Graduate Student Discipline Procedures

REG 11.35.3

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Authority: Dean of the Graduate School

History: First Issued: September 19, 2006. Additional History Information.

Contact Info: Associate Dean of the Graduate School 515-2873

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 This regulation sets forth the disciplinary procedures that apply when a graduate student is charged with academic misconduct in violation of the Code of Student Conduct and the misconduct involves the graduate student's thesis or dissertation. Not withstanding the foregoing, allegations of research misconduct involving a graduate student's thesis or dissertation are subject to the University's regulation on Responding to Allegations of Research Misconduct (REG10.00.2). NCSU Student Discipline Procedures (REG11.35.2) govern all other alleged violations of the Code of Student Conduct by graduate students.

1.2 In applying these procedures to graduate student misconduct, the definitions and standards of conduct contained in the Code of Student Conduct will be interpreted by the Dean of the Graduate School to reflect the special circumstances and expectations for graduate students.

1.3 The full range of sanctions set forth in the Code of Student Conduct (POL01.35.11) and the appeal procedures set forth in the Student Discipline Procedures will apply to these procedures.

2. GRADUATE SCHOOL HEARING COMMITTEE PROCEDURE

2.1 Appointment of Graduate School Hearing Committee . The Dean of the Graduate School will appoint a Graduate School Hearing Committee comprised of two members of the Administrative Board of the Graduate School, one of whom will be designated as the Chair of the Committee, and three graduate students from the Graduate Student Association recommended by the President of the Graduate Student Association. All members of the Committee must represent Colleges/Schools other than that of the respondent. The Dean may request the Office of Legal Affairs to provide a legal advisor for the Hearing Committee.

2.2 Notice of Committee Appointment and Charges . The Dean of the Graduate School will notify the student of the appointment of the Committee and notify the Committee, with a copy to the student, of the charge(s) against the student. The charge(s) shall include a detailed statement from the complainant (or the Director, Office of Student Conduct). The notice shall also include the possible sanctions against the student if the charges are found to have merit. For all offenses that could result in expulsion, the notice must include this possibility and must specify that expulsion will preclude matriculation at any UNC constituent institution. Prior to the hearing, the Dean of the Graduate School shall provide the graduate student with an opportunity to review the case file, including any written evidence that will be used at the hearing, and to obtain a list of witnesses.

2.3 Committee Organizational Meeting . The Chair of the Committee shall promptly convene the full committee for an organizational meeting. The organizational meeting shall be for Committee members only, except that a representative of the Dean of the Graduate School and Legal Counsel for the Committee may also attend. The purpose of the organizational meeting shall be to review the charges against the graduate student, the procedures that will be followed, the confidentiality of the disciplinary process, and to set a schedule of potential hearing dates. A committee member who has a conflict with, bias about or interest in the case should recuse himself or herself from the committee. In cases of recusal, the Dean will appoint a substitute member to serve on the Committee.

2.4 Notice of Hearing Dates and Opportunity to Challenge the Committee for Cause and to see Case file . After the organizational meeting, the Chair of the Committee shall notify the graduate student of the dates of the hearing. The hearing should not be scheduled for at least ten (10) calendar days after the student first received notice of the charge, unless the student agrees to an earlier hearing date.

2.4.1 Prior to the hearing, the graduate student shall be given an opportunity to challenge a committee member for conflict with, bias about, or interest in the case and the Chair of the Committee shall make the decision. If the graduate student is dissatisfied with the Committee Chair's decision, the student within (5) calendar days of the Chair's decision may submit a written request for review of the decision to the Dean of the Graduate School. The Dean of the Graduate School or designee, shall promptly review the decision and either uphold the decision or appoint a substituted committee member.

2.4.2 Prior to the hearing, the chair shall notify the graduate student of the right to have an advisor and an observer, as defined in section 4.7 of the Code of Student Conduct, present at the hearing. The student must notify the chair of the committee in advance of the hearing that an advisor and/or observer will be present.

2.5 Hearing Procedure . At the hearing on the charges, which shall be closed to the public, a designated university official from the Graduate School must present sufficient witnesses and/or documentary evidence to substantiate the charges that have been brought against the graduate student. The student shall have the right to hear the witnesses, review all documents received by the Committee, and cross-examine all witnesses. The student shall have the opportunity to present any witnesses or documentary evidence in defense of the charges, provided that the evidence is relevant to the charge or other evidence presented. The University official presenting the case shall have the opportunity to review the documents and cross-examine the witnesses presented by the student. Each party shall also have the opportunity to provide rebuttal evidence and ask questions of rebuttal witnesses. The Committee may also question witnesses during the hearing. Both the University official and the student shall have the opportunity to present a closing statement at the end of the presentation of all evidence. Sections 4.3.3 through 4.3.17 of the Student Discipline Procedures REG 11.35.2 shall also apply except that references to the Office of Student Conduct or Director of the Office of Student Conduct shall be deemed to refer to the Dean of the Graduate School.

2.6 Official Record of the Hearing . The Chair of the Committee shall ensure that a transcript or other verbatim record of the hearing (but not of the deliberations) will be prepared and that the documentary evidence presented during the hearing is appropriately identified. All documentation relevant to the Committee's procedural rulings, factual findings, recommendations, and any other aspects of its final report and recommendation shall be preserved and included in the Official Record. The Official Record should include a table of contents so that every document and record can be easily identified and located. The official record should be forwarded to the Dean of the Graduate School along with the Committee's decisions and recommendation.

2.7 Deliberations and Recommendations of the Committee . At the conclusion of the closing statements, the Committee will recess to determine whether the charging official has shown by clear and convincing evidence that the graduate student committed the offense(s) charged. This determination must be based solely on the evidence presented at the hearing. Findings shall be guilty, not guilty or insufficient evidence. Insufficient evidence is an indication that some quantity of evidence did exist but that the complainant has not fully met the burden of proof. A determination of guilty shall be followed by a supplemental hearing in which the designated university official and the student may submit evidence or make statements concerning the appropriate sanction(s) to be imposed. The past disciplinary record of the graduate student may be entered into evidence at this time. Following this supplemental hearing, the Committee shall recess to deliberate and determine the sanctions. The Committee's findings and recommendations shall be transmitted in the form of a written report to the Dean of the Graduate School (section 2.7).

2.8 Timing, Content and Transmittal of the Committee's Report and Recommendation . The Committee shall submit its written report to the Dean of the Graduate School no later than 21 days after the conclusion of the committee's deliberations. The report shall state the charge, the graduate student's plea to the charge, the committee's findings on the charge, including a review of the evidence in support of the committee's findings, and a recommended sanction if the charge was substantiated.

2.9 The Dean's Decision . The Dean of the Graduate School shall render a decision, and determine appropriate sanction(s) if the misconduct is substantiated, no later than 45 calendar days after the hearing was completed. If the sanction is expulsion, the decision of the Dean must be reviewed and approved by the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor. The final administrative decision must be sent to the student within ten (10) calendar days of the date the decision is made and must contain a brief summary of the evidence upon which the decision is based and the appeal rights of the student, including the time limits in which to appeal and the permitted grounds for appeal.

3. APPEALS

3.1 Sanctions of suspension or less than suspension may be appealed to the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor. Sanctions of Expulsion may be appealed to the Board of Trustees. The appeal must be received within ten (10) University business days from the date that the written decision on sanctions is provided to the student, either by hand delivery, or by delivery or attempted delivery through certified mail. Failure to submit the written notice of appeal within this time limit will render the original decision final and conclusive. Written notice of appeal must be delivered to the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor except in cases of appeal to the Board of Trustees which must be delivered to the Chancellor's office. The notice of appeal is not complete unless it contains the following: A copy of the decision being appealed, a statement of the grounds for appeal, which at a minimum should contain a list of alleged errors in the decision or decision-making process and a statement of why the decision or sanctions are in error, a requested remedy, and the signature of the appellant and date the appeal is being submitted.

3.2. Grounds for appeal are limited to violation of constitutional due process and a material deviation from the substantive and procedural standards adopted by the UNC Board of Governors, section 700.4.1 of the UNC Policy Manual.

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