Discipline Procedures

Reporting Violations

Students, faculty, and staff should report an alleged incident of misconduct to the Office of Student Life, 212 Bruce Center. The student life staff and/or University police will investigate the report.

Discipline Procedures

The disciplinary procedures of Southern Arkansas University, as are all activities on a University campus, are designed to be a part of the teaching process and normally cover a wide spectrum of disciplinary measures which may range from counseling to dismissal.

Southern Arkansas University recognizes the basic rights of the individual, and provides guarantees to the students which grow out of the fundamental conception of fairness implicit in procedural due process.

In order to protect the educational process of the University and, at the same time to protect the rights of all students, the University has authority to develop and enforce regulations and to impose disciplinary penalties on students found guilty of offenses or violations of rules and regulations. The process for enforcement of University rules and regulations for student conduct shall conform to the procedures stated below. However, residence hall rules and motor vehicle regulations and procedures under which the University applies to collect monies, continue in force, and adjudication of questions arising under them need not comply with the following procedures when controversies are amenable to these procedures.

The appointed staff in the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs is charged with the responsibility of initiating student disciplinary procedures and meeting with the student. In the process of meeting and counseling with the student, which may sometimes comprise two or more interview appointments, a determination will be made, or the student affairs staff may request a hearing before the Student-Faculty Discipline Committee in the event of severe discipline.

The student will be informed by written notice of the recommended action. The specific grounds and nature of the evidence on which a recommendation is based will also be stated in the notice. Except when a hearing already has been requested by the student affairs staff, the notice shall offer the student the choice of either abiding by the recommended action or requesting a hearing before the Student-Faculty Discipline Committee. The student’s choice shall be made in writing and delivered to the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs on or before the date specified in the notice that proposed the action. If no written notice of choice is received within the time specified, the action proposed and the procedure shall be considered final.

The staff member and the student may choose a less formal procedure by agreeing on the specific charges and the nature of the evidence upon which the recommended actions are based. The student will be informed of his procedural rights, including the right to a hearing and appeal. When there is agreement between the student and the staff member, the procedure shall be considered final.

The disciplinary actions the University may take include, but are not limited to, the following:

A. expulsion: separation of the student from the University; the student is not eligible for readmission to the University.

B. dismissal: separation of the student from the University for an indefinite period of time.

C. suspension: separation of the student from the University for a definite period of time.

D. disciplinary probation: official warning that the student’s conduct is 1) in violation of the rules, requests, and policies stated in SAU publications, official correspondence, or announcements; or 2) in violation of Arkansas or federal criminal statutes. Disciplinary probation will be imposed for varying periods of time when a student enrolls following a period of disciplinary suspension, dismissal, or expulsion. Disciplinary probation can be imposed for varying periods of time and can include the following:

1. ineligibility to hold office in the University.
2. ineligibility to represent the University in any official function.
3. ineligibility to continue to receive a University-sponsored scholarship, grant, work and/or loan.
4. placing an informational notice in the student’s permanent file.
5. continued enrollment depends upon the maintenance of satisfactory conduct throughout the period of probation.

E. letter of enrollment block: a letter stating that the student may not reenter SAU without prior approval through the Office of Student Life if enrollment has been blocked for a previous disciplinary problem or for medical reasons.

F. letter of reprimand: a written admonition of a student for actions unbecoming to the University community.

G. loss of campus housing privileges: removed from University housing for disciplinary reasons.

H. work hours: hours which a student may be required to work in a specified area of service to the
University.

I. restrictions: the withdrawal of specified privileges for a definite period of time.

J. restitution: a payment for financial injury in cases involving theft, personal injury, destruction of
property, or deception. The assessed costs to be paid may be in addition to other disciplinary sanctions.

Discipline Committee Hearing

The circumstance which results in a hearing before the Student-Faculty Discipline Committee is the referral by the student affairs staff of a situation involving disciplinary action upon the request of the student involved or the student affairs staff.

Points involved in such hearings traditionally have been classified as
(1) issues of fact (Did a certain incident occur? Was the student involved in the incident?),
(2) issues related to the nature or character of the incident (Was it an accidental, careless, or intentional
action? Was it spontaneous, or premeditated? Were there justifiable reasons or extenuating
circumstances?),
(3) issues of degree or extent (Was it minor, moderate, or major?), and
(4) issues of jurisdiction (Does the administration have jurisdiction over the incident and the persons
involved?).

The purpose of the hearing is to allow the committee to judge whether a violation of regulations of student conduct has occurred and to recommend the appropriate action to be taken. The hearing procedure is an effort by the University to provide students with institutional due process and to provide an atmosphere in which students can both learn and practice rules and procedures of responsible social conduct. The University further seeks to apply in actual practice those principles and rules of justice and civic responsibility incubated by its faculty in academic process.

When a hearing is requested, the vice president for student affairs shall make arrangements for the hearing and shall notify the student of the time, date, and place of the hearing. Unless the student requests otherwise, the hearing will be closed except to participants. The student shall notify the vice president for student affairs in advance of the hearing if the student desires the hearing to be public.

At the hearing, the student is entitled to be present with a University advisor of his/her choice (secure “the Role of the University Advisor in Disciplinary Hearings” from the vice president for student affairs) to testify on his or her own behalf, to present witnesses, to cross-examine witnesses who appear, and to examine all evidence presented to the Committee.

A tape recording shall be made of the hearing and shall be kept by the vice president for student affairs for one year. The chairperson of the Student-Faculty Discipline Committee shall preside over the hearing and shall rule on the admissibility of evidence which may include hearsay, and on all other questions regarding the conduct of the hearing. The appropriate hearing procedure is for the staff member representing the vice president for student affairs to present a narration of the facts in the situation and specify any action they have recommended. The student then specifies the precise point at issue (the issue of fact, character, extent, or jurisdiction which occasions this hearing).

After the point at issue is specified, the student affairs staff, assuming the burden of proof, presents its position. It may present whatever relevant evidence, testimony, explanation, or argument it feels appropriate. After presentation of the student affairs’ position, the student may present whatever relevant evidence, testimony, explanation, or argument the student feels appropriate.

Members of the Discipline Committee may ask questions to clarify issues at whatever point they feel necessary; however, such questions should not interrupt a speaker during the presentation unless the questions are essential. All participants may ask questions after the initial presentations are made.

After all relevant matters have been placed before the committee, it shall deliberate in closed session and render a decision. The chairperson of the committee shall forward to the vice president for student affairs a written report of the decision and the reasons thereof.

The vice president for student affairs will report the decision of the hearing committee in a letter to the student and inform him or her of right to appeal to the University president on or before a specified date. If no written choice is received within the time specified and the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs does not call for a review by the president, the action proposed shall be imposed and the disposition shall be considered final.

Appeal of the decision of the Student-Faculty Discipline Committee may be made to the president of the University by filing a Notice of Appeal for Review with the Office of the President. The Notice of Appeal shall be accompanied by a memorandum stating the grounds for believing the decision to be erroneous or unfair. An appeal of a disciplinary decision may be made only on justifiable grounds, including irregularity in proceedings, punishment inconsistent with the nature of the offenses, additional pertinent evidence not available for the original hearing, or question of fact.

The president shall notify all parties in the case of the date, time, and place of appeal. The appeal proceedings will be confined to a reception of additional evidence to be offered and of other objections upon which the appeal is based. Following these presentations, the appeal hearing will close and the president will review the previous proceedings along with the additional evidence or objections. The president will then determine whether the disciplinary rights have been properly observed. In the decision, the president may:

• affirm the decision of the Discipline Committee which shall be effective as of the date specified by the committee;
• affirm the decision of the Discipline Committee and reduce the penalty which shall be effective as of the date specified by the Discipline Committee;
• reverse the decision against the student;
• reverse the decision against the student and order a new hearing by the Discipline Committee;

The decision of the president shall be sent to the vice president for student affairs who shall notify the student and proceed appropriately.

Failure to Appear

If a student notified to appear before the vice president for student affairs or Student Affairs staff, the Discipline Committee or the president fails to comply, and vice president for student affairs, the chairperson of the Discipline Committee, or the president, as the case may be, reasonably believes the failure to be inexcusable, the student shall be considered guilty of the violation alleged against him, and the vice president for student affairs shall impose the penalty considered appropriate. When it appears necessary to avoid undue hardship or to avoid injustice, the vice president for student affairs may extend the time to enable a student to respond to an accusation or prepare a defense.