Student Conduct Code: Rights and Responsibilities

Mission Statement

The mission of student judicial affairs is to foster a campus community that supports students, faculty, and staff in pursuing their educational and vocational goals in an environment that promotes concern for the well-being of others, collaborative learning and respect. By observing the guiding principles of the College's mission statement and core values, we intend to work with students and hearing participants to maintain a system that seeks to determine the truth through a transparent and consistent process that is in compliance with local, state, and federal regulations and the Guilford College Handbook. We intend, through the judicial system, to promote accountability, self-governance, respect, personal and institutional integrity, honesty, and citizenship.

Values Statement

The administration of student conduct at Guilford College implements judicial and academic policies through a process that addresses the impact on the community for the purposes of uncovering the truth and restoring the community with the goal of holding students accountable to their responsibilities as defined in the handbook.

We value…

Community. We are committed to the cultivation of positive relationships between, and common experiences among, students, faculty and staff.

Diversity. We are committed to creating an academic institution where a variety of persons and perspectives are welcome. We are committed to providing an environment where students from all cultures and backgrounds may succeed.

Equality. We are committed to creating an institution and a society where everyone is appreciated and judges based on their contributions and performance rather than gender, race, religion, sexual identity, or socio-economic condition. Through the work of this institution we will both create awareness of and work especially to eliminate individual and institutional racism.

Excellence. We are committed to setting high standards of academic rigor in courses and creating high expectations for achievement by everyone. We seek the personal and intellectual transformation of our students.

Integrity. We are committed to creating a community that acts with honesty and forthrightness, holding ourselves to high academic and ethical standards, and dealing with everyone with respect.

Justice. We are committed to peaceful resolution of conflict, sharing of economic and natural resources, and parity in educational opportunity.

Stewardship. We are committed to making decisions that will ensure long-term survival of this institution. We must maximize the values of our human, financial, and physical resources in ways consistent with our Quaker heritage.

Self-Governance and Personal Freedom

We recognize that students are adults and therefore should receive the respect and assume the responsibilities that come with this status. We recognize that many students come directly from home and secondary school environments that are much more structured than life at Guilford. Personal freedom is both an opportunity and a challenge. We ask students at Guilford to assume the following responsibilities:

  • Take ownership of their actions and expressions of opinion
  • Insure that their actions or the actions of others do not infringe upon the rights of others or the fundamental integrity of the living and learning environment that is Guilford College
  • Respect the rights of others to the same freedom of expression claimed for themselves through civil discourse regardless of disagreement on matters of substance, taste, politics or evidence.

The Office for Campus Life does not police its students nor act in loco parentis. We do, however, observe and respond to student behavior, and offer guidance, advice and counsel in assisting students to make decisions that impact themselves and the community. We expect students to comply with the core values of the college and the policies set forth in the Student Handbook. At times we intervene in the lives of students to assist in setting boundaries, especially for those who are unable or unwilling to exercise personal freedom responsibly.

Off-Campus Behavior

Although the college is not legally responsible or financially liable for the behavior of students off-campus, it does reserve the right to take disciplinary action against students when their off-campus behavior violates college expectations and policies or when it impacts the college community. Students participating in Guilford College off campus programs at Guilford College Study Abroad programs are bound by the policies contained in the Student Handbook.

Disciplinary Authority

The dean of students is designated by the college's president to be responsible for the administration of student conduct. The dean of students, in consultation with students, faculty and staff, shall develop policies for the administration of campus discipline. The Community Senate Judicial Committee, along with several additional faculty and staff members, will normally review the policies and procedures and recommend changes to the dean of students.

Restorative Justice at Guilford

Restorative Justice practices such as conferencing and circles are currently used within the Guilford College judicial system. Such practices as these refocus the emphasis of the judicial process on repairing whatever harm might have been done during an incident rather than on punishing a student because a violation of the Student Conduct Code occurred. These practices offer opportunities for the members of the community who might have been impacted by an incident to be involved in the judicial process, for a responsible student to be reintegrated into the community, and to engage those found responsible in active, rather than passive, means of resolving conflict.

Adjudication and Resolution

Depending upon the nature of the violation, the following methods of adjudication will be utilized to resolve any allegations:

  1. Informal Resolution. In some instances, incidents and/or allegations are most appropriately resolved in a manner not resulting in formal judicial charges, including, but not limited to, voluntary resolution with the Conflict Resolution Resource Center (CRRC), restorative conferencing and circles, meeting with the director of counseling services, and/or other faculty/staff or other campus or off-campus resources as appropriate.
  2. Administrative Hearing. An administrative hearing is conducted by a Campus Life administrator to adjudicate all Level I violations, violations where responsibility is freely admitted, and/or where there is no dispute of fact. In cases where separation from the college is a likely outcome, the associate dean for campus life hears cases and the dean for campus life hears the appeals. (See C.A.P. under Student Conduct Code definitions)
  3. The Judicial Board. A body of five (5) students and two (2) faculty members who serve as the Judicial Board to adjudicate alleged Level II or Level III violations of the Student Conduct Code where students do not accept responsibility for the violations. If necessary, the dean for campus life may appoint a committee of five, composed of three students and two faculty members, to handle any judicial matters that arise during the summer or after April 1 during the academic year. If such a board cannot be gathered, the matter will be handled administratively under normal guidelines.

Judicial Procedures

Incident Documentation

The judicial process at Guilford begins with "incident reports" which are submitted by public safety officers or Campus Life staff (Judicial Affairs, Residence Life or RAs/HDs) which document incidents occurring on campus involving potential violations of the Student Conduct Code and/or concerns for the health and safety of members of the community.

Judicial Affairs staff members, in collaboration with the Office of Public Safety, review the submitted incident reports to determine whether judicial charges, additional investigation or referral to other offices on campus is warranted.

Individual members of the college community who believe a violation of the Student Conduct Code has occurred should file a written statement with the Office of Public Safety or the Office for Campus Life.

Judicial Meetings, Administrative Hearings and Judicial Board Hearings

The judicial process follows procedures to ensure basic fairness regardless of the method of adjudication. Anyone other than Guilford College trained judicial advocates or interpreters may not assist students during judicial proceedings (i.e. attorneys, parents, guardians, faculty members, coaching staff, etc). The following procedures are followed in all judicial proceedings:

    1. After an initial incident report has been reviewed by the Office for Campus Life, any students identified as being involved in the incident will receive an email to their Guilford College account within thirty (30) business days (excluding college holidays and breaks) of their identification as a party to the incident. This email will contain the following information:
      • the date and time of the documented incident
      • any pending charges as indicated under "violations" in the Student Handbook
      • a date and time to attend a "Judicial Meeting" with one of the hearing officers to discuss the pending charges
      • links to general information about the college's judicial processes
    2. During the Judicial Meeting students will receive a full explanation of college judicial procedures and have an opportunity to discuss the pending charges with the hearing officer. In cases where students are found responsible, an Administrative Hearing will be the next step in the process. Students may elect to have the hearing immediately following the Judicial Meeting or to return within five (5) working days for the hearing. Most frequently, the Administrative Hearing occurs as soon as the Judicial Meeting has been concluded and the hearing officer is ready to make a determination about responsibility. Students do have the right to delay the Administrative Hearing as long as the hearing is concluded within five (5) working days of the Judicial Meeting. (See C.A.P. under Student Conduct Code definitions)
    3. For all Level I violations, the charges will be resolved in an Administrative Hearing and the hearing officer will assign sanctions as outlined in the Student Handbook. While Level I violations may only be adjudicated in this manner, students may seek any judicial advocacy assistance needed by contacting Will Pizio by telephone at 316-2418, via email at wpizio@guilford.edu or by visiting him in King Hall room B28-B.
    4. For Level II and III violations where a student does not accept responsibility, facts are in dispute, or separation from the college is a likely outcome, students will be referred to a faculty judicial advocate and will make a decision about whether they wish to proceed with an Administrative Hearing or a Judicial Board hearing.
    5. If the case is referred to the Judicial Board, all parties (both accused and complainant) will receive notice of the time and place of the board hearing at least three (3) working days (excluding college holidays and breaks) in advance of the hearing.
      1. Parties must submit a list of witnesses and/or any written materials for board review to the Director of Student Judicial Affairs at least three (3) working days (excluding college holidays and breaks) before the hearing.
      2. The judicial board hearing moderator will review all evidence and determine admissibility. Evidence may be excluded due to hearsay, relevance, redundancy, etc.
      3. Due to federal privacy laws, evidence packets will only be reviewed by students under the supervision of college officials. This serves to prevent the copying and dissemination of federally protected information.
      4. At the Judicial Board hearing, the following procedures occur:

Commencing a Complaint. The college's judicial process determines an individual's status as a Guilford student. It is not the appropriate venue for individuals to bring complaints against one another or the larger community. Individuals who believe a violation of the Student Conduct Code has occurred should file a written Incident Report with the Office of Public Safety or the Office for Campus Life. The Office for Campus Life, based on reports from individuals or the Office of Public Safety, initiates complaints. Complaints are reviewed by the dean of students, his/her designees and the Office of Public Safety to determine applicable alleged violations.

Hearing Procedures. The judicial process follows procedures to ensure basic fairness regardless of the method of adjudication. Anyone other than Guilford College trained judicial advocates or interpreters may not assist students during judicial proceedings (i..e. attorneys, parents, guardians, faculty members, etc.). The following procedures are followed in all judicial proceedings:

    1. The student will be provided a written notice of formal charges filed not more than thirty (30) working days (excluding college holidays and breaks) after an initial incident report has been received and reviewed by the Office for Campus Life and/or the identity of the accused student becomes known to the Office for Campus Life. This notice will specify the nature and origin of the charges as well as contain a link to information about the student advocacy program.

    2. A member of the Office for Campus Life staff will meet with the accused at least three working days (excluding college holidays and breaks) in advance of any judicial hearing. In this meeting, the accused will receive full explanation of college judicial procedures. If appropriate, the accused may elect to resolve the charges in an administrative hearing, or the accused may be instructed that his/her case will be referred to a board for adjudication.

    3. If the accused elects to resolve the charges in an administrative hearing, a member of the Office for Campus Life staff will impose an administrative sanction.

    4. If the case is referred to the Judicial Board, all parties (both accused and complainant) will receive notice of the time and place of the board hearing at least three working days (excluding college holidays and breaks) in advance of the hearing.
      1. Parties must submit a list of witnesses and/or any written materials for board review to the associate dean for campus life at least three (3) working days (excluding college holidays and breaks) before the hearing.
      2. The judicial board hearing moderator will review all evidence and determine admissibility. Evidence may be excluded due to hearsay, relevance, redundancy, etc.
      3. Due to federal privacy laws, evidence packets will only be reviewed by students under the supervision of college officials. This serves to prevent the copying and dissemination of federally protected information.
      4. At the Judicial Board hearing, the following procedures occur:
        1. The Judicial Board convenes.
        2. Each party may file a request for removal of one member of the board.
        3. Both the college and the student have the right to review all evidence and testimony that may affect the decision of the board.
        4. Both the college and the student have the right to refute evidence, to introduce evidence and to summon witnesses on their behalf unless they waive these rights.
        5. The board, by consensus, renders a decision based on the "preponderance of the evidence" rather than "beyond a reasonable doubt."

    5. The student can file an appeal under specific established appellate guidelines outlined in The Appeals Process section of the Guilford College Student Handbook.

 

Rights of students choosing a Judicial Board Hearing

1. To have adequate access to a judicial advocate through the JPS department as well as adequate time in which to make a decision about the choice between an Administrative Hearing and a Judicial Board Hearing.

2. To have ample opportunity prior to the hearing to review all documents and materials to come before the Board through the judicial advocate.

3. To have adequate time to prepare a statement with the assistance and guidance of the advocate.

4. To appear in person and present information on his/her own behalf, call witnesses and ask questions of those present at the hearing.

5. To not be presumed responsible until "clear and convincing" evidence indicates otherwise.

6. To receive the following from the advocate: advice on presentation of a defense, accompaniment during all Judicial Hearings and advice on the presentation of any appeal.

7. To be safeguarded against criminal self-incrimination.

8. To waive any rights contained in this section.

9. To have character witnesses speak on the student's behalf during the sanctioning phase of a hearing, should the student be found responsible.

Note: All outstanding judicial charges must be resolved before a student can graduate from the college or before a withdrawn student can be readmitted to the college. Students with unresolved judicial charges and/or sanctions may have a judicial hold placed on their account resulting in the inability to receive transcripts, register for classes, sign up for college housing or graduate.

Records of Judicial Hearings

Judicial records are created for all student cases in which disciplinary or academic honor code charges are alleged. These records include disciplinary reprimands; administrative hearings and judicial records of student disciplinary or academic honor cases where the student has been found responsible are maintained in the Office for Campus Life.

These records are maintained and purged according to the following guidelines:

  • Records involving cases in which the student was charged and found not responsible or in which charges were subsequently dropped are not retained in the student's official judicial records.
  • Records involving cases in which a finding of responsible was determined are held in the official judicial records at the college on the following basis:
    • Disciplinary reprimands are kept for one calendar year (12 months from the date of incident) in the official judicial records.
    • Records for cases resulting in an Administrative Hearing or a Judicial Board Hearing where a responsible outcome was determined are held in the official judicial records for seven calendar years beyond the hearing date. Records are purged during the summer after the seventh year.
    • Records for cases resulting in disciplinary suspension or dismissal from the college are retained indefinitely at the college's discretion.

All disciplinary and honor code violation records are considered confidential and are accessed and released in accordance with the provisions of the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA). For internal college proceedings, authorized officials of the college will be provided access to records as necessary to their official duties in accordance with FERPA. Otherwise such records are released only upon the written permission of the student.

Note: Proceedings of administrative or judicial board hearings may be audio or videotaped to ensure consistency and fairness.