Disciplinary Procedure for Trenholm State Community College

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Authority

By virtue of the approved by-laws and policies of the Trenholm State Community College, the President of the college is charged with the responsibility of maintaining “appropriate standards of conduct” for students. This duty has been delegated to the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services or his designee. The Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services or his/her representative is further authorized to expel, dismiss, suspend and place limitations on continued attendance and to levy penalties for disciplinary violations. The Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services is aided by judicial councils.

Judicial Council

Three committees are appointed to hold hearings for students accused of violating the regulations of the college:

Inter-Student Services Disciplinary Council:

Composed of Student Services professionals (Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services-presiding officer/ designee) hears all informal cases and in some instances cases of formal proceedings, involving infractions that will constitute sanctions of probation, fines, suspension from school in length, and/ or community service. The Council sometimes can be composed of various Student Services professionals that can hear a formal case, and also in rare cases in which the Administrative Judicial Council sends a case (s) back to a lower council. The Council also serves as an appellate council.

Student Judicial (Court) Council:

Composed of Student Government Association members (Chief Justice of the SGA-presiding officer; Faulty member and staff member advisor) Council hears cases that the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services considers to be minor/ moderate infractions that will constitute sanctions of probation, fines, and/or community service. Council makes recommendation to the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services to either uphold, reject, or modify sanctions imposed in the informal hearing.

Administrative Judicial Council:

Composed of a quorum of the executive cabinet of the college (Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services presiding officer-ex officio member), the Council hears cases that the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services constitutes to be severe infractions that may lead to a recommendation of suspension or expulsion. Before proceedings began, council reserves the right to send the case back to a lower council based on the merit (s) of the infraction per reading all reports. Council also serves as an appellate council.

Note: The Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services also reserves the right to meet with students outside of council proceedings in an effort to minimize the volume of cases being referred. The Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services has the right to remove a student from campus and off campus sites until more official proceedings can materialize. In cases involving the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services, the Dean’s designee will be the presiding officer.

Disciplinary Procedures

The following rules of procedures for adjudicating alleged violations of the Trenholm State Community College Student Code of Conduct are established for use by the Student Services Disciplinary and Appeals Committees. The administration of sanctions at the college is an educational process that is not designed to be punitive, and will experientially demonstrate its intent to be of a fair, appropriate, truthful, and due processed procedure. Disciplinary procedures may be initiated by the college (Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services) or by the designee of the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services. The complaint or an official incident report must be investigated prior to judicial proceedings being invoked. If a student is suspended for a semester or academic year, or expelled from the institution (permanent separation) the registrar, financial aid director, and fiscal affairs director will be notified by the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services to administratively withdraw the student from the College. However, a permanent file will be maintained by the office of the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services and the Office of the Registrar.

Judicial Process

The student (s) involved shall be notified within three (3) working days in writing by the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services that a report has been filed involving him/her in an incident that is in direct violation of the Trenholm State Community College code of conduct. The notification will outline the time and place of the informal hearing, and if the student does not attend he/she invokes his/her rights to formal proceedings.
The student, at the informal hearing, is presented with charges, given an opportunity to respond to the charges presented, given an opportunity to confront his/her accuser, and an opportunity to accept/reject the proposed discipline (sanction) by the appropriate council via a signed document materialized by the Division of Student Services.
If sanctions are necessary and the student does not accept the discipline (sanction), based on evidence and/or witnesses that are requested by the accused to be presented/heard in formal proceedings, hearing procedures are then invoked within three (3) working days of signing the form invoking rights to formal proceedings. A time and place of the hearing will be sent to the student (s) and the appropriate council will hear the case. If the student does not sign the disciplinary form, the student automatically invokes his/her rights to formal proceedings that could lead to probation, suspension, or expulsion, for disrespecting the code of student conduct and the judicial process of Trenholm State Community College. If the student (s) fails to appear before any council, the council will make a decision in his/her absence, and the student shall be notified in writing of the council’s decision, which will stand as record for the student (s) involved. The Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services will notify the student (s) of the council’s decision in writing to be mailed to the student’s (s) address which was submitted on the application to the college.
The student can bring witnesses, an advisor, and/ or an attorney to the formal hearing, but the student (s) has to notify in writing the office of the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services two (2) days (48 hours) prior to the hearing but can only be heard at the discretion of the presiding officer. If a witness that is a student of the college is present and engages in false testimony or misrepresentation/falsification, the student (s) will at that time become a part of the judicial process of the college and sanctions may be imposed,
When a student is accused of violating the Student or Collegiate Codes of Conduct and criminal charges are pending against the student, an attorney may be present. In this instance, the role of the attorney is limited and passive. The attorney cannot actively participate in the hearing or ask questions of the witnesses or judicial council members. The attorney’s role is to advise the student regarding self-incrimination and to observe the proceedings. If a student does not have present criminal charges pending, an attorney, however, will not be permitted to be present during any disciplinary proceedings.
When the judicial process of college officials involves a ward of the State, residence of a living/ treatment facility, a felon, an individual that poses a threat to others, or an individual already a part of a criminal case and/or investigation, the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services at discretion will contact and cooperate with the cooperating agency whether it be state, federal, or local.

Disciplinary Hearing Procedures

A. To ensure that Trenholm State Community College is strictly adhering to FERPA Laws, disciplinary hearings are private and confidential involving the student and the council. Hearings are closed to the campus community, media, and the general populous.
The Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services’ assignment of cases to the appropriate judicial council determines the hearing officer.
The format begins with the presentation of charge (s) and proceeds with:
Call for the accused to respond to the charge(s), present witnesses and/or evidence
Supporting testimony and information on the charge (s),
Presentation of the accuser’s testimony, witnesses, and/or evidence
Examination and questioning of accused, accuser, and possibly the witness/advisor by the members of the council
Deliberation by the council
Decision by the council to include:
Recall of precedent of prior sanctions made on like infraction (s)
Finding on a question of guilt or innocence
Sanctions, if any rendered to the presiding officer
Presiding officer renders the decision verbally to the accused, then the accuser (both parties are bound to strict confidentiality rules; if not, student (s) will be subjected to disciplinary proceedings)
Transcript will be transcribed and submitted to all parties involved
Transcript will be filed in the Office of the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services

Due Process

The following due process procedures are afforded to all ID card carrying students at Trenholm State Community College who are involved in cases which may result in disciplinary sanctions:

The student (s) shall be notified in writing that he/she has been perceivably involved in an incident that is in violation of the Trenholm State Community College code of conduct. The notification will be submitted to the student (s) within three (3) working days and will provide the date, time, and place of the judicial hearing.

The individual will be permitted to face and question his/her accuser (s) and witnesses testifying against him/her at the hearing. At the discretion of the hearing officer, both the accused and the accuser have the right to provide evidence and witnesses to prove otherwise or to speak on their behalf.
After due consideration of the appropriate judicial council, the council shall render to the presiding officer a verbal and/or written decision.
The student, if opposed to the sanction (s) rendered by a council, has the right to reject the sanction and invoke appeal proceedings.
The student has to provide in writing within three (3) working days of the hearing, to the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services, the basis of the appeal, new evidence, and/or new witnesses. An appeal will not be granted, unless the aforementioned are not evident.
The Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services will decide if an appeal is warranted, and if so, notify the student and the appropriate council to schedule a date, time and location within three (3) working days of the hearing, and send the case to the appropriate council for an appeal hearing.
If an appeal hearing is granted, and the appellate council makes the recommendation to the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services, the student has the right to submit his/her case to the President of the college. The President will then advise the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services of a recommendation to be carried out regarding the case or correspond with the student (s) directly.
If the student is still not satisfied with the decision, the student has the right to submit their case to the Office of the Chancellor for the Alabama Community

College System (please see ACCS Policy on the of conduct, the student’s (s) case outside of the college will determine the fate of the student’s (s) matriculation at Trenholm State Community College. The college will continue its case involving the student (s) after the external case against him/her is settled, and said student (s) might be suspended until that time.

Note: In cases in which the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services constitutes an emergency, Due Process proceedings will be foregone temporarily, and the student (s) will be removed from all premises of Trenholm State Community College until order is restored. Infractions of the college’s rules, regulations, and sanctions consisting of fines, reprimands, probation, and work assignments will not become a part of a student’s permanent record.

Rights of Victims

In a judicial hearing, both the accused student and the victim have rights.

The rights of the victim are listed below:

To choose whether to charge the student with a violation of the law. The victim may also formally charge him/her with a violation of the Student or Collegiate Code of Conduct, resulting in an informal hearing with a judicial council or formal hearing before the appropriate Student Services Disciplinary Council.
To have a person(s) of their choice accompany them throughout the judicial process.
To submit a victim impact statement to the hearing officer of the Student Life Disciplinary Council prior to a penalty being imposed.
To have past unrelated behavior excluded from the hearing.
To be informed of the results of disciplinary hearing, in compliance with the Campus Police and Student Right to Know Act with the permission of the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services.
To have adjustments made in residence hall living arrangements if necessary. Trenholm State Community College has an obligation to protect members of the college community from physical harm or from a student whose continued presence on campus presents a clear and present danger to themselves or others. Notwithstanding the victim’s right to bring charges, the college reserves the right to investigate and take appropriate action against a student accused of a violent physical or verbal assault.

Responsibility of the Accused Student

A student accused of alleged violations of the Student or Collegiate Codes of Conduct is notified to appear in the Office of Judicial Affairs for an informal hearing (conference) with the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services or notification is given in reference to a specific date and time to appear before the appropriate committee for a formal hearing.
If the student accepts responsibility for the violation, he/she may request to waive all further hearings and accept the decision of the Judicial Officer (Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services/ designee) as final and binding for all purposes.
The student may request that his/her case be heard by the appropriate council. In the event that the request is approved for a formal hearing, the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services will conduct a hearing to determine responsibility if the student denies the charges, and /or impose a penalty when responsibility is determined. The option to have a case heard by a council is not available during holidays, between semesters, or when a council is not available to meet.
The student may request that the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services to adjudicate his/her case. The Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services will conduct a hearing to determine responsibility if a student denies the charge(s), and/or to impose a sanction when responsibility is determined.

Rights of the Accused Student Violator

When a student is charged with violation of the Student or Collegiate Codes of Conduct, disposition of the student’s case shall be according to constitutional requirements of due process and in keeping with the judicial procedures outlined below.

Students charged with violations of the Trenholm State Community College Student or Collegiate Codes of Conduct are entitled to:

Be presented a written specification of charges.
Have a fair and impartial hearing.
Know the nature of the evidence against them and names of witnesses scheduled to appear at the time of the hearing.
Present evidence and witnesses in their behalf
Be accompanied at a hearing by an advisor of their choice. When a student is accused of violating the Student or Collegiate Codes of Conduct and criminal charges are pending against the student, an attorney may be present. If a student does not have present criminal charges pending, however, an attorney will not be allowed to be present during any disciplinary proceedings. When an attorney is present, his/her role is limited and passive. The attorney cannot actively participate in the hearing or ask questions of the witnesses or judicial council members. The attorney’s role is to advise the student regarding self incrimination and to observe the proceedings.
Be present at the hearing during the presentation of any evidence or material on which a decision will be made. If the student fails to attend the hearing, it will be held in the student’s absence. Failure to appear after proper notification may result in suspension from the college.
Refuse to answer questions.
Ask questions of witnesses through the hearing officer only.
Have a decision based on evidence presented and the vote of the committee.
Be presented a written notice of results of the hearing.
A Student Advisor. Students who are alleged to have violated the Trenholm State Community College Student or Collegiate Codes of Conduct can request assistance in the identification of an advisor by contacting the Office of the Dean of Student Affairs and Information Services. Students may seek advice from an individual chosen by the student. Advisors may aid the accused student in the following ways:
- Develop a fair and logical defense.
- Inform the accused student on hearing procedures.
- Be present at the hearing. Space will be made available for the advisor to sit with the accused.
- Advise the accused during the hearing at the appropriate time only and on appropriate matters relating to the hearing. The advisor is not allowed to speak during the hearing proceedings, and may not conduct the defense of in any way actively participate in the hearing.
Request an appeal of a decision of suspension or exclusion from the college, according to established guidelines.