The Judicial Process

The Judicial Process exists under the guidance of the Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs/Dean of Students. Its primary objective is to contribute to the educational mission of the University of St. Francis by designing policies, enforcing the Code of Conduct, and fostering a respect for the rights of others by encouraging self discipline and focusing on the developmental needs of the individual student. In doing so, each student is given timely notification of alleged violations, is provided with the specific procedural operations, and has the opportunity to appeal. The Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs/Dean of Students acts as or appoints a judicial designee who shall be referred to as the “Chief Judicial Officer” or an assistant referred to as the “Judicial Officer.” The Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs/Dean of Students has the right to impose sanctions or take necessary disciplinary action when the situation endangers members of the University community or requires immediate action.

Filing a Charge

  1. Documentation of an alleged violation of the Code of Conduct must be presented in writing to the Chief Judicial Officer or his/her assistant. Proper documentation should include the following: date, time, and place of the alleged incident; student or students involved, and a description of the incident.
  2. Any student, faculty, administrator, or University staff, as well as Sodexho-Campus Food personnel may file a charge. It should be noted that the person filing the charge may be required to be present in cases which are appealed to the Conduct Board.
  3. Alleged violations occurring within the residence halls should be filed first with the Residence Life professional staff, except in cases that may require immediate removal of a student.
  4. In the event that the student or students referred to the Chief Judicial Officer for a violation of the Code of Conduct withdraw(s) from the University before the judicial process begins, an encumbrance may be placed on registration and the student may be required to resolve the issue before readmission to the University.
  5. Immediate disciplinary action may be taken by the Director of Residence Life, the Chief Judicial Officer, or the Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs/Dean of Students in circumstances where the incident includes law violations, personal harm, or any incident where immediate action is necessary.

Judicial Review

The Chief Judicial Officer will review each documented charge to determine if there is significant evidence that a violation has occurred. The Judicial Officer has the right to discard any accusations that are deemed insufficient. If the evidence is sufficient, then the student involved in the alleged violation will be notified of a disciplinary conference.

Disciplinary Conferences

If the evidence is sufficient, the student involved in the alleged violation will be notified, in writing, of the time and place of the disciplinary conference with a Judicial Officer at least three working days prior to the conference. Immediate notification may be given in incidents where there is a law violation, personal harm or where immediate action is necessary. Included in notifications will be a description of the alleged code of conduct violation(s) and the procedures of the disciplinary conference. The purpose of a disciplinary conference is to discuss the nature of the violation and the responsibility for the alleged code of conduct violation.

  1. A conference is held with the referred student during which the student is given an opportunity to discuss the allegations and to explain whether they are true, false, or inaccurate. Based on the student’s description the judicial officer may determine that the allegations are false or inaccurate or may decide to investigate the allegations in more depth. The judicial officer may also determine that the allegations are without merit and close the case. A Disciplinary Conference Findings Record form will be completed by the Judicial Officer and a copy will be provided to the student.
  2. If the student who has been referred to the Judicial Officer chooses not to appear at a scheduled Disciplinary Conference after receiving proper written notification, then the Judicial Officer has the right to render a decision and impose sanctions. The decision rendered will be based upon the documented facts and not the student’s failure to appear.
  3. If the violation(s) and the sanctions can be agreed upon between the referred student and the Judicial Officer then a Notification of Disciplinary Action will be drawn up by Judicial Officer and a copy will be provided to the student.
  4. If the referred student does not agree with the violation(s) and/or the sanctions, then the student may request an appeal to the Conduct Board for a Conduct Board Hearing.

Sanctions

If found responsible for violation of the University Code of Conduct and or policies, sanctions will be communicated in writing to the student containing information regarding the offense and sanction, fine, and time period of sanction.

Failure to comply with the University Code of Conduct and or policies may result in sanctions including, but not limited to monetary fines, community service, substance abuse treatment plans, suspension or expulsion from the residence halls or the University.

Appeals

If the referred student does not agree with the violation(s) and/or the sanctions, then the student may request an appeal to the Conduct Board for a Conduct Board Hearing. Request for appeal must be made in writing to the Chief Judicial Officer stating the reason(s) for appeal within three working days of receiving the Notification of Disciplinary Action. An appeal may be made to the Conduct Board if, and only if, at least one of the following criteria has been met:

  1. new evidence becomes present after the Disciplinary Conference
  2. the student found in violation believes that the sanctions are unjustly harsh
  3. the guidelines of the judicial process were not followed in a way that would have significantly altered the outcome

An appeal will be heard by the Conduct Board at a Conduct Board Hearing and a recommendation will be presented in writing to the Provost within 10 working days after the Conduct Board’s ruling. The Provost will then review the Conduct Board’s recommendation(s) and decide whether the recommendation(s) will be granted, modified or rejected. The Provost will have final authority in the matter.

Conduct Board Hearings

In the event of a Conduct Board Hearing, the student referred to the Conduct Board will be notified with a formal letter (Notification of Conduct Board Hearing) at least five working days prior to the hearing. A description of the alleged violations to the Code of Conduct and the procedure of the Conduct Board Hearing will be included in the formal letter.

The Conduct Board is made up of no less than three and no more than five students. A student will act as the board’s chair. A faculty or administrative member may be appointed by the Chief Judicial Officer if the incident involves another faculty member, staff or administrator. A majority is needed in all decisions when five students are present. When there is less than five, a consensus is necessary. The purpose of a Conduct Board Hearing is to review responsibility for an alleged violation and/or sanctions and make recommendation(s) to the Provost based upon documented facts and the referred student’s specific appeal request.

  1. The Conduct Board will be presided by a student (Conduct Board Chair) and advised by a judicial officer.
  2. The Judicial Officer will present the documented facts to the Conduct Board related to the alleged violation(s), decision rendered and the imposed sanctions.
  3. The Conduct Board will be impartial and will judge solely on the evidence being presented.
  4. The Conduct Board Hearing will be closed unless otherwise requested by the referred student and approved by the Chief Judicial Officer.
  5. The referred student may be accompanied by an advisor if desired; the role of the advisor will be limited to giving advice to the advisee and at no time will the advisor disrupt the process of the Conduct Board, and the advisor may not be an attorney
  6. The referred student may appear for the hearing during which the student is given an opportunity to present witnesses who may have information that is relevant to the case at hand; each witness is expected to provide truthful information.
  7. The referred student may also present any relevant material. The Judicial Officer should be informed of the nature and substance of the material evidence prior to the hearing.
  8. The referred student will be removed from the hearing procedures if conducting his or herself in a rude or disruptive manner; the Conduct Board Chair has the right to remove anyone from a Conduct Board Hearing.
  9. All proceedings, judgments, and recommended sanctions will remain confidential.
  10. The referred student will receive written notification in a timely manner of the outcome of the hearing after deliberation by the Conduct Board.
  11. If the student, who has requested an appeal before the Conduct Board, chooses not to appear before the Conduct Board after receiving proper written notification, then the Conduct Board has the right to review the request and make recommendation(s). The recommendation(s) will be based upon the documented facts and the referred student’s specific request and not the student’s failure to appear.

Student Grievance Policy

Students with grievances that involve academic issues should file those grievances with the Office of Academic Affairs.

All other grievances should be filed with the Student Affairs Office. The grievance must be in writing and contain all relevant information including dates, times, and persons involved.

All grievances including those with a USF administrator, University employee, or other personnel associated with USF will be presented to the Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs/Dean of Students for mediation. The Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs/Dean of Students will meet with the person presenting the grievance and gather other information as necessary before rendering a decision. If the action taken is not satisfactory, the person presenting the grievance may appeal to the Provost.

Students with grievances with another USF student should present their complaint to the USF Chief Judicial Officer. These grievances will be conducted through the Judicial Process.