F. Student Conduct

Student-Faculty Disciplinary Committee

The student-faculty disciplinary committee hears student conduct cases that are referred to the committee by any student or employee, as well as traffic, parking and smoking/tobacco use violation appeals. The membership of the student-faculty disciplinary committee consists of the president and vice president of the student government association, two full-time faculty members appointed for two-year staggered terms by the faculty council and the senior director of student development, who serves as chairperson. Student members hold office for one year, but they may be reappointed. Vacancies that occur in the middle of the year are filled by the student government association for student members and by the faculty council for faculty members. The support staff council appoints a support staff member to serve on this committee when traffic, parking and smoking/tobacco use violations are on the agenda.

The committee chairperson receives referrals of cases in a written communication that includes the person’s name and the specific offense with which he or she is being charged. By a majority vote of the membership, the committee may decide either to hear the case, to dismiss it without a hearing or, in matters not covered by present statute, refer the case elsewhere for action. If the committee decides to hear the case, it informs the student, in writing, of the charges against him or her and of the date set for the hearing. Once notified, the student must indicate whether or not he or she intends to attend the hearing. If the student is unable to attend on the specified date, he or she can request the hearing to be rescheduled. If the student fails to appear on the hearing date, the proceedings continue and the case is heard in absentia. Students and Wor-Wic employees who have information relevant to the case must appear before the committee to provide this information if they are requested to do so. The person making the charge appears before the committee as the plaintiff. The hearing is open to members of the student- faculty disciplinary committee, the student, the person making the charge, the director of student engagement and witnesses for the student or student-faculty disciplinary committee. A witness must be able to offer specific information relevant to the charge in order to be heard by the student-faculty disciplinary committee. The committee votes by secret ballot. A majority vote of the membership is necessary for a conviction, with the chairperson voting in case of a tie. The decision of the committee is put in writing by the chairperson and implemented by the appropriate college official. The written decision does not include an indication of how individual committee members voted, but it does provide for minority opinions.

Primary Offenses

Primary offenses include violations of both academic values and civil conduct.

Violations of Academic Values

1. Cheating – the intentional use or attempted use of unauthorized materials, information or study aids, or unethical collaboration in any academic exercise. Common forms of cheating include, but are not limited to, the following:
   1. Copying or using notes or instructional material during examinations, tests or quizzes, unless allowed by the instructor;
   2. * Having another person write a paper or presentation or a substantial portion of a paper or presentation, including purchased papers;
   3. Obtaining, using or possessing copies of an examination before its scheduled administration;
   4. * Submitting another’s project as one’s own;
   5. Having another person take an examination in the student’s place;
   6. Altering or falsifying examination results after they have been evaluated and returned to the student;
   7. Writing the answer to an exam question outside of class and submitting that answer as part of an in-class examination, unless allowed by the instructor; and
   8. Using any electronic device to obtain, provide or assist with answers on a quiz, test or examination.
2. Plagiarism – defined as the presentation of seemingly-original work that is derived in whole or in part from an existing source without properly citing the source of the material. Common forms of plagiarism include, but are not limited to, the following:
   1. * Duplicating an author’s work (in part or whole) without quotation marks and/or accurate citations;
   2. * Duplicating an author’s words or phrases with accurate citations, but without quotation marks;
   3. * Paraphrasing an author’s ideas without accurate citations; and
   4. * Providing accurate citations, but merely substituting synonyms for or rearranging an author’s exact words.
3. Facilitating academic dishonesty – defined as giving intentional assistance to another student in committing an act of academic dishonesty. Common forms of facilitating dishonesty include, but are not limited to, the following:
   1. * Completing an examination or project for someone else;
   2. * Permitting another student to copy one’s work;
   3. Furnishing another student with unauthorized information during an examination, including the use of electronic devices;
   4. * Collaborating with other individuals, including but not limited to current and previous Wor-Wic students, in a way that extends beyond the boundaries set by the instructor;
   5. Providing test questions to another person; and
   6. * Writing a paper or any portion thereof for another student or providing another student with a purchased paper.
4. Fabrication – defined as the intentional falsification or invention of any information, data or citation in an academic assignment.
5. Other forms of academic dishonesty include, but are not limited to, the following:
   1. Submitting or resubmitting the same paper for different classes/courses without the explicit approval of the current course instructor;
   2. Using dishonest means or communications to fulfill clinical experiences, field work, laboratory or computer assignments; and
   3. Demonstrating any behavior that is generally regarded as lacking in academic integrity.

* Malicious plagiarism and/or academic dishonesty violations that have mandatory penalties

Items A through E were adapted with permission from Frederick Community College.

Violations of Civil Conduct

1. Contempt of the college – defined as the failure to observe the orders of a committee, including disrespect at committee hearings or disrespect of employees or students in the performance of their duties;
2. Tampering with or falsifying official college documents;
3. Serious disregard of regulations – defined as a student’s repeated violation of any posted or published administrative regulation on student conduct;
4. Bringing or using a weapon on college property – defined as any student, including those licensed to carry a concealed weapon, but excluding those licensed to carry a weapon who are affiliated with a law enforcement agency, who comes to the college with or uses a firearm or any other instrument intended to cause harm or reasonable apprehension of immediate bodily harm;
5. Unauthorized use of alcoholic beverages, including the possession, consumption, sale or purchase of any beverage declared illegal by law;
6. Use of any drug, narcotic or substance defined as a controlled dangerous substance by law;
7. Gambling, including all activities defined as gambling by law;
8. Threatening behavior – defined as any specific act or pattern of behavior resulting in or clearly tending to result in the injury of people or property or a violation of accepted standards of decency or disturbance of the peace, including aggressive or threatening behavior, assault, battery, harassment, hate-bias, hate crimes, hazing or bullying, in-person, through written expression, on the telephone, through electronic means or in cyberspace.

Secondary Offenses

Secondary offenses include behaviors that display a lack of respect for other college students, employees or property, as well as behaviors displaying a student’s lack of responsibility. Violations include repeated instances of any of the following:

1. Ignoring the guidelines for civil behavior, in the classroom, on campus or at college-sponsored events;
2. Any conduct unbecoming of a college student, including, but not limited to, littering, loud talking or laughing that disturbs others, audio devices operating at an objectionable level or in unsuitable circumstances, and profanity – defined as that generally described as offensive in the college’s service area;
3. Violating any posted or published administrative regulation on student conduct;
4. Smoking/tobacco use in “no smoking/tobacco use” areas; or
5. Being in unsupervised laboratories and/or other restricted areas without prior permission.

Committee Action

Decisions of the student-faculty disciplinary committee may include: 1) specific orders – for primary or secondary offenses, the committee may order the performance or non-performance of specific acts; 2) reprimand – for primary and secondary offenses, the committee may warn an offender against further violations; 3) disciplinary probation – for primary and secondary offenses, the committee may specify a period of probation for the student; and 4) suspension – for primary offenses, the committee may suspend a student from the college on a temporary or permanent basis.

All sustained convictions for conduct violations are noted in the student’s record.

Mandatory Penalties for Malicious Plagiarism and/or Academic Dishonesty

Students convicted of the previously listed violations marked with an asterisk (*) are subject to the following mandatory penalties:

First Offense: The charge is discussed and the penalties are assigned by the instructor.

• At a student/instructor conference, the student signs an “Academic Dishonesty Form” and the form is submitted to the chairperson of student-faculty disciplinary committee for the database collection of names.
• The student does not receive any credit for the assignment; and
• The violation is recorded in the student’s record.

Second Offense: For a second charge, when the student does not agree that the academic violation occurred or if the student does not meet with the instructor to discuss the violation, the charge is heard and the penalties are assigned by the student-faculty disciplinary committee.

• The student receives an “F” for the course and is not permitted to drop or withdraw from the course.

Third Offense: The charge is heard and the penalties are assigned by the student-faculty disciplinary committee.

• The student receives an “F” for the course and is not permitted to drop or withdraw from the course; and
• The student is suspended beginning with the next fall or spring term following the conviction and the suspension lasts for one fall or spring term, even if graduation is delayed;

Fourth Offense: The charge is heard and the penalties are assigned by the student-faculty disciplinary committee.

• The student receives an immediate “F” in all courses and is not permitted to drop or withdraw from the courses; and
• The student is immediately placed on permanent suspension.

Student Rights

A student charged by the committee must be convicted or acquitted of the specified charge, not for a greater or lesser offense. A student charged with a primary or secondary offense is provided with the advice of the director of student engagement, including advice at the committee hearing. No student must testify against him- or herself and no student can be denied the right to question those who testify against him or her. A student can appeal a disciplinary decision to the president. The basis for the appeal must be submitted in writing within 48 hours from the time the student is notified of the committee’s decision. The president reviews the summary of the testimony, opinion and order of the original hearing and any other testimony that the student may submit, provided that such testimony was undiscovered or unavailable at the time of the original hearing. The president may affirm, reduce or strengthen the disciplinary action originally assessed. The president is the final appellate authority. A student cannot be recharged by the committee for the same primary or secondary offense if a decision on the original charge has been reached.