Student Conduct Code

Based on the College’s Honor Code, students are expected abide by the policies and procedures regarding student activities and life at Catawba College, with an emphasis on character, culture, and service.

ARTICLE I: DEFINITIONS

The term college means Catawba College.
The term student includes all persons taking courses at the College, either full-time or part-time, pursuing undergraduate, graduate or professional studies. Persons who withdraw after allegedly violating the Student Code, who are not officially enrolled for a particular term but who have a continuing relationship with the College or who have been notified of their acceptance for admission are considered “students” as are persons who are living in College residence halls, although not enrolled in this institution.
The term faculty member means any person hired by the College to conduct classroom or teaching activities or who is otherwise considered by the College to be a member of its faculty.
The term college official includes any person employed by the College, performing assigned administrative or professional responsibilities.
The term member of the college community include any person who is a student, faculty member, College official or any other person employed by the College. A person’s status in a particular situation shall be determined by the Dean of Students. The term college premises includes all land, buildings, facilities and other property in the possession of or owned, used or controlled by the College (including adjacent streets and sidewalks).
The term organization means any number of persons who have complied with the formal requirements for College recognition as an organization.
The Student Conduct Board is a faculty and student hearing resource with jurisdiction over student cases that are non-academic in nature. This group consists of five (5) students and four (4) faculty and/or staff members.
The term Student Conduct Officer and Conduct Officer means a College official or officials authorized on a case-by-case basis by the Dean of Students to hold an administrative hearing and impose sanctions upon any student(s) found to have violated the Student Code.
The Appellate Board is a committee of four (4) faculty or staff and two (2) students that serve as a hearing resource for the student conduct process.
The appeals review process is a person or persons authorized by the Dean of Students to consider an appeal from a Student Conduct Hearing determination as to whether a student has violated the Student Code or from the sanctions imposed by the Student Conduct Board.
The term shall is used in the imperative sense.
The term may is used in the permissive sense.
The Dean of Students is that person designated by the College President to be responsible for the administration of the Student Code.
The term policy means the written regulations of the College as found in, but not limited to, the Student Code, Student Resource guide, the College web page and computer use policy and Graduate/Undergraduate Catalogs.
The term complainant means any person who submits a charge alleging that a student violated this Student Code. When a student believes that s/he has been a victim of another student’s misconduct, the student who believes s/he has been a victim will have the same rights under this Student Code as are provided to the Complainant, even if another member of the College community submitted the charge itself. The Student Conduct Administrator or student conduct board may serve as the complainant for any case.
The term accused student means any student accused of violating this Student Code.

ARTICLE II: STUDENT CODE AUTHORITY

The Student Conduct Administrator shall advise and assist in determining the composition of the Student Conduct Board and Appellate Board and assist in the determination of which
Student Conduct Hearing, Student Conduct Administrator and Appellate process shall be used to hear each matter.
The Dean of Students or his/her designee shall develop policies for the administration of the student conduct system and procedural rules for the conduct of Student Conduct Board Hearings that are consistent with provisions of the Student Code.

ARTICLE III: PROSCRIBED CONDUCT
A. Jurisdiction of the College Student Code
The College Student Code shall apply to conduct that occurs on College premises, at College sponsored activities and to off-campus conduct that adversely affects the College Community and/or the pursuit of its objectives. Each student shall be responsible for his/her conduct from the time of application for admission through the actual awarding of a degree, even though conduct may occur before classes begin or after classes end, as well as during the academic year and during periods between terms of actual enrollment (and even if their conduct is not discovered until after a degree is awarded). The Student Code shall apply to a student’s conduct even if the student withdraws from school while a disciplinary matter is pending. The Dean of Students or designee shall decide whether the Student Code shall be applied to conduct occurring off campus, on a case-by-case basis, in his/her sole discretion.

B. Conduct—Rules and Regulations
Any student found to have committed or to have attempted to commit the following misconduct is subject to the disciplinary sanctions outlined in Article IV:

Acts of dishonesty, including but not limited to the following:
a. Cheating, plagiarism, lying about academic work or other forms of academic dishonesty.
b. Furnishing false information to any College official, faculty member or office.
c. Forgery, alteration, or misuse of any College document, record or instrument of identification.
Disruption or obstruction of teaching, research, administration, disciplinary proceedings and other College activities, including its public service functions on or off campus or of otherauthorized non-College activities when the conduct occurs on College premises.
Physical abuse, verbal abuse, threats, intimidation, harassment, coercion and/or other conduct which threatens or endangers the health or safety of any person.
Violation of College policy against sexual violence specific to any sexual act that is perpetrated against someone’s will. Sexual violence encompasses a range of offenses, including a completed nonconsensual sex act (i.e., rape), an attempted nonconsensual sex act, abusive sexual contact (i.e., unwanted touching), and non-contact sexual abuse (e.g., threatened sexual violence, exhibitionism, verbal sexual harassment).
Attempted or actual theft of and/or damage to property of the College or property of a member of the College community or other personal or public property, on or off campus and/or possession of stolen property.
Hazing, defined as an act which endangers the mental or physical health or safety of a student or which destroys or removes public or private property, for the purpose of initiation, admission into, affiliation with or as a condition for continued membership in, a group or organization. The expressed or implied consent of the victim will not be a defense. Apathy or acquiescence in the presence of hazing are not neutral acts; they are violations of this rule. Any individual or group found responsible for hazing will be subject to sanctions outlined in the Student Conduct Code, including but not limited to probation, social suspension, suspension/ revocation of charter, restrictions on member recruitment and/or group activity, removal of the individual from the group, loss of housing privileges or expulsion. Hazing is also a misdemeanor under North Carolina law.
Failure to comply with directions of College officials or law enforcement officers acting in performance of their duties and/or failure to identify oneself to these persons when requested to do so.
Unauthorized possession, duplication or use of keys to any College premises or unauthorized entry to or use of College premises.
Violation of any College policy, rule or regulation published in hard copy or available electronically on the College website to include Housing and Residential Life Policies and Procedures and the College Alcohol Policy and Regulations.
Violation of any federal, state or local law.
Use, possession, manufacturing or distribution of marijuana, heroin, narcotics or other controlled substances except as expressly permitted by law.
Use, possession, manufacturing, or distribution of alcoholic beverages (except as expressly permitted by College regulations) or public intoxication. Alcoholic beverages may not, in any circumstance, be used by, possessed by or distributed to any person under twenty-one (21) years of age.
Violation of College policy against the possession of weapons on campus, including but not limited to firearms, explosives, other weapons or dangerous chemicals, when not used solely for instructional or College-sanctioned ceremonial purposes.
Participating in an on-campus or off-campus demonstration, riot or activity that disrupts the normal operations of the College and/or infringes on the rights of other members of the College community; leading or inciting others to disrupt scheduled and/or normal activities within any campus building or area.
Obstruction of the free flow of pedestrian or vehicular traffic on College premises or at College sponsored or supervised functions.
Conduct that is disorderly, lewd or indecent; breach of peace; or aiding, abetting or procuring
a. another person to breach the peace on College premises or at functions sponsored by, or
b. participated in by, the College or members of the academic community. Disorderly Conduct
c. includes but is not limited to: any unauthorized use of electronic or other devices to make an
d. audio or video record of any person while on College premises without his/her prior knowledge or without his/her effective consent when such a recording is likely to cause injury or distress. This includes, but is not limited to, surreptitiously taking pictures of another
e. person in a gym, locker room or restroom.
Theft or other abuse of computer facilities and resources, including but not limited to:
a. Unauthorized entry into a file, to use, read or change the contents or for any other purpose.
b. Unauthorized transfer of a file.
c. Use of another individual’s identification and/or password.
d. Use of computing facilities and resources to interfere with the work of another student, faculty member or College Official.
e. Use of computing facilities and resources to send obscene or abusive messages.
f. Use of computing facilities and resources to interfere with normal operation of the College computing system.
g. Use of computing facilities and resources in violation of copyright laws.
h. Any violation of the College Computer Use Policy.
Abuse of the Student Conduct System, including but not limited to:
a. Failure to obey the notice from a Student Conduct Board or College official to appear for a meeting or hearing as part of the Student Conduct System.
b. Falsification, distortion or misrepresentation of information before a Student Conduct Board.
c. Disruption or interference with the orderly conduct of a Student Conduct Board proceeding.
d. Institution of a student conduct code proceeding in bad faith.
e. Attempting to discourage an individual’s participation in, or use of, the student conduct system.
f. Attempting to influence the impartiality of a member of a Student Conduct Board prior to, and/or during the course of, the Student Conduct Board proceeding.
g. Harassment (verbal or physical) and/or intimidation of a member of a Student Conduct Board prior to, during, and/or after a student conduct code proceeding.
h. Failure to comply with the sanction(s) imposed under the Student Code.
i. Influencing or attempting to influence another person to commit an abuse of the Student Conduct code system.
Students are required to engage in responsible social conduct that reflects credit upon the College community and to model good citizenship in any community.
Breaking a vertical plane of a window, balcony, breezeway or similar structure is not permitted. Unauthorized access to rooftops would be classified as an endangerment of one’s self and so would be a violation.

C. Violation of Law and College Discipline

College disciplinary proceedings may be instituted against a student charged with conduct that potentially violates both the criminal law and this Student Code (that is, if both possible violations result from the same factual situation) without regard to the pendency of civil or criminal litigation in court or criminal arrest and prosecution. Proceedings under this Student Code may be carried out prior to, simultaneously with or following civil or criminal proceedings off campus at the discretion of the Dean of Students. Determinations made or sanctions imposed under this Student Code shall not be subject to change because criminal charges arising out of the same facts giving rise to violation of College rules were dismissed, reduced or resolved in favor of or against the criminal law defendant.
When a student is charged by federal, state or local authorities with a violation of law, the College will not request or agree to special consideration for that individual because of his or her status as a student. If the alleged offense is also being processed under the Student Code, the College may advise off-campus authorities of the existence of the Student Code and of how such matters are typically handled within the College community. The College will attempt to cooperate with law enforcement and other agencies in the enforcement of criminal law on campus and in the conditions imposed by criminal courts for the rehabilitation of student violators (provided that the conditions do not conflict with campus rules or sanctions). Individual students and other members of the College community, acting in their personal capacities, remain free to interact with governmental representatives as they deem appropriate.
The College reserves the right to file a criminal complaint with the proper law enforcement officials for any alleged violation of federal or state law.

ARTICLE IV: STUDENT CONDUCT CODE PROCEDURES
A. Charges and Student Conduct Board Hearings

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 one week.
Student Conduct Administrator/Designated Conduct Officer(s) may investigate to determine if the charges have merit and/or if they can be disposed of administratively by mutual consent of the parties involved. If the charges are not admitted and/or cannot be disposed of by mutual consent, the Student Conduct Administrator/Conduct Officer may later serve in the same matter as the Student Conduct Board. If the student violates institutional rules, but sanctions are not agreed to, subsequent process, including a hearing if necessary, shall be limited to determining the appropriate sanction(s).
All charges shall be presented to the Accused Student in written form. A time shall be set for a Student Conduct Hearing, not less than two calendar days after the student has been notified.
All notification of student conduct hearings will be issued in email at least two weekdays prior to any proceedings. All students are responsible for checking email regularly.
Student Conduct Hearings shall be conducted by a Student Conduct Board according to the following guidelines except as provided by article IV(A)(7) below:
Student Conduct Hearings normally shall be conducted in private.
a. The Complainant, Accused Student and their advisors, if any, shall be allowed to attend the entire portion of the Student Conduct Hearing at which information is received
(excluding deliberations). Admission of any other person to the Student Conduct Hearing shall be at the discretion of the Student Conduct Board and/or the Student Conduct Administrator.
b. In Student Conduct Hearings involving more than one Accused Student, the Dean of Students, in his or her discretion, may permit the Student Conduct Hearings concerning each student to be conducted either separately or jointly.
c. 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. 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 Hearing before a Student Conduct Board or Conduct Administrator. A student should select as an advisor a person whose schedule allows attendance at the scheduled date and time for the Student Conduct Hearing because delays will not normally be allowed due to the scheduling conflicts of an advisor. All Advisors must be approved at least one day before the hearing by the Student Conduct Administrator or his/her designee.
d. The Complainant, the Accused Student and the Conduct Hearing Officer may arrange for witnesses to present pertinent information to the Student Conduct Hearing. The College will try to arrange the attendance of possible witnesses who are members of the College community, if reasonably possible, and who are identified by the Complainant and/or Accused Student at least two weekdays prior to the Student Conduct Hearing. Witnesses will provide information to and answer questions from the hearing administrator(s). Questions may be suggested by the Accused Student and/or Complainant to be answered by each other or by other witnesses. This will be conducted by the Student Conduct Hearing Officer with such questions directed to the chairperson, rather than to the witness directly. This method is used to preserve the educational tone of the hearing and to avoid creation of an adversarial environment. Questions of whether potential information will be received shall be resolved in the discretion of the Student Conduct Administrator or chairperson of the Student Conduct Board.
e. Pertinent records, exhibits and any written statements may be accepted as information
for consideration at a Student Conduct Hearing at the discretion of the administrator or
board chairperson.
f. Only information presented during a Student Conduct hearing may be considered in
determining student responsibility and/or violations.
g. All procedural questions are subject to the final decision of the Dean of Students.
h. After the portion of the Student Conduct Hearing concludes in which all pertinent
information has been received, the Conduct Administrator or Student Conduct Board
shall determine (by majority vote if heard by the Student Conduct Board) whether the
Accused Student has violated each section of the Student Code which the student is charged with violating.
i. The determination of responsibility shall be made on the basis of whether it is more likely than not that the Accused Student violated the Student Code.
j. 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.
There shall be a single record, such as a tape recording, notes or completed forms, of all Student Conduct Board Hearings. Deliberations shall not be recorded. The record shall be the property of the College.
If an Accused Student, with notice, does not appear for a Student Conduct Hearing, the information in support of the charges shall be presented and considered even if the Accused Student is not present.
The Student Conduct Administrator and/or Student Conduct Board 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 Dean of Students to be appropriate.

B. The Student Conduct Board

The Student Conduct Board is comprised of five (5) students and four (4) faculty and/or staff members.
A Student Conduct Board hearing shall consist of at least three (3) students and two (2) faculty and/or staff members for no less than five (5) members to maintain a hearing quorum.
Any student is eligible to apply or be nominated for a Student Conduct Board position upon notification of a board vacancy.
To be eligible to serve on the Student Conduct Board students must maintain at least a 2.2 cumulative GPA, be enrolled as a Catawba College student (three (3) hours or more), have no major conduct or dishonesty violations. In addition, members of the Student Government Association and Resident Assistant staff are not eligible to serve on the Student Conduct Board.
All students applying for a Student Conduct Board vacancy will complete an application form and give the Student Conduct Advisory Board permission to review their academic and social files.
The Student Conduct Board will be selected by the Advisory Board consisting of the Student Conduct Administrator, a Student Government Executive Officer, a faculty member and the Dean of Students for four (4) board members.
Student Conduct Board members will be selected to serve for the duration of the current academic year.
Student Conduct Board members will be prohibited from serving on a student conduct hearing if the Dean of Students or board chairperson determines that a conflict of interest may exist.
Student Conduct Board members may be removed at any time by the advisory board for violation of the academic or conduct policy, violation of confidentiality, failure to attend scheduled conduct board training or meetings, failure to maintain a 2.2 cumulative GPA, and other reasons as determined by the advisory board.
The Dean of Students or his or her designee will coordinate, train, manage, and advise the Student Conduct Board with the option to be present during the hearing.
The findings and sanctions from a Student Conduct Board Hearing are a recommendation and the Dean of Students will still have Executive Authority to make the final decision.

C. Sanctions

1. The following sanctions may be imposed upon any student found to have violated the Student Code:

Warning—A notice in writing to the student that the student is violating or has violated institutional regulations.
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.
Loss of Privileges—Denial of specified privileges for a designated period of time.
Fines—previously established and published fines may be imposed.
Restitution—Compensation for loss, damage or injury. This may take the form of
appropriate service and/or monetary or material replacement.
Discretionary Sanctions—Work assignments, essays, service to the College or other related discretionary assignments. Failure to complete assigned service and/or work assignments will result in a $25 per hour charge of hours not completed.
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.
Residence Hall Expulsion—Permanent separation of the student from the residence halls.
Social 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.
College Expulsion—Permanent separation of the student from the College.
Revocation of Admission and/or Degree—Admission to or a degree awarded from the College may be revoked for fraud, misrepresentation or other violation of College standards in obtaining the degree or for other serious violations committed by a student prior to graduation.
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.

2. More than one of the sanctions listed above may be imposed for any single violation.

3. Failure to complete sanctions will result in a $50 fine per sanction not complete, unless otherwise noted above.
4. Policy regarding records of sanctions:

Other than College expulsion or revocation or withholding of a degree, disciplinary
sanctions shall not be made part of the student’s permanent academic record, but shall become part of the student’s disciplinary record. Upon graduation, the student’s disciplinary record may be expunged of disciplinary actions other than College suspension, College expulsion or revocation or withholding of a degree, upon application to the Student Conduct Administrator. Cases involving the imposition of sanctions other than College suspension, College expulsion or revocation or withholding of a degree shall be expunged from the student’s confidential record five (5) years after graduation or withdrawal from the College.
In situations involving both an Accused Student(s) (or group or organization) and a process and of the sanctions imposed, if any, shall be considered to be the education records of both the Accused Student(s) and the student(s) claiming to be the victim because the educational career and chances of success in the academic community of each may be impacted.

5. The following sanctions may be imposed upon groups or organizations:

Those sanctions listed above in article IV(C)(1)(a)–(e).
Loss of selected rights and privileges for a specified period of time.
Deactivation. Loss of all privileges, including College recognition, for a specified period of time.

6. In each case in which a Student Conduct 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 hearing administrator(s). In cases in which persons other than, or in addition to, the Student Conduct Administrator have been authorized to serve as the Student Conduct Board, the recommendation of the Student Conduct Board 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 Board. Following the Student Conduct Board hearing, the Student Conduct Board and the Student Conduct Administrator shall advise the Accused Student, group and/or organization (and a complaining student who believes s/he was the victim of another student’s conduct) in writing of its determination and of the sanction(s) imposed, if any.

D. Interim Suspension
In certain circumstances, the Dean of Students, or a designee, may impose a College or residence hall suspension prior to the Student Conduct hearing.

Interim suspension may be imposed only:
- a. to ensure the safety and well-being of members of the College community or preservation of College property;
- b. to ensure the student’s own physical or emotional safety and well-being; or
- c. if the student poses an ongoing threat of disruption of, or interference with, the normal operations of the College.
During the interim suspension, a student shall be denied access to the residence halls and/or to the campus (including classes) and/or all other College activities or privileges for which the student might otherwise be eligible, as the Dean of Students or the Student Conduct Administrator may determine to be appropriate.
The interim suspension does not replace the regular process, which shall proceed on the normal schedule, up to and through a Student Conduct Board hearing, if required.

E. Appeals

A decision reached in the Student Conduct hearing may be appealed by the Accused Student(s) or Complainant(s) to an Appellate Hearing within two (2) school days of the decision. Such appeals shall be in writing and shall be delivered to the Student Conduct Administrator or his/her designee.
Except as required to explain the basis of new information, an appeal shall be limited to a review of the verbatim record of the Student Conduct Hearing and supporting documents for one or more of the following purposes:
- a. To determine whether the Student Conduct 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.
- b. 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.
- c. 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 hearing.
When a request for appeal is submitted, an appeals hearing will first determine whether or not the appeal meets the guidelines listed above and if an appeal hearing will be granted. When an appeal is denied, the hearing will not consider further information or review the process or findings from the original student conduct hearing and will be considered final.
When a request for appeal is granted, an Appeal hearing will review all Student Conduct hearing findings and will have the authority to reverse a decision or revise the sanctions issued. Upon the decision of the Appeals hearing, the Dean of Students will still have Executive Authority to make the final decision.

5. Appellate Board:
- a. The appellate board is a resource for hearing a student conduct appeal.
- b. The appellate board shall consist of two (2) faculty, two (2) staff and two (2) student members. These members may not serve concurrently on the Student Conduct Board.
- c. The faculty and staff members will be selected by the Student Conduct Administrator in consultation with the Dean of Students.
- d. The student members will be selected by the Student Conduct Advisory Board and under the same guidelines as specified above in IV(B).
- e. An Appellate Board hearing shall consist of at least three (3) members; one (1) student, one (1) faculty and one (1) staff member for no less than three (3) members to maintain a hearing quorum.

ARTICLE V: INTERPRETATION AND REVISION
Any question of interpretation or application of the Student Code shall be referred to the Dean of Students or his or her designee for final determination. The Student Code shall be reviewed every three (3) years under the direction of the Student Conduct Administrator.

Executive Authority
To maintain discipline and promote safety in the College community, the Dean of Students may exercise his/her authority to act against an individual student or organization as an alternative or in addition to the procedures outlined in the Student Conduct Code when he/ she believes such action is warranted.

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