Conduct, Due Process Appeals

Student Appeal Process
The Student Conduct Appeals Committee
Appeals Hearing Procedures
The Conduct of Committee Hearings
Appeals Hearing Order

Student Appeal Process

If a student rejects, in writing, the discipline imposed by the dean of student development then the student must appeal the matter in writing to the vice-president for academic and student affairs. If resolution is not accomplished at this administrative level, the student will have the right to appeal to the SCC president, who will convene a Student Conduct Appeals Committee.

The Student Conduct Appeals Committee

The Student Conduct Appeals Committee is composed of five members appointed by the college president to include:

Two faculty members;
Two administrative/professional staff members;
One support staff member.

The chair of the Student Conduct Appeals Committee will be selected by the committee. The dean of student development will be responsible for presenting evidence of charges to the committee.

Functions of the committee are:

To conduct an appeals hearing with a student charged with an infraction that has resulted in disciplinary sanctions.
To make a recommendation to the college president within three working days, based on evidence presented at the hearing. The committee’s recommendation may be to:

Uphold the proposed discipline.
Dismiss the complaint.
Impose an alternative disciplinary sanction.

Appeals Hearing Procedures

Procedural Duties

At least seven working days prior to the date set for a hearing before the committee, the dean of student development will send a certified letter to the student’s last known address providing the student with the following information:

A restatement of the charge or charges.
The time and place of the hearing.
A statement of the student’s procedural rights.
The names of the committee members.

Upon written request by the student, the hearing may be held prior to the expiration of the seven-day advance notification period, if the committee chair agrees.

Procedural Rights of Students Include the Following:

The right to counsel or advisement. (The role of the person acting as counsel is solely to advise the student. The advisor is not permitted to ask or answer questions or make oral arguments. Any case presented must be made by the student.) The college is not responsible for providing counsel for students.
The right to produce witnesses to the incident (not character witnesses).
The right to request, in writing, that the committee chair disqualify any member of the committee for prejudice or bias. A request for disqualification, including specifics about the prejudice or bias, must be submitted at least two working days prior to the hearing. If the disqualification occurs, the college president will appoint a replacement. (Note: In the event the request for disqualification involves the committee chair, the student will submit the written request to the college president.)
The right to present evidence.
The right to know the identity of the person(s) bringing the charges.
The right to hear witnesses on behalf of the person bringing the charges.
The right to testify or refuse to testify without such refusal being detrimental to the student.

* If the hearing results from a crime of violence or non-forcible sexual offense, the accuser and the accused are entitled to the same opportunities to have others present during disciplinary proceedings.

The Conduct of Committee Hearings

Committee hearings will be confidential and will be closed to all persons except:

The student
Counsel/advisor
A recorder
Witnesses who have first-hand knowledge of the incident
The dean of student development

If the student fails to appear at the scheduled time, the committee may hear and determine the matter in his/her absence.

Appeals Hearing Order

Chair Action

The chair will preside at the hearing; call the hearing to order; call the roll of the committee; ascertain the presence of the student charged; read the notice of hearing and charges; verify the receipt of written notices to the student; report any continuances requested or granted; establish the presence of any counsel/advisor of the student; notify the student and the student’s counsel/advisor of any special or extraordinary procedures that will be used during the hearing; and permit the student to make suggestions or objections to any procedures for the Student Conduct Appeals Committee to consider.

Opening Statements

The dean of student development will make opening remarks outlining the general nature of the case and testify to any facts the investigation has revealed. The student may make a statement to the committee about the charge at this time or at the conclusion at the college’s presentation, at his/her election.

College Evidence

College witnesses are to be called and identified or written reports or evidence introduced as appropriate. The committee may question witnesses at any time. The student may question witnesses or examine evidence at the conclusion of the college’s presentation.

Student Evidence

The student will have the opportunity to make a statement to the committee about the charge, and may then present further evidence through witnesses or in the form of written memoranda as he/she desires. The committee may question the student or witnesses at any time. The dean of student development may question the student or witness. The student has the right but will not be required to testify on his/her own behalf; to present witnesses and evidence; and to review and respond to testimony of those who testify against him/her.

Rebuttal Evidence

The committee may permit the college or the student to offer any matter in rebuttal of the other’s presentation.

Meeting Concludes

The committee will formulate a written recommendation which the chair will submit to the college president within three working days.

The college president will inform the necessary parties, in writing, of the determination and sanction(s) imposed, within five working days. The student will be notified by certified mail. The decision of the college president is final.

The college, upon written request, will disclose to the alleged victim of any crime of violence or a non-forcible sex offense, the results of any disciplinary proceedings conducted by SCC against a student who is the alleged perpetrator of such crime or offense. If the alleged victim is deceased as a result of the crime or offense, the information shall be provided to the next of kin of the alleged victim.

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