Other sections of the Code of Conduct:
I. General Information
In this section of the Code of Conduct:
From the official policy website https://charleston.edu/policy/ and retaining the policy website numbering system.
A. Scope and Jurisdiction of the Student Honor Code and Code of Conduct
- The Student Honor Code and Code of Conduct are applicable to any student enrolled in an academic course or program, regardless of credits carried, including but not limited to degree programs, pre-college, non-degree seeking, non-credit bearing programs. These Codes and this Procedure also apply to the Bridge, SPECTRA, and I-Charleston Programs and their participants. Each student shall be responsible for personal conduct from the time of enrollment until the actual awarding of a degree even though that 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. In addition, if a student is admitted and the College receives information that they have engaged in conduct that may impact the safety and/or health of any members of our campus community, including faculty, staff and/or students, then the applicable policies of the Office of Admissions shall apply. More information about the Office of Admissions policy can be found here: https://charleston.edu/policy/documents/8.1.5.pdf
- The Student Honor Code and Code of Conduct also apply to College of Charleston student organizations and groups. Separate procedures and sanctions for student organizations and groups are outlined in Section IV of the Code of Conduct.
- Generally, the regulations contained in the Student Honor Code and Code of Conduct apply to student conduct which occurs at the College of Charleston, on the grounds of all other College campuses and properties wherever located, at all Bridge, SPECTRA and I-Charleston locations, or at any event sponsored by any of these institutions or by any campus organization or group, wherever the event is located or held. The College reserves the right to take action based on any student conduct, regardless of location, that may adversely affect the educational mission of the College or that may adversely, distinctly, or directly affect the College community and/or its international programs. As an urban campus situated in the heart of Charleston, clearly, good relations with the City of Charleston and our Charleston neighbors as well as all others that we interact with are essential to the overall mission of the College. Accordingly, Student Affairs shall have discretion to exercise jurisdiction over conduct which occurs off-campus, wherever it may occur.
- Residence Life and Housing Administration: The Departments of Residence Life and Housing Administration will review alleged violations of the Residence Hall Contract (which may also constitute violations of the Student Code of Conduct) that are NOT likely to lead to removal from the residential system AND any form of suspension or expulsion from the College. Such offenses will be resolved under policies as stated by Residence Life and Housing Administration. Alleged violations of the Residence Hall Contract unrelated to violations of the Student Code of Conduct shall be subject to administrative action by the Departments of Residence Life and Housing Administration. For more information on regulations and policies concerning residence halls, please consult the webpages of Residence Life and the Residence Hall Contract. Alleged violations likely to lead to removal from the residential system AND any form of suspension or expulsion from the College shall be subject to action by the Office of the Dean of Students. This includes, but is not limited, to all drug-related violations, multiple alcohol violations, forgery, weapons, arson, sexual misconduct, physical assault, and serious vandalism.
- The College retains conduct jurisdiction over students who choose to take a leave of absence, withdraw, or have graduated for any misconduct that occurred prior to the leave, withdrawal, or graduation. If sanctioned, a hold may be placed on the student’s ability to re-enroll (and/or obtain official transcripts and/or graduate) and all sanctions must be satisfied prior to re-enrollment eligibility after a hold is lifted.
- The College of Charleston email is the College’s primary means of communication with students. Students are responsible for all communication delivered to their College email address and are deemed to have notice of the contents of all communications sent by e-mail.
- Letters of no contact, cease and desist letters, facilitated discussions, mediation agreements, restorative justice actions, mandatory move notices within our residential system, and other written forms of intervention may be initiated after determination by officials in Student Affairs that such action is appropriate and warranted. The student(s) will be given the opportunity to appear personally before an official of Student Affairs to contest the determination and discuss the original circumstances that gave rise to the no contact or other intervention order. Intervention letters do not constitute a formal conduct charge or sanction. However, formal conduct proceedings could be initiated if any conditions outlined within the correspondence are violated.
- When considering consequences for student misconduct, the College focuses primarily on educating students about their behavior, but may impose sanctions up to and including suspension and expulsion in order to preserve a safe and healthy environment for the College community.
B. Violations of Municipal, State, or Federal Law
Students may be accountable to both outside authorities and to the College for acts which constitute violations of federal, state, or local law(s) and of the Honor System and other campus regulations. Conduct action at the College will normally proceed during the pendency of criminal or civil proceedings and will not be subject to challenge on the ground that criminal or civil charges involving the same incident have been dismissed, diverted into an intervention program, reduced, or resolved in favor or against the student. Determinations made or sanctions imposed under a conduct process shall not be subject to change because criminal or civil charges or violations arising out of the same facts giving rise to violation of College rules were dismissed, diverted, reduced, or resolved in favor of or against the student.
C. Status of a Student/Group Pending Final Resolution of a Conduct Case
Until a final resolution is determined, the status of a student/organization/group will not change unless interim restrictions have been imposed to protect the health and/or safety of the complainant/respondent/student organization/group and/or the College community, including faculty and/or staff, and/or students.
D. Notice to Parents, Families, or Third Parties
- Students are adults, capable of making their own decisions, as well as accepting the consequences for those decisions. Except in limited circumstances, it is the student who notifies the parent(s) or self selected third parties about a pending case. If a student decides to include a concerned third party and completes the necessary forms, then the Office of the Dean of Students will be responsive to the inquiry, but the student must ultimately reply to the meeting and/or informal hearing request and forthrightly participate in the process. Conversations are between the College and its students, but students can have an advisor, who can be of their own choosing, including a parent or attorney, should they so desire.
- If a student is found responsible for an alcohol or drug violation, the parents and/or legal guardians of the student under 21 will be notified. The College may waive parental notification in exceptional circumstances, if a student makes a bona fide showing that such notification will create significant hardship, including but not limited to, potential violence or financial abandonment.
- The College reserves the right to notify parents, emergency contacts, and/or legal guardians without a student’s prior consent in health or safety emergencies, unless the College is notified in advance, in writing, of a legitimate safety risk to the student from such notification.
- Visitors to and guests of the College may seek resolution of violations of the Student Code of Conduct committed against them by members of the College community.
E. Withdrawals/Completion of Semester with Pending Conduct Action
Should a referred student be academically dismissed or withdraw from the College of Charleston or the University of Charleston, South Carolina before pending conduct charges have been resolved, the Office of the Dean of Students may proceed with the informal or formal hearing according to the procedures below. A conduct hold on the student’s records, including future registration and a hold on the granting of a degree, may be imposed until the case is resolved.
A student who has a conduct charge brought against them at the end of an academic semester term may have a conduct hold placed on their records, including the posting of grades and the granting of a degree, until the conduct charge has been resolved and/or sanctions completed.
Furthermore, a student who has a conduct charge brought against them after the end of an academic semester or term, but prior to graduation, may have a conduct hold placed on their records, including the posting of grades and the granting of a degree, until the conduct charge has been resolved and/or sanctions completed.
A student’s withdrawal or dismissal from the College will not affect the student’s right to participate in the conduct action and will be heard in the same manner as if the student remained enrolled at the College.
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