VCOM College Catalog and Student Handbook

6. The Campus Dean or the Provost may immediately elevate any severe suspected violation of the VCOM Honor Code to the Professional and Ethical Standards Board at any time.

Honor Code Hearing Upon recommendation by the Honor Code Council Executive Committee, a full Honor Code Council will be convened for an Honor Code Hearing. A. Quorum . The members present for the Honor Code Hearing must include the Chair or the Vice Chair and at least seven additional members of the Council. In the absence of the Chair, the Vice Chair shall serve as the acting chair with all the associated duties for that meeting. B. Receipt . The Chair, upon the vote of the Executive Committee of the Honor Code Council that a hearing is warranted, shall convene an Honor Code Hearing. C. Notifications and Gathering of further evidence. The Chair will: 1. Send a Notification of the hearing date to the accused and any witnesses the panel wishes to include. 2. Collect a written Statement of Defense (SOD) from the accused. 3. Collect written Statements of Response to all questions deemed as evidence for the hearing (prior to the hearing) from all witnesses. 4. Notify the accused of his/her obligation to not converse or interfere with any witnesses or the interference shall be deemed as evidence of guilt. D. The Chair or Vice Chair will open a case by presenting the report from the Investigative Panel. The panel shall be recorded in its entirety by the Recorder and converted into a summary document following the meeting as final minutes. The Associate Dean for Student Affairs shall review the minutes to assure College policy is followed and provide final approval for the minutes. The recording is then destroyed, and the Chair shall sign the minutes, which shall be kept for a period of not less than five years in the office of the Associate Dean for Student Affairs. E. Deliberations of the Honor Code Council. 1. The Chair will convene the panel and introduce the panel members. 2. The Reporter may make an opening statement summarizing the accusation. 3. The Investigative Panel shall present the facts and written statements collected. 4. The accused may make an opening statement summarizing his/her explanation. 5. Any witnesses deemed necessary by the Investigative Panel shall be called in to present the accusations. 6. There shall be an open time in which all parties present may ask questions to clarify the facts presented. 7. The Reporter shall make a closing statement summarizing the accusation. 8. After excusing the accused and all witnesses, the chair will stop the recording for deliberations of the Council. 9. The Council shall discuss the case until all members present are satisfied that the case is fully vetted. 10. The Chair will poll the members present with the following questions: a. Do you believe the accused is guilty of the suspected violation?

i. HCC members shall vote “yes” only if they believe there is a preponderance of reasonable evidence to support the accusation. HCC members shall vote “no” if they cannot reach this conclusion. a.) If greater than 50% of the votes indicate that the HCC believes the accused to be not guilty of the suspected violation, the HCC will recommend the following: “No offense has occurred, and no action is recommended.” b.) If greater than 50 % of the votes indicate the HCC believes the accused to be guilty of the suspected violation, the HCC shall vote “Yes, a preponderance of reasonable evidence supports that a violation of the HCC has occurred”.

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