The student is required to furnish written consent for your access to information regarding the case or for discussing it with a staff member. This written consent can be acquired by completing a FERPA waiver specific to the case in question. The Office of Community Standards will communicate exclusively with the student and not through any intermediary. With the student's authorization, you may obtain copies of correspondence.
The standard of review used to determine responsibility is a “preponderance” standard. This determination is based on the greater weight of the information and does not require a standard beyond a reasonable doubt.
The Student Conduct Code allows attorneys to attend all disciplinary meetings and hearings as advisors. Advisors typically refrain from directly addressing hearing officers or board members, speaking during hearings, or questioning witnesses. You may offer guidance to your client as long as your involvement does not disrupt the proceedings.
There isn't a formal discovery process outlined in the Code of Student Conduct. Both parties have fair access to the case file. If you and your client wish to examine the case file, please have the student email conduct@36837a.com to schedule an appointment.
Depositions are not permitted according to the Code of Student Conduct. Prior to the hearing, neither party (nor their representatives) should make contact with the other party's witnesses. All inquiries to witnesses by the hearing officers occur during the proceedings.
The respondant can seek to delay the hearing for valid reasons. A written request for postponement, along with the supporting explanation, must be submitted to the Office of Community Standards (conduct@36837a.com) at least three University business days before the scheduled hearing. Acceptable grounds for postponement comprise instances such as a family bereavement, severe illness, academic obligations, or any other circumstances deemed suitable by the Office of Community Standards.
The student has the option to ask for a delay, but typically, ongoing criminal proceedings will not be considered a reason to delay a student disciplinary hearing. The university's procedure aims to ascertain whether a student has breached the Code of Student Conduct, not to establish whether they have broken the law.
The hearing requires the respondent's attendance. Should the respondent not attend without an excusable reason, the hearing may proceed without them. Alternatively, the Office of Community Standards may opt to charge the student under Section 8.11: Noncompliance of the Railsplitter Community Standards Guide.
An audio recording is made of each University hearing. The student can request a copy of the recording, but the Office of Community Standards does not provide transcripts and ratains the authoriity to deny a request for a hearing recording.
The student can appeal the finding and/or the sanction. Appeals are decided on the basis of the record and written submissions. Appeals under the Code of Student Conduct may be submitted on the following grounds:
A procedural error in the hearing of the case occurred that is found to be substantial enough to have changed the outcome of the hearing, including failure to objectively evaluate all relevant evidence or error(s) related to determination of relevance.
New information exists that was not reasonably available at the time the determination was made that is determined to be substantial enough to have changed the outcome of the hearing.