Student Conduct Process

All violations of University Policy and/or University Housing Services Policy will generally be handled by University Housing Services. Incidents involving repeated violations or potential dismissal or expulsion from the University are forwarded to the University Student Conduct Officer.

Below is a description of the University Housing Services Student Conduct process for students living in the residence halls.

1. If a student allegedly violates University, University Housing Services, or Affiliated Housing policies, an Incident Report is submitted based on information gathered during the incident and submitted within 24 hours of the incident occurring. A Residence Hall Coordinator (RHC) will then be assigned to the incident. Based on the information in the incident report, the RHC will decide either to take no further action, or to require the student(s) involved to meet with an UHS Conduct Officer for an informal conduct meeting.
2. If an informal conduct meeting is necessary, the student will be notified about the date, time, and location of their conduct meeting. This notification will be through the student’s Sac State email. It is the student’s responsibility to check their campus email and be present at the meeting.
3. Failure to attend a scheduled conduct meeting or to reschedule in advance, as outlined in the notification letter, may result in a decision being made in the student’s absence, or may result in a hold being placed on the student’s account.
4. During the conduct meeting, the UHS Conduct Officer will review with the student a summary of the incident and the alleged violations, as well as discuss their behavior in regard to the incident.
5. After all information has been presented, the UHS Conduct Officer will assess whether there is a preponderance of evidence to determine if a student did or did not violate University Housing Services Policy. Preponderance means majority. The standard is met if the alleged violation is more likely to be true than not true. The standard is satisfied if there is greater than fifty percent chance that the alleged violation is true. If the student is found responsible for violating University Housing Services Policy, appropriate sanction(s) will be assigned.
6. The sanctioning process typically involves two forms of sanctions. The first are inactive sanctions that include warnings, probations, etc. These sanctions are listed below. Other potential sanctions include educational sanctions. The UHS Conduct Officer will describe these sanctions and the expectations for these sanctions in person and in the outcome letter.
7. The student may appeal the decision (see Appeals Process below).
8. All conduct cases are confidential, and case files are kept on record for seven years.

Sanctions

When a UHS Conduct Officer assigns a sanction, it indicates the student has been found responsible for violating University Housing Services policy. Such sanctions are designed to help the student understand how their behavior impacted others in the residence halls. Besides the sanctions listed below, other sanctions could be assigned including, but not limited to, the following: loss of privilege, fines, student registration holds, completion of an educational module and/or project, along with other educational sanctions. Failure to complete required sanctions may result in additional sanctioning including a hold being placed on the student’s account.

• Housing Warning
  Notification that the resident was found responsible for violating University Housing Services policy.
• Housing Probation
  The resident is no longer in good standing. Further violations may result in relocation or removal or other loss of privileges.
• Housing Relocation
  Relocation of a resident to another room or residence hall.
• Housing Removal
  Removal of a resident from housing for a specific period of time or permanently

Appeal Request Process

What is an Appeal?

An appeal is when an official request has been submitted by a student upon the completion of a Housing Conduct Process for which the student is requesting a review of the final conduct decision. Appeals are not a redo of the Housing Conduct Process, rather an appeal is an administrative review of the investigation and process already expedited, in order to identify any procedural errors, consideration of newly discovered information, and/or to assess the appropriate alignment of sanctions issued.

Acceptable Grounds for Appeal

A student may submit a request to appeal the outcome (responsibility and/or sanctions) based on one or more of the criteria outlined below. Please note that a student’s mere dissatisfaction with the outcome of the housing conduct decision is not a valid basis for an appeal.

Procedural Rights Violation:

A student has identified a violation of procedural due process. The student shall be required to show, by a preponderance of the evidence, that there was a material deviation from established procedures that would substantially affect the outcome.

Significant Procedural Error:

A student has identified that a procedural error occurred that significantly impacted the decision. The student shall be required to describe the error and its impact on the decision on the case that has substantially affected the outcome of the case.

Newly Discovered Information:

A student has identified that there exists new information available that was not previously available or known during the initial investigation or informal conduct process and that the new information could substantially affect the outcome of the housing conduct case.

Sanctions Disproportionate and/or Misaligned:

A student has identified that the sanctions imposed were substantially dissimilar to sanctions assigned to similar cases prior, or the sanctions are not appropriate for the type of policy violation(s), or level of the student’s involvement.

Submitting A Request for Appeal

If the accused student identifies just cause to appeal the decision made by the Housing Conduct Officer(s), the student may request a review of the conduct decision. Appeals must meet at least one of the criteria listed under the acceptable grounds for appeal.

An appeal request must be submitted by the student from their campus email account to the Appeal Officer within five (5) working days of receiving their conduct meeting outcome letter.

Contact information for the assigned Appeals Officer will be provided in the housing conduct meeting decision letter.

It is recommended that when writing their appeal, the student adheres to the following guidelines prior to submitting a request for review of their case. An appeal shall include:

• A list of the incident(s) in question;
• The reason the student is requesting a review. Students must clearly identify the grounds for why they are requesting an appeal;
• Outline cause for review by providing an explanation of the circumstances the student believes substantiate a reason for the review based on the identified grounds for appeal;
• Provide detailed information (facts about the incident) that supports the review request. Include names of people who could corroborate the reasoning for a review;
• Include references to specific documents or pieces of relevant.

Students must submit appeal letters on their own behalf, as requests for review written and submitted by a parent/guardian, faculty, or staff may not be submitted and shall be referred back to the student to take action. Requests for review written and submitted by an attorney shall not be submitted as our housing conduct processes are not legal proceedings.

When incidents involve multiple students, each student wishing to appeal the outcome of their housing conduct decision must submit their own individual appeal letters by the appeal deadline. Attempts at submitting a group appeal shall not be accepted and referred back to the students for re-submission within 24 hours if after the initial appeal deadline.

Appeal Review Process

If an appeal review is granted:

• The case is not being re-heard rather the Appeal Officer is reviewing an element or elements of the student conduct process to determine if the student’s appeal meets just cause and whether the decision issued for student responsibility and/or sanctions will remain in place, be overturned, or adjusted.

• The Appeals Officer may also schedule a review meeting if deemed necessary. If a review meeting is granted, the student will have the opportunity to discuss in detail the reasons for requesting an appeal review, and present evidence that supports their request, all while addressing questions from the Appeals Officer.

• If a student is offered a review meeting the student may have one non-lawyer individual present at the review meeting who acts as an adviser. The student may consult with the advisor during the review meeting; however, this individual may not speak for the student during the review meeting. If for any reason the Adviser fails to adhere to expectations, the Appeal Officer will ask the adviser to leave the meeting. Prior to having an advisor present the student must update their FERPA with University Housing Services.

The following decisions may be taken by the Appeals Officer:

• Affirm the decisions and or sanctions imposed
• Modify the decisions and or sanctions
• Dismiss the charge(s) in part or in whole
• Conduct or direct further investigation or inquiry
• A combination of the above outcomes

Appeal decisions and sanctions handed down by an Appeal Officer may be further appealed with just cause. In the case a student wishes to appeal the decision of an Appeal Officer, guidance as to whom the student may contact shall be identified in the official Appeal Officer’s decision letter. Appeal decisions and incidents that involve drugs, alcohol, relocation, and removal from housing shall be made in consultation with the Senior Director and Executive Director.