Administrative Disciplinary Procedures
Administrative disciplinary hearing procedures cover conduct violations of alleged criminal acts, incidents of sexual misconduct/assault, substance abuse policies, weapons policies, and similarly severe conduct related rules and regulations as defined in the EVCC Course Catalog and Student Handbook and/or any applicable program student handbook, that are not otherwise addressed by Academic Review Committees. These procedures are not a substitute for any criminal complaints filed or hearings resulting from criminal proceedings.
The Administrative Disciplinary Process is utilized in related to Sexual Harassment, Sexual Assault, or other actions related to Title IX protections. Per Title IX Final Rule, instances of Sexual Misconduct the terms (used below) Accused/Alleged, and Accuser will instead use Respondent and Complainant, respectively. In instances of an Administrative Disciplinary Hearing involving allegations of sexual misconduct consistent with Title IX, modification to the process of the Administrative Disciplinary Hearing consistent with Title IX as required by the Aug 2020 Title IX Final Rule will be made as identified below. In instance of potential Sexual misconduct, sexual assault, or other Title IX concern, the Title IX Coordinator must be contacted immediately to assist with the initial supportive measures, investigation, and determination. Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, the individual must be a current student and the incident must have occurred as a part of an EVCC educational program or activity.
Investigation of Incident: Within ten (10) business days after an alleged violation is reported to a Campus Security Authority (CSA), the CSA shall complete a fact-finding investigation into the alleged violation. Upon conclusion of the investigation, the reporting CSA shall refer the incident to the Academic Coordinator for an Administrative Conference or Disciplinary Hearing, as appropriate. In cases where the alleged violator is a current student and there is evidence to support, or clear reason to believe, the alleged violator poses a potential threat to the campus community or to the public, the alleged violator may be suspended immediately from campus and classes by the CSA until a disciplinary hearing in the matter is convened within ten (10) business days from the date of suspension. In such proceedings, the alleged violator may present a defense against the complaint. It is understood that if such suspension is instituted in instances of potential Title IX violations, that the potential for continued danger to the Campus is continued and requires separate action to be taken from the Title IX investigation and related hearing.
Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, the Title IX Coordinator must be made aware to assist in providing initial response and supportive measures. For Title IX purposes the reporting CSA is considered an Investigator, as they assist in the initial investigation of the incident.
Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, when instances of claimed Sexual Harassment or discrimination do not meet the requirements set out by the Title IX Final Rule, the claim must be dismissed from the Administrative Disciplinary process and will instead be referred to a Student Grievance Committee/Academic Review Committee (ARC) for assessment and determination.
Administrative Conference or Disciplinary Hearing: Based on review of the alleged violations, the reporting CSA shall determine whether the case shall be resolved by an Administrative Conference or be referred directly to an Administrative Disciplinary Hearing. The results of an Administrative Conference may still lead to an Administrative Disciplinary Hearing. Alleged violations resulting in suspension of the alleged student violator, as prescribed above, must result in a hearing.
Administrative Conference/ Pre-Hearing
The reporting CSA shall meet with the student involved in the alleged violation along with the student’s program director. If the reporting CSA is also the student’s program director, the reporting CSA will meet with the alleged student violator and the Academic Coordinator. The student shall be provided with written notification of the allegations against him or her and will be informed of the basis for the allegations at that time. Based on the information produced in this meeting, the reporting CSA will make a determination to dismiss the complaint as groundless or take administrative disciplinary action in one or more of the following forms:
- a. Counseling of the student regarding behavior/incident
- b. Place the student on disciplinary probation
- c. Require the student to formulate an improvement plan
- d. Be suspended from the academic program, the length of suspension to be determined by an Administrative Disciplinary Hearing
- e. Be dismissed from the academic program (this action automatically triggers an Administrative Disciplinary Hearing
- f. To empanel an Administrative Disciplinary Hearing to make determination. This is utilized in complex, unclear, or special instances; including but not limited to Title IX harassment/assault.
The Administrative Disciplinary Council may choose any of the above administrative disciplinary actions, or any other actions as deemed appropriate within the policy of EVCC to provide proper redress for the Accused and/or Accuser. The student may request an Administrative Disciplinary Hearing regarding the complaint at any point in the process.
Administrative Disciplinary Hearing Preparation
Once a determination has been made by the reporting CSA to refer the complaint for an Administrative Disciplinary Hearing or, upon request of the student filing the complaint, a notice shall be sent to the accused student specifying date, time and place of the scheduled hearing. The notification shall also include the charges against the student, and the date, time and location that any available evidence may be inspected by the accused student. A copy of the hearing procedures shall also be enclosed for review by the accused student. In cases where the alleged violation was violently perpetrated upon another student or staff member, the student or staff member harmed shall receive simultaneous notification of the hearing and a copy of the hearing procedures.
In instances related to Sexual Harassment, Sexual Assault, or other actions related to Title IX protections, both the Complainant and Respondent will receive copies of the notice identified above. Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, the parties of both Complainant and Respondent will receive at least ten (10) calendar days to review the evidence gathered in the initial fact-finding investigation, so they may be able to review it. The Complainant and Respondent are allowed to gather further evidence to be presented at the hearing, however this evidence will be evaluated by the Administrative Disciplinary Council before it can be utilized in the hearing.
Administrative Disciplinary Council
An Administrative Disciplinary Council, which will oversee the hearing and deliver a judgment on the complaint, shall be comprised of the following members:
- a. An academic program director (other than the reporting CSA and the accused student’s program director)
- b. Two faculty members selected from a pool of volunteers;
- c. A member of the administrative staff selected from a pool of volunteers, and;
- d. The Compliance officer and/or Title IX Coordinator who will be present to ensure the proper process is followed.
Physical, Sensory, and Health-Related Disabilities
- Verification of the disabling condition must be obtained from a licensed health care professional that is qualified and currently or recently associated with the individual.
- The diagnosis must reflect the present level of functioning of the major life activity affected by the disability.
Disciplinary proceedings will be conducted with transparency to the accuser and the accused. No one shall sit on the council who is personally involved in the situation or who cannot act in an unbiased manner. The student accused of the violation(s) shall have the right to request the list of the council members and challenge any member for bias or other reasonable causes. The Academic Coordinator shall determine whether cause for disqualification of a council member exists. In the event of a disqualification, the council shall appoint a new member from the appropriate pool of volunteers.
The Administrative Disciplinary Council’s task is to weigh the evidence presented at the hearing and to deliver a disciplinary recommendation to the convening program director, See Notification of Decision below. This recommendation is to be carried out within five (5) business days after notification, to allow for student appeal.
Provisions for the extension of the timeframes for disciplinary proceedings may be made by the Administrative Disciplinary Council for good cause, with written notice to the accuser and the accused regarding the reason for the delay.
Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, members of the Administrative Disciplinary Council are considered Decision-makers.
The Hearing Process
The Administrative Disciplinary Hearing is not a legal proceeding and does not hold itself to be one. However, it will utilize similar terms and format for the expedience of understanding and general populous’ familiarity with such concepts. Certain aspects or terminology presented in the following general form will require modifications in instances related to Sexual Harassment, Sexual Assault, or other actions related to Title IX protections, these modifications are listed below.
Selection of Chairperson: Prior to the hearing beginning, the Administrative Disciplinary Council shall elect a Chairperson who shall preside over the hearing.
Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, the terms (used below) Accused/Alleged, and Accuser will instead use Respondent and Complainant, respectively. Additionally, Informal Resolution processes may be enacted at any time upon voluntary written consent by both parties. The utilization of informal resolution does not remove the ability for the Complainant to continue with a Formal Administrative Disciplinary Hearing.
Absence of the Accused: The hearing shall proceed in the absence of the student. Per Title IX Final Rule, instances of Sexual Misconduct the Title IX Final rule requires the presence of the Respondent and advisor for proceeding to occur.
Overview of the Process: The Compliance officer or Title IX Coordinator will read out a brief overview of the process so that everyone present may have an understanding of the process. The Compliance Officer or Title IX Coordinator shall act to ensure the process is adhered to throughout the proceedings.
Reading of the charges: The elected Chairperson shall read out the alleged violations against the student prior to testimony or presentation of evidence.
The plea: The accused student, if present, shall enter their plea of admitting the charges or denying them. If the student is not present the plea of denial shall be entered to protect the rights of the accused and guarantee a full and comprehensive hearing. If the accused student enters an admission of all charges and does not wish to present evidence of mitigating circumstances, the Council will excuse the accused student from the proceeding and retire to deliberate a decision.
Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, the Respondent is provided the presumption that they are not responsible for the alleged actions, until such time as they are found to be responsible by the Academic Disciplinary Council.
Evidence: Formal rules of evidentiary process do not apply. All applicable and relevant information may be admitted as evidence for either side. This may include, but need not be limited to, witness testimony, police or security reports, other documents, physical evidence, and security camera footage. All presented information shall be entered for the record and the Administrative Disciplinary Council shall have the opportunity to examine the evidence and determine its weight and veracity in the matter.
Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, any other evidence gathered by either Complainant or Respondent and presented during the hearing must be evaluated by the Council to ensure it relevance and it does not violate rape-shield laws.
Advisors to Accuser and Accused: EVCC will provide the accuser and the accused, whether either party is a student or an employee, the opportunity to be accompanied to hearings and proceedings by an advisor of their choice. This policy applies equally to the accused and the accuser. An advisor may be any individual who provides the accuser or the accused with support, guidance, or advice. The accuser or the accused must provide the Administrative Disciplinary Council with written notice of a request to include an advisor at the proceedings. Such notice will include identification of the requested advisor. EVCC is prohibited from limiting the choice of an advisor, or an advisor’s presence, for either the accused or the accuser in any meeting or institutional disciplinary proceeding.
EVCC may limit the role of any such advisor as it deems necessary. Such limits may include, but are not limited to, speaking, questioning witnesses, or addressing EVCC officials involved in the proceedings. Advisors who become disruptive or who do not abide by restrictions placed on their participation may be removed from the proceeding. EVCC will provide notification to all parties of any such limitations regarding an advisor’s participation prior to scheduling a proceeding.
Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, if either party does not have an advisor, EVCC will provide a neutral individual to act as advisor to assist in the process. Per Title IX Final Rule, the advisor can be an Attorney. However, the Attorney must understand that the proceeding is not a legal process, but an administrative process performed internally by EVCC to the safety of Students and Staff, ensure the upholding of EVCC policy, and *(Other aspect of substance for hearings)*.
Witnesses and Observers: The accused student is allowed to have one silent observer present during the proceedings. A present accuser is entitled to have a silent observer present during their testimony.
Witnesses shall only be present inside the hearing while giving testimony.
As these hearings are an internal process there shall be no legal counsel allowed to represent participants at any time during the process.
The hearing shall be recorded, with the college maintaining the only copy of the recording. Any witnesses not willing to be recorded shall be excluded from providing testimony as the recording will become part of the permanent record of the process and serve as evidence in any appeal.
Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, the Complainant and/or Respondent’s parties may be maintained in separate rooms on campus, with Audiovisual communications to the room holding the proceedings to be connected in real-time. Additionally, any witness (including Complainant and Respondent) that provides testimony must allow cross-examination by the other party. If Complainant or Respondent are providing testimony, they cannot be cross-examined by the opposite party. If a witness is unwilling to submit to cross-examination, the testimony or statement they have provided will not be relied upon as evidence, unless the information they have provided can be validated through other evidence or testimony. All cross-examination is subject to the same rules concerning relevancy utilized for evidence, subject to the determinations of the Administrative Disciplinary Council.
The Deliberation: The Administrative Disciplinary Council shall deliberate in a private closed session and shall arrive at a decision based solely on the evidence and testimony given in the matter. The Council will utilize the clear and convincing evidence standard in their evaluation. The council shall deliver their decision to the reporting CSA, Title IX Coordinator, and the accused student’s program director. The decision shall include a recommended disciplinary action.
Notification of Decision: Within three (3) days of the decision being reached by the Administrative Disciplinary Council, the accused student’s program director will issue a written notification of the decision to the accused including the disciplinary action recommended. Within the same time frame, the Compliance Officer or Title IX Coordinator will issue a notification to the accuser of the Administrative Disciplinary Council’s determination and disciplinary action. Both the accuser and the accused have five (5) business days from the date of notification to submit a written appeal to the Academic Coordinator.
Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, a member of the Administrative Disciplinary Council EVCC will provide, in writing, simultaneous notification to both the Complainant and the Respondent of:
- a. Results of an Administrative Disciplinary Council proceeding that arise from an allegation of dating violence, domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
- b. Such results may include an initial, interim, or final decision by the Administrative Disciplinary Council.
- c. Such results will include any sanctions imposed by EVCC and must include the rationale for the result and the sanctions, unless to do so would be in conflict with FERPA regulations.
- d. An explanation must be included that describes how the evidence was weighed and the information was presented, and how the evidence and information support the result and the sanctions.
- e. The explanation must explain how EVCC’s standard of evidence was applied.
- f. Procedures for the Respondent and the Complainant to appeal the result of an Administrative Disciplinary Hearing must be included.
- g. Notification regarding any change resulting from an appeal, including when such results became final.
- h. This is the only way that any results will be initially communicated.
Appeal to the Academic Coordinator: An appeal of the Administrative Disciplinary Council’s decision to the Academic Coordinator may only occur if it addresses the due process of the hearing or if new information is discovered that was not available at the time of the hearing. The Academic Coordinator shall evaluate the appeal within five (5) business days and, upon reaching a decision, shall notify the appealing student, the Title IX Coordinator, the reporting CSA, and the accused student’s program director.
Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, an appeal of the Council Determination or dismissal of complaint only if it meets one of the following criteria: Procedural irregularities that affected the determination, newly discovered evidence, personnel conflict of interest affecting the determination. Such Appeal could be performed by either Complainant or Respondent.
The Decision and Recommendation for Appeals: Upon an appeal of the Administrative Disciplinary Council‘s decision, the Academic Coordinator has the discretion to refer the matter back to the Administrative Disciplinary Council for review of new evidence, to order a new hearing if due process was violated, bring new charges against the accused student based upon new evidence, or dismiss the complaint based on new evidence.
- Grounds for appeal on the basis of due process: If an accused student believes that the conduct of the Administrative Disciplinary Council violated the impartial nature of the hearing, the hearing was not conducted fairly and according to proper processes per accused student’s claims, or the accused student was in some way barred from an adequate opportunity to prepare and present a response to the allegations, the accused student may file an appeal.
- Grounds for appeal on the basis of new information: The accused student or other member of the campus community may appeal the decision of the Administrative Disciplinary Council if new information that was not reasonably available or previously known to the accused, which would likely alter the outcome of a disciplinary hearing, becomes available. Such information will not be considered as new information if it could have been previously discovered through reasonable avenues available to the accused student.
Per Title IX Final Rule, in instances of Title IX complaint, Appeals of the determination can be filed by either Complainant or Respondent if the appeal meets the requirements above.
Sexual Harassment Conduct Complaints Filed Against an EVCC Staff Member: Sexual harassment of a member of the EVCC community toward another member of the campus community is a violation of EVCC policy and constitutes unfair treatment. Staff members found to be responsible or who are aware of such treatment by a member of the EVCC staff and do not disclose it to EVCC administration may be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal from employment with EVCC and/or criminal charges.
Student complaints of unfair treatment by a staff member will be managed according to the same procedures as the Academic Review Committee/Student Grievance policies and procedures, which may be found in the Course Catalog and Student Handbook. If the alleged harasser is also the student’s program director, the grievance must be filed directly with the Academic Coordinator, who will provide the Title IX Coordinator with a report. In such situations, with the exception of the initial filing of the grievance, formal grievance policies and procedures will be followed.
In accordance with the Title IX final rule, disciplinary proceedings regarding sexual misconduct will be conducted by officials (Administrative Disciplinary Council members) who receive training at least annually. Training for officials may be role-specific, depending on what role an official may play in the course of the proceeding. Broadly speaking, training will include, but need not be limited to, the following topics:
- a. The definition of Sexual Harassment, per Title IX Final Rule
- b. Conducting an investigation, impartiality, preventing prejudgment, and bias
- c. Processes for complaint, evaluation, hearings, appeals, and other related actions
- d. Relevant evidence and how it should be used during a proceeding
- e. Proper techniques for questioning witnesses
- f. Basic procedural rules for conducting a proceeding
- g. Avoiding actual and perceived conflicts of interest.
- h. Use of technology related to Hearing process
Such training may be delivered in person or by electronic means, such as a webinar or video.
