APPENDIX I
CONDUCT
The Pennsylvania State University recognizes the basic rights and responsibilities of the members of the University and accepts its obligation to preserve and protect those rights and responsibilities. Further, the University must provide for its members the opportunities and protections that best serve the nature of the educational process.
The Code of Conduct governing the behavior of members of the University must ensure the basic rights of individuals as well as reflect the practical necessities of the community. The code also must prohibit or limit acts that interfere with the basic purposes, necessities, or processes of the University or with the rights of its members. Finally, the code must reconcile the principles of maximum freedom and necessary order.
Violations of the Code of Conduct shall be adjudicated by appropriate University mechanisms established in consultation with faculty, students, and staff. The mechanisms for adjudicating cases of alleged misconduct on the part of student members of the University is the discipline system described by The Office of Judicial Affairs (www.sa.psu.edu/ja/PoliciesRules.pdf). For purposes of this policy, a student is defined as an individual currently or previously enrolled in any academic offering of the University. The Office of Judicial Affairs should be consulted for questions regarding how this would apply in specific cases. There shall be clearly defined channels and procedures for such adjudication and the right of appeal. Sanctions shall be commensurate with the seriousness of the offense and may include temporary or permanent expulsion. Repeated violations justify increasingly severe sanctions.
The Code of Conduct shall be made public in an appropriate manner and may be revised by the University in consultation with the faculty, students, and staff.
NOTE: Nothing within this appendix, nor within any portion of the Graduate Degree Programs Bulletin, is intended to constitute a contract nor contractual terms. No provisions of this Appendix, nor any portion of the Graduate Degree Programs Bulletin, shall confer contractual rights upon any parties. To the extent that the terms of this Appendix may be applicable to faculty or staff, the terms outlined herein do not constitute terms, benefits or conditions of employment. The terms set forth herein are subject to change unilaterally and without notice by University administration.
CODE OF CONDUCT : http://www.sa.psu.edu/ja/conduct.shtml
RELATED CROSS REFERENCES:
AD-47 (General Standards of Professional Ethics)
Approved by Graduate Council February 2003.
Revised by special Ad Hoc Committee on Student-Related Polices, August 2005.