Appeals

Appeal reviews are not a “re-hearing” of a student conduct matter.  It is, rather, a review of the process and submitted information to ensure procedural standards were followed.  A student found responsible for a Code of Conduct violation may appeal the outcome based on one or more of the following grounds:

 Procedural/Process Review:

  • The conference/hearing was not conducted in accordance with established procedural standards. Significant procedural errors that have substantially affected the outcome of the hearing will be considered.
  • The hearing was not conducted without bias or prejudice on the part of the decision maker/decision-making body. This may include but is not limited to, a demonstration of a conflict of interest and/or failure to objectively evaluate all relevant information.
  • To consider new evidence, unavailable during the original hearing or investigation, that could substantially impact the original finding or sanction [1].
  • The sanctions imposed are extraordinarily disproportionate for this type of offense or the cumulative conduct record of the responding student.

Appeals shall be heard by the Associate Vice President/Dean of Students or his/her designee. A written request for an appeal by the student must be submitted to the Office of Student Conduct within three (3) business days of notification of the results of the original hearing or conference. Should an appeal be submitted, the outcome of the original hearing will be held in abeyance (outcome is temporarily inactive) until the decision of the appeal has been issued. The Office of Student Conduct will administer the notification of hearing results via the student's official University email address.

The student or student organization being sanctioned must specify, in detail, why the appeal is being submitted based on one or more of the grounds listed above. If a request for appeal does not clearly meet the grounds, the appeal will be dismissed. The request will be reviewed based on the reasons stated in the written appeal submitted for review. The decision by the Appeal Review Officer or his/her designee will be delivered in writing to the student’s or student organization’s University email address. 

The Appeal Review Officer may uphold the sanction imposed by the Office of Student Conduct.  Modification of the sanction will take place when the Appeal Review Officer or his/her designee finds the sanction set by the Office of Student is extraordinarily disproportionate for the type of offense or the cumulative conduct record. If it is established that new evidence should be considered in the outcome of the hearing or if procedural standards were not followed or if there was bias or prejudice on the part of the decision maker, the Appeal Review Officer will adjudicate the case and impose sanctions if violations did occur. 

Failure to provide information during or participate in an investigation or a hearing, even resulting from concern over pending criminal or civil proceedings, does not make evidence "unavailable" at the time of the hearing.