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The Judicial Process

If the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities reviews information and determines that a student may have violated the Student Conduct Code, a charge letter is created and sent to the student initiating the judicial process. The following chart demonstrates the most typical steps which students may encounter within the judicial process.

Charge Notification Letter Informal Hearing Formal Hearing Decision Letter

Charge Letter

A charge letter is the document that a student will receive if he/she has allegedly violated the Student Conduct Code. A student must call the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities at 644-5136 within 5 class days of receiving the charge letter to set up an appointment for an information session.

Information Session

An information session is an informal meeting with a representative from the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities who will explain to a student his/her rights, discuss hearing options, and answer any questions. It is NOT a hearing, but an opportunity for a student to become more informed of the judicial process.

Hearing

Typically, students may choose both their hearing type and hearing body. The Student Conduct Code provides for two distinct types of hearings, informal and formal.

Informal Hearings

Informal hearings are best suited for cases involving few questions of fact. They can typically be scheduled quickly, at the convenience of both the charged student and the hearing body. In an informal hearing, the University does not automatically call witnesses to support the charges. However, the charged student may call witnesses and present evidence.  The hearing body may gather any additional information needed, including calling witnesses. If additional information is needed, the charged student will be notified.

Formal Hearings

Formal hearings are most appropriate for cases involving more serious alleged violations of the Student Conduct Code. Formal hearings require the hearing body to call appropriate witnesses to provide information in support of the charges. Formal hearings are held no sooner than five class days after notice is given to the charged student. The hearings are tape recorded and this recording serves as the official record of the proceedings.

The following order of presentation is recommended for use in formal hearings. The hearing body may change the order if necessary.

  1. Presentation of formal charges.
  2. Opening statement by the University, followed by the opening statement of the charged student.
  3. Presentation of evidence and witnesses by the University, followed by questioning of those witnesses by the hearing body and the charged student. Witnesses are then dismissed.
  4. Presentation of evidence and witnesses by the charged student, followed by questioning of those witnesses by the charged student and the hearing body. Witnesses are then dismissed.
  5. Questions directed to the charged student by the hearing body.
  6. Closing statement by the University, followed by the closing statement of the charged student.

Decision Letter

Upon conclusion of the hearing, the hearing body will make a dermination of "responsible" or "not responsible" for each charge. If a decision of responsible is reached, the hearing body will craft a set of educational sanctions for the student to complete in order to fulfill the judicial process. These sanctions will be detailed in the decision letter along with a deadline for completion. If the deadline is not met, a judicial hold may be placed on a student's University records.