Have you ever had to go to the Office of Student Conduct? My only personal experience involved a citation for illegally possessing a toaster (no, I’m not joking), but I know they deal with far more serious situations on a daily basis. If you have been one of the unfortunate students to sit in the citation office, think back on your experience. Were you scared, worried, or just plain confused about why you were there?
Jordan Solomon, a freshman in Peabody College, is willing to bet that the last thought was probably the most likely. According to Solomon, at the beginning of this semester, the majority of students who were in the conduct office had no idea why they were being summoned, let alone how to deal with the situation. However, a new plan is being formulated to not only inform students about why they are going to Office of Student Conduct, but to educate them about what to do once they are there.
Solomon has been working closely with Residential Life and Residential Education to establish a student conduct committee. Originally proposed to VSG as a kind of public defender’s office for student government, the plan has morphed into a student advisory board for student conduct. The goal is for students to get involved with the conduct office and take part in keeping everyone’s toes in line. Students on the board would be well versed in campus conduct and conduct procedures. Students that receive a conduct citation would meet with a member of the conduct council to discuss the violation without fear of retribution from the school. Students would talk about changing their behavior as well as what they will face in the conduct meeting with the school administration. Solomon says that the purpose of the student conduct committee is really more to educate conduct-offenders than act as a retributive penalty. Students on the conduct committee will not be able to give punishments, only advice.
In terms of giving students an opportunity to learn from their mistakes, I think the plans for this committee are going to be beneficial to the student body. I am sure that many students on campus have been a part of or have overheard conversations about the Office of Student Conduct, wondering how many citations you can have before you are really in trouble and whether any or all citations make it to your record. There seems to be a lack of knowledge about the rules, regulations, and particularly the penalties associated with certain actions. A student conduct committee could help quell some of the rumors about the office as well as informally educate other students about what really happens. Furthermore, I think this could enhance campus efforts to make this university safer. With a student conduct committee, the student body would take a more active interest in student conduct and safety. Procedures would be clearer and perhaps potential offenders would think twice before violating the conduct code if they were more aware of what they could be getting themselves into.
Hopefully this student conduct committee will come to fruition in the near future so that going to the Office of Student Condcut will be less confusing and more geared toward education. After all, as with any society, the rule of law will garner more respect when the rules are actually known and enforced with fairness.
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