Lafayette College Student Handbook
The Academic Progress Committee consists of four tenured members of the faculty, one from each of the four academic divisions; two untenured members of the faculty, one from the natural sciences or engineering and one from social sciences or humanities; and two student members selected annually by Student Government.
The Academic Progress Committee is responsible for hearing cases that are referred to it by the provost’s representative or in which students have elected, in accordance with the procedures laid out in the Code, to have their case heard by the committee. For a hearing to take place, at least five committee members (at least three with faculty status) must be present. Student members deliberate and vote during the committee’s determination of student responsibility, but because they may neither vote on nor be present during the discussion of questions that might involve the relationship of an individual to the College, student members do not participate in discussions regarding sanctioning of a respondent. The committee makes its determination by majority vote of those present at each stage of the process.
Normally, the chair of the Academic Progress Committee chairs academic conduct hearings. However, if the committee chair is not available, another faculty member of the committee may be elected by the committee members to chair an academic conduct hearing.
Students and organizations must recognize that violations of College and statutory rules and regulations can have serious repercussions. Students and organizations are encouraged to recognize their own responsibility for their actions and to realize that intoxication, ignorance of the rules of the College, or such similar evasions will serve as no excuse for violations. When a respondent is found responsible for violating the community standards outlined in this Code, the case administrator or appropriate committee or appellate body will impose sanctions that are intended to maintain an environment conducive to the achievement of the College’s educational mission as well as provide opportunities for the respondent to learn and grow as a result of the incident. Sanctions take effect immediately once all opportunities for appeal as outlined in this Code have been exhausted. However, the vice president for campus life, or representative, or Office of Advising and Co-Curricular Programs may impose interim sanctions pending an appeal in certain circumstances. A sanction involving a grade in a course does not take effect until the end of the semester.
The sanctions listed below are not exhaustive and may be added to or modified by the case administrator or committee as deemed appropriate to achieve the goals mentioned above. The student shall be informed promptly in writing of the decision rendered and the reasons for it. When a student is suspended, he or she shall be informed in writing of the conditions on which readmission will be considered.
The following guidelines will be used to determine sanctions when a respondent has been found responsible for violating the Academic Integrity Policy. Certain offenses may be of such a nature as to justify greater or lesser penalties than those described. In addition, a sanction involving a grade in a course does not take effect until the end of the semester. The provost’s representative or Academic Progress Committee may modify these guidelines:
Other Sanctions: Case administrators and committees may create and design sanctions as appropriate to achieve the goals of sanctioning mentioned above and to respect the individuality of each case and each respondent. These may include, but are not limited to, reflection papers, research papers, service projects, program attendance, meetings, and program creation.
Respondents who do not complete their assigned sanctions by the deadline provided to them may be subject to another conduct meeting or hearing for failure to comply. Repeated violations including failing to comply with conduct sanctions will result in increasingly severe sanctions up to and including expulsion.
Under certain circumstances, as outlined in these procedures, respondents may appeal the decision of the original case administrator or committee to the Student Appeals Committee. If the respondent elects not to appeal the decision, the decision from the initial conduct meeting or hearing is final, and sanctions will go into effect immediately. In cases where a student is a direct victim of the respondent’s alleged policy violation, whether that student serves as a witness or a complainant in the process, the same opportunities for appeal afforded to the respondent will also be afforded to the complainant or witness. In cases involving allegations of sexual assault, sexual harassment, domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking, the complainant and the respondent will simultaneously be informed, in writing, of any change to the decision in the case and when the decision becomes final.
The Student Appeals Committee consists of six elected members of the faculty, four student members selected annually by the Student Government, and one administrative officer selected by the provost. One of these faculty members will be elected by the committee to serve as chair. The members of this committee may not also be members of the Student Conduct Committee or the Academic Progress Committee. The Student Appeals Committee is responsible for conducting appeals of case administrator, Student Conduct Committee, and Academic Progress Committee decisions as they relate to this Code and in accordance with the procedures laid out below. At least three faculty members and two student members, as well as the administrative officer, must be present for a hearing to take place. The committee makes its determinations by a majority vote.
A respondent who wishes to appeal the decision of a case administrator or committee must submit the appeal in writing to the Office of Advising and Co-Curricular Programs or the Office of Student Conduct by 5 p.m. on the third business day following the day the official outcome letter was sent to the respondent.
The written appeal must:
The appellant is permitted to appeal on any or all of the following grounds:
Upon receiving the written appeal, the Office of Advising and Co-Curricular Programs or the Office of Student Conduct will transmit it to the chair of the Appeals Committee and to the chair of the original committee or case administrator and to any complainant or witness that has been granted an equal opportunity for appeal, if applicable.
Once the written appeal is received, the chair of the original committee or case administrator will file a written response with the Office of Advising and Co-Curricular Programs or the Office of Student Conduct, usually within three business days. The response will then be transmitted to the appellant, the chair of the Appeals Committee and, if applicable, to any complainant or witness that has been granted an equal opportunity for appeal. In cases where a witness or complainant has been granted an equal opportunity for appeal, the procedures listed in this section may be initiated by that student rather than the respondent. Additionally, when more than one student has the right to appeal in a case, each will have the opportunity to submit a response to the others’ initial letter of appeal, if applicable, and those responses will be transmitted to the chair of the original committee or case administrator, the chair of the Appeals Committee, and the other student involved in the case.
Once all documentation has been submitted, the chair of the committee will share the information provided with one student member of the committee and an administrative officer selected by the provost. These two individuals will review the information solely to determine whether a case review should be granted. The decision to review a case with a quorum of the committee will be based on whether the appellant has presented grounds for consideration as outlined above. This group should not make a determination on whether the information presented warrants a change in outcome for the case but will simply determine whether the grounds presented are reasonable.
If the appeal is accepted, a case review meeting will take place at least 24 hours after the committee members have received all documents in the case and normally within two weeks of the date that the appellant’s written appeal has been received.
The Appeals Committee will receive information about any past conduct matters in which the respondent was found responsible for violating the Code. In cases where the respondent is an organization, conduct history will be provided for the previous four academic years. All records coming to the Appeals Committee shall also go to the appellant, and vice versa. Case review meetings are closed meetings. The committee’s deliberations are not recorded. No one else will be present unless the committee determines a meeting with the appellant, the original committee chair or case administrator, or any witnesses is necessary. In cases where others are invited to provide information or answer questions, the proceedings will be recorded so long as those individuals are in the room. The appellant may be present any time the proceedings are being recorded. An appellant may request a meeting with the Appeals Committee but the committee is not obligated to allow it if it is deemed unnecessary. Any time the appellant is present the appellant may be accompanied by an adviser chosen by him or her from the student body, faculty, or administrative officers of the College. (It is the student’s responsibility to obtain the adviser.) The purpose of the adviser is to advise the student, but the adviser may not directly address the committee or witnesses.
The Appeals Committee shall limit itself to reviewing the case in light of the specific ground(s) raised by the appellant. The appeal is not a new hearing but the committee will have at its disposal a record of the case. The Appeals Committee has the authority to uphold, reverse, increase the sanction, or modify the decision of a case administrator or committee, or to refer the matter back to the original case administrator or committee for a rehearing.