Policies

13.1.0  Appropriate Use Policy of Information Technology

13.1.1  Authorized Access & Conditions of Use

Access to modern information technology is essential to the Mary Baldwin mission of providing the students, faculty and staff of Mary Baldwin with educational services of the highest quality. The pursuit and achievement of the mission of education, research, and public service require that the privilege of the use of telephony communications systems, computing systems and software, internal and external data networks, as well as access to the World Wide Web, be made generally available to all those of the Mary Baldwin community. The preservation of that privilege by the full community requires that each faculty member, staff member, student, and other authorized user comply with institutional and external  standards for appropriate use.

The privilege of using the telephony, computer and network resources provided by Mary Baldwin is not transferable or extendable by members of the community to people or groups outside Mary Baldwin without the explicit approval of the Director of Computing and Information Services. The telephony, computer and network resources of Mary Baldwin may not be used by members of the community for commercial purposes without the explicit approval of the Director of Computing and Information Services or the Vice-President of Business and Finance.

To assist and ensure such compliance, Mary Baldwin establishes the following policy which supplements all  applicable policies, including sexual harassment, patent and copyright, and student and employee disciplinary policies, the Academic Honor Code, as well as applicable federal and state laws. By using any of the telephony, computer and network resources of  Mary Baldwin, the user agrees to abide by these policies.

13.1.2 Privacy – User Responsibilities

No user should view, copy, alter or destroy another’s personal electronic files without permission (unless authorized or required to do so by law or regulation). Telephony, computing and network resources are designed to protect user privacy; users shall not attempt to circumvent these protections.

Examples of violations are:

13.1.3 Copyright – User Responsibilities

Written permission from the copyright holder is required to duplicate any copyrighted material. This includes, but is not limited to, duplication of music files, audiotapes, videotapes, movie files, photographs, illustrations, computer software,  data and all other information for educational use or any other purpose. Most software and databases that reside on Mary Baldwin computing and network resources are owned by Mary Baldwin or third parties, and are protected by copyright and
other laws, together with licenses and other contractual agreements.

Users are required to respect and abide by the terms and conditions of software use and redistribution licenses.  Examples of violations are:

13.1.4 Network Integrity – User Responsibilities

Certain activities may put the entire network and all users at risk. For this reason users should respect the shared nature of the computer resources. Examples of violations are:

13.1.5 Harassment, Libel and Slander – User Responsibilities

No user may use Mary Baldwin’s computing and network resources to libel, slander or harass any other person
Examples of violations are:

13.1.6 Limitations on Users’ Rights and Expectation

The issuance of a password or other means of access is to assure appropriate confidentiality of Mary Baldwin files and information and does not guarantee privacy for personal or improper use of Mary Baldwin telephony, computer or network equipment or facilities.

Mary Baldwin provides reasonable security against intrusion and damage to files stored on the central facilities. However, Mary Baldwin is not responsible for unauthorized access by other users or for loss due to power failure, fire, floods, etc. Mary Baldwin makes no  warranties with respect to Internet services, and it specifically assumes no responsibilities for the content of any advice, data or information received by a user through the use of Mary Baldwin telephony, computing and network resources.

Users should be aware that Mary Baldwin telephony, computing and network resources may be subject to unauthorized access or
tampering. In addition, computer records, including e-mail, are considered “records” which may be accessible to the public under the provisions of the Virginia Freedom of Information Law.

13.1.7 Sanctions

Violators of this policy will be subject to the existing student or employee disciplinary procedures of Mary Baldwin. Sanctions may include the loss of computing privileges. Illegal acts involving Mary Baldwin telephony, computing and network resources may also subject users to investigation by campus, local state and federal legal authorities. Mary Baldwin reserves the right to investigate any suspicious activity.

13.1.8 Reporting Abuse or Complaint

To file a complaint or report a violation of this policy, Create a Help Request, or call the Help Desk of Computing & Information Services at 540-887-4000.

When possible violations of these conditions of use are reported or discovered, facility administrators reserve the right to commence an investigation of possible abuse. In this connection, the facility administrator, with due regard for the rights of privacy and other rights of users, may be given the authority to examine files, passwords, accounting information, printouts, tapes, or other material that may aid the investigation. The Director of Computer and Information Services or a designate, in conjunction with the Director of Safety and Security, must authorize the examination of user files.

Users, when requested, are expected to cooperate in such investigations. Failure to do so may be grounds for cancellation of access privileges. While an investigation is in progress, in order to prevent further possible unauthorized activity, the facility administrator may suspend the authorization of computing services to the individual or account in question.

When possible unauthorized use of computing resources is encountered, the facility administrator shall notify the user. The user is expected to take remedial action or to indicate that such use should be permitted.

Should unauthorized use continue after notification of the user or should differences of opinion persist, these shall be brought to the attention of the Director of OIT for recommendations on further action. Upon the recommendation of the Director of OIT, the facility administrator may impose limitations on continued use of computing resources. In accordance with established Mary Baldwin practices, confirmation of unauthorized use of the computing facilities may also result in disciplinary review that could lead to expulsion from Mary Baldwin, termination of employment, and/or legal action for employees.

Students who violate these restrictions, disregard approved procedures, or permit unauthorized access are subject to disciplinary action, as stated in the Mary Baldwin Honor Code or Code of Conduct. The Honor Council or Judicial Board will decide the nature of the action and the seriousness of the violation and its consequences.

13.2.0  Access to Computer and Network Systems

13.2.1  Availability of Systems & Networks

There is an Ethernet network serving the entire campus. There are multiple servers attached to this network supplying services such as Email, web pages, file storage, and application serving. There is also a midrange system and an integrated software package used primarily for administrative information. Most offices are connected to this system. This software supports operations for the Business Office, Registration, Admissions, Institutional Advancement, Financial Aid, and Housing.

These systems are generally available 24 hours a day 7 days a week excepting times for scheduled and non-scheduled maintenance and repair. Mary Baldwin supports computer usage by employees during normal working hours, Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm. Weekend work requires clearance from OIT.

Deviations from normal hours must be cleared by your supervisors. The supervisor will notify both Security and OIT.

13.2.2  Requesting Accounts for Using Technology Resources

Mary Baldwin owns all computer facilities and these facilities will be used for Mary Baldwin related activities only. Neighbors, relatives, friends, alumni, donors, and potential students do not have the right or privilege to use the computer resources except under very unusual circumstances. Requests for special permission to use Mary Baldwin computer resources must be made to Office of Information Technology.
All access to computer resources, including the issuing of account Usernames and Passwords, will be approved and processed by Office of Information Technology. All access to departmental computers will be approved by the department or authorized representative.

Hiring Supervisors must request in writing the appropriate accounts for their employees. That includes Mary BaldwinNet accounts, Mary Baldwin Mail accounts, and Jenzabar TE-AS400 accounts.  No account will be set up until the employee has completed their processing by the Business Office.  Identification information records must be complete before any access to resources will be granted.

Users may access only computing resources for which they have authorization and only for the purposes specified when authorized. These resources may be accessed or used only for functions directly related to the operation of Mary Baldwin, as defined by your job and supervisor.

13.2.2.1  Contractor and Sub-Contractor access of Mary Baldwin IT systems.

Occasionally there is a requirement for someone who is not directly affiliated with Mary Baldwin, typically a contractor or subcontractor, to have access to Mary Baldwin technology systems. Access privileges will be granted by OIT on a case by case basis. Never allow others to sign on to systems using your credentials. When such a need arises, contact the Office of Information Technology as early as possible. In all cases, an approved service agreement or scope of work statement will be required describing the functions this user will perform on Mary Baldwin systems. If credentials are granted the user must agree to and sign the Mary Baldwin Appropriate Use Agreement before beginning work. Accounts will be active for a 90 day period, at which time they will be closed automatically. You may request an extension if necessary.

Example: A faculty member wishes to hire a contractor to help them with Blackboard course creation and management. The Faculty member emails help@marybaldwin.edu with the request and the following information:

This information is verified and confidentially maintained as a contractor/vendor record in the Mary Baldwin administrative database.  The Blackboard administrator or designate creates a Blackboard User account for the contractor, registers the user with permissions appropriate to the stated scope of work and notifies the faculty member that the account is ready. If the contractor completes the work in question in less than 90 days, the faculty member notifies OIT through help@marybaldwin.edu when the contractor no longer requires access to Blackboard.

13.2.3  Termination of Access

When you cease being a member of the campus community (e.g., withdraw, graduate, terminate employment, retire, or otherwise leave Mary Baldwin), or if you are assigned a new position and/or responsibilities within the Mary Baldwin system, your access authorization may be reviewed and terminated. You must not use facilities, accounts, access codes, privileges or information for which you are not authorized in your new  circumstances.

13.2.4  Account Retention Policy

When you cease being a member of the campus community your access authorization is terminated on your exit date. Staff, faculty and adjunct accounts will be terminated, with all data removed, effective immediately upon their departure.

In some special cases, it may be desirable to temporarily have an exiting employee’s email delivered to another Mary Baldwin user, or to setup an auto responder message indicating the employee is no longer with Mary Baldwin.  These special email requests must be made in advance by the exiting employee’s hiring supervisor, and are not available for student accounts.  Such setups are not to exceed 30 days beyond the employee’s exit interview date.

Emeritus Faculty (see Mary Baldwin Faculty Handbook, Emeritus Status, Section 2.10.1.3) may retain their Mary Baldwin email account. Users of these accounts are expected to abide by applicable Mary Baldwin Appropriate Use Policies.

Graduating students receive a 90-day grace period from their walk date. After that  period their network, email and Online Registrar accounts are removed from Mary Baldwin’s server systems.  All other exiting student accounts will be terminated, with all data removed, effective immediately upon the departure of the student.
Accounts whose passwords exceed 90 days in age will be locked out, while accounts whose passwords exceed 180 days will be automatically removed from the system including all personally stored information residing on Mary Baldwin servers.

13.2.5  Faculty, Staff and Student Username and Passwords

Account Usernames and Passwords are assigned to an employee or student. For any computer account, you are responsible for the use made of that account. Only you are authorized to use your account.  You should never allow anyone else to use your Username and Password. You should not log on to a system using your Username and Password and allow others to then use the system.

You should set a Password which will protect your account from unauthorized use, and which will not be guessed easily. If you discover that someone has made unauthorized use of your account, you should change the Password and report the intrusion to the manager of that system or the Director of the Office of Information Technology. You will be required to change your Password on a regular basis, to assure continued security of your account.

13.2.5.1  Password Requirements

For a variety of reasons, it is necessary to restrict access to certain services and to certain types of information. This may be in order to prevent modification of student grades, to restrict access to software or services that are licensed on a per-user basis, or just to make sure that one user does not accidentally delete files owned by someone else.  These protections may even be required in order to meet legal requirements, particularly with regard to privacy rights.

Mary Baldwin computing systems use the combination of a Username and Password to identify authorized users. You allege your identity by entering a Username. You prove that identity by providing a Password.  Because Usernames may be easily guessed, Passwords may be the only thing preventing an imposter from tampering with sensitive information.

You must keep your Password secret. Do not share it with anyone. Allowing anyone to use your Password violates our policy on system user accountability and may result in disciplinary action. Do not attempt to use any Username or Password that has not been assigned to you. State and federal law may make your use of someone else’s Password a crime.

USERS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY AND ALL ACTIONS TAKEN USING THEIR USERNAME AND PASSWORD.

Passwords must conform to requirements established by the Mary Baldwin Auditors and good industry standards. The requirements indicated below apply to all Mary Baldwin computing systems. These requirements fall into two basic categories: password selection and password management.

13.2.5.2  Password Selection:

When choosing a new Password, the following requirements must be met. Passwords must…

13.2.5.3  Password Management:

Proper management of passwords also requires that certain steps be taken to protect passwords once they have been chosen:

13.2.5.4  Initial Passwords:

Users may be assigned an initial, or “default” Password when their accounts are first created. These Passwords are valid for a maximum of 15 days and should be changed upon first use.  Initial Passwords may or may not provide access to all services; additional steps may be required to fully activate a user’s account.

13.2.5.5  Enforcement of Password Requirements:

At the time any password is changed, the new password will be automatically checked to verify that it meets the stated requirements. Passwords that do not comply with this standard will not be accepted by the system.

Password auditing procedures may be used periodically. This policy serves as prior notification; typically no further advance warning will be given. Auditing procedures may include, but are not limited to, the use of password ‘cracking’ programs and other utilities. Should a user’s Password be revealed in this manner, the user will be contacted and required to choose a new Password.

Users may also be required to view a brief security awareness program as part of the Password change process and/or as part of initial account activation.

Users may be required to change their Passwords immediately if they have not followed the guidelines listed under “Password Management”.  Accounts that have not had their Passwords changed in over 90 days will be automatically deactivated. After an additional 90 days have passed, the account will be removed from the system.

13.2.5.6  Notification of Expiring Passwords

Where systems permit, users will be given notification 14 days before their Passwords expire. Daily reminders will be sent beginning 7 days before the Password expires. Some notifications will be sent via email to Mary Baldwin email addresses only.  Users of non Mary Baldwin email systems should configure email forwarding from their Mary Baldwin account in order to receive these messages.

13.2.5.7  Password Reset Procedures

Should you need to reset your Password, call the Mary Baldwin Help Desk.  Passwords will not be reset or reactivated under any circumstances without first verifying the identity of the person making the request.  The user will be required to provide his or her full social security number and Mary Baldwin ID number as proof of identity. Additional information may also be required.

In the event of a personal visit to the Help Desk, a Mary Baldwin photo ID will be considered valid proof of identity.

13.2.5.8  Additional Recommendations

Lock Your Computer When You Walk Away – If you are using a password-protected resource, don’t leave the workstation unattended.

Use the MS Window Lock Out feature. Also, when you are finished using a password protected resource, be sure to exit the system (logout or shutdown the computer).  Most incidents of computer “hacking” or other forms of uninvited intrusions are the result of poor password selection or protection.  Don’t be a victim of this by being careless in your handling of passwords.

Use Power-On Passwords – We highly recommend that you use a Power-On Password.  This password is used to keep others from even booting up your computer.  If you choose to use a POP, you must write the password on a piece of paper, seal it in an envelope and send it to OIT for archive storage in the safe.  Without this step, OIT will be unable to assist you if you forget your POP or if service on your machine is necessary and you are unavailable.

Log Out Before Letting Someone Else Use Your Computer – If someone else uses your computer for any reason, log out and require that person to log in with his or her own name and password.

REMINDER: The person to whom an account Username and Password is issued is responsible for all activity on that account.  You are not allowed to let anyone else use your account.  Proper Password security helps ensure that others do not misuse an account for which you are responsible.  If at any time you feel that your Password has been compromised, change it IMMEDIATELY.  Any misuse of your account should be reported to the Office of Information Technology by creating a Service Desk Ticket.

13.2.6  Use of Mary Baldwin Owned Computer Equipment & Software

13.2.6.1  General Use of Mary Baldwin Issued Equipment

You are responsible for the care of equipment issued to you by Mary Baldwin. It is expected that you will use it properly and not intentionally damage it in any way. All equipment is considered an asset of Mary Baldwin and is inventoried.

Should you be asked for inventorying purposes, you must be able to physically produce the equipment. If you cannot produce it, you will be personally responsible for replacing the equipment.

13.2.6.2  Off-Premise Use of Mary Baldwin Owned Computer Equipment

Removal of Mary Baldwin computer equipment must be authorized by the Office of Information Technology and by your supervisor or department head. A record of serial numbers and equipment types will be submitted to the Office of Information Technology where the inventory log is kept. This inventory must be completed before the actual movement of computer assets. All Mary Baldwin equipment removed from Mary Baldwin premises shall remain the property of Mary Baldwin.

Reasonable care shall be taken by the employee to preserve the equipment in working order. Mary Baldwin will assume no liability for consequential damages resulting from the malfunction or failure of Mary Baldwin equipment. The person removing equipment is responsible for insuring the equipment while in their possession either through homeowners or renters insurance. Equipment will be returned within one day of a request made by the Office of Information Technology or your supervisor.

13.2.6.3  Home Use of Mary Baldwin Licensed Software

Current software licensing does not permit Mary Baldwin faculty, staff, or students to take Mary Baldwin licensed software home for use on their personal computers – even if that home use is business/school related.

Under no circumstances will users copy software made available to her/him without the written authorization of the Director of the Office of Information Technology or the appropriate departmental head. Users will not remove any diskettes or software provided by Mary Baldwin from the labs or workplace without the proper authorization.

13.2.7  Laptop – Use and protection of

13.2.7.1  Introduction

Mary Baldwin has a lifecycle replacement fund for computer technology. Currently, the replacement fund is not fully funded. Thus, the exact planning of replacing equipment remains more an art than a science. Currently, Mary Baldwin owns approximately 700 desktop and laptop computers, numerous printers, much classroom display equipment, many servers, etc. Much of the funding for the larger items must still come from special “one-time” funding allotments.  Because of funding limitations lifecycle replacement plan is conditional, since the funds available must be used not only for personal computers but also for lab and classroom computers.

Mary Baldwin makes a commitment to provide an appropriate (and upto-date) desktop computer for each faculty and staff member. In some cases this may not be a brand-new computer. Recognizing the value in a portable computer, this policy aims to provide an opportunity for faculty to have a laptop computer instead of a desktop computer.

The following represents the laptop purchase policy for faculty/staff in academic departments and for staff in administrative departments.

13.2.7.2  Eligibility

In general, the following groups of faculty will be considered first:

  1. Online faculty who regularly teach two or more online courses each semester.
  2. Web-enhanced classes – Faculty who regularly teach 50% or more of their course load either as web-enhanced, hybrid, or online.
  3. Faculty teaching computer intensive courses or those who heavily utilize computers in the teaching of their classes.

Mary Baldwin will consider purchasing a laptop computer under the following conditions:

  1. Only full-time, permanent members of the Mary Baldwin community are eligible for consideration for laptops. Efforts will be made to allocate laptops to users based upon job responsibilities and need.
  2.  If the faculty member chooses a laptop computer, it will be purchased in lieu of a desktop computer, not in addition to a desktop computer. Only one or the other will be issued to each person.
  3.  During the lifecycle replacement process Mary Baldwin will subsidize the purchase of the laptop up to the amount currently being spent for a desktop computer.
  4.  If the laptop costs more than the price of the current office desktop configuration, the faculty member or department must pay the difference.
  5.  If a department wishes to purchase the laptop outside of the lifecycle replacement process, the department may do so with approval from their Vice-President. That department will be required to pay the full cost of the computer.
  6.  The laptop must be one supported by OIT and must meet minimum specifications. Currently, Mary Baldwin is purchasing and supporting Dell Latitude E-series and Apple Mac Powerbook laptop computers.
  7.  Mary Baldwin will assume ownership and include it in the Mary Baldwin Asset Inventory Database. Licensing for software installed and supported by Mary Baldwin requires that the laptops be considered the legal property of the university. However, if an individual takes ownership of the laptop computer, most software licensed by Mary Baldwin (for example Microsoft Office) must be removed.
  8.  The faculty member or department is responsible for the purchase of additional office accessories such as a monitor, keyboard, mouse, docking station or a desktop computer, if needed. Any additional items purchased with Mary Baldwin money remain the property of Mary Baldwin.
  9.  The faculty member or department is responsible for the purchase of additional batteries or other consumables.
  10.  Support for laptops purchased under this program is equivalent to standard support for desktops supported by Mary Baldwin
  11.  When the faculty member is eligible for an upgrade in the lifecycle replacement process, the laptop will be returned to OIT. If the device is not needed, the faculty member or department will be given the opportunity to purchase it for a mutually agreed upon fair market value.

13.2.7.3  Acceptable Use for Laptops

The use of laptops, including off-campus use, is strictly regulated by the Mary Baldwin’s Acceptable Use Policy.

13.2.7.3.a  Loss, Theft and Data Security

Laptops provide the convenience of portability. However, these devices are especially susceptible to loss, theft, and the distribution of malicious software because they are easily portable and can be used in a variety of environments.

Misplaced or unsecured laptops may expose sensitive information to the public. Examples may include personal identifiable data which may be protected by federal law or the process utilized to connect to the Mary Baldwin network. Given the difficulty in determining what information contained on a computer system has the potential to damage Mary Baldwin, all information must be protected until specifically determined otherwise. The inherent vulnerability of portable computers makes it mandatory that all Mary Baldwin-owned portable computers employ encryption and laptop tracking software. All personnel-assigned Mary Baldwin-owned laptop or other portable computers are required to comply with this policy. When portable computers are decommissioned the encryption license will be removed and made available for use on another system.

It is important that the laptop user understand that they must protect and remember any encryption keys. The whole point of encryption is so that others cannot get into your data. OIT may not be able to recover or restore encrypted data should you loose your key. Therefore it is also important that you backup your data regularly either to CDs or to network drive space.

Requests for a variance to this policy must be submitted by the Director of OIT. Variances must be re-submitted on an annual basis. The following information must be included in the variance request:

All Mary Baldwin laptop users shall:

OIT Staff Members shall:

13.2.7.3.b  Damage to Laptops

Laptops are more susceptible to damage, both due to their portable nature and their relatively fragile construction. Users are expected to take precautions to ensure that laptops are not stolen, lost, or damaged. If laptops are lost, stolen, or otherwise damaged such that they cannot be restored to normal working order, the employee may be responsible for the prorated cost of the laptop (first year: 100%; second year, 75%; third year, 50%; fourth year, 25%).

In case of theft or loss, the user must file a report with the Director of OIT and Mary Baldwin’s Department of Safety and Security. Users are encouraged to check their home insurance policies regarding coverage.

Mary Baldwin will evaluate the circumstances of the theft or loss to determine if the required reimbursement should be waived.

Insurance. Anyone choosing a laptop computer is strongly advised to check to see if they are covered under a homeowners or other insurance policy. Laptops supported by Mary Baldwin are insured up to the base value (currently $1,600 – March 2009).

In the case of a stolen or damaged laptop, a deductible amount of $200 will be applied to every claim; in general, it is the responsibility of the faculty/staff member to cover this deductible. Mary Baldwin assumes no other responsibilities or liabilities than those listed here or required by applicable law.

Repair of laptop computers. Mary Baldwin purchases 3-year, on-site, next-day service for Dell Latitude laptops. Most repairs are performed by a certified Dell repair technician. In some cases a laptop computer can only be serviced by sending it back to the manufacturer. Users of laptops should be aware that this may cause inconvenience, since they may be without any computer during the time the laptop has been returned for service. OIT does not have loaners available for these repair periods.

In general, lost, stolen, or damaged laptops will be replaced with desktops from the pool of available cascaded computers. These computers will subsequently be upgraded according to the lifecycle refresh plan for desktops. At that time, users may be eligible for consideration for a laptop.

13.2.7.3.c  Virus, Hacking, and Security Protection

To ensure that virus protection and other security patches are current, laptops must be docked and connected to Mary Baldwin’s network over night at least once every two weeks. Users who are offcampus for more than two weeks must contact the Help Desk before docking and reconnecting  heir laptops to the Mary Baldwin network. In the case of a significant security alert, users may be contacted by e-mail and/or voicemail, to bring in their laptops to the helpdesk to ensure proper security is enabled on the laptop. Further, in the case of a low security threat level, OIT may choose to waive or extend the two week requirement.

13.2.7.4  Software on Laptops

To the extent possible, OIT will install the same software (Office Suite, Mary Baldwin400 client, etc.) on laptops as installed on Mary Balwin desktops.

Course specific software will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and may need departmental approval and license funding. OIT will only install supported software, and no unlicensed software will be installed under any conditions. Because laptops are provided for Mary Baldwin related work, no personal software may be installed.

13.2.7.5  Laptop Equipment Return

Laptops must be returned to OIT if requested or if employment ends. No laptop will be upgraded or replaced unless the original equipment is returned in proper working order.

13.2.7.6  Support

OIT support of Mary Baldwin owned laptops will be equivalent to that provided for Mary Baldwin owned desktop computers. Direct support will only be provided while laptops are on campus, and laptops requiring support must be docked.

Users will need their own ISP accounts if they wish to connect to the Internet from home, and may install any drivers or other software required by their ISP for remote connectivity. Specific questions regarding connecting remotely must be referred to the users’ ISPs.

13.2.7.7  Signature Page

Before you are issued a laptop, you must sign a copy of the Mary Baldwin Laptop Usage Policy and return it to OIT. The signed copy of the policy will be kept in OIT until the laptop is returned or replaced. A link to the policy will also be posted on the Mary Baldwin web page.

13.2.8  Off-Campus Access to Computing & Network Resources

Mary Baldwin does not have provisions and does not provide direct off campus dial-in access to Mary BaldwinNet to faculty, staff, or students.

Under extreme and unusual circumstances, a special VPN connection can be configured on Mary Baldwin owned computers for use by Mary Baldwin employees from off campus. In those situations the department requesting the off campus connection must

  1. supply the ISP connection for their employee using service guaranteeing a static IP address
  2. supply or designate the Mary Baldwin owned computer,
  3. pay for any additional hardware components, such as modems or routers;
  4. pay for the VPN client software and license,
  5. pay for the Certificate Authentication client software and license.

Permission for off campus access is the sole discretion of the Director of OIT. Mary Baldwin discourages such connections. Please carefully evaluate the value of having your staff working from their homes. Supervision and support can be handled much better when staff is working on campus.

13.2.9  Requesting Off Campus VPN Mary BaldwinNet Access

The Supervisor must make a formal written request to the OIT office care of the Director indicating:

  1.  who you wish to be authorized for off-campus connection.
  2.  a brief description of what type of work they will be doing (for hard copy documentation).
  3.  the specific start and stop dates for access to the system (cannot exceed a 30-day period of time.)
  4.  the Mary Baldwin owned device that is to be configured.
  5.  an account number to be used for all department charges.

You must allow 5 working days for setup of the off campus account access.

13.2.10 Support for Off Campus Dial-in Access

Mary Baldwin will not supply equipment to the employee for home access. OIT will not support employee’s personal equipment used for temporary off-campus in access.

 13.3 Privacy and Monitoring

13.3.1 Network Monitoring, Logging and Data Retention

Purpose: to establish policy for legal procedure without precedence.

Mary Baldwin does not routinely monitor or log network activity. However, users should also be aware that their uses of university computing resources are not completely private. The normal operation and maintenance of Mary Baldwin’s computing resources require the temporary backup and caching of data and communications, the logging of activity, the monitoring of general usage patterns, and other such activities that are necessary for the rendering of service.

Due to the nature of modern attacks against persons and equipment, Mary Baldwin reserves the right to capture and log individual data, including but not limited to the contents of the data packets from individual’s PCs and all electronic devices used on campus.

Additionally, Mary Baldwin does not monitor or restrict material residing on any computer system, whether or not such computers are attached to campus networks. However, computers that are connected to the campus network and violate Mary Baldwin policies are subject to investigation and disconnection without notice. All computers are assigned Dynamic IP addresses which are subject to change at any time.

If the system administrator, in the performance of duties, uncovers information that an individual is acting inconsistent with this policy, or discovers evidence of criminal activity, the system administrator must report such findings to the appropriate authority. Mary Baldwin does not have the resources and capacity to log network data indefinitely. At no time will logging data be stored for longer than 30 days, and is subject to purge at any time per OIT discretion. Mary Baldwin reserves the right to amend and/or append this policy at any point, without prior notification.

13.3.2 Requesting Private Network User Activity Information

What We Can Release:
Mary Baldwin will not release personal user network and communication activity to anyone as we deem this information to be private information. However there may be times when log information may be requested as a part of a legal investigation. The following procedures are in keeping with similar procedures designed to protect private information of students, faculty and staff.

What We Do When We Get A Formal Request:
Should such information be requested for the investigation of possible illegal activity, the request must be made through the Mary Baldwin Security Office. The Security Office will determine if the request is a part of a legal investigation. If so, Security should request a formal written request (subpoena, court order, or other legal document) from the originating investigator. The request from the investigator must be specific in outlining the data wanted. The request, through the Mary Baldwin Security Office, should then be submitted to the Director of Computer and Information Services who will consult with Mary Baldwin’s attorneys and determine if the request can be complied with. If so, the Director will instruct the appropriate technicians to gather the requested information. The information will then be turned over to the Security Office, who will then turn over the information to the requesting party

13.4 User Support – Computer and Telephony

13.4.1 Getting Help

If you have any problems relating to your computer, phones or the Mary Baldwin network please create a Service Desk Ticket.

The Help Desk Analyst will create a work order for tracking every request for help. That way your problem can be tracked and a follow up ensured. Of course the Analyst will attempt to resolve your problem right then on the phone. Each analyst will have basic knowledge of the supported Mary Baldwin software packages, basic hardware and basic network problems. If the question can’t be answered or the problem can’t be resolved on the phone, the Help Desk Analyst will assign the problem to another appropriate OIT staff member.

13.4.2 Hours

Mary Baldwin supports computer usage by employees during normal working hours, Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm. Weekend and evening work requiring support must be approved by the Director of OIT in Advance. Deviations from normal hours must be cleared by a vice president. The supervisor will notify both Security and OIT.

ANY non-employee using the Administrative Computer Systems must have Mary Baldwin OIT clearance in writing in advance of use. The Help Desk will provide support via telephone. The Help Desk will be staffed to provide support from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm EST, Monday through Friday with the exception of school holidays, and energy saving summer 4 day work weeks.

OIT does not provide weekend support or after-hours support, except in legitimate emergencies or on a pre-scheduled basis. Requests for support received after 4:30 p.m. EST weekdays or anytime on the weekend are deferred until the next business day. At other times you may submit an online help request. You can also get help through e-mail via help@marybaldwin.edu. Be sure to include as much detail about the problem as possible in your email message; and include your name and phone number so we can contact you.

13.4.3 Help Desk Support

The goal of Help Desk is to assist Mary Baldwin faculty and staff with the use of Mary Baldwin supported software (see Mary Baldwin Supported Software) by answering questions and resolving problems specifically related to these items. The underlying assumption is that the faculty and staff members are generally knowledgeable about the software but have additional questions or problems not answered in the documentation or covered during training.

The Help Desk cannot provide individual on-phone software training (see Software Training).

The Help Desk will not provide software or hardware support for students’ personal computers. Limited support for students working in Labs is discussed in the section on Lab Support.

Help Desk Analysts strive to answer all calls promptly. All call requests are dated and time-stamped upon receipt. Requests for support are processed on a first come/first serve basis relative to software and priority. When you place an initial call, a Help Desk Analyst will give you a specific incident number.

13.4.4 Problem Classification

As the first line of assistance for solving technology related problems, the Help Desk will try to determine the problem or likely source, and classify the situation as:

If Track 1, the Analyst will use all available resources to best resolve the reported problem over the phone and close the Work Order. In cases where a call cannot be resolved over the phone, the Help Desk Analyst will classify the nature of the problem or request as Priority 1, Priority 2, or Priority 3 and will dispatch a Mary Baldwin Desktop Support Technician to perform on-site actions to resolve the issue.

If Track 2, the Analyst will report the problem or request to Mary Baldwin Network Support group for classification and monitor progress.

If Track 3, the Analyst will report the problem or request to Mary Baldwin Administrative Software Support group for classification and monitor progress.

13.4.5 Call Priority

Calls are prioritized using the following definitions:

Priority 1– We specify this status for critical issues that require immediate help. These are problems that may prevent the performance of a time bound institutional task that effects a lot of people. Use this priority for mission critical applications only. Examples of issues classified as Priority 1 are:

Priority 2– We specify this status for issues that are not urgent in nature, but do require a resolution within a reasonable amount of time. These are problems that inhibit an individual from performing their job, but there are other tasks that can be accomplished while their system is down. Examples of issues classified as Priority 2 are:

Priority 3 – We specify this status for general issues where there is no immediacy and that can be handled as time permits and does not require a resolution within 24 hours. Examples of issues classified as Priority 3 are:

13.4.6 Response Times

During daytime hours a Help Desk Analyst should be available to answer your call immediately. During off hours only emergency calls are directed to Security. Security will contact the OIT Support Technician.

For calls classified as Priority 1, the Mary Baldwin Support Technician will return a call within a one-day period and attempt to close the call within three working days.

For calls classified as Priority 2, the Mary Baldwin Support Technician will return a call within a two-day period and attempt to close the call within five working days.

For calls classified as Priority 3, the Mary Baldwin Support Technician will return a call within a two working day period and determine a suitable timeframe for completion of the task.

13.4.7 Faculty and Staff Hardware Problems

Problems with hardware should go to the Help Desk for resolution or work order assignment. OIT does not have sufficient resources to guarantee loaner CPUs or monitors. Remember that you are responsible for your own data backups for files and documents stored on the equipment assigned to you. OIT cannot guarantee that data that has not been backed up can be recovered if lost due to hardware failure.

13.4.8 Obtaining or Procuring New Computer Equipment & Peripherals

All computer equipment and peripherals, regardless of funding source, must be purchased through OIT. This includes printers, additional RAM, hard drive storage, Zip drive devices, CD-ROM devices, scanners, etc. You may not purchase equipment such as printers from local office supply stores unless approved. This ensures proper asset inventorying, equipment compatibility and warranty coverage.

If upgrades of hardware and components are approved they will be charge to your operating budget. Most computers on campus are updated on a rotational cycle approximately every 4-5 years. Some users are updated more frequently.

If your department has funding for new computers, you can request an update at anytime. Your request will be reviewed and submitted for approval with the Business Office. Simply submit a help request along with the details of the computer setup you need, along with your account number.

13.4.9 Mary Baldwin Hardware Specification Standards

See faculty/staff resources for the most up-to-date listing.

13.4.10 Support NOT Provided by the Mary Baldwin Help

Desk Examples of situations that are not covered by the Help Desk include:

13.4.11 Classroom Presentation Equipment

Presentation equipment is limited so proper and early scheduling is a must. All scheduling of presentation equipment is handled by the Help Desk.  Multimedia Services will determine if the equipment is available and confirm your reservation. They will also set it up in your classroom, time permitting. Software installed on mobile units is limited by licensing. You should check the device to be sure the software you need is installed. If the software is not loaded, you should contact OIT at least three days in advance of your scheduled use. If a license is available, then the software can be installed. If an additional license is required then it will have to be ordered and that may take time. Be advised that payment for an additional license may need to be charged to your department or discipline. Contact OIT by creating a Service Desk Ticket.

13.4.13 Software Training

The Help Desk cannot provide software training over the telephone. It is neither an effective or efficient training method. We make every effort to devote Help Desk time for the exclusive purpose of addressing problem issues and answering specific application questions. Help Desk is not a substitute for Teams 2000 module training. You should request Teams 2000/AS400 module training from your supervisor. Mary Baldwin provides free limited training workshops as funding permits. Faculty and staff who are unfamiliar with basic software concepts and who need software training will be referred to other training providers.

13.4.14 Fee-based Software Support

There are a few approved vendors who can supply you or your office fee based software support. Usually the base rates are $20.00 to $30.00 per hour, billable in 15-minute increments, with a 15-minute minimum. Please contact OIT for more information.

13.4.15 Support of Faculty Taught Software

Faculty taught applications are not supported on the Help Desk. These include SPSS, Systat, Minitab, Derive, Quark X-Press, Adobe PageMaker, Adobe Illustrator, System Architect, CTI training packages, Adobe PhotoShop, ArchiCAD, and other faculty taught applications.

The faculty member teaching those packages is responsible for all instruction and support. It is the responsibility of the faculty member to ensure that the software they wish to use in a class will function properly on the currently deployed hardware platform and operating system. Before purchasing any software the faculty member must be sure to get certification from the software publisher that the software will operate with current operating systems.

The ultimate responsibility to make software function rests with the faculty member and the publisher. While OIT will do everything possible to assist faculty in this effort, we cannot be responsible for software that won’t run in the currently supported operating system. Because of the impact on a faculty member’s planned curriculum that non-functioning software can create, as much lead time as possible should be scheduled to test the software before deployment in the labs.

To ensure successful implementation of new software a minimum of ninety days is required from the time the software is delivered to faculty member and OIT for testing until the time of implementation. It is common for released software to fail to operate properly or not at all. Educational software vendors seldom have the support necessary to assist in resolving such serious problems, which may leave a faculty member with a planned course but no operable software. It is the responsibility of the faculty member using the class software to support the students using it in the course.

It should be made clear to students that they are to contact the faculty member with questions and problems. OIT cannot support software programs other than Mary Baldwin supported packages. You may not install personal software on Mary Baldwin equipment. All software loaded on Mary Baldwin equipment must be licensed to Mary Baldwin.

13.4.16 Student Owned Computer Problems

Support for students’ personal computers is limited to support and advise via the telephone or informative documentation. The Computer Center will not work on individual student owned computers, either in the dorm room or in the Computer Center. To request advise on your particular problem you may:

Most problems are the result of downloaded programs, music, videos and screen savers. Many of these downloads also include viruses and various malware. Mary Baldwin requires all students to have updated Antivirus software running on their personal computers and expects students to keep their virus definitions and operating systems up to date. The computer center may not be able to assist students with computers that are infected or have corrupted operating systems. Mary Baldwin reserves the right to disconnect infected or vulnerable computers if they pose a threat to other computers on the network. It is imperative that you have the original software for your PC available, in case you have to reload your system. Some problems may be too complex to be resolved over the telephone. The Student Support Team are NOT certified service technicians and, therefore, will not make any hardware repairs nor install or remove any software. If your computer or printer is actually broken, the consultant will tell you how to reach a private vendor for fee-based service.

Fee-based Student Support: The responsibility of maintaining your computer is yours alone. Although the Student Support Team can help you with typical software problems and questions, more serious trouble may require outside help. The following local vendors offer fee-based support. Fees and charges vary. Be sure to get an estimate before committing to any service. The following is not a complete list of local vendors, nor are they recommended by Mary Baldwin, they are listed for your convenience. Please check the local phone book for a complete list.

DDP
P.O. Box 17, Churchville, VA 24421
540-337-7777 dave@ddpsystems.com
Morse Computer Service (MCS)
885-8695 BEM@rica.net
John’s Computer Service
2236 Shutterlee Mill Road Staunton, VA 24401
john@johnscomputerservice.net
Staunton Computer
1411 West Beverley St Staunton, VA 24401 540-885-2361

13.5 Campus Messaging & Telephone Systems

Use of Mary Baldwin resources such as electronic mail (email), telephone,and voice mail is a privilege and must be treated as such. Misuse of these messaging systems can result in the loss of access to e mail and/or other resources.

13.5.1 Email Guidelines

Fraudulent, racist, harassing or obscene messages and/or materials are not to be sent, printed, requested or stored. Any use of email that would deprive others of resources is prohibited (such as, but not limited to, purposely congesting email systems with multiple messages).

Chain letters and other forms of mass mailings are not allowed.

Commercial use of email is not allowed. This includes using email as a classified ad service.

Any communication that violates Mary Baldwin policies and/or local, state or federal laws and regulations is prohibited.

The content and maintenance of an electronic mailbox is the responsibility of the person to whom the email account is assigned.

The system administrator will delete email messages that have been left on the server, have been read and are older than the limit set by the email system administrator. (Currently this limit is 90 days.)

Check your email often and remove messages that are no longer needed. Messages needed beyond the time limits stated above should be downloaded to personal disks or printed for future reference.

Email messages are considered private unless they have been explicitly made available to others. Every attempt is made to assure the security of Mary Baldwin’s email systems so that there is a reasonable expectation that mail cannot be read by unauthorized individuals.

However, this is not a guarantee of the privacy of messages. Be aware of the potential for forged email. If a person has acquired another individual’s password, that person can pretend to be the other individual and send forged email. (This would be a policy violation but it can happen if someone is careless with his or her password.) Also, email that originates from outside Mary Baldwin may not be subject to strict security. If a message appears out of character for the sender, it may be a forgery and you should contact the sender by other means for verification.

Software for accessing email systems has been licensed by Mary Baldwin for use on Mary Baldwin owned computers only. Individuals who own their own computers are responsible for acquiring (purchasing) the appropriate software licenses and hardware if they wish to access email from their own computers. There is no guarantee of available software for individually owned computers.

13.5.2 Email Security

Email is not a secure medium. The messages are merely text files that can be read by almost any text editor. When you ask for your email from a mail server the files are downloaded to the computer you are working on. Even after you delete the file after reading it a copy usually remains on the computer you are using (usually in a special folder for deleted mail). To completely remove the mail files from the computer you must delete them from that folder as well.

Since email is such an open medium it is wise not to use email for any confidential information. There is a chance that your message will be delivered to the wrong mailbox. You may accidentally send the message to the wrong address. You may forget to remove the message from the computer you are working on. If the information you wish to relay is in any way sensitive or confidential use an alternative method of delivery.

13.5.3 Retention of Email

Mary Baldwin has a Zero day retention of email. That is once the mail has been delivered to the User (POP3) a copy of the message is not stored on the mail server. Users can archive and keep email on their hard drives for as long as they need.

Email stored in User mailboxes on the server (IMAP) are only retained for a period of as a part of the normal backup cycle.

Overview of backup procedures:

OIT backs up files on its systems for the purpose of ensuring its ability to recover from computer or network failures or disturbances.

The OIT backup system is not designed or intended to be a means for members of the community to have access to long-term storage of files.

Backups of the user files on the systems are run on a weekly basis. The schedule usually runs during the weekend but may be run at any time if events warrant.

Each daily backup saves the contents of files and directories at the time the backup was performed. Therefore the backups do not record all activities or contents of users’ files throughout the day or week. A backup is simply a snapshot in time of the data present on the system at the time the backup ran. Therefore it is completely possible for a user to create and delete a file during the course of a day which will never appear on a backup. This is also true of email messages; a user may receive, read and delete an email message without the daily backup of the email storage ever recording that message (although there would normally be a record of who sent and received an email message — without the contents — in the system mail server logs).

Backups of user files are retained only for 30 days. Therefore OIT can retrieve daily backups for up to 30 consecutive days before the date of request. Users are urged to back up any critical information themselves for archival purposes or long-term storage off-line.

13.5.4 SMTP Policy (or running your own mail server)

Part 1

Connections originating outside the Mary Baldwin network to the SMTP port (port 25) of hosts on the Mary Baldwin network will be blocked. System administrators who need to operate independent mail systems should contact OIT to request an exception to Part 1.

Part 2

Connections originating on the Mary Baldwin network to the SMTP port of hosts outside the Mary Baldwin network will be blocked. All mail destined for hosts outside the Mary Baldwin network must be directed through the Mary Baldwin SMTP server, that is: mail.marybaldwin.edu.

OIT will grant exceptions to Part 2 based solely on issues of Message size limit. The OIT-run SMTP service currently limits the size of a message to 6 MB. If Mary Baldwin business cannot be conducted under this limit, mail system administrators should contact OIT to request exceptions.

Rationale

The implementation of this policy has several benefits:

Fewer problems with open mail relaysAn open mail relay is a host which indiscriminately accepts and forwards email. They are often a result of poor configuration and maintenance by a mail server’s administrator. Malicious people on the Internet use various means to identify open relays. They then direct malicious, annoyance or advertisement email spam through the open relay to other people.

By using the relay, the spammer makes his actions more difficult for security personnel (including civic law enforcement) to track down. By blocking SMTP traffic as described in the policy, spammers’ ability to identify and exploit open relays on the Case network is severely curtailed.

Fewer email virus problems. Email is a common means for computer viruses and other malware to spread on a network.

Fewer instances of blacklisting. When other organizations on the Internet receive unwanted email from Mary Baldwin, they sometimes choose to reject all mail from us, an action known as “blacklisting.” In addition, there are Internet blacklisting services to which organizations may subscribe, so that all subscribers will know to begin rejecting mail from a perceived offender. OIT cannot allow communications to be disrupted in this way.

Improved mail auditing. It is sometimes necessary to track down the source or ultimate disposition of an email message. This process requires OIT to review the cumulative delivery information the message contains. In messages sent by viruses, this information is often falsified. In addition, because a message may traverse multiple, varied mail systems in order to be delivered, the delivery information is incompletely reliable. By requiring all mail leaving Mary Baldwin to pass through the OIT-run mail system, we can guarantee a reliable and consistent point of audit, logging, troubleshooting, etc.

Improved mail system managementAs a result of this policy, OIT will have an authoritative list of the mail servers operating on the Mary Baldwin network. This knowledge makes vulnerability assessment, system administrator education, and remediation practical.

13.5.6 Office Telephone Policy

General

The Mary Baldwin telephone and fax systems must be kept open for Mary Baldwin business and emergency use.

Acquisition Guidelines

Mary Baldwin faculty and staff needing telephone service must complete the request form found on the Offices of Information Technology homepage under Telephones, Voicemail and Cable TV or submit an email request to OIT (help@marybaldwin.edu). Requests should be authorized by the major Department VP and must include the Mary Baldwin account code to which the service will be billed.

Billing

Monthly billing for telephone services will be processed centrally.OIT will review the detailed usage statements. Statements will be emailed to Department heads. Charges will be posted by the Business office. Any discrepancies should be communicated to OIT for follow up.

From time to time, Business and Finance and/or OIT may review individual usage to assure that the most appropriate rate plan is in use and to screen for possible abuse. This information will then be forwarded to the user’s department for administrative review.

Personal Calls

Personal calls from Mary Baldwin telephones should be limited. Staff members are encouraged to bill personal calls to their personal telephones or credit cards.

If a personal long-distance call is made on Mary Baldwin’s account, it is the responsibility of the individual to identify the call when the telephone bill is circulated among the staff and to reimburse Mary Baldwin promptly by making payment to the Business Office.

Repairs and Moves, Adds & Changes

Contact OIT regarding requests for a change in service, telephone instruments, cords, repair, etc.

13.5.8 Cell Phone Policy

General

Mobile (cellular) telephones are an effective resource for Mary Baldwin because they enable communication in areas or situations where conventional telephony is not available or is impractical. However, the cost incurred by mobile telephony must be weighed carefully against any benefits.

In general, mobile telephones (i.e., telephones connected to a commercial cellular telephone service (such as CellONE or Verizon) may be assigned to employees for whom the nature of their work requires wide mobility and simultaneous access to the public telephone network (i.e., senior staff, directors, deans, technicians).

Acquisition Guidelines

All mobile phone acquisitions will be coordinated by OIT through established purchasing procedures. Individuals and/or departments are not permitted to contract for cellular services on their own.

Mary Baldwin faculty and staff needing mobile communications service must complete the request form found on the Office of Information Technology homepage under Telephones, Voicemail and Cable TV or submit an email request to OIT (help@marybaldwin.edu). Requests should be authorized by the major Department VP and must include the Mary Baldwin account code to which the service will be billed. The justification for mobile telephony should demonstrate a clear connection to the user’s job responsibilities.

Mobile telephones should not be issued to student workers, contract employees, part-time, temporary personnel, adjunct faculty, or others not having a compelling use for the technology, unless specifically requested by the department head. Security of these phones is the responsibility of the department.

All costs associated with mobile telephones will be borne by the department ordering the equipment. Such costs include, but are not limited to, the following: equipment acquisition; service initiation; monthly fees for mobile service; per-minute cost of calls in excess of the calling plan allocation; maintenance and repair of equipment; and replacement of lost or stolen equipment.

LOST PHONES and REPAIRS

If the mobile telephone is stolen or otherwise misplaced, the holder MUST contact OIT  by creating a Service Desk Ticket immediately for temporary suspension. If after hours, OIT must be notified on the next business day. User departments will be responsible for coordinating repair of mobile communications equipment with OIT.

Short-term rental of mobile telephones

A small supply of mobile telephones may be available for short term rental. Requests are filled on a first-come, first-serve basis. The department is charged a fee for use of the mobile telephone. In addition, all airtime usage charges for the appropriate days are the responsibility of the requesting department.

Billing

Monthly billing for cellular services will be processed centrally. OIT will review the detailed usage statements. Statements will be emailed to Department heads. Charges will be posted by the Business office. Any discrepancies should be communicated to OIT for follow up. From time to time, Business and Finance and/or OIT may review individual usage to assure that the most appropriate rate plan is in use and to screen for possible abuse. This information will then be forwarded to the user’s department for administrative review.

Personal Calls

Use of a Mary Baldwin-owned mobile telephone and mobile telephone airtime service is intended for official Mary Baldwin business. However, Mary Baldwin recognizes that personal calls are sometimes necessary.

Personal calls should be kept to an absolute minimum.

Usage-Rate airtime plans – If the mobile telephone is used for a personal call, the individual is responsible for the cost of that call. The telephone user should make note of personal calls and write a check to Mary Baldwin after review of the monthly call detail. The personal check should be submitted to the Business Office for deposit to the account number billed for the cost of the call.

Flat rate airtime plans – If the mobile telephone has a flat rate airtime plan, the customer is responsible for reimbursing Mary Baldwin when personal calls cause the plan threshold to be exceeded. In this case, personal calls must be reimbursed up to the amount over the threshold.

13.5.10 Voice Mail Messaging System

Introduction

Voice mail service is provided to all members of the Staunton campus community. It is a powerful and flexible tool to help us meet the communications needs of Mary Baldwin. To ensure our ability to effectively manage the system, this policy has been created to help users understand the capabilities and limitations of the voice mail system and establish guidelines for its proper use.

Definitions

Terms used in this document are explained below:

Broadcast voice mail message. A system-wide message heard by all voice mail users. It plays immediately after a user dials into the system and enters their password. Unlike other types of messages, it cannot be skipped, interrupted, or saved; the message must be heard in its entirety and deleted before a user can access their mailbox. A Broadcast message is provided from the server instead of being sent to a user’s mailbox. Because of this, it does not trigger message waiting indicator lights or stutter tones.

System distribution List message. Created and maintained by the System Administrator, it is similar to the personal-group list but can contain up to 300 mailbox numbers. System lists can be linked together into a master list to simplify mass message distribution. At present, there are two System Distribution Lists, one containing all faculty and staff voice mailbox numbers, and the other containing all student voicemail box numbers. Unlike a Broadcast message, System Distribution List messages are sent to individual boxes and thus trigger message-waiting lights and tones.

Personal Distribution List message. A message sent to a pre-defined group of voice mailboxes. This type of message is recorded once and copied by the system to all the mailboxes in the list. Faculty, staff, and selected student leaders can create their own personal group distribution lists through their voice mailbox. Up to five lists can be created, each with up to 25 mailbox numbers.

Extension and Destination Voice Mailboxes. There are several types of voice mailboxes available in our system. The box type assigned to most faculty and staff is known as an “extension” box, and is linked directly to the telephone number. The mailbox number for an extension box is the same as the telephone number. Most students are assigned a “destination” box, used when 2 or more people share the same telephone extension. Destination mail box numbers are not the same as the telephone number. When creating a distribution list that includes students, remember that it is the destination box number you will need for your list, not the telephone number.

Explanation of Use

Because of the limitations of student voice mail service, this section applies primarily to faculty and staff users.

The voice mail system is intended for official use in support of academic and administrative communications needs. Because it is possible to send information to all members of the Mary Baldwin community using the Broadcast or System Distribution Lists voice mail message, this policy has been established. In doing so, these points were considered:

Unlike an email message or traditional flyer, those receiving voice mail messages cannot scan a subject line and delete or ignore those items that do not pertain to or interest them. They must be listened to, at least partially, to determine what they contain. Only then can they be skipped and deleted. In the case of a Broadcast Message, they cannot  be skipped at all and must be listened to in its entirety.

An email message to “allmbc” can be composed and sent by anyone from his or her computer without assistance or intervention by the email system administrator. Sending a Broadcast voice mail message, however, requires assistance by the System Administrator. For security reasons, however, we must restrict access to this part of our system to the Administrator. Voice mail messages are stored on the server’s hard drive, consuming space until listened to and deleted. Broadcast and System Distribution List messages are roughly equivalent to sending 1,000 messages. It would not take many such messages (combined with regular message traffic) to use up our capacity and cause system problems.

Because voice mail is by its nature more intrusive, it requires more time to deal with than other forms of available communication, such as e-mail and flyers.

Conditions of Use Guidelines

Use of the Broadcast Message is strictly limited to communicating information about events that are of significant impact to the entire Mary Baldwin community. All requests for the use of Broadcast messaging must be directed to the Voice-Mail System Administrator. Exceptions to this policy require Executive Staff approval.

Examples of situations that warrant the use of a broadcast message include:

Access to System Distribution Lists will be made available to the Executive Staff and to offices they designate. Such messages should be of significant importance to the recipients on the list used.

Examples:

Personal Distribution Lists are available to all faculty, staff, and selected student leaders. Responsibility for obtaining appropriate extension and destination box numbers and the creation of the lists themselves rests with the user. Instructions on creating and using lists is contained in the user’s phone directory.

Voice Mail Etiquette

Individual messages or those sent using personal-group distribution lists must conform to certain general rules:

13.6 Copyright Policy

Copyright information is located on the Grafton Library site:

13.6.1 What is copyright?

13.6.2 What is “Fair Use”?

13.6.3 Digital Milliennium Copyright Act?

13.6.4 What materials may be used without first obtaining the owner’s permission and/or paying a royalty?

13.6.5 How does Copyright Law affect Distance Learning?

13.6.6 What Guidelines apply to placing materials in the library on Reserve?

13.6.7 What Guidelines apply to Coursepacks?

13.6.8 What Guidelines apply to the use of Films and Video Recordings?

13.6.9 What Guidelines apply to Off-Air Recording of Broadcast?

13.6.10 What Guidelines apply to the copying of Sound Recording?

13.6.11 What Guidelines apply to the copying of Computer Software?

13.6.12 What Guidelines apply to the conversion of other Analog Materials to Digital Materials?

13.6.13 What guidelines apply to the downloading and sharing of Audio, Video, Software, and other files?

13.6.14 How do I obtain permission to show/broadcast video materials that do not currently have public performance rights?

13.6.15 Who assumes responsibility for copyright infringements?

13.6.16 Additional Sources of Copyright Information

13.7 Archival Policy

13.8 Accountability for Data Resources

Computer Systems. Mary Baldwin, represented by its President and Board of Trustees, is the sole owner of its institutional information. Certain managers and/or department heads are designated custodians or caretakers of specific portions of this information. These people have sole and primary responsibility for the acquisition, maintenance, integrity, accuracy, and security of data within their jurisdiction, but not proprietary rights to it. In a shared database environment, like the one at Mary Baldwin, they are accountable to all other campus offices that may require the use of this information. No one is permitted to use, transmit in any form, sell, or otherwise disclose any information contained in Mary Baldwin’s computer systems, micro or mainframe, without advance written authorization of the responsible department head.

The major objectives of physical security are to prevent unauthorized use of equipment, software, and information; and to prevent the theft or damage of equipment, software, and information. The primary user, to whom the equipment is assigned, has the responsibility of ensuring that physical security measures are maintained. Keeping the systems in rooms that have controlled access that can be locked can prevent the unauthorized use of microcomputer systems and preferably security patrolled during non business hours.

The use of System Power on Passwords is strongly encouraged.  Contact the Office of Information Technology for help in setting up a POP.

Backup diskettes should be locked up in a desk, filing cabinet, or similar lockable apparatus when not in use. This is the best way to secure sensitive or critical information. Copies of sensitive data can be brought to the Office of Information Technology for secure off-site storage.

Minimizing environmental hazards is accomplished through the use of surge protectors and humidifiers.

Microcomputers processing sensitive data should never be left unattended. This includes recalculating spreadsheets, printing reports, writing letters with confidential information or processing a database. This prevents the unauthorized individual from stopping the application processing, reading or changing the information and restarting the application
without detection.

Saves should be performed frequently to minimize data loss, and always before leaving the microcomputer for any reason. Backups of sensitive or hard to replace data should be performed regularly by the user. If the information changes frequently, it should be backed up daily; otherwise a weekly backup will suffice.

the Office of Information Technology has the responsibility of backing up pertinent information stored on the Domain Controller servers, the Administrative server, the Library server, the Academic servers, and the Web server. A full system backup is performed weekly for these servers and a copy is stored off-site.

13.9 Software Licensing Policy

Mary Baldwin is committed to abiding by Federal Copyright Law governing computer software. According to the U.S. Copyright law, illegal reproduction of software can be subject to civil damages of as much as $100,000 and criminal penalties including fines and imprisonment. Mary Baldwin employees who make, acquire or use unauthorized copies of computer software shall be disciplined as appropriate under the circumstances. Such circumstances may include termination. Mary Baldwin does not condone the illegal duplication of software.

Mary Baldwin licenses the use of computer software from a variety of outside companies. Mary Baldwin does not own this software or its related documentation and, unless authorized by the software developer, does not have the right to reproduce it. Any duplication of licensed software, except for backup purposes, is a violation of the Federal Copyright Law. The software that is loaded on Mary Baldwin owned computers might not be duplicated for use on any other personal computer. Many products are serial numbered and no two personal computers may have software with the same serial number.

If a department has ten computers with a word processing program installed on each machine, then that department should also have either ten separate site licenses for the software or ten sets of original diskettes and documentation for that program.

Any employee giving software to any outside third party, including students shall also be disciplined as appropriate under the circumstances. Such discipline may include termination. If you need to use company software at home, you must first consult with Mary Baldwin Computer and Information Services before removing the software from the premises to be sure that the license for that piece of software permits home use.

Software Licensing Filing for Department Purchased Software.
All software should be purchased through the Office of Information Technology even if the funding source is the department itself. In all purchases, a copy of the software license agreement must be filed with OIT so that it will be available in the event that a publisher’s audit of the licensing occurs.

Software Audit Policy.

Annually, OIT will inventory the software on only those Mary Baldwin owned computers where the appropriate user
has given current written permission. The appropriate user would be the Mary Baldwin employee designated as the primary user of a given computer as listed on the computer database or the employee designated as being responsible for the security and maintenance of a given computer as listed on the computer database.

In those instances where written permission to inventory is denied, the appropriate person will provide an inventory of the Mary Baldwin owned software in his/her possession and affirm in writing the accuracy of the inventory. OIT will develop and provide a software audit tally form for this purpose.  In order to bring Mary Baldwin into compliance, unlicensed
software that is discovered in the inventory process will either be removed/reclaimed or purchased with the appropriate budget account being charged. The appropriate account would be the account associated with the employee using the unlicensed software.

Timely Warning Policy

Responsible Offices:
Campus Safety
Communication, Marketing, and Public Affairs

I. Scope

This policy applies to all components of Mary Baldwin University, including programs housed on the main campus, Murphy Deming College of Health Sciences, and regional centers.

II. Purpose­

The purpose of this policy is to ensure the issuance of timely warnings regarding crimes posing a serious or ongoing threat to the campus community.  This policy complies with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act) by establishing procedures for the university regarding the circumstances and delivery of warnings of serious or on-going threats. 

III. Definition

Timely warnings are provided to notify students, faculty, and staff of certain crimes that may represent a serious or ongoing threat to the campus community and to heighten safety awareness. A timely warning also seeks information that may lead to the arrest and conviction of the offender when violent crimes against persons or substantial crimes against property have been reported. Timely warnings include information about the crime that triggered the warning, but do not include personally identifiable information about the victim of the crime. Timely warnings also include other available information that the university determines will help members of the campus community to protect themselves.  The content and amount of information varies depending on the nature of the threat, the amount of information available, the risk of compromising law enforcement efforts, and other factors.

IV. Policy and Procedure

When timely warnings are issued: Timely warnings are made in response to the occurrence of crimes specified in the Clery Act.  Other dangers to the campus community are addressed through emergency communications, as described in “Mary Baldwin University Emergency Communication Procedures.” Decisions to issue a warning are made on a case-by-case basis considering the nature and circumstances of the crime and the danger posed to the community. A warning is required only when the reported crime occurred on campus, public property bordering campus, or property controlled by Mary Baldwin.

Who issues them: Timely warnings typically are issued either by the Director of Campus Safety or the Vice President for Communication, Marketing, and Public Affairs, or by their designees in cases when they are not available.

How they are issued:

Timely warnings typically are issued through e-mails sent to students and employees and/or through Baldwin Alert Messages (BAM – alerts sent via text, email, and voicemail).

V. Authority

This policy is approved by the Executive Staff of Mary Baldwin University.

Campus Access Policy

Mary Baldwin University Policies and Procedures

Title : Rules, Rights & Responsibilities for Campus
Access

Issued By : Office of the President Replaces: N/A

Effective : 01/26/17

Replaces : N/A

Purpose
The purpose of this Policy is to establish guidelines regarding Rules, Rights
and Responsibilities for Campus Access.

Scope
This policy applies to all involved seeking campus access.

Policy
Mary Baldwin University (“MBU” or “University”) encourages the participation
of the broader community in a range of campus activities, but asks members
of the public to recognize that MBU is a private institution and its grounds are
designated for members of the University community, consisting of students,
faculty and staff. Any individual who is not a current employee, faculty
member or student of the University will be deemed a member of the general
public for purposes of access to, and use of, all properties owned and/or
occupied by MBU.
The principal campus and other MBU-owned properties are not public
facilities, though the University seeks to respond to community needs and the
needs of the general public by sharing its resources and facilities when
appropriate and possible. In every case, MBU must protect the central
educational purpose for which it was established and must conserve its
resources, both physical and financial. MBU must also ensure the right of all
members of the University community to enjoy an environment that is safe,
conducive to learning, and free from unnecessary or unwanted distraction and
interruption.
Unless specifically designated as “open to the public,” all MBU meetings,
activities and events on campus are considered to be limited to participation
by members of the campus community. Please check the University’s
Website (www.marybaldwin.edu) to determine whether an event is “open to
the public.” Some events may require advance registration.

While on campus, any individual attending an event designated as “open to
the public” must adhere to all University rules of conduct, all rules and
conditions proscribed for that event, and state and federal law.

The University reserves the right to determine who may enter its property and
reserves the right to refuse entry to any individual. The University further
reserves the right to restrict the entry and presence of any individual or group
on campus and to impose specific limitations or conditions related to the entry
or presence of any individual or group on campus.

Members of the general public who are authorized to attend public events
may enter campus for the sole purpose of attending the event and should
traverse the campus directly to and from the building or location of the event.
Members of the general public are not authorized to enter any building other
than the building where the event is scheduled to occur. Members of the
general public must not interfere with, accost or disrupt any member of the
University community while on campus or any other MBU-owned property.

Nor may any members of the general public engage in solicitation on any
MBU-owned property without prior written permission from the President of
the University. “Solicitation” shall include, but is not limited to, canvassing,
seeking to obtain membership in or support for any organization, requesting
contributions, offering goods and services for sale or purchase, distributing
advertising materials, pamphlets, petitions, circulars or product samples, or
engaging in any other conduct relating to any outside business or
organizational interests.

In instances in which the University makes any of its facilities available for use
by any external group or organization, the group or organization may impose
additional limits and restrictions upon attendance at the events it sponsors.
The University shall have no liability or responsibility for actions of such
parties.

Student Code of Conduct

The Mary Baldwin University (“MBU”, “MB”, “Mary Baldwin”, or “University”) Code of Student Conduct (Code) identifies the rules governing Student conduct and the procedures employed to investigate and resolve alleged violations of the Code. The Conduct Board and the Office of Student Engagement are charged with the primary responsibility to regulate matters of Student conduct in the University community. The motto “Ignorance is No Excuse” means that all Mary Baldwin students are expected to
be familiar with the Code and its standards and to conduct themselves in accordance with its conduct rules.

All student inquiries concerning the Code should be directed to the current Conduct Board Chair1 or to the Conduct Board’s Advisor.

The current version of this document, which may be revised from time to time shall be
available online at: http://www.marybaldwin.edu/student

I. Mary Baldwin University Conduct Pledge

As a Mary Baldwin University Student, I will respect myself and all members of the
University community by upholding and supporting the Code of Student Conduct
through my words, deeds, and actions.

II. Definition and Purpose of the Student Conduct Board

The Student Conduct Board (SCB) is a Student board made up of one Chair and up to
Student representatives. SCB positions are peer elected and filled through the Student
Government Association elections or by Chair appointment. Members of the SCB are held to the same Code standards as all Mary Baldwin students. The SCB exists to educate students about the Code, investigate alleged violations of the Code and, depending on the nature and severity of the alleged Code violation, to determine student responsibility and impose sanctions.

III. Conduct Board Motto

The motto of the Conduct Board is Ignorance is no excuse. This motto illustrates the
expectation that all Students who enroll at Mary Baldwin agree to abide by all of the
University’s rules, regulations, and standards. Failure to abide by the Code may result in sanctions, including termination of a Student’s academic career at Mary Baldwin.

IV. Authority, Scope, and Interpretation of the Code

The Code is established under the authority of the Student Conduct Board at Mary Baldwin, in conjunction with the staff in the Office of Student Engagement.

Generally, the Code governs and regulates Student conduct that occurs on the University’s main campus or any building or property owned or used by the University in connection with its educational and other programs; or Student conduct that occurs off-campus that is Mary Baldwin University Code of Student Conduct | 3 disruptive, harmful, poses a reasonable concern for the safety and well-being of Students,
faculty and/or staff, or that otherwise is harmful to the University’s purposes, mission
and objectives.

The Code regulates off-campus Student conduct to promote and reinforce the following values and University goals:

  1. To prevent and reduce behavior that undermines Student academic success and
    that negatively detracts from the educational mission of the University;
  2. To promote and protect the health and safety of Students and other University
    community members;
  3. To provide timely intervention, support, and resources to those who may be
    struggling with substance abuse/addiction or other psychological issues; and
  4. To address Student conduct and activities that clearly conflict with the University’s
    interests and mission.

The Chair and the Conduct Board Advisor, with the assistance of the Associate Vice
President of Student Engagement, if needed, will determine if an off-campus incident
involves Student conduct that falls within the scope of the Code.

The Chair, the Conduct Board Advisor, and Representatives of the Judicial Board have the responsibility and authority to interpret the Code, with the assistance of the Associate Vice President of Student Engagement, as needed.

Standards of Due Process

Any Student charged with a violation of the Code has the right to request the assistance of a Student Advocate. Student requests for assistance should be made through the Lead Advocate. If a Student will be assisted by a Student Advocate, the student and/or the Student Advocate must notify the Initial Meeting Official or the Hearing presiding officer in writing at least 24 hours in advance of any scheduled Initial Meeting or Hearing.

Any Student charged with a violation of the Code is entitled to a Hearing before the
members of the Conduct Board or with Administration, depending on the nature and
severity of the charge, as provided for in Sections XIV-XVII of this Code, except where the Student and the University agree to resolve the charge without a hearing, as provided for in Sections XXI-XXII of this Code.

The focus of a Student Conduct Proceeding is to determine whether the accused Student has engaged in conduct that violates the Code. Student Conduct Proceedings will not be governed by legal rules of evidence and deviations from the procedures prescribed in this Code will not invalidate any sanction decision or outcome, unless the deviation results in significant prejudice to the Student’s right to receive reasonable notice of the charges against him/her and the right to respond to the charges.

The standard used to determine if a violation of the Code has occurred shall be a
preponderance of the evidence, meaning that it is more likely than not that a violation has occurred. The criminal standard of beyond a reasonable doubt shall not apply in Student Conduct Proceedings.

Student Confidant Clause

Any Student charged with a violation of the Code has the right to request that the Chair grant the use of a Student Confidant with which to discuss the case. The accused student may send a written request to the Chair with the proposed Student Confidant’s name, student leadership positions (if any), and, if possible, student ID number. The request should explain why the accused requires a confidant and the confidant’s relationship to the accused and any other parties involved in the case.

Prior to sending the written request, the accused may acknowledge an investigation is
ongoing in order to confirm the potential Student Confidant is willing to serve in that
capacity. Sharing unnecessary detail, including all other names and facts pertaining to the case, prior to the student being appointed as an official confidant is not permitted and will be considered a breach of confidentiality.

The Student Confidant request will be evaluated for approval by the Lead Advocate and the Conduct Board Chair and, in cases involving a related Honor Council case, the Honor Council Chair. The Conduct Board Chair may deny or revoke the use of a Student Confidant if s/he presents the possibility of interfering with the case in any way. Typically, use of a student confidant is reserved for cases that may result in a major penalty, such as suspension or dismissal.

If approved, the following applies to a Student Confidant:

  1. The student confidant may discuss the case with the accused on a personal level.
  2. The student confidant may not counsel the accused, question witnesses and case
    investigator(s), be present during the interview or hearing, or present arguments to the
    Conduct Board.
  3. The student confidant may not have any involvement in the case. This includes any
    involvement in the incident of alleged code violation, any participation in a hearing (e.g.
    serving as a character witness, providing testimony or any kind) and any other involvement
    the Judicial Board Chair judges inappropriate.
  4. The student and Student Confidant must meet with the Conduct Board Chair and
    Lead Advocate to discuss responsibilities and complete the oath of confidentiality.

Amnesty Clause

In order to encourage responsible decision making about one’s personal welfare and the Mary Baldwin University Code of Student Conduct ability to make ethical decisions in regard to the welfare of others, the Conduct Board has an amnesty process.

The amnesty process is intended to be used by those affected by medical emergencies as a result of alcohol or other drugs, on or off-campus, that:

  1. Are voluntarily reported by:
    a. The affected party (even if they did not personally report the need for medical
    attention)

    b. Witness(es) that looks over the affected party until appropriate medical
    personnel arrive and cooperate with the responding authorities;
  2. Did not violate any other policies other than the Prohibited Conduct relating to Alcohol, Drugs and/or Controlled Substances listed in Section X of this Code. With regards to drugs and/or controlled substances, this will only include being under the influence of drugs.

Amnesty may be granted regardless of whether or not the responding medical
personnel deem it necessary to transport the affected party to the hospital.

Students who believe that the amnesty process affects their case must submit a request for amnesty using the online form to the Conduct Board Chair, Advisor, and/or Administration if the case has been forwarded for adjudication, within 72 hours of receiving notification that they are charged with a violation of university policy. Amnesty request forms are available online at:
https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?MaryBaldwin&layout_id=7

Individuals pursuing amnesty will have their request reviewed on an individual basis during their Initial Meeting with the person assigned to hear the case. If granted, a finding of Amnesty Granted will be marked on the file instead of a finding of Responsibility. If amnesty is granted, educational sanctions or assignments may still be required.

The Amnesty Process does not apply in circumstances where medical attention is requested by Mary Baldwin staff members, police, or emergency personnel while performing their job duties. In addition, it does not provide protection against legal or civil suits resulting from the incident. All requests for amnesty subsequent to an initial qualifying request will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Violations of the Law and the Code

Violations of University policy, rules or regulations, or federal, state, or local laws may result in a violation of the Code. Student Conduct Proceedings will generally proceed even if the conduct also results in action initiated by federal, state, or local law enforcement officials, or a private party, based on the same conduct, and the resolution of Student Conduct Proceedings will not be delayed or be dependent upon the outcome of any other criminal or civil proceeding.

Definitions

When used in the Mary Baldwin Code of Student Conduct, the terms below will be defined
as follows:

  1. “Administration” means the staff in the Office of Student Engagement responsible for the adjudication of a Student Conduct Proceeding that has been referred by the Judicial Board for any reason. Adjudication of a Student Conduct Proceeding at this level will normally be handled by the Associate Vice President of Student Engagement, unless they designate someone else in the Office of Student Engagement to handle the adjudication of the Student Conduct Proceeding.
  2. “Bullying” means any written, electronic, or verbal communication, behavior, gesture, or any physical act that is threatening or intimidating which takes place on University Premises, online, in person, or at campus sponsored events and which (1) places a person in actual or reasonable fear of harm to their person or damage to their property or (2) creates a hostile environment by substantially interfering with or impairing a student’s educational performance, opportunities or benefits, or a student employee or leader’s ability to perform essential functions of their job or position.
  3. “Campus Safety Officer” is the University professional employed by the Campus Safety Department under the Director of Safety and Security.
  4. “CCC” refers to the Cadet Conduct Council and is a student board that is part of the Virginia Women’s Institute for Leadership (VWIL) and exists to investigate alleged violations of the VWIL Code of Conduct, and to determine if Student violations have occurred and, if so, to impose sanctions.
  5. “Code” means the Mary Baldwin University Code of Student Conduct.
  6. “University” means Mary Baldwin University.
  7. “Controlled Substance” means any drug, chemical, or substance whose possession and use is defined as a “Controlled Substance” under either state or federal law. Prescription medications may constitute a Controlled Substance under this Code if inappropriately possessed, used, or distributed.
  8. “Discrimination” means the unequal and unlawful treatment of another based on
    or because of the person’s race, color, creed, religion, gender, age, national origin,
    disability, military status, or sexual orientation.
  9. “Drug Paraphernalia” means all equipment, products, and materials of any kind which are either designed for use or which are intended for use in planting, propagating, cultivating, growing, harvesting, manufacturing, compounding, converting, producing, processing, preparing, strength testing, analyzing, packaging, repackaging, storing, containing, concealing, injecting, ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing into the human body marijuana or a controlled substance.
  10. “Guest” means anyone who is not a student who is present on University Premises at the invitation and/or hosting of a Student. Non-residential Students who are visiting a residential Student in a residence hall shall also be considered a Guest.
  11. “Harassment” means verbal, written, visual, or physical conduct based on or motivated by an individual’s actual or perceived sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, race, creed, color, place of birth, ancestry, ethnicity, religion, national origin, age, disability, marital status, or other characteristics as defined and protected by law in the location where a particular program is operating, that has the purpose or effect, from the point of view of a reasonable person, of objectively and substantially undermining and detracting from or interfering with an individual’s educational or work performance or access to Mary Baldwin resources; or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive educational, work, or living environment.
  12. “Hate Crime” means

    (i) a criminal act committed against a person or his property with the specific intent of instilling fear or intimidation in the individual against whom the act is perpetrated because of race, religion, ethnic origin or sexual orientation or that is committed for the purpose of restraining that person from exercising his rights under the Constitution or laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia or of the United States,

    (ii)any illegal act directed against any persons or their property because of those persons’ race, religion, national origin or sexual orientation and (iii) all other incidents, as determined by law-enforcement authorities, intended to intimidate or harass any individual or group because of race, religion, national origin or sexual orientation.
  13. “Hazing” means an act which endangers the health or safety of a student or students or which inflicts physical or psychological abuse on a student or students or which destroys, damages, or removes public or private property with or as a condition for the purpose of initiation, admission into, affiliation with, or continued membership in a student group or organization regardless of whether the student or students so endangered or injured participated voluntarily in the activity. Apathy and acquiescence in the presence of Hazing are not neutral acts and may be violations of the Code.
  14. “HC” refers to the “Honor Council” and means a Student board made up of one Chair and up to seven (7) Student representatives and which exists to educate students about the Honor sections of the Code, to investigate related alleged violations, and to determine if Student violations of the Honor Code have occurred and, if so, to impose sanctions.
  15. “Hearing Body” means, in Student Conduct Proceedings over which the Conduct Board retains jurisdiction, members of the Conduct Board and/or Honor Council designated and/or appointed by the Conduct Board Chair to serve as a panel to determine whether a Student or a Student Club, Group or Organization has violated the Code and to determine the sanction, if any, for such violation. A Conduct Board Hearing Body is typically comprised of three (3) members. A Hearing Body member who has a bias about or an interest in the case should recuse him/herself. If the Hearing Body member refuses to recuse him/herself, the Conduct Board Chair will make a decision about whether to remove that person from the Hearing Body. In any Student Conduct Proceeding heard by Administration, “Hearing Body” mean the members of the faculty and staff of the University, appointed by the Associate Vice President of Student Engagement to serve as the panel to determine if a Code violation has occurred and to
    determine the sanction, if any, for such violation. An Administration Hearing Body will be made up of Mary Baldwin University Code of Student Conduct | 8
    two (3) faculty and staff members of the University appointed by Administration.
  16. “Hostile Educational or Employment Environment” means one in which a person is
    subjected to harassment that is sufficiently severe, persistent or pervasive that it
    unreasonably interferes with, limits or deprives an individual from participating in or benefitting from the University’s education or work programs and/or activities. The University evaluates the existence of a Hostile Environment from both a subjective and objective viewpoint.
  17. “Investigating Committee” means a group appointed by the Conduct Board Chair to investigate an alleged Code violation that shall proceed to a Hearing and to present the University’s position on the charge during the Hearing. The Investigating Committee shall be comprised of members of the Student Standards Board. In Student Conduct Proceedings adjudicated and heard by Administration, the Investigating Committee shall be the member or members of the faculty and staff of the University appointed by the Associate Vice President of Student Engagement to investigate an alleged Code violation that shall proceed to a Hearing and to present the University’s position on the charge during the Hearing.
  18. “CB” refers to the “Conduct Board” and means a Student board made up of one
    Chair and up to seven (7) Student representatives and exists to educate students
    about the Code, to investigate alleged violations, and to determine if Student
    violations have occurred and, if so, to impose sanctions.
  19. “Minor Violation” means a violation of the Code for which the possible sanctions are other than suspension and dismissal.
  20. “Party” means a Student or Student Group, Club or Organization alleged to have
    violated the Code.
  21. “Record of the Hearing” means the letter containing charges, the audio recording of the Hearing, all documents offered as evidence at the Hearing, the written opinion of the Hearing Body, and the decision of the Judicial Board or Administration.
  22. “SA” refers to “Student Advocate” and means any member of a Student board made up of one Chair and up to seven (7) Student representatives and exists to help interpret the Code for, assist throughout a Student Conduct Proceeding, and mentor any Student charged with a Code violation.
  23. “Self-defense” is the legal right to use reasonable force to protect oneself or members of one’s family from bodily harm, or to a lesser extent one’s property, from the attack of an aggressor if the defender has reason to believe the danger of bodily harm is imminent and that force is necessary to avoid this danger. Self-defense is a defense to a criminal charge or to tort liability; however, it is not an acceptable justification for violent behavior on campus or typically a defense to a charge under this Code.
  24. “Separation of the Student from the University” means the Student may not be present on University Premises, attend or participate in classes, manipulate any website or other material residing on the University’s web server, access the University’s email services, enter or use any University service or facility, or participate in any Student Club, Group, Organization or other University sponsored programs, activities, or related events.
  25. “Major Violation” means a violation of the Code for which the possible sanctions
    include suspension or dismissal.
  26. “PEG” means the Program for the Exceptionally Gifted at Mary Baldwin University.
  27. “Sexual Misconduct” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature, including any conduct or act of a sexual nature perpetrated against an individual without Consent.
    Sexual Misconduct can occur between strangers or acquaintances, including people involved in an intimate or sexual relationship. Sexual Misconduct can be committed by men or by women, and it can occur between people of the same or different sex. Sexual Misconduct also includes complicity in Sexual Misconduct. The University encourages reporting of all Sexual Misconduct. Sexual Misconduct includes but is not limited to:
    dating violence; domestic violence; non-forcible sex acts; sexual assault; sexual
    exploitation; sexual harassment; and stalking. Further definitions of the types of sexual misconduct and related terms can be found in the University’s Sexual Misconduct Policy on the Title IX Website found here: www.mbc.edu/title-ix/
  28. “Student” or “student” means a person who is enrolled in a schedule of undergraduate or graduate courses at the University, a person attending classes at or through the University, or a person participating in orientation programs on the University premises.
    The term Student includes those who are full-time, part-time, commuters, residential, in the Adult Degree Program and studying abroad.
  29. “Student Club” means a collection of persons who have complied with the University’s formal requirements for recognition, At Mary Baldwin, “Student Club” is used to refer to student organizations other than the Student Government Association and its Executive Council.
  30. “Student Conduct Proceeding” means a proceeding initiated to investigate an alleged Student violation of the Code, to determine if a violation has occurred and, if so, the sanction to be imposed for such a violation.
  31. “Student Confidant” means a Student who has been formally requested by another Student and approved by the Lead Advocate and the Conduct Board Chair and/or the Honor Council Chair as someone the Student can talk to for moral support while they are involved in a Conduct Proceeding.
  32. “Student Group” means a number of persons associated with each other for a common purpose, and who have not complied with or satisfied the University’s formal requirements for recognition.
  33. “Student Organization” means a collection of persons who have complied with the
    University’s formal requirements for recognition and is used to refer to the Student
    Government Association and its Executive Council.
  34. “University” means both University College and Mary Baldwin College for Women.
  35. “University Official” means any person employed by the University or serving in a
    student leadership position in which that person is authorized by the University to
    perform administrative or professional duties. Examples of University Officials are
    Judicial Board Representatives, Honor Council Representatives, Resident Assistants, and Student Assistants.
  36. “University Premises” means all buildings, facilities, or grounds owned, leased,
    operated, controlled, or supervised by Mary Baldwin University, including adjacent streets and sidewalks.
  37. “Violent Behavior” means conduct and/or behavior, verbal and non-verbal, including but not limited to, verbal and/or physical aggression, attack, threats, harassment, intimidation and other disruptive behavior in any form, or by any media, which causes or could cause a reasonable person to fear physical harm by any individual(s) or group(s) against any person(s) or property.
  38. “VWIL” refers the Virginia Women’s Institute for Leadership Program at Mary Baldwin University.
  39. “Weapon” is defined as any weapon as described in the Code of Virginia 18.2-308A or any other provision to the Code of Virginia. This description has been broken into sections and can be found in Section X of this Code.

Conduct Rules and Regulations

The following conduct, or an attempt to engage in any of the following conduct,
is prohibited and shall be subject to a Student Conduct Proceeding:

  1. Honor Code violation
    a. Plagiarism
    b. Lying
    c. Cheating
    d. Confidentiality
  2. Use of inappropriately profane and abusive language or behavior
  3. Conduct or behavior that violates local, state or federal law, regardless of whether such
    conduct or behavior otherwise constitutes a specific violation of this Code.
  4. Violation of the privacy or physical space of others
    a. Engaging in a physical altercation with another member of the University
    community
    b. Failure to respect the privacy of another member of the University community
    c. invasion of privacy with the proliferation of digital image capture (ex. drone)
  5. Damage or misuse of the University’s name, image or property, or the property of a member of the University community, including but not limited to:
    a. Attempted or actual vandalism
    b. Attempted or actual theft
    c. Attempted or actual littering
    d. Standing, sitting, or hanging on the roof, ledge, or out of a window of a
    residence hall or other campus building.
  6. Failure or refusal to comply with the directions of a University Official acting in the
    capacity of their role at the University, or a law enforcement officer, and/or failure to identify oneself to any of these persons when requested to do so
  7. Conduct that endangers the safety and welfare of any member of the University
    community, including one’s self, and includes, but is not limited to, physical
    abuse/attack, assault, suicidal behavior, self-mutilation, etc.
  8. Bullying
  9. Stalking
  10. Disruption or obstruction of teaching, research, administration, or other
    University activities
  11. Participation in a demonstration which disrupts the normal operations of the
    University or infringes on the rights of other members of the University
    community or leading or inciting others to disrupt scheduled and/or normal
    activities on University Premises or any conduct that obstructs or interferes with
    the freedom of pedestrian or vehicular movement on University Premises.
  12. Acts of discrimination, bias, racism, bigotry, or intolerance of any kind.
  13. Hazing
  14. Unauthorized possession, duplication, loan, or use of keys or ID Cards to
    access University Premises or property, or the unauthorized/uninvited
    entry to or use of University Premises or property
  15. Visitation Policies
    a. For the 2020-2021 school year overnight guests are prohibited. Visitation will only
    be allowed amongst residential students.
  16. Prohibited Conduct relating to Alcohol

    a. Possession or consumption of alcohol in a manner that is not authorized by
    University policies or in a manner contrary to law

    b. Possession or consumption of alcohol by a Student who is under 21 years of age

    c. Furnishing or selling alcohol to any person who is under 21 years of age

    d. Possession and/or use of kegs, party balls, or other common source containers used for the delivery of alcohol

    e. Engaging in any behaviors, engaging in any games or using any devices designed or intended to facilitate rapid or mass consumption of alcohol, including but not limited to beer funnels/bongs, keg stands, shotgunning/chugging, flip cup, beer pong, quarters, etc.

    f. Possession, use, sale, distribution, or manufacture of false identification cards

    g. Driving with an open container of alcohol in the vehicle

    h. Operating a motor vehicle under the influence or while impaired by the consumption of alcohol or other Controlled Substances

    i. Public consumption, use, or intoxication by alcohol, marijuana, or any other
    Controlled Substance. Public places include, but are not limited to, residential
    hallways, elevators, stairwells, residential lounges, etc.
  17. Prohibited Conduct relating to Drugs and/or Controlled Substances

    a. Possession, consumption, purchase, and/or distribution of any drug and/or
    Controlled Substance

    b. Possession or use of drug paraphernalia. This includes possession of drug
    paraphernalia that has never been actually used for drug consumption or use.

    c. Possession with intent to manufacture, distribute, and/or sell any drug or other
    Controlled Substance

    d. Misuse or abuse of consumer products (ex. medications, bath salts, etc.)
  18. Smoking in an unauthorized location, including but not limited to cigarettes, cigars, and electronic cigarettes

    a. Smoking in a University building or a campus owned/operated vehicle

    b. Smoking in an area not designated as a smoking area with a smoking receptacle
  19. Violation of Fire Safety regulations including, but not limited to:

    a. Destruction or misuse of any fire alarm or equipment (ex. extinguisher or pull
    station)

    b. Intentionally triggering a false alarm

    c. Failure to properly evacuate during a fire alarm

    d. Unauthorized setting of a fire on University Premises

    e. Possession of any prohibited items from the Housing Contract

    f. Possession of any items that have proven to be a fire risk (ex. hoverboards)

    g. Having more than 7 people in a residence hall room at one time
  20. Violation of Quiet Hours

    a. Regularly defined Quiet Hours

    Quiet Hours are as follows:
    Sunday-Thursday from 10pm-10am
    Friday and Saturday from 12am-12pm

    Noise levels should be kept to a minimum as to not disturb others during
    these times.

    b. Courtesy Quiet Hours Excessive levels of noise that disrupts others is not acceptable at any time.
    c. Exam week Quiet Hours During exam week Quiet Hours are in effect 24/7 throughout the entire week to promote a studious environment.
  21. Violation of Pet Policy. Presence of a pet inside a residence hall other than a fish in
    a small aquarium.
  22. Illegal or unauthorized possession or use of harmful or dangerous items, including but not limited to:
    a. Possession of any gun, bow, crossbow, or other weapon designed or intended to
    propel a missile or projectile of any kind.

    b. Possession of any explosive substance or device.

    c. Possession of any tear gas, mustard gas, phosgene gas, or other noxious or
    nauseating gases or mixtures of chemicals designed to and capable of producing
    vile, injurious, or nauseating odors or gases. Pepper spray is the only exception to
    this policy. Further information regarding the possession and use of pepper spray
    can be found in Section XI of this Code.

    d. Possession of any stun weapon, including any device that emits a momentary or pulsed output, which is electrical, audible, optical, or electromagnetic in nature
    and which is designed to temporarily incapacitate a person.

    e. Possession of any knife other than a pocket knife having a folding metal blade of less than three inches. (ex. dirk, bowie knife, switchblade knife, ballistic knife, machete, or razor)

    f. Possession of any slingshot, brass knuckles, spring stick, or blackjack

    g. Possession of any flailing instrument consisting of two or more rigid parts connected in a manner that allows them to swing freely. (ex. nun chucks or fighting chains)

    h. Possession of a disk having at least two points or pointed blades which is
    designed to be thrown or propelled. (ex. throwing star or oriental dart)

    i. Possession of any frame, receiver, muffler, silencer, missile, projectile, or
    ammunition designed for use with a dangerous weapon, including any cartridge,
    pellet, ball, missile, or projectile adapted for use in a firearm.

    j. Possession of any weapon of like kind as those described above, even if intended for decoration.

    VWIL/VMI issued weapons and equipment used by those working in an official
    capacity with the police department, fire department, or emergency services are the only exceptions to this policy. Further information regarding the procedures for use and storage of these weapons/tools can be found in Section XII of this Code.
  23. Disorderly, lewd, or indecent conduct, or a breach of peace
  24. Aiding, abetting, or facilitating any conduct prohibited by this Code.
  25. Sexual misconduct, including but not limited to:
    a. Sexual Assault
    b. Non-forcible Sex Acts
    c. Sexual Exploitation
    d. Sexual Harassment
    e. Stalking
    f. Dating Violence
    g. Domestic Violence
  26. Hate Crime
  27. Harassment
  28. Violation of any rule, regulation, policy, procedure or standard adopted and published by the University, including but not limited to:

    a. Residence Life policies
    b. Academic or administrative office policies
  29. Abuse of the Code, including, but not limited to:

    a. Failure to obey the summons of a Hearing Body or University official

    b. Falsification, distortion, or misrepresentation of information during an Initial Meeting, a Resolution Meeting, or before a Hearing Body

    c. Disruption or interference with the orderly conduct of an Initial Meeting, a Resolution Meeting, or a Hearing

    d. Making false, frivolous, or misleading charges of Code violations

    e. Attempting to discourage a person’s participation in an Initial Meeting, a Resolution Meeting, or Hearing proceedings outlined in this Code

    f. Attempting to influence the impartiality of a member of the Conduct Board or a Hearing Body prior to, and/or during the course of, an Initial Meeting, a Resolution Meeting, or a Hearing

    g. Harassment, intimidation, and/or retaliation towards a member of a Hearing Body, complainant, respondent or witness at any time

    h. Failure to comply with sanction(s) imposed under this Code

    i. Influencing or attempting to influence another person to commit an abuse of this Code

Pepper Spray Exception and Rules

Pepper Spray is the only exception to the chemicals section of the weapons policy outlined in Section X of this Code.

Students are allowed to possess Pepper Spray in small quantities/dispensers as a means of protection and/or self-defense. It is the University’s expectation that Students will be responsible with these dangerous items and exercise caution when it comes to their storage and/or use. If a Student discharges their pepper spray in an incident that comes to the attention of the Judicial Board, it is their responsibility to prove that they used it in a proper manner. Whether or not the use was appropriate will be determined by the Judicial Board Chair, Judicial Board Advisor, Administration, or designee.

VWIL/VMI and Emergency Services Weapons Exceptions and Rules

VWIL/VMI issued weapons and equipment used by those working in an official capacity with the police department, fire department, or emergency services are the only exceptions to the weapons policy outlined in Section X of this Code.

Students are only allowed to be in possession of weapons or equipment issued by VWIL or VMI that violate the weapons policy when they are operating under an official capacity with their roles in those programs (ex. parades or practices). In order to possess/use this type of weapon or equipment, a Student must follow the sign-in/sign-out procedures, as well as any other policies, of the VWIL Arms Room. These weapons or equipment must be signed out and then returned within the same day. Under no circumstances should these weapons or equipment be in a residence hall or other campus building, other than the Arms Room. All cleaning of these weapons or equipment should take place in the Arms Room.

Students who work in an official capacity with the police department, fire department, or emergency services may occasionally possess weapons or equipment that violates the weapons policy outlined in this Code. Students to which this applies are responsible for registering such weapons or equipment with the Office of Campus Safety as soon as they receive or become in possession of it. Even once registered, any weapons or equipment that is a violation of the weapons policy in this Code must be stored at the Office of Campus Safety or in the student’s personal vehicle. Under no circumstances should these weapons or equipment be in a residence hall or other campus building.

Search Policy

Searches of Residential spaces will fall under the residential life policy.

Please note that routine health and safety inspections that take place in the residence
halls are a separate process from searches and are not covered by this section of the Code.

Individual Sanctions

If the Conduct Board or Administration determines that a Student has violated this Code and a sanction is imposed, regardless of severity, a letter will be placed in the Student’s permanent file describing the violation, finding and sanction.

Multiple factors may affect the severity of a sanction including but not limited to the
Student’s demeanor, acceptance of responsibility, and level of cooperativeness during the Student Conduct Proceeding; the past conduct record of the Student; the nature and seriousness of the incident; and the severity of the damage, injury, or harm resulting from the incident. One or more of the following sanctions may be imposed upon a Student for a violation of the Code.

  1. Minor Violation Sanctions

    a. WARNING: A notice to the Student that the Student is violating or has violated
    the Code. The Warning notice will state that future incidents of a similar nature
    will result in a more severe sanction.

    b. DISCIPLINARY PROBATION: A written reprimand for a violation of the Code with
    continued permission to remain enrolled in the University but under prescribed
    conditions during a probationary period. Disciplinary Probation is for a designated
    period of time and includes the possibility of the imposition of more severe disciplinary sanctions if the student is found to have committed any additional Code violations during the probationary period. Disciplinary Probation is typically thought of as a period of reflection during which the student should avoid future violations.

    c. LOSS OF PRIVILEGES: Denial of specified privileges for a designated period of time.

    d. FINANCIAL SANCTIONS: Sanction resulting in the payment of money by the
    student to the University or an effected party.

    i. Administrative Costs- The Student may be assessed a fine that relates to the
    actual costs incurred by the University to resolve or address the alleged
    violation (for example, such as the cost of employee wages for relocating
    furniture that was moved from a lobby or to remove people from a building
    during a false fire alarm).

    ii. Restitution- the Student may be required to pay restitution which serves as
    compensation for loss, damage, or injury. Restitution may take the form of
    appropriate services and/or monetary or material replacement.

    iii. Educational Outreach Assessment- the Student may be required to pay an
    Educational Outreach Assessment, which is a sanction that, although
    financial in nature, provides a tangible learning opportunity for students.
    Through this sanction the student becomes an active contributor to him/her
    education and that of him/her peers, as the money collected is used for
    educational programming about the Code.

    e. DISCRETIONARY SANCTIONS: Work assignments, service to the University,
    community service, or related discretionary assignments.

    f. EDUCATIONAL SANCTIONS: Participate in a specific program, complete a
    specific project, or complete a research assignment/paper.

    g. RESIDENCE HALL RELOCATION: Relocation of the Student from their current
    residence hall to another residence hall.
    Mary Baldwin University Code of Student Conduct | 16

    h. RESIDENCE HALL SUSPENSION: Separation of the Student from the residence halls
    for a specified amount of time, after which the Student is eligible to return.
    Conditions for return may be specified.

    i. RESIDENCE HALL DISMISSAL: Permanent separation of the Student from
    all University housing.
  2. Serious Violation Sanctions In addition to the following sanctions, Serious Violations may result in the imposition of Minor Violation sanctions listed above.

    a. University SUSPENSION: Separation of the Student from the University for a specified period of time, after which the Student is eligible for readmission. The University may impose conditions for readmission which the Student must satisfy.

    b. University DISMISSAL: Permanent Separation of the Student from the University.

    c. Summary SUSPENSION: See Section XVI of this Code

Student Organization/Club/Groups Sanctions

Student Organizations, Clubs, or Groups may be charged with violations of this Code without regard to whether specific members of such Organizations, Clubs, or Groups are individually charged with violations arising from the same occurrences.
The officers or leaders or any identifiable spokesperson for a Student Organization, Club, or Group may be directed by the Conduct Board Chair, Conduct Board Advisor, or
Administration to take appropriate action to prevent or end violations of this Code by the Organization, Club, Group, or members who are acting on behalf of the Organization, Club, or Group. Failure to comply with any such direction will be considered a violation of this Code. Student Organizations, Clubs, or Groups may be held responsible collectively if any one or more of these situations apply:

  1. A Code violation was committed by one or more members of a Student
    Organization, Club, or Group while acting on behalf of or in connection with
    the activities of a Student Organization, Club or Group;
  2. A Code violation was committed by one or more members of a Student
    Organization, Club, or Group and the funds of the Student Organization, Club
    or Group were used to finance the activity; and/or
  3. A Code violation occurred during or as a result of a Student Organization, Club, or
    Group’s sponsored function.

One or more of the following sanctions may be imposed on a Student Organization, Club, or Group responsible for a violation of this Code:

  1. WARNING: An official written notice of misconduct. An additional Code violation within a two year period that results in a Warning of the Student Organization, Club, or Group shall automatically result in Registration Probation as a minimum sanction.
  2. REGISTRATION PROBATION: A written reprimand for a violation of the Code with
    Mary Baldwin University Code of Student Conduct | 17 permission to continue operate at the University but under prescribed conditions during the probationary period. Registration Probation is for a designated period of time and means the Student Organization, Club, or Group is not in good standing with the University. The Student Organization, Club, or Group may add new members during the
    probationary period and may engage in activities except as otherwise specified under the terms of Registration Probation.
  3. REGISTRATION SUSPENSION: A temporary removal of University recognition for a specified period of time. During the period of Registration Suspension, the Student Organization, Club, or Group is not considered in good standing with the University and may not add new members or hold, sponsor, or attend events as a group. Additionally, no University funding will be provided during a period of Registration Suspension.
  4. ADDITIONAL STUDENT ORGANIZATION, CLUB, OR GROUP SANCTIONS may be imposed,
    including:
    a. Suspension of activities, including but not limited to:

    i. Exclusion from organized campus events (ex. Club Rush, Apple Day, etc.)
    ii. Denial of use of University facilities for meetings and activities
    iii. Suspension of rushing, recruiting, or intake process
    iv. Loss of social privileges for a specified time (ex. activities, mixers, etc.)
    a. Loss of University funding
    b. Restitution
  5. For expenses incurred by individuals or the University as a result of providing
    education programs or other educational experiences related to the violation
    2.For loss to the University, person, or organization/club/group
    c. Situational, appropriate educational or discretionary group or organization
    sanction
  6. REGISTRATION REVOCATION: The permanent removal of University recognition for a
    Student Organization, Club, or Group. Registration Revocation means that the
    Organization, Club, or Group may not function at the University, participate in University programs, or utilize University facilities or services.

Summary Suspension

  1. Students

    In certain circumstances, and at any time prior to the final resolution of a Student Conduct Proceeding under this Code, the Conduct Board Chair may recommend a summary suspension to be approved by the Conduct Board Advisor, Administration, or designee.

    A Summary Suspension may be imposed only:
    a. To ensure the safety and well-being of members of the University community or the preservation of University property;

    b. To ensure the Student’s own physical, mental, or emotional safety and well-being; or

    c. If the Student poses a significant threat of disruption of or interference with the
    normal operations, programs, and/or activities of the University. During a Summary Suspension, a Student may be denied access to all University
    Premises and all University programs and activities.
  2. Student Organizations, Clubs, and Groups

    When the University receives a report of an alleged violation of this Code by a
    Student Organization, Club, or Group, the Conduct Board Chair, Conduct Board
    Advisor, Administration or designee may summarily suspend the activities of the
    Student Organization, Club, or Group pending the outcome of the investigation of the Code violation.

No Contact Orders

In certain circumstances, and at any time prior to the final resolution of a Student Conduct Proceeding under this Code, the Conduct Board Chair, Conduct Board Advisor, Administration, or designee may issue a No Contact Order for students involved in some capacity with a case.

A No Contact Order is typically issued for one of the following reasons:

a. To ensure the safety and well-being of members of the University community;

b. To ensure the Student’s own physical, mental, or emotional safety and well-being; or

c. If the Student poses a significant threat of disruption of or interference with the
normal operations, programs, and/or activities of another student.

No Contact Orders prohibit a variety of behaviors, including, but is not limited to, the following: verbal communication, written communication, electronic communication, communication through a third party, or any physical contact. The behavior restricted is direct contact, not indirect contact. This means that you are not restricted from eating meals in the dining hall, attending class, or other Mary Baldwin/program specific events. No contact orders are not meant to impede the academic process.
They are intended to protect students from being involved in any direct act that could be interpreted by another other party as intimidating, harassing, bullying, etc.
No Contact Orders are issued through email on a case by case basis and may be imposed at any point throughout the conduct process. No Contact Orders are sometimes lifted at the conclusion of a case, however may remain in place indefinitely.

Incident Reports

Anyone affiliated with the University may refer a student or student group or organization suspected of violating the Code to the Conduct Board. The referral must be submitted using the Incident Report form found at the following link: https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?MaryBaldwin&layout_id=0

A person making a referral may be asked to appear before a Hearing Body as a witness and must comply with this request. A referral should be made as soon as possible after the alleged incident.

Upon receipt of a referral, the Conduct Board Advisor will determine whether sufficient
cause exists to initiate a Student Conduct Proceeding. The Conduct Board reserves the right to forward any case to Administration, regardless of severity of alleged offense. Any charge that may result in University Suspension or University Dismissal, or which alleges any form of sexual misconduct, shall be automatically referred to Administration for adjudication. Within thirty (30) days of receipt of a referral, the Conduct Board Advisor will communicate to the alleged violator (i) that a Student Conduct Proceeding will be initiated; (ii) the nature of the alleged Code violation; and (iii) whether the Student Conduct Proceeding will be adjudicated by the Conduct Board or by Administration. The thirty (30) day period for initiating a Student Conduct Proceeding shall not be jurisdictional and, if reasonable under the circumstances, a reasonable extension of the thirty (30) day time limit shall be
permissible.

Confidentiality

All members of the University community involved in any way with a Student Conduct
Proceeding are expected to keep strictly confidential both the existence of a Student
Conduct Proceeding; all information included in an Incident Report or presented to either the Conduct Board, the Conduct Board Advisor, or Administration during a Student Conduct Proceeding, and the outcome of the Student Conduct Proceeding including any sanctions imposed. If you have been notified that an incident report has been submitted against you, this means an official Student Conduct Proceeding will be initiated and Confidentiality applies.

An accused Student may discuss their case during the pendency of a Student
Conduct Proceeding with the following people:

  1. Their parents;
  2. Their Student Advocate;
  3. The Honor Council or Judicial Board Chair;
  4. The Advisor to the Honor Council or the Judicial Board;
  5. An appointed Investigating Committee;
  6. An Initial Meeting official;
  7. A Hearing Body; and
  8. Faculty, administration, and/or staff of the University.

An accused Student may not discuss their case with any other person, except as provided above. If a Student is found to have violated this Code and given a sanction, s/he may disclose to others the nature of the sanction; however s/he may not disclose to others any other information related to the Student Conduct Proceeding, except as provided above. A failure by any Student to maintain confidentiality as identified in this section of the Code will result in a referral to the Honor Council.

The Conduct Board reserves the right to publish the results of all Student Conduct
Proceedings that result in a finding that a Student has violated the Code once each semester is completed. All such results shall be published without any Student names. However, if information has been improperly disclosed relating to a Student Conduct Proceeding, in violation of the confidentiality requirements as outlined in this Code, the Conduct Board reserves the right to publicly release a statement, without any Student names, to clarify the facts relating to a Student Conduct Proceeding.

Relationship Between Conduct Board, Honor Council, Cadet Conduct Council, and
PEG Program Administration

The Conduct Board, the Honor Council, the Cadet Conduct Council, and PEG Program
Administration are separate bodies with jurisdiction, generally, over different Student
misconduct or violations. As a general proposition, Student misconduct involving lying,
cheating, and confidentiality directly related to academic activities or pursuits shall be
treated as Honor Code violations and shall be adjudicated by the Honor Council and its processes. Additionally, Student misconduct directly related to a Student’s involvement in or requirements imposed on them by their connection to the VWIL Program or the PEG Program shall be adjudicated by the Cadet Conduct Council or the PEG Program Administration and its processes respectively. In some instances, however, the Conduct Board, the Honor Council, the Cadet Conduct Council, and/or the PEG Program jurisdictions overlap, including but not limited to the following:

  1. Lying during a Student Conduct, Cadet Conduct Council, or PEG Proceeding: All
    Students participating in a Student Conduct, Cadet Conduct Council, or PEG Proceeding are subject to the Honor Code. If a Student is suspected of lying during a Student Conduct Cadet Conduct Council, or PEG Proceeding, adjudication of the underlying charge shall continue and a separate charge relating to the suspected offense of lying shall be referred to the Honor Council.
  2. Concurrent Honor Code, Conduct Code, Cadet Conduct, and/or PEG Program violations:
    If a Student is accused of an act that violates a combination of the Honor Code, the Judicial Code, the Cadet Conduct Code, and/or PEG Program, the Honor Code offense will be considered a primary offense and charges shall proceed under the processes of the Honor Code. However, a Student Conduct, Cadet Conduct Council, or PEG Program Proceeding may also begin. The Conduct Board, Honor Council, Cadet Conduct Council, and PEG Program reserve the right to conduct a joint investigation, if deemed necessary. In the event of conduct that violates a combination of the Honor Code, the Judicial Code, the Cadet Conduct Code, and/or PEG Program, the Honor Council, Judicial Board, Cadet Conduct Council, and/or PEG Program may consider the penalty imposed by the other boards in imposing its sanctions.

    There are a number of special circumstances that apply with regards to cases involving a Student who is a member of the PEG Program, previously known as the Early College or Early University Program, as a result of the age of these students. The PEG Program includes any student who entered Mary Baldwin through the program, both those students living in the PEG building and those who have moved out onto the main campus. The special circumstances that affect the process outlined in Sections XXI-XXIII of this Code are:
  1. Notification process- The Director of the PEG Program or their designee will be copied on the Notification Email of all students in the PEG Program. It will be the responsibility of the Director of the PEG Program or their designee to communicate the information to the parents of the charged student.
  2. Initial Meeting, Resolution, and/or Hearing

    a. The Director of the PEG Program or their designee will participate in all proceedings that involve a PEG Program student. This includes, but is not limited to,any discussion about the pursuit of a case, any meetings that occur as part of the case, and the decisions made about a case.

    b. The parents or legal guardians of the PEG Program student will have three options for participation in the process. They can choose to attend the proceedings in person, listen in on the proceedings via phone, or they can defer to the Director of the PEG Program or their designee to sit in on their behalf. Their choice needs to be communicated to the Director of the PEG Program or their designee within 72 hours of the student’s receipt of the Notification Email and the Director of the PEG Program or their designee will communicate that decision to the Conduct Board Chair, Advisor, and/or Administration, depending on who is adjudicating the case.

    c. Parents and/or legal guardians will be held to the same standards as a Student Advocate or Faculty/ Staff Advisor in a case. They may counsel the charged Student and ask questions of the Conduct Board Chair, Conduct Board Advisor, Conduct Board Representative, Administration, or designee during the Initial Meeting and the Resolution Meeting if that option is selected. They may counsel the Student, but not speak on their behalf during a Hearing if that option is selected.
  3. Outcome- The Director of the PEG Program or their designee will be copied on the Outcome Letter of all students in the PEG Program. It will be the responsibility of the Director of the PEG Program or their designee to communicate the information to the parents of the charged student.

Once a PEG Program student reaches the age of 18, they will be dealt with as a general
student and the special circumstances outlined above will no longer apply.

Participation, Notification, Initial Meeting, and Selection of Process

A Student charged with an alleged Code violation and subject to a Student Conduct
Proceeding shall participate and cooperate with the process and engage with the Conduct Board and/or Administration in a timely manner. The expectations of Student participation include:

  1. Administration, or a designee will send a notification letter via Mary Baldwin email to a charged Student through the Student’s University email account to notify the Student of the charge, whether the Student Conduct Proceeding will be handled by the Conduct Board or has been referred to Administration, and the Student’s procedural options for adjudication or resolution of the charge. The communication will outline the general details of the incident from the Incident Report and will notify the student that they need to schedule an Initial Meeting and will include the specific deadline to respond to this notification. Students are expected to respond to Administration with proposal(s) for Initial Meeting date(s) and time(s).
  2. If a charged Student wants the assistance of a Student Advocate, the Student shall be responsible for securing one by contacting the Lead Student Advocate prior to the Initial Meeting. See Section V of this Code. The Student Advocate may counsel the charged Student and ask questions of the Conduct Board Chair, Conduct Board Advisor, Conduct Board Representative, Administration, or designee during the Initial Meeting.
  3. During this Initial Meeting, a discussion will be held to make sure the student understands the allegations against them and the options for resolution of the case. At this time the student will decide whether they want a Resolution or a Hearing. All cases resulting in a resolution will be resolved in ten (10) business days after the initial meeting. Appeals may fall outside of the ten (10) business day timeline and appeals must be filed five 48 hours after the decision and/or sanctions. Cases which go to a hearing may take longer.

    a. Resolution: A Resolution is an option available to a Student whether the Student Conduct Proceeding proceeds through the Conduct Board or through Administration. If the Conduct Board retains jurisdiction, the Student may choose the Resolution option, which is an informal meeting with the Conduct Board Chair, the Conduct Board Advisor, a Conduct Board Representative, or designee to resolve the charge. If the Conduct Board refers the Student Conduct Proceeding to Administration, the Student’s Resolution will be with Administration, or a designee to resolve the charge. If a Student chooses the Resolution option, the Student waives their right to a formal Hearing, but may appeal the findings of the Resolution as provided for in Section XXV of this Code. If selected, the Resolution will take place as part of the Initial Meeting and begin as soon as it is selected.

    b. Hearing: A Hearing is a formal process in which a case is heard by a Hearing Body. The option of a Hearing is available whether the Conduct Board retains jurisdiction over the Student Conduct Proceeding or refers the Proceeding to Administration. See Sections XXIII-XXIV of this Code for further information on the Hearing process. Hearing decisions may also be appealed as provided for in Section XXV of this Code. If a Student chooses the Hearing option, it will take place separate from the Initial Meeting. The remainder of the Initial Meeting will be used to answer any questions the student has regarding the Hearing process.

4. Contact will be made by Administration or designee with an initial notification letter
sent to Student to initiate the Conduct process in regards to the alleged Code
Violation(s). This letter will be sent via Mary Baldwin email in a secure, certified link
that contains the specific date and time deadline for response. The Student must
respond to Administration or designee within 72 hours of receipt. This email from the
Student is to include proposal(s) for Initial Meeting date(s) and time(s).

a. If the Student fails to respond to the initial notification letter email within 72
hours, a second notification letter will be sent to Student by Administration or
designee. This letter will be sent via Mary Baldwin email in a secure, certified
link that contains the specific date and time deadline for response. The Student
must respond to Administration or designee within 24 hours of receipt. This
email from the Student is to include proposal(s) for Initial Meeting date(s) and
time(s).

i. If the Student fails to respond to the second notification letter email
within 24 hours, an Administrative meeting will be scheduled for
Resolution to the alleged Code Violation(s). The Administration will send
a letter to the Student via Mary Baldwin email in a secure, certified link
summarizing the Administrative meeting’s decision, any imposed
sanctions, and information about the appeals process.

ii. If the Student fails to respond to the notification letters in the allotted
time frame due to extenuating circumstances, an extension and/or
exception may be requested to the Administration or CB Chair
explaining the situation. If approved, the student may propose Initial
Meeting date(s) and time(s) after the deadlines outlined above.

5. The Student shall be responsible for notifying the Initial Meeting official or the Hearing
Body of any scheduling conflicts with Initial Meeting date or Hearing date. The
scheduling of an Initial Meeting and Hearing will ordinarily proceed promptly; however,
the Initial Meeting or Hearing may be delayed by the Initial Meeting official or the
Hearing Body for the following reasons:

i. In times of heavy Student Conduct Proceeding caseloads;

ii. If the Student Conduct Proceeding is initiated near the end of an academic semester or term;

iii. In the event of a known conflict with a Student’s academic schedule; or

iv. In the event of the reasonable need by either Party for additional time.

6. Any Student who fails to engage or cooperate with a Student Conduct Proceeding
and/or to complete sanctions as imposed through a Student Conduct Proceeding may receive additional Code charges and/or additional sanctions up to and including University Dismissal.

Resolution Procedures

If a Student chooses to proceed with a Resolution, it will take place as part of the Initial
Meeting with Administration or a member of the Conduct Board depending upon
jurisdiction.
The following procedures will be used in Resolution meetings conducted by the Conduct Board Chair, the Conduct Board Advisor, a Conduct Board Representative, Administration, or a designee:

INFORMATION ABOUT A RESOLUTION

  1. If a charged Student wants the assistance of a Student Advocate, the Student
    shall be responsible for securing one by contacting the Lead Student Advocate
    prior to the Resolution. See Section V of this Code. The Student Advocate may
    counsel the charged Student and ask questions of the Conduct Board Chair,
    Conduct Board Advisor, Conduct Board Representative, Administration, or
    designee during the Resolution.
  2. Because the Resolution is an informal process, no witnesses can be called during the Resolution. A conversation will take place between the Conduct Board Chair, the Conduct Board Advisor, the Conduct Board Representative, Administration, and/or the designee and the charged Student to gather information about the alleged Code Violation.
  3. At the conclusion of the conversation about the alleged Code violation, the Conduct Board Chair, Conduct Board Advisor, Conduct Board Representative,
    Administration, or designee will discuss possible findings and sanctions with the
    charged Student and answer any Student questions regarding both. The Student
    will be instructed that they will receive an email notification at their University
    email account informing him/her of the Resolution official’s decision and sanction,
    if any. The Resolution official may bring in the student for an in-person delivery of
    the decision and sanction at their discretion.
  4. The Resolution official may interview other witnesses or individuals, as
    necessary, before reaching a final resolution of the charge.
  5. If the Resolution official determines that the Student has violated the Code and that either University Suspension or University Dismissal is the appropriate sanction, the Student shall be notified of the decision and sanction in person and in writing.

Hearing Procedures

If a Student chooses to proceed with a Hearing, a Hearing will be scheduled promptly with the appropriate Hearing Body, which shall depend upon whether the decision previously was made to proceed with Conduct Board jurisdiction or to refer the matter to Administration. The Student shall be responsible for notifying the Hearing Body
presiding official of any scheduling conflicts with the proposed Hearing date.

The Conduct Board Chair, Conduct Board Advisor, Administration, or designee will prepare a Hearing Notice letter to the charged Student. The Hearing Notice letter will include a statement of the specific charge against the Student, a brief description of the facts upon which the charge is based, the date, time, and place of the Hearing, instructions for preparing for the Hearing, information regarding a student advocate to assist the Student during the Hearing, and information regarding the procedure for the Hearing. This letter will be delivered to the Student by their campus email account. While not required, in some cases, the letter will also be delivered by campus mail and/or hand delivery.

For all alleged Code violations, the Hearing shall not be fewer than five (5) days after the date of the Hearing Notice letter, unless the Student requests an earlier Hearing date and the requested date can be accommodated by the Hearing Body.

The following procedures will be used in Student Code violation Hearings conducted by a Hearing Body:

PRIOR TO THE HEARING

  1. An Investigating Committee is appointed. In Hearings conducted by the Conduct Board, the Investigating Committee shall consist of members of the Conduct Board, appointed by the Conduct Board Chair, and/or members of the Student Standards Board. In hearings conducted by Administration, the Investigating Committee shall include members of the faculty and staff of the University selected by Administration.
    Administration, in its discretion, may choose to appoint only one faculty or staff
    member in place of a full committee, which shall be comprised of three members. Once the Investigating Committee is appointed, the members will investigate the charge before the scheduled Hearing by the following means:

    a. Interview the charged Student to get their response to the charge;

    b. Interview any witnesses who submitted a written report in connection with the
    charge;

    c. Interview any other witness identified as having relevant information regarding the charge as the Investigating Committee deems necessary to fully investigate the charge; and

    d. Review all written reports and relevant documents regarding the charge.
  2. If the charged Student wishes to have the assistance of an Advisor at the Hearing, the Student is responsible for securing one. An Advisor can ONLY be a Student Advocate requested by contacting the Lead Student Advocate, a member of the faculty, administration, or student body of the University. The Advisor may counsel the charged Student during the Hearing; however, the Advisor may not speak on behalf of or in the place of the charged Student.
  3. The Student may request that witnesses appear and testify on their behalf. The Student shall be responsible for providing a list of witnesses to the presiding officer of the Hearing Body at least 72 hours (3 days) prior to the Hearing date. The witness list should include the phone number and email address, if known, of each witness identified. The Student should only identify as Hearing witnesses those individuals with direct knowledge of the facts relevant to the charge. If at the conclusion of the presentation of evidence the Hearing Body determines the Student has committed a Code violation, the Student will be permitted to call 3 witnesses to testify regarding the Student’s character to assist the Hearing Body to determine the appropriate sanction to be imposed. The Hearing Body has the discretion to limit such testimony to a reasonable number of witnesses to avoid testimony that is unnecessarily duplicative. The Student must also include in their witness list all witnesses who may testify with regard to the sanctions stage of the Hearing.
  4. The Investigating Committee may also call witnesses to testify. The Investigating Committee shall provide a list of all such witnesses to the presiding officer of the Hearing Body at least 72 hours (3 days) prior to the Hearing date. The witness list should include the phone number and email address, if known, of each witness identified.
  5. If at any point, a student would like to withdraw from the University to avoid a Hearing, they may notify in writing the Associate Vice President of Student Engagement of their intention to withdraw from the University. If the charged Student chooses to withdraw from the University, their official record will be marked to reflect a pending Code violation Hearing that must be resolved before the Student can be considered for readmission to the University.

DURING THE HEARING

  1. In a Conduct Board Hearing, the Hearing Body shall be comprised of three (3) members of the Conduct Board who are not appointed to serve on the Investigating Committee. In an Administrative Hearing, the Hearing Body may be comprised of a maximum of three (3) faculty and staff who are not appointed to serve on the Investigating Committee. See Section XXIVI of this Code for more information regarding the Hearing Body.
  2. The Hearing may be tape recorded.
  3. The Student and all witnesses will state their names, be administered an oath, and the official charges will be read.
  4. A member of the Investigating Committee will present its report and answer
    questions from the Hearing Body and, thereafter, from the charged Student.
  5. The Investigating Committee may call witnesses to testify. Each witness called by the Investigating Committee will answer questions from the Investigating Committee, the Hearing Body and the charged Student. The Investigating Committee may further present any documentary and physical evidence, if any, relevant to the charge for the Hearing Body to consider.
  6. The charged Student will next make their statement and may call witnesses to testify. Each witness called by the charged Student will answer questions from the charged Student, the Investigation Committee and the Hearing Body. The charged Student may further present all documentary and physical evidence, if any, relevant to the charge for the Hearing Body to consider.
  7. At the conclusion of the presentation of all evidence and testimony, the Hearing Body will retire and deliberate to reach a decision regarding whether a Code violation has occurred. The Hearing Body’s deliberations shall be closed to the Student, the Investigating Committee, and to any witness, and the deliberations shall not be recorded. A decision of the charged student’s responsibility and associate sanctions will be delivered to the student via their Mary Baldwin email within 2 business days. The notification timeline may be adjusted depending on administrative reason.

Hearing Body

“Hearing Body” means, in Student Conduct Proceedings over which the Conduct Board
retains jurisdiction, members of the Conduct Board designated and/or appointed by the Conduct Board Chair to serve as a panel to determine whether a Student or a Student Club, Group or Organization has violated the Code and to determine the sanction, if any, for such violation. A Conduct Board Hearing Body is typically comprised of three (3) members. In any Student Conduct Proceeding heard by Administration, “Hearing Body” mean the members of the faculty and staff of the University, appointed by the Associate Vice President of Student Engagement to serve as the panel to determine if a Code violation has occurred and to determine the sanction, if any, for such violation. An Administration Hearing Body may be made up a member(s) of faculty and staff members of the University appointed by Administration,. A Hearing Body member who has a bias about or an interest in the case should recuse him/herself. If the Hearing Body member refuses to recuse him/herself, the Conduct Board Chair will make a decision about whether to remove that person from the Hearing Body.

Appeals

  1. Appeal Defined
    An appeal is not a new Hearing. An appeal is a review of a decision by a Resolution
    meeting official or a Hearing Body to determine whether sufficient cause exists to
    invalidate the decision and/or sanction. Only a Student or a Student
    Organization/Club/Group found to have violated the Code may file an appeal. All
    appeals must be made in writing to the Associate Vice President of Student Engagement or their designee. If the Associate Vice President of Student Engagement has been previously involved in any aspect of the Student Conduct Proceeding, the Associate Vice President of Student Engagement will direct the appeal to the Vice President of Student Engagement or their designee. In any Student Conduct Proceeding where the sanction imposed was neither University Suspension nor University Dismissal, a Student may only request one appeal. Likewise, Student Organizations/Clubs/Groups are limited to only one appeal unless the sanction appealed from is either Registration Suspension or
    Registration Revocation.
  2. Appeal Deadline
    After a Student or a Student Organization/Club/Group receives the decision of the
    Resolution meeting official or a Hearing Body, the Student or Student Organization/Club/Group must submit in writing an appeal that identifies the reasons supporting the appeal within 48 hours.
  3. Grounds for Appeal
    Appeals shall be limited to the following grounds:

    a. A material and prejudicial violation of due process;

    b. A material and prejudicial deviation from the procedures adopted by the Judicial Board in this Code; and/or

    c. Sanctions that are disproportionately severe or inappropriate for the Code
    violation.
  4. Student and Student Organizations/Clubs/Groups Appeal Procedures

    a. Written appeals shall be submitted within five (5) business days by a Student or by a leader of a Student Organization/Club/Group directly to the Associate Vice
    President of Student Engagement by the appeal deadline.

    d. After receipt of the appeal, the Associate Vice President or their designee will
    render a written decision within five (5) business days. The decision may:

    i. Affirm the finding of a Code violation and the sanction;

    ii. Affirm the finding of a Code violation and reduce, but not eliminate, the
    sanction; or

    iii. Return the case to the Conduct Board or Administration for a
    new Hearing if one or more grounds for appeal are met.
    e. The Associate Vice President of Student Engagement or designee will
    send copies of the appeal decision to the Student or the leader of a
    Student Organization/Club/Group, the Judicial Board Chair, and the
    Judicial Board Advisor.

    d. The Appeals Board decision will be final and conclusive, and any sanction upheld or determined on appeal will be imposed as directed, unless the sanction upheld is either University Suspension or University Dismissal, in the case of a Student appeal, or Registration Suspension or Registration Revocation, in the case of a Student Organization/Club/Group appeal. If a Student Conduct Proceeding resulted in University Suspension or University Dismissal, or a Conduct Proceeding against a Student Organization/Club/Group resulted in a Registration Suspension or Registration Revocation, and the decision was upheld by the Associate VP or their designee, only then may a Student or a Student Organization/Club/Group file one additional appeal to the President of the University. Such an appeal shall be referred to as a “Second Appeal.” A Second Appeal must be submitted in writing directly to the Vice President of Student Engagement or the President of the University by the Student or the leader of a Student Organization/Club/Group.

    e. The Vice President of Student Engagement or the President of the University shall decide a Second Appeal based on the Record reviewed by the Appeals Board, the record of the Appeals Board and its decision, and the written appeal of the Student or the Student Organization/Club Group. In rare circumstances, the President of the University may ask for the submission of new and/or additional oral or written evidence as necessary to reach a fully informed decision. Any new evidence will be added to the Record of the Hearing.

    f. After receipt of the appeal, the Vice President of Student Engagement or President of the University will render a written decision within five (5) business days. The President’s decision may:

    i. Affirm the finding of a Code violation and the sanction;

    ii. Affirm the finding of a Code violation and reduce, but not eliminate, the sanction; or

    iii. Return the case to the Judicial Board or Administration for a new Hearing if one or more grounds for appeal are met.

    g. The Vice President of Student Engagement or the President of the University will send copies of the appeal decision to the Student or leader of the Student Organization/Club/Group, Conduct Board Chair, Conduct Board Advisor, and the Associate Vice President of Student Engagement.

    h. The decision of the VP of Student Engagement or the President of the University will be final and conclusive, and the sanctions will be imposed as they direct.

Deferral of Sanctions

The President of the University, Vice President of Student Engagement, Associate Vice
President of Student Engagement, the Conduct Board Chair, or the Conduct Board Advisor may defer the imposition of a sanction during the duration of an appeal. If the sanction includes suspension or expulsion, an interim suspension during the appeal process may be imposed.

Student Conduct Files and Records

  1. The records relating to a Student Conduct Proceeding (Conduct Records), including audio recordings or transcripts from Hearings, in cases where a Student is found to have violated this Code will normally be retained as conduct records for ten (10) years from the date of the letter providing notice of final conduct action. Conduct Records may be retained for longer periods of time or permanently, as specified in the sanction. Conduct Records including the sanction of University Dismissal shall be retained permanently. Conduct Records designated as permanent shall not be destroyed except under very rare circumstances with unusual and compelling justification.
  2. Students may inspect their Conduct Records in accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

Revision and Communication

This Code may be reviewed and amended by the Conduct Board in consultation with the Office of Student Engagement. Major revisions of this Code will be communicated to the University community through official email and other means of mass communication. The official Code of Student Conduct will be available on the University website at http://www.marybaldwin.edu/student

Amended: 07/22/20

Honor Code

THE HONOR COUNCIL

A. DEFINITION AND PURPOSE

The Honor Council is a student board made up of one chair and up to 7 representatives. Honor Council positions are peer elected and filled through the Student Government Association elections or through Chair appointments in consultation with the Honor Council Advisor. Members of the Honor Council are held to the same standards as all Mary Baldwin University students. The Honor Council
exists to educate students about the Honor Code, fairly and expeditiously investigate alleged violations of the Code, determine student responsibility, and determine appropriate penalties when necessary.

B. AUTHORITY, SCOPE, AND INTERPRETATION

The Honor Code is established under the authority of the Student Government Association at Mary Baldwin University. Generally, the Code governs and regulates Mary Baldwin College for Women and University College student academic conduct that pertains to course work taken through Mary Baldwin University.

The Honor Code regulates off-campus Student conduct to promote and reinforce the following values and University goals:

  1. To prevent and reduce behavior that undermines Student academic success and
    that negatively detracts from the educational mission of the University;
  2. To address Student conduct and activities that clearly conflict with the
    University’s interests and mission.

The Honor Council Chair, the Honor Council Advisor, and Honor Council Representatives have the responsibility and authority to interpret the Code.

C. HONOR COUNCIL CHAIR

The Honor Council Chair will direct and oversee the Honor Council. The Honor Council
Chair will meet with the Honor Council Advisor to discuss ongoing Honor Council investigations and projects. The Honor Council Chair will also reside on the Student Government Association’s Executive Committee and maintain a GPA of 2.75 as well as uphold and maintain the Honor Code and Code of Conduct. The Honor Council Chair will also sit on all Student Conduct Board Appeals. When an incident report is filed, the Honor Council Chair will send the initial contact email to the accused student and delegate the case accordingly. The Honor Council Chair will follow procedures according to the Honor Code (see V, “Honor Council Case Procedures”). If needed, the Honor Council Chair may decide that a case be heard by Administrative Review. At the end of an investigation by the Honor Council, the Honor Council Chair will decide if the probable cause exists to take the investigation to a hearing. In the event of a hearing, the Honor Council Chair will delegate three Honor Council or Student Conduct Board representatives with no previous knowledge of the case to serve on the Hearing Panel. The Honor Council Chair will call all witnesses including those submitted by the Accused Student. The Honor Council Chair will preside over all hearings; if they are not available, they will delegate someone to represent them within the hearing.

D. HONOR COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE

Honor Council Representatives’ duties will be to uphold all codes set forth by the Honor
Code and the Student Code of Conduct. A representative will investigate cases given to them by their Honor Council Chair. In the event of a hearing, the investigation representative will present their investigation findings at the start of the hearing and then remain throughout the whole process to clarify details of the investigation when needed. Honor Council Representatives will also serve on hearing panels for both the Honor Council and the Student Conduct Board. It is the duty of all Honor Council Representatives to monitor at least one exam period per exam week unless excused by the Honor Council Chair.

CONFIDENTIALITY

Confidentiality is an agreement between individuals involved in the proceedings of an Honor Council case and the Honor Council to keep information regarding the case private. All individuals involved in an Honor Council case, including members of the Honor Council/Student Conduct Board, students reporting violations, members of an
investigating committee, witnesses at a hearing and/or investigating committee, advisors and members of the Board of Appeals shall strictly maintain the confidentiality of proceedings. In the event that a witness is uncovered during an
investigation, the investigating representative as well as the Honor Council Chair
and/or faculty advisor have the right to disclose the accused student’s identity.

Failure to maintain confidentiality will result in an action by the Honor Council. Please see IV.F, “Failure to Maintain Confidentiality.”

RIGHTS OF THE ACCUSED STUDENT

A Mary Baldwin University student accused of an Honor Code violation has the following rights:

  1. The right to be notified by the Honor Council Chair that a report of a violation has
    been made to the Honor Council.
  2. The right to know the nature of the accusation against them.
  3. The right to have a Student Advocate serve as their advisor as soon as they are
    notified that they have been accused of a violation.

    The Student Advocate Chair will assign a Student Advocate to each accused student.

    An Accused Student may request a specific Student Advocate to serve as their advisor. An Accused Student may also request a member of the faculty or administration to be their advisor instead of a Student Advocate. These special requests may be granted at the discretion of the Student Advocate Chair.

    The Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor may counsel the accused, question witnesses and the case investigator(s), and be present during the presentation of all evidence in the case. The Student Advocate may not present argument to the Honor Council.

    Unavailability of the chosen Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor may be used as grounds for requesting a reasonable delay of an Honor Council hearing for a few days. However, the Student Advocate Chair will first attempt to provide a substitute Student Advocate.
  4. The right to request that the Honor Council Chair and any other relevant Student Standards Board chair(s) grant the use of a student confidant with which to discuss the case.

    The student confidant must be approved by the Student Advocate Chair and, in cases involving a related Student Conduct Board case, the Student Conduct Board chair.

    The accused student may send a written request to the Honor Council with the proposed confidant’s name, student leadership positions (if any), and, if possible, student ID number. The request should explain why the accused requires a confidant and the confidant’s relationship to the accused and any other parties involved in the case.

    Prior to sending the written request, the accused may acknowledge an investigation is ongoing in order to confirm the potential student confidant is willing to serve in that capacity. Sharing unnecessary detail, including all other names and facts pertaining to the case, prior to the student being appointed as an official confidant is not permitted and will be considered a breach of confidentiality.

    Should the Honor Council Chair and other Student Standards Board chair(s) agree to the request, the accused student and their chosen student confidant must meet with the Honor Council Chair (and Student Advocate Chair, if possible) to discuss responsibilities and recite an oath of confidentiality. The oath of confidentiality for the student confidant is as follows: I understand my responsibilities as student confidant. I promise to keep my knowledge of this Honor Council case confidential.

    The student confidant may discuss the case with the accused on a personal level. The student confidant may not counsel the accused, question witnesses and case investigator(s), be present during the interview or hearing, or present arguments to the Honor Council.

    The student confidant may not otherwise be involved in the case. This includes any involvement in the incident of alleged code violation, any participation in a hearing (e.g. serving as a character witness, providing testimony or any kind) and any other involvement the Honor Council Chair judges inappropriate.

    The Honor Council Chair may deny or revoke the use of a student confidant if they present the possibility of interfering with the case in any way.

    Typically, use of a student confidant is reserved for cases that may result in a major penalty, such as suspension or dismissal.
  5. The right to request that the Honor Council Chair grant an Administrative Review.
  6. The right to appeal a decision of the Honor Council resulting in suspension or dismissal to the Board of Appeals and ultimately to the president of the university.

RIGHTS WITHIN A HEARING

  1. The right to request a delay in their hearing for cause. Delays will not be granted in the absence of cause. The presence or absence of cause shall be determined by the Honor Council Chair. Delays may be granted for the following reasons:

    A witness with information relevant to the case cannot attend and their information cannot be adequately conveyed solely through the investigation report.

    The Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor assigned to the accused cannot attend the hearing and an acceptable substitute advisor is not available (see III.3, “Rights of an Accused Student”).

    However, given the difficulty of coordinating schedules of Honor Council members, witnesses, the Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor and the accused immediately prior to, during, or following final examination periods, delays in hearing dates may not always be possible. In these cases, either the accused or the Honor Council Chair may request that the case be heard through Administrative Review.
  2. The right to call any witnesses who are members of the faculty, administration, or student body of Mary Baldwin University who can provide evidence relevant to their case.
  3. The right to cross-examine all witnesses who are called to testify at the hearing.
  4. The right to be present during the presentation of all evidence on the case.
  5. The right to refuse to testify. However, if the accused does choose to testify on their own behalf, they are required to answer all questions relevant to the case which are asked.
  6. The right to leave the Mary Baldwin University community to avoid a hearing; provided, however, that in the event of such withdrawal the student’s permanent record shall contain a notation that they withdrew without official permission while facing charges of possible Honor Code violation and that the student shall not be readmitted as a student at Mary Baldwin University without appearing before the Honor Council to face the original charges.

RIGHTS OF A STUDENT IN AN APPEAL

  1. To receive 48 hours’ notice of a review, not including Saturdays, Sundays, and days when the University is not in session.
  2. To present to the Appeal Board Chair written statement of reasons for objecting to the participation of any member of the Board of Appeals. The student must present their statement at least 24 hours in advance of a hearing (not including Saturdays, Sundays, and days when the University is not in session). The Appeal Board Chair may appoint an alternate to the hearing panel at their own sole discretion. The signed statement becomes a part of the hearing record.
  3. . To receive a delay for cause, granted at the sole discretion of the Appeal Board Chair.
  4. To choose an advisor who is a member of the Mary Baldwin University community, or to choose or to be assigned a Student Advocate, for support and advice during the appeal process (see III.3, “Rights of an Accused Student”).
  5. To question witnesses who testify in the review.
  6. To discuss the case and to receive support from all persons with whom the student is permitted to discuss a pending Honor Council Appeal.
  7. Students may waive their rights by signing an explicit written statement of the right being waived. The signed statement becomes part of the review record.

DEFINITION OF AN HONOR COUNCIL VIOLATION

An Honor Code violation is an infraction of the university’s stated rules of honor by a student enrolled in Mary Baldwin University. Honor Code violations include plagiarism, lying, cheating, failure to report, exam period misconduct, failure to maintain
confidentiality, and other academic misconduct.

A. PLAGIARISM

The use of someone else’s idea or work without acknowledging the source of the idea or work. Sources may include but are not limited to papers, written or spoken
statements, and works of art. If a student discovers they have made some mistake in
acknowledging sources in a paper already submitted, they must make this fact known
to their instructor immediately. The Honor Council will not accept a plea of
ignorance. Examples of plagiarism include:

● Failure to use quotation marks when using the exact words of another.

● Changing only a few words of a quotation and representing it as a paraphrase rather than a direct quote (even when the source is cited).

● Failure to provide citation of the source material when paraphrasing ideas.

B. LYING

Any misrepresentation of facts as a student knows them, including statements made verbally, statements made in writing or by a non-verbal indicator (such as, but not limited to, a head motion). Any lie that affects the Mary Baldwin University community will be dealt with by the Honor Council, whether or not the misrepresentation is made to a member of the University community, and whether or not the misrepresentation was made on or off campus. Examples of lying include:

● Telling a faculty member that you submitted work that you did not, in fact,
submit.

● Telling a faculty member that you missed class or an exam because you were
ill when you were not.

● Giving false testimony in a Student Conduct Board or Honor Council
investigation or trial.

C. CHEATING

The unauthorized and / or improper use of assistance in preparing academic work. It includes the following behaviors:

  1. Dishonesty in examinations. The work students submit in examinations must
    be solely their own. To avoid the possible appearance of committing honor
    violations, students are advised not to possess or take any materials other than
    writing instruments and blank paper into any room where a closed book test or
    examination is being given or possess or take any materials not specifically
    permitted by the instructor into any room where an open book test or
    examination is being given. Examples of dishonesty in examinations include:

    ● The use of notes, books, cheat-sheets, or the Internet in a closed book
    exam.

    ● Pre-writing exam answers or notes in a blue book and bringing this to
    an exam.

    ● Giving exam answers to or receiving exam answers from other
    students.

    ● Discussing the contents of or answers to an exam with a student who
    has not taken it yet.

    ● Discussing the contents of or answers to a take home exam with
    students who are still taking it.

    ● Searching for answers to exam questions using the Internet (unless
    specifically allowed by an instructor).
  2. Dishonesty in papers / assignments / reports: Work submitted for a course must be the student’s own. Students may never submit work that was obtained from another person on or off campus or via the Internet (i.e using term paper sites, downloading a lab report, asking another person to write a paper or assignment, etc.).
  3. Inappropriate collaboration: When an instructor allows class members to work together on an assignment, students must adhere to instructor guidelines on the submission of work. Students may not directly copy the work of other students in the course and then submit the work as their own.
  4. Fabrication of data: For assignments that require the collection of data for lab experiments, surveys, and other analyses, it is not acceptable to submit false data.
  5. Work done for one course and submitted for another: Unless the instructors of both courses give permission, students may not submit materials created for one course in fulfillment of assignments in another course.

FAILURE TO REPORT

The conscious awareness of having witnessed a possible infraction of the Honor Code and then failing to report it. Reporting of Honor Code violations is necessary to maintain the integrity of the academic community.

EXAM PERIOD MISCONDUCT

Any breaking of the rules of conduct during the Mary Baldwin University fall or spring exam period. Students must follow exam procedures as outlined by faculty, staff and Honor Council Representatives and refrain from bringing prohibited items into the testing area. Examples of exam period misconduct include:

● Leaving the assigned building before turning in one’s exam.

● Having an exam in a prohibited location, such as another building, bathroom,
elevator, faculty lounge, the ground floor of Carpenter Academic, etc.

● Having an exam in the wrong “type” of room (i.e. no closed book exams in open
book exam rooms).

● Having banned items such as (but not limited to) cell phones, computers, bags of
any kind (purses, pouches, pencil cases, etc.).

● Refusal to cooperate with policies and procedures as put forth by the faculty, staff
and Honor Council Representatives on duty.

FAILURE TO MAINTAIN CONFIDENTIALITY

All individuals involved in an investigation, including members of the Honor Council,
students reporting violations, members of an investigating committee, witnesses at a
hearing, advisors and members of the Board of Appeals are bound to maintain the
confidence of proceedings.

● Those involved in the case may acknowledge that a case is in progress, but they must keep all names and facts pertaining to the case in complete
confidence.

● An accused student may discuss their case while an investigation is proceeding with the following individuals:

●their parents and/or legal guardians

●their advisor(s) to the Honor process

●the Honor Council Chair and/or the Honor Council Advisor

●faculty, administration, and staff of the University.

● An accused student may not discuss their case with any other individual, especially those involved with an investigation. If an accused student is found responsible and given a penalty, the student may tell others their penalty. They may not discuss any other aspect of the case with anyone except those persons listed above.

● Witnesses must observe complete confidentiality about a case, but if a witness believes they must discuss aspects of the case, they should contact the Honor Council Chair.

● Faculty and staff should maintain professional standards of confidentiality, especially as it pertains to the identity of students, but they may discuss their involvement with any faculty advisor to the Honor Council.

● Failure to maintain confidentiality will result in an action by the Honor Council.

● Members of the Honor Council or Student Advocates who are found in violation of failure to maintain confidentiality shall be dismissed from their respective organizations.

OTHER ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT

There are other forms of academic misconduct not covered in this list of definitions. Any academic dishonesty is a threat to the integrity of our academic community.

HONOR COUNCIL CASE PROCEDURES

HOW TO REPORT AN HONOR CODE VIOLATION

  1. Self-referral

    If a student realizes that they may have committed an Honor Code violation, they must submit an Incident Report (or report herself directly to an Honor Council member or to the Chair who will submit an Incident Report on their behalf). Incident Reports are submitted online at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.phpMaryBaldwin&layout_id=9

    Submission of an Incident Report does not constitute an admission of guilt but represents an honest attempt to clarify the matter. The existence of a self-referral will weigh favorably in subsequent considerations of the Chair and the Honor Council.
  2. Faculty

    a. Faculty may encourage students to self-report violations.

    b. Even when the student files a self-report, the faculty member may submit
    evidence for the case by filling out an Incident Report at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?MaryBaldwin&layout_id=9.

    ● A faculty member may not enter a final grade for a student until the case
    is closed (instead using the “NR” option for course grades).

    ● Faculty members should expect to be interviewed by a member of the
    Honor Council and should be prepared to provide copies of any evidence
    in the case.

    ● A faculty member who submits an Incident Report will be informed by
    the Honor Council Chair of whether or not the accused is found to be
    responsible for the violation.

    c. For a minor and presumed unintentional violation (such as a student who omits the citation for a paraphrased paragraph in an otherwise properly cited paper), a faculty member may choose to discuss the violation with the student and offer them an opportunity to correct the problem (by revising the assignment or submitting an alternative assignment). The grade for the assignment will reflect the degree to which the student adhered to other course guidelines. Grade penalties for Honor Code violations may only be Honor Code assessed when the student is given rights of due process under the Honor Code.
  3. A Member of the University Community
  4. Student, faculty, or staff who have witnessed a suspected Honor Code violation should submit an Incident Report at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?MaryBaldwin&layout_id=9 AND/OR should tell the student to submit a self-referral. Anonymous incident reports are not allowed. An individual who submits an Incident Report will likely be interviewed by a member of the Honor Council but will not be informed of the eventual outcome of the case.

ACTIONS TAKEN ON RECEIPT OF AN INCIDENT REPORT

  1. Notification of the Accused Student

    The Honor Council Chair will notify (via e-mailed letter) the Accused Student of the
    charge(s) and the options available to the accused (including the support of a
    Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor). The Chair must include a copy of
    the Accused Student’s rights (Section III) in the initial email.

    a. When the initial report is a self-referral, the Honor Council Chair will
    respond with an e-mail that verifies the charge(s) and lists the options
    available to the Accused Student.

    The letter will list a specific member of the Honor Council who will take responsibility for the case and interview the Accused Student. (The Honor Council Chair or the Honor Council Advisor may instead choose to conduct the interview).
  2. The Initial Interview

    a. The Accused Student must respond to interviewer’s email within 72 hours and provide contact information and available times to enable an interview with the Honor Council representative.

    b. The purpose of the interview is to give the Accused Student an opportunity to understand the charge, present their explanation of the event described in the Incident Report, and to ask questions about the process.

    c. The accused student may choose to submit a written explanation of the events to the Honor Council Chair in addition to their participation in the interview.

    d. The accused student may request that their Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor be present for the interview. Participation in the interview discussion is limited to the accused, the Honor Council representative, and the Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor.

    e. If the accusation described in the initial Incident Report is unclear, the Honor Council representative may interview the person who filed the Incident Report prior to the interview with the accused.

    f. During the interview, the Accused Student will respond with a plea of “responsible” or “not responsible.”

    g. The Honor Council representative will provide a written summary of the interview to the Honor Council Chair and Honor Council Advisor.

    h. If the Honor Council Chair believes there is no probable cause for the accusation, they may, in consultation with the Honor Council Advisor, dismiss the case.

“RESPONSIBLE” PLEA

  1. If student pleads “responsible” AND the case is a first violation AND the
    appropriate penalty is minor, the Chair may issue a penalty (in consultation
    with the Honor Council Advisor).
  2. If the case is not a first violation, if the appropriate penalty is unclear, or if the appropriate penalty may be major, the penalty will be decided by:

    ● the Honor Council in consultation with the Honor Council Chair and Honor Council Advisor, or

    ● appropriate representatives from administration in consultation with the Honor Council Chair and Honor Council Advisor.
  3. To determine a proper penalty, the Honor Council Chair or a member of the Honor Council may need to discuss the case with the appropriate faculty member or other witnesses.

“NOT RESPONSIBLE” PLEA

1. Case Jurisdiction

a. The student may choose whether the case will be investigated (and, if necessary, tried) by the Honor Council or investigated and decided by Administrative Review.

b. The Honor Council Chair may also request that a case be investigated and decided by Administrative Review.

2. Honor Council Investigation

a. If the Honor Council Chair believes there is probable cause, they will request that the Honor Council representative assigned to the case conduct a full investigation. (For cases involving more than one accused student or a large degree of complexity, the Honor Council Chair may appoint an additional investigator. The second investigator may be a member of the Student Conduct Board or the Honor Council).

b. The investigator(s) will interview the appropriate witnesses (including faculty) and provide a written report of the investigation results to the Honor Council Chair. The report will include

i. The accusation(s)

ii. A list of witnesses interviewed

iii. A summary of statements made by witnesses

iv. Copies of relevant evidence.

c. Upon receiving the investigation report, the Honor Council Chair will determine whether probable cause exists that a violation has been committed. If they determine that probable cause does not exist, the charge will be dismissed without a hearing.

d. If the Honor Council Chair determines that probable cause does exist, they will schedule a hearing.

NOTIFICATION

If the outcome of a case has a bearing on a course, the faculty member in charge of the course will be informed of the case findings. The Honor Council may at its discretion notify other members of the University community that it has disposed of a matter brought to its attention. The notification will not include information as to the
disposition of the case nor the verdict nor penalties imposed, unless council determines that it requires the assistance of a member of the University community in carrying out the penalty or penalties.

All penalties of dismissal or suspension will be noted on the student’s transcript. When the Registrar receives notice that a student has been suspended or dismissed and this
outcome needs to be noted on the student’s transcript, they will note:
“Disciplinary [Suspension/Dismissal] Imposed by Honor Council on [date] for
violation of [lying, cheating, stealing] [for a period of … ].”

HONOR COUNCIL PROCEDURES DURING FINAL EXAM WEEK/MAY
TERM

When potential violations arise during the final exam period, it may be difficult to schedule interviews before students leave campus for break. However, it is important to gather as much information as possible before key witnesses forget important
facts. Therefore, when a potential violation is reported during final exam week:

  1. The Honor Council Chair will notify the Accused Student that an Incident
    Report has been filed (see V.B.1, “Notification of an Accused Student”).
  2. The accused student will be asked to either schedule an interview or provide
    a written explanation of the event and submit a plea of “responsible” or “not
    responsible.”
  3. An in-person interview or the investigation process may be postponed to
    January (following Fall semester exams) or May term (following Spring
    semester exams, provided the accused student is on campus during May
    term).
  4. If the Incident Report is filed at the end of May term (or if the Incident
    Report is filed at the end of the Spring semester and the accused is off
    campus during May term):

    a. When the accused pleads “responsible,” the case can be handled
    through submission of written explanations.

    b. When the accused pleads “not responsible” or the Honor Council is not
    able to schedule with the accused student, the case will be handled
    through the Administrative Review process.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE HONOR COUNCIL, STUDENT
CONDUCT BOARD, CADET CONDUCT COUNCIL (CCC), AND PROGRAM
FOR THE EXCEPTIONALLY GIFTED (PEG)

The Student Conduct Board, the Honor Council, the Cadet Conduct Council, and
PEG are separate bodies with jurisdiction, generally, over different Student misconduct or violations. As a general proposition, Student misconduct involving lying, cheating, and confidentiality directly related to academic activities or pursuits shall be treated as Honor Code violations and shall be adjudicated by the Honor Council and its processes. Additionally, Student misconduct directly related to a Student’s involvement in or requirements imposed on them by their connection to VWIL or PEG shall be adjudicated by the Cadet Conduct Council or the PEG Administration and its processes respectively. In some instances, however, the Student Conduct Board, the Honor Council, the Cadet Conduct Council, and/or the PEG jurisdictions overlap, including but not limited to the following:

  1. Lying during a Student Conduct, Cadet Conduct Council, or PEG Proceeding:
    All Students participating in a Student Conduct, Cadet Conduct Council, or
    PEG Proceeding are subject to the Honor Code. If a Student is suspected of
    lying during a Student Conduct, Cadet Conduct Council, or PEG Proceeding,
    adjudication of the underlying charge shall continue and a separate charge
    relating to the suspected violation of lying shall be referred to the Honor
    Council.
  2. Concurrent Honor Code, Student Conduct Code, Cadet Conduct, and/or PEG
    violations: If a Student is accused of an act that violates a combination of the
    Honor Code, the Student Conduct Code, the Cadet Conduct Code, and/or PEG,
    the Honor Code violation will be considered a primary violation and charges
    shall proceed under the processes of the Honor Code. However, a Student
    Conduct, Cadet Conduct Council, or PEG Proceeding may also begin. The
    Student Conduct Board, Honor Council, Cadet Conduct Council, and PEG
    reserve the right to conduct a joint interview and/or joint investigation, if
    deemed necessary. In the event of conduct that violates a combination of the
    Honor Code, the Student Conduct Code, the Cadet Conduct Code, and/or PEG,
    the Honor Council, Student Conduct Board, Cadet Conduct Council, and/or
    PEG may consider the penalty imposed by the other boards in imposing its
    penalties. The VWIL Commandant and the CCC Chair will be copied on the
    Notification Email and Outcome Letter of all students in VWIL.
  3. There are a number of special circumstances that apply with regards to cases
    involving a Student who is a member of PEG as a result of the age of these
    students. PEG includes any student who entered Mary Baldwin University
    through the program, both those students living in the PEG building and those
    who have moved out onto the main campus.

    a. Notification process

    The PEG Director or their designee will be copied on the Notification
    Email of all students in PEG. It will be the responsibility of the PEG
    Director or their designee to communicate the information to the
    parents and/or legal guardian of the accused student.

    b. Initial Meeting, Resolution, and/or Hearing

    The PEG Director or their designee will participate in all proceedings
    that involve a PEG student. This includes, but is not limited to, any
    discussion about the pursuit of a case, any meetings that occur as part
    of the case, and the decisions made about a case.

    i. The parents and/or legal guardians of the PEG student will have
    three options for participation in the process. They can choose:
    ● to attend the proceedings in person
    ● listen in on the proceedings via phone
    ● they can defer to the PEG Director or their designee to sit in on their behalf.

    Their choice needs to be communicated to the PEG Director or their designee within 72 hours of the student’s receipt of the Notification Email and the PEG Director or their designee will communicate that decision to the Honor Council Chair, Honor Council Advisor, and/or Administration, depending on who is adjudicating the case.

    ii. Parents and/or legal guardians will be held to the same standards
    as a Student Advocate or Faculty/ Staff Advisor in a case. They
    may counsel the charged Student and ask questions of the Honor
    Council Chair, Honor Council Advisor, Honor Council
    Representative, Administration, or designee during the Initial
    Meeting and the Resolution Meeting if that option is selected.

    iii. They may counsel the Student, but not speak on their behalf
    during a Hearing if that option is selected.

Outcome

The PEG Director or their designee will be copied on the Outcome Letter of all students in the PEG Program. It will be the responsibility of the PEG Director or their designee to communicate the information to the parents and/or legal guardian of the charged student. Once a PEG student reaches the age of 18 the special circumstances outlined above will no longer apply.

HEARING PROCEDURES

Please refer to III.A., “Rights Within a Hearing,” for an Accused Student’s rights during a
hearing.

  1. A panel of at least three student members of the Honor Council or Student
    Conduct Board who were not involved in the investigation of the case will hear
    evidence, determine whether the Accused is “responsible” or “not responsible”
    and decide the penalty(s) if the student is found to be “responsible.”

    ● At least one panel member must be a member of the Honor Council.
    ● The Honor Council member who investigated the case is present for clarification of information but does not vote at a hearing.
  2. If the Accused plans to call witnesses or present three character letters on their
    own behalf, they should submit their names to the Honor Council Chair before the
    start of the hearing. Only the Honor Council Chair will contact witnesses and
    individuals writing character letters. Evidence witnesses called into the hearing
    must have direct knowledge of the evidence in the case; character letters will only
    be read during a penalty deliberation.
  3. The Honor Council Chair (or their designee) will maintain a recording and, if
    necessary, type a summary of the procedures (except the deliberations of the
    council). These materials will be used in the event of appeal.
  4. The Chair will ask the members of the Hearing Panel if there are members who
    have knowledge of the violation charged which will prohibit them from
    deliberating in an unbiased manner. Any members who have such knowledge are
    disqualified.
  5. The Accused may submit written questions to the Chair bearing on ability of any
    member of the council to participate in the case. In the event upon disagreement,
    decisions on whether a member of the hearing panel can participate shall be made by the Chair
  6. If the Accused Student fails to attend the hearing, the Honor Council may conduct
    the hearing in their absence

HEARING PROCESS

  1. On determining that the Hearing Panel, all requested witnesses, the Accused, and the Accused’s Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor are present, the Honor Council

    Chair will remind the Accused and the witnesses that statements given in their
    testimony are subject to the provisions of the Honor Code.
  2. Before providing testimony, the accused and each witness will be asked to state their names and repeat the following oath:
    I promise that I will tell the truth in this hearing. I promise to treat everyone in this
    hearing with respect. I promise to keep the content of this hearing confidential.
  3. The Honor Council Chair will read to the Accused the charge or charges against the Accused and determine that the Accused:
    ● Understands the charges
    ● Has had an opportunity to prepare for the hearing
    ● And has received a statement of their rights.
  4. The student investigator(s) will present the written report. Members of the Hearing
    Panel may ask questions of the investigator(s). At the conclusions of such questions, the Honor Council Advisor, the Accused, and the Accused’s Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor may ask questions. The Chair determines whether the questions are appropriate.
  5. Witnesses requested by the student investigator(s) will then be called to testify. They are questioned in the same manner as the student investigator.
  6. Witnesses are allowed to testify to any matter considered by the Chair to be relevant to the issue of the guilt or innocence of the accused. Questions of relevance shall be within the discretion of the Chair. No questions shall be allowed concerning previous misconduct, or honor or judicial violations.
  7. After the investigation report and all witnesses requested by it have presented their evidence, the accused and/or witnesses for the accused may testify in an order to be determined by the Accused and the Accused’s Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor. The testimony is conducted in the manner set forth for previous witnesses.
  8. At any time during the hearing, the Chair may direct that the Honor Council withdraw for deliberation and/or discussion, out of the presence of the Accused and the Accused’s Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor. The Accused and the Accused’s Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor may request of the Chair a brief recess for deliberation and/or discussion.

DETERMINATION OF RESPONSIBILITY

  1. At the conclusion of the evidence the Hearing Panel along with the Honor Council
    Chair and Honor Council Advisor will retire to deliberate. A student shall be found in violation of the codes only if the committee finds that the violation has been
    proven by clear and convincing evidence. This standard requires that the evidence presented in the hearing is highly more probable to be true than not true.
  2. If more than one member of the Honor Council present casts a vote of “not in
    violation” at the conclusion of the deliberations, the charges are dismissed and the Accused is notified.
  3. If a student is found in violation of the codes, the Honor Council recalls the Accused and the Accused’s Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor to inform them.

PENALTY DELIBERATION

  1. When a student is found responsible for a violation, the Hearing Panel begins
    consideration of an appropriate penalty.
  2. During this portion of the hearing, the Accused may testify on their own behalf
    concerning the penalty and may present three character letters on their behalf. They may not present evidence weighing on their responsibility.
  3. The Honor Council may consider past Honor Council investigations which resulted in a “responsible” finding and penalties but may not consider any past Honor Code accusations.
  4. After hearing the evidence concerning the penalty, the Honor Council returns to its
    deliberations and determines the penalty by a majority vote.
  5. The Honor Council notifies the accused of the penalty imposed. This is done in person (at the conclusion of the hearing) and in writing (from the Honor Council Chair). The Honor Council will then notify any necessary parties (see V.E, “Notification”).

ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW

  1. The Administrative Review Process may be requested by either the Accused Student or by the Honor Council Chair.
  2. When this process is selected, the Honor Council Chair will submit the names of the accused, witnesses, and any evidence gathered in the case to the appropriate academic dean, who can investigate the case or designate another administrator or faculty member to investigate the case.
  3. The investigator will determine whether probable cause exists for the case by
    reviewing submitted evidence and talking to witnesses and the accused.
  4. If the investigation does not establish probable cause, the administrator may find the student “not responsible” and close the case.
  5. If the investigation provides clear and convincing evidence that a violation did occur AND the likely penalty is minor, the investigator may issue a finding of “responsible” and recommend a penalty to the Honor Council Chair.
  6. If the investigation provides evidence that a violation did occur and either
    ● The likely penalty is major
    ● The case requires further investigation and discussion, then the administrative
    investigator will convene a hearing panel.
  7. The Administrative Hearing panel will consist of two administrative representatives
    (selected from the administration or the faculty, but not the Provost or President).
  8. Hearings follow the same structure as those for the Honor Council.
  9. If the student is found to be “responsible,” the administrative hearing panel will
    determine the penalty(s) for the student.
  10. The Administrative Hearing Panel will report its finding of “responsible” or “not
    responsible” and any penalty to the Honor Council Chair and Honor Council Advisor.

PENALTIES

MINOR

Minor penalties do not appear on a student’s Mary Baldwin University transcript.
However, penalties are logged on the university’s system for managing Honor and
Student Conduct offences. Minor penalties are most likely to be assigned for first
violation cases. Students found “responsible” of an Honor Code violation may be
assigned multiple penalties.

i. Grade penalties: If the violation stems from work within an academic course,
the Honor Council may recommend penalties ranging from failure of the
problematic assignment to failure of the entire course. Faculty receive these
recommendations but are not required to abide by them.

ii. Written Warning: A notice to the Accused Student that the Student has
violated the Code. The Warning notice will state that future incidents of a
similar nature will result in a more severe penalty.

iii. Probation: Probation is a testing period and acts as a warning that further
violations will warrant severe action. The Honor Council also may assign alternative penalties and/or place conditions on the probation as it deems appropriate. If a student is found in violation of their probation a major penalty will then follow.

iv. Alternative penalties: Council may require such penalties as it deems advisable. These may include, but are not limited to, community service, letters of apology and/or educational tasks (such as papers or tutoring by the writing center).

MAJOR

Major penalties do appear on a student’s transcript. They are most likely to be assigned for second (or later) violations, violations committed while on probation, or when the student’s action is considered particularly egregious.

i. Suspension:

The immediate temporary termination for a stated period of the student’s enrollment
in the University. Suspension always includes the remainder of the term in which the student was enrolled at the time they were suspended. Suspension usually is for a period of no less than two terms. The student who is suspended must leave the University within 48 hours unless the Honor Council deems otherwise. No credit is given for courses in which the student was enrolled at the time they were suspended. The Honor Council also may place the suspended student on probation after their return to the University and may place other conditions on the suspension, as it deems appropriate.

ii. Dismissal:

The immediate termination of the student’s admission and enrollment in the
University. Dismissal means that Mary Baldwin University will not consider
the student for readmission.

UNCOMPLETED PENALTIES

If a student found in violation does not complete the penalty, it is then at the discretion of the Honor Council Chair to look at the nature of the original violation and the student’s efforts towards completing the penalty. It will then be up to the Honor Council to impose additional penalties, and conditions, as it deems appropriate.

PROCEDURES FOR AN APPEAL

An appeal is not a new Hearing. An appeal is a review of a decision made in an Honor
Council hearing, Administrative Review, or resolution meeting to determine whether
sufficient cause exists to invalidate the decision and/or penalty. The student may remain on campus until the appeal process is complete, unless subject to a summary suspension. The student may attend class during the Appeal process. The student
will receive credit for work submitted prior to the effective date of a suspension or dismissal. Class attendance policies are the course instructor’s prerogative.
The effective date of a suspension or dismissal is the date on which the Honor Council
decision is handed down, or the date stated in that decision. Work submitted after the
effective date is automatically invalid, although it may have been submitted during an Appeal process.

A. MEMBERSHIP

The Board of Appeals for Honor Council cases consists of the Provost or designee (referred to as Appeal Board Chair); Student Conduct Board Chair; the Student Advocate Chair; one full-time member of the faculty; one member of the staff.

B. CONDITIONS FOR AN APPEAL

A student who is found in violation by the Honor Council and who is assigned a penalty of suspension or dismissal may appeal the decision on any of the following grounds:

i. the Honor Council failed to follow stated procedures AND the failure affected the
penalty given

ii. a penalty is not supported by evidence heard by the Honor Council

iii. the penalty is disproportionately severe or inappropriate for the Code violation.
Note: Penalties imposed by the University’s disciplinary Boards are individual to the student found in violation and to the specific circumstances of the offense committed. Penalties may not appropriately be compared, and such a comparison may not form the basis of an Appeal of a penalty.

C. ACTIONS TAKEN BEFORE APPEAL REVIEW

  1. To appeal a decision of the Honor Council the student must hand deliver a written
    appeal directly into the hands of a staff member in the office of the Provost or his/her administrative assistant (not a student assistant), within 48 hours of the close of the hearing or receipt of the Resolution letter (for cases without a hearing), not including Saturday, Sunday, and official University holidays. The schedule of official University holidays is posted on the University’s website.

    ● The office of the Provost shares a copy of the appeal letter with the Honor
    Council Chair and Honor Council Advisor.
  2. The student’s written appeal of a procedural violation that affected the sanction must address one or more of the conditions of appeal stated above:

    ● that failure to follow official procedures affected the sanction
    ● that the sanction is not supported by evidence
    ● that the penalty is disproportionately severe or inappropriate for the Code
    violation.

    The letter should also include any information that was not considered by the Honor Council (if any).

D. APPEAL REVIEW PROCESS

  1. Prior to an Appeal Review, the Honor Council Chair will forward to the Appeal
    Board Chair a written summary of the case, signed by the Appellant to indicate that they also have received it. The written summary includes:
    ● items of evidence and/or questions excluded from the case
    ● the summons, the signed statement of rights, and a written statement of offense, verdict, and penalty.
    ● In a case with a hearing, the Appeal Board Chair may request the tape
    recording of the hearing at their discretion.
  2. The Appeal Board Chair sets a time for the Review and notifies the Appellant of the
    time, place, and composition of the Board (see III.B, “Rights of a Student in an
    Appeal”).
  3. The Board of Appeals may meet in advance of the review to go over procedures and the written materials, including the student’s statement of appeal.
  4. During the review, the Board of Appeals will question the appellant and the Honor
    Council Chair and Honor Council Advisor whose decision is in question. The Appeal
    Board will not call other witnesses. However, the Appeal Board Chair may seek
    information from any source in their discretion.
  5. The following also may ask questions in an order determined by the Appeal Board
    Chair:
    ● the Appeal Board Chair
    ● the members of the Board of Appeals
    ● the Appellant and their Student Advocate or Faculty/Staff Advisor
    ● the Honor Council Chair and Honor Council Advisor whose decision is under
    appeal.

    The Appeal Board may recess at the discretion of the Appeal Board Chair.
  6. Following questioning, the Board of Appeals will retire to deliberate. The Appeal
    Board will determine whether the penalty imposed was affected by a failure of the
    Honor Council to follow stated procedures, and/or whether the penalty imposed is
    supported by evidence heard by the Board, and/or whether the penalties are
    disproportionately severe or inappropriate for the Honor Code violation.
  7. The Board of Appeals may affirm the penalty or remand the case to the Honor
    Council for a new hearing or resolution meeting. The Appeal Board will state briefly
    the reasons for its finding.
  8. At the conclusion of the Appeal Review the Appeal Board Chair will state its
    determination orally to the Appellant and may include a statement of the reasons for the finding.
  9. On the next day the University is open, the Appeal Board Chair will make available
    to the student a written statement of the Board of Appeals’ determination, including a written statement of the reasons for the finding, with a copy to the president of the University, the associate vice president for student affairs, the appropriate academic dean, and the Honor Council Chair.
  10. If the Board of Appeals affirms the penalty, the student may within 48 hours appeal to the president of the University, by giving a written statement directly into the hands of a member of the president’s staff (not a student assistant).

    ● The president or a staff member will notify the Appeal Board Chair, who will
    forward to the president the materials the student presented to the Appeal Board, a summary of the student’s involvement in the case, a copy of the student’s letter of appeal, the case summary, and a copy of the Appeal Board Chair’s letter to the student, including the statement of the reasons for the Board of Appeals’ finding.
  11. The President shall make a final decision and notify the student in writing.
  12. The President may affirm the penalty assigned by the Honor Council or return the
    case for a re-hearing. The president will communicate their decision to the student in writing, with a copy to the Provost, the appropriate academic dean, the associate vice president for student affairs, and the Honor Council Chair.