from the College the sanction may be appealed to the Vice President and Dean of Student Life.
7. If an appeal is not upheld once considered by the Vice President and Dean of Student Life, the matter shall be considered final and binding upon all involved.