Westminster College Student Conduct

College Judicial Board

Charter of the College Judicial Board

1. Name
   The name of this body shall be the College Judicial Board
2. Composition
   The College Judicial Board shall include eight (8) members: four (4) of the faculty members (one of whom shall serve as Chair) of the Student Life and Athletic Council, and four (4) students appointed by the Student Government Association. Two (2) student alternates also shall be named by the Student Government Association. The quorum necessary to conduct business shall be at least five (5) voting members of whom at least two (2) are students and two (2) are faculty members. Faculty members who serve on the College Judicial Board may not serve on the College Appeals Board either in the same academic year, or during the two academic years following service on the College Judicial Board.
1. The Status and Relationship of the Board Jurisdiction
   The Board may hear cases of individual students or recognized student organizations. The jurisdiction of the Board extends only to violations of the Student Code of Conduct. Cases are to come to the Board only through the channel of the Office of Student Affairs. The Board will determine if the alleged violation(s) of the Student Code of Conduct occurred. The Board also will recommend to the Associate Dean sanctions to be imposed. The Associate Dean reserves the right to alter a recommended sanction(s) as they deem necessary.
2. Methods for Securing Members
   Student members and alternates shall serve one-year terms and will be appointed by the Student Government Association. Faculty members shall be selected by the faculty for a two-year term. Faculty members may not serve consecutive terms.
3. Chair of the Board
1. Responsibilities of the Chair
1. The Chair shall be a faculty member who will be the presiding officer. The Chair, in consultation with other members, shall maintain necessary order and shall make all rulings necessary for the fair, orderly, and expeditious conduct of the hearing.
2. At the beginning of the Board hearings, the Chair shall inform Board members, the accused student, the student’s adviser and witnesses of the procedures that will be followed by the Board in conducting the hearing. The adviser’s role is simply to advise the student. The student, not the adviser, will testify and have the right to ask questions of witnesses.
3. If the required number of students is not obtained, the Chair shall select the replacements needed from the student alternates. At the discretion of the Chair, the student alternates may sit as voting members of the Board at any hearing.
4. If a quorum cannot be obtained for a scheduled hearing, the Chair may reschedule the hearing for another date or time.
5. The Chair does not vote on Board decisions except in cases of tie votes.
6. The Chair will submit to the Associate Dean a written report of the Board’s decision(s).
2. Selection of the Chair
   Each spring the outgoing members of the College Judicial Board together with the newly-selected members shall elect one of the four faculty members on the Judicial Board as Chair. Preferably the Chair-elect should have had one year’s experience on the Board.
3. Voting on a Decision
1. Voting shall be by secret ballot.
2. A decision shall be made by a simple majority vote of the voting members present at the hearing. The Chair will vote on the Board’s decisions in order to break a tie.
3. Any deliberating members have the right to submit a dissenting minority report to the Vice President.
4. The Judicial Board within 48 hours of the hearing will present in writing to the Vice President its findings determination and sanction recommendation(s).

Reporting Procedures for the Associate Dean of Student Affairs and the College Judicial Board

1. The Associate Dean shall make arrangements for the hearing. Notice about the hearing will be sent by campus email to the student and may be delivered to the student via campus mail four (4) school days in advance of the hearing. The notice shall inform the student of the following:
1. the violation of College policy alleged to have been committed, by citing the relevant section of these regulations;
2. the date, time, and place of alleged commission, the names of those who may be presented as witnesses and/or whose statements would be offered as evidence at the hearing;
3. the date, time, and place of the hearing, which shall not be earlier than four (4) days after the date of the notice;
4. that the student is entitled to bring to the hearing one adviser of their choice (the adviser may not be an attorney);
5. that the student shall have the opportunity to call witnesses, to confront and to question witnesses during the hearing, to hear statements from witnesses, and to hear all evidence submitted;
6. only members of the Judicial Board, the Associate Dean, the accused student(s), their adviser, the person(s) who filed the report(s) of the alleged violation of the Student Code of Conduct, and witnesses (only while testifying) as called, shall attend judicial hearings;
7. that sanctions may be imposed if it is determined that it is more likely than not that the student(s) violated the Student Code of Conduct;
8. that the Judicial Board may make a determination in the case if the student does not appear at the hearing and the Board finds such failure to be inexcusable. Additionally, failure to appear at the hearing will be action for which the Board could determine to be an additional violation of the Student Code of Conduct.
2. The Associate Dean shall give written notice at least two (2) calendar days in advance of ahearing to student witnesses stating the date, time, and the place of the hearing and stating that their presence is requested.
3. The Associate Dean shall send notices to all student and faculty members of the Judicial Board stating the date, time, and place of the scheduled hearing.
4. The Associate Dean shall present all relevant information to Judicial Board members at the Judicial Board hearing. The Associate Dean shall also participate in Judicial Board discussions concerning procedural issues and sanction determination. However, only the Judicial Board shall determine whether or not a student has violated the Student Code of Conduct as charged. If the Judicial Board determines that it is more likely than not that the student(s) violated the Student Code of Conduct, the Judicial Board shall recommend to the Associate Dean sanctions to be imposed. The Associate Dean reserves the right to alter a recommended sanction(s) as they deem necessary.
5. The oral proceedings of the Judicial Board hearing (but not the deliberations of the Judicial Board) shall be taped and kept as confidential information by the Associate Dean in case of appeal.
6. In cases heard by the Judicial Board or the Associate Dean, the student charged with a violation of the Student Code of Conduct and person(s) who filed the report(s) of the alleged violation of the Student Code of Conduct, shall receive written notice of the disciplinary decision and subsequent sanction(s) within seven (7) calendar days of the hearing. The notice shall be written and sent by the Associate Dean.
7. The student has the right to appeal the decisions made by the Judicial Board or the Associate Dean within seven (7) calendar days after receiving written notification of the Board’s or Associate Dean determination.