Statement of Student Rights and Responsibilities

The purpose of the following statement of students’ rights and responsibilities is to reflect the fundamental principles upon which our university functions are built.

Students are not only members of the academic community but are also members of the larger society. Students, therefore, retain the rights, guarantees and protections afforded to and the responsibilities held by all citizens. The university community acknowledges and celebrates the rights of students to 1) participate in a free exchange of ideas; 2) participate in all areas and activities of the university free from any form of discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veterans’ status, genetic information, disability, or other category protected by applicable law; 3) have personal privacy except as otherwise provided by law or reasonable campus policy; and 4) engage a fundamentally fair process should they be subject to conduct action arising from alleged violations of student codes and campus policies.

As members of the university community, students have a responsibility to know and follow the student codes and campus policies. A student is not immune to prosecution by local, state, or federal law enforcement agencies irrespective of whether the university initiates conduct proceedings in a given situation.

As would be expected, behavioral standards for the College of Charleston and the University of Charleston, South Carolina students are higher than those of communities not engaged in the creation of knowledge, instruction and the maintenance of a vibrant learning environment. Each of us in this university community is expected to exercise our freedoms in a responsible and careful manner. This institution’s potential is boundless if we engender and maintain an atmosphere of respect for the individual, a sensitivity towards different cultures and differing points of view, and a support for the rights of others to freely express their opinions