Washington Administrative Code › Title 132Q - Spokane, Community Colleges of › Chapter 132Q-10 - Standards of conduct for students › Section 132Q-10-318 - Student conduct officer disciplinary proceedings

Current through Register Vol. 24-14, July 15, 2024
Brief adjudicative disciplinary proceedings with the student
				conduct officer are conducted as follows:
(1) Meetings will not be conducted in
			 public.
(2) Admission of any other
			 person to the hearing is at the discretion of the student conduct
			 officer.
(3) Respondents have the
			 right to be assisted by an advisor they choose, at their own expense. The
			 respondents are responsible for presenting their own information. Advisors are
			 not permitted to address the student conduct officer or participate directly in
			 the meeting. An advisor may communicate only with the person they are advising.
			 The student conduct officer may call recesses to facilitate this communication.
			 A respondent should select as an advisor a person whose schedule allows
			 attendance at the scheduled date and time for the hearing. Delays are not
			 normally allowed due to the scheduling conflicts of an advisor.
(4) The respondent may provide sworn written
			 statements from witnesses and other documents or information that he/she
			 believes is relevant to the case. Forms for the written statements are
			 available from the student conduct officer or online.
(5) The student conduct officer determines
			 which records, exhibits and written statements may be accepted as information
			 for consideration.
(6) There is a
			 single verbatim record, such as a recording or transcript, of the information
			 gathering portion of hearings. The record is the property of the
			 college.
(7) If the student does
			 not appear for the hearing after proper notice has been provided, the student
			 conduct officer will consider the complaint, absent the student, and enter a
			 decision regarding the complaint including appropriate disciplinary
			 sanctions.
(8) The student conduct
			 officer will notify the student in writing, in person, by mail or electronic
			 mail of his or her decision. Notice of the decision is sent within ten calendar
			 days from the hearing date. If the college is not in session, this period may
			 be reasonably extended.
(9) The
			 written notice of the decision will include the reasons for the decision, the
			 sanctions, and information about the appeal process. The student conduct
			 officer may notify the student prior to receipt of the formal written notice.
			 The notice is sent to the student's last known mailing address or email
			 address.
(10) The burden of proof
			 that guides the student conduct officer's decision is a preponderance of
			 evidence, which is whether it is more likely than not the accused student
			 violated the standards of conduct for students. The student conduct officer
			 includes in his/her written notice of the decision the findings and conclusions
			 of all material issues of law, including which, if any, provision of the
			 standards of conduct for students were violated. Findings based substantially
			 on the credibility of evidence shall be so identified.
(11) The student conduct officer may take any
			 of the following actions:
(a) Terminate the
			 proceeding, exonerating the student;
(b) Dismiss the case after providing
			 appropriate counseling and admonishment to the student. Such action is final
			 and is not subject to review on appeal;
(c) Issue a verbal warning to the student
			 directly. Such action is final and is not subject to review on
			 appeal;
(d) Impose sanctions
			 provided for in WAC
			 132Q-10-400 such as probation,
			 loss of privileges, restitution or compensation, fines, college suspension of
			 ten instructional days or less, and revocation of admission. Such actions are
			 subject to review on appeal as provided in this chapter;
(e) Refer the matter directly to the student
			 conduct board or the student conduct administrative panel for such action as
			 the panel deems appropriate. Such referral shall be in writing, to the
			 attention of the chair of the student conduct board or the chair of the student
			 conduct administrative panel, with a copy served on the accused
			 student.