The Undergraduate Honor Process

The Community of Trust
The Process
Who's Who in the Honor Council
The Hearing

The Honor process may seem complex, but there are many resources available to assist both the accused student and the accuser (person reporting the possible violation). Our flow chart will assist you in understanding the process from start to conclusion.

                           
The Community of Trust:

• Students, faculty and staff are all considered "stewards" of the community of trust. The Honor Code presumes that our community is trustworthy; thus, it is necessary to confront behavior before one reports a matter for review by the Council. Our process begins with a personal discussion (accusation) whereby the person observing the conduct asks for an explanation. Only if the explanation proves inadequate to negate the inference of a possible violation, should an official report be filed.

• If one is accused, the accused student should report him or herself to the Honor Council within 24 hours or resign from the College. Also, the accuser should forward a written version of the accusation to the Council within 24 hours.

The Process:

• The Procedural Advisor meets with the accused student and reviews his or her rights.

• The Chair appoints an investigating committee that has seven (7) days to investigate a case (unless given an extension by the Chair)

• If the Honor Council determines that there is insufficient evidence to proceed to a hearing or that the matter is trivial, the matter is dropped. Triviality may be determined by the Chair before an investigation takes place.
  

• A student is considered innocent until proven guilty. The hearing is the opportunity for the Council to review all relevant information and to question witnesses. If a student is declared not guilty, the matter is dropped. Only if a student is found guilty will the sanctioning portion take place.

• After the hearing, the Dean of Students (or designee) reviews the Honor Council outcome and meets with the accused student shortly after the hearing. The Dean will deliver the official written outcome to the student.

• The student has five working days from receiving the official written notification to file a written appeal of the decision. The appeal is directed to the Appeals committee which is appointed by the Vice President for Student Affairs.
  

Who's Who:

PA (Procedural Advisor):
Every student is provided with a Procedural Advisor. The PA is a member of the Council who will be with the accused student from start to finish. The accused student first meets their PA when he or she meets the Chair. At this meeting, the PA goes over the accused's rights and duties and the Chair explains more fully the terms of the accusation and the process itself. During the process, the PA is available via e-mail or cell phone for questions at any time. The PA is also present during the hearing to serve a variety of functions ranging from consultation to reading pre-written statements.

IC (Investigating Committee) and ICC (Investigating Committee Chair):
The IC is made up of three students from the Council. One of these students acts as the Chair of the committee...the ICC. The ICC is in contact with the accused student, the accuser, and all other third parties that might need to be interviewed. The IC's purpose is not to determine guilt or innocence -- their purpose is to collect as much information as possible, whether including interviews and collection of evidence. The goal of the IC is to make sure that, if the case at hand is to go on to a hearing, all relevant evidence will be put before the panel so that it can render a fair and appropriate decision.

SEP (Sufficent Evidence Panel):
The SEP is made up of three Council members previously uninvolved with the case. Once the IC report is completed, the SEP meets to evaluate whether or not there is enough evidence to warrant a hearing. If the SEP determines that there is not enough evidence, the case will be dismissed.

Hearing Panel:
The HC hearing panel is composed of six students who determine whether the student has violated the Code. If the panel determines that the student is guilty, it will issue sanctions for the violation as well. Five of the six panel members must agree that evidence beyond a reasonable doubt exists in order to find a student guilty. To determine sanctions, four of the six must agree.

Silent Counsel:
An accused student has the right to have a silent, non-participating person present at the hearing. This silent counsel can be legal counsel. The silent counsel cannot take part in the actual proceedings, but can advise the accused student throughout.

The Chair:
The Chair takes no part in the investigation, the determination of sufficent evidence, the verdict, or the sanction. The Chair's job is to provide advice, assign Council members to various procedural roles, and to Chair the panel. The Chair also works behind the scenes to ensure that the Honor process is followed in a timely and appropriate manner.

What if it Goes to a Hearing?

During the school year, hearings are conducted Monday through Thursday, generally in the early evening. Our hearing is comprised of two phases: the Verdict Hearing and the Sanctions Hearing (if necessary).

These two hearings are held on the same night.

The Verdict Hearing:
At the verdict hearing, six Council members serve as the panel. These individuals are charged with reviewing the evidence, asking questions during the hearing, and determining guilt and innocence. The accused student, the accuser, any material witnesses, the PA, the ICC, the Student Council (if requested), and the Chair are also present in the hearing. The ICC will conduct initial questioning of all involved parties. The accused student is also permitted to make an opening and closing statement. All parties may be questioned during the hearing, but there is no cross-examination as you would find in a court of law.

The Sanctions Hearing
If the panel finds the student guilty, we move immediately into a Sanctions Hearing. The only parties involved in the Sanctions Hearing are the Chair, the panel of six members, the accused student, the PA and the accused students' character witnesses, if any.

The accused student is allowed up to three character witnesses and/or letters written on the behalf of the accused. At this hearing, the panel is attempting to determine the appropriate sanction for the student. In accomplishing this, the panel reviews evidence of any mitigating and aggrivating circumstances, the student's prior record (if any), and the circumstances of the accused student and the offense.

The Honor Code instructs the panel that it first must determine whether separation from the College (in the form of a suspension or dismissal) is the appropriate sanction. Thus, the Council begins its inquiry at this starting point and may deviate from it only if significant mitigating or aggravating circumstances are present. Usually such factors are issues beyond the control of the student which the student could not have reasonably foreseen.

For more information regarding sanctions, please review our Sanctions section.