Preamble
The King's University community is based on the biblical concept of community and mutual trust. All members of the University community are called upon to share the ideal of Christian community. All are equal in their worth as God's creatures, and all are liable to discipline. Every effort must be made to avoid an adversarial relationship, especially between students and University personnel, and every effort must be made to restore trust when it is broken.
By Charter, student discipline is fundamentally a responsibility of the Senate, and it is by delegation that University personnel and committees deal with it.
Regulations regarding student discipline should accomplish two things. They should preserve an infracting student's dignity as much as possible while calling that student to account, and they should be redemptive in nature, calculated to restore an offending student to a proper relation with the rest of the community.
The regulations that follow should be seen as exceptional measures to deal with exceptional cases. Most problems of student adherence to University standards should be resolved between two people or at most with the Associate Vice President Academic Services and Registrar, and the Vice President Academic and Research. Only in extreme or unresolved cases should the Discipline Committee be required to convene.
If the principles of trust and mutual accountability are worth anything, they are worth the extra trouble represented in a loving and caring attempt to resolve differences on the simplest level. Only when this attempt fails or when the offense is severe and clearly against the whole institution should the following policy be implemented.
Academic Offenses
The following offenses are infractions of the scholar's ethical code and are liable to punishment under the University disciplinary code.
Cheating
• obtaining information or material from other students or from another unauthorized source during an exam,
• passing information or material to another student during an exam,
• permitting another student to observe answers during an exam, or
• possessing or attempting to acquire or distribute unauthorized material relating to an exam.
• representing another's work in whole or in part as one's own in an exam or paper,
• knowingly including a false statement or reference as if it were true, or
• submission by the student of the work prepared for a different course without the express consent of the instructor.
Other Academic Offenses
• tampering or attempting to tamper with examinations, class work, grades or class records;
• failure to abide by directions given by an instructor regarding the individuality of work handed in;
• the impersonation of another student in an examination or other class assignment;
• the falsification or fabrication of clinical or laboratory reports;
• the non-authorized recording of lectures;
• failure to obtain approval, permission, or to otherwise follow procedures, as required by the University as outlined in the University Calendar.
Any student who voluntarily and consciously aids another student in the commission of one of these offenses is also guilty of academic misconduct.
Academic Discipline
Normally a first case of confirmed academic dishonesty for a student will result in a zero being assigned for the test, exam or assignment. A second confirmed case for a given student will normally result in a zero being assigned for the course in which the case was discovered. A third confirmed case will normally result in a zero being assigned for the course and a suspension policy will normally apply. This means that the student will be suspended from King's for a minimum of 12 months and any post-secondary credits completed elsewhere during the suspension period will not be transferable to King's. The student will not be permitted to withdraw from the course in which a second or subsequent case is discovered. Any subsequent academic offense may result in permanent expulsion.
The discipline procedure should be followed only in exceptional circumstances of non-academic discipline that cannot be resolved by dialogue between those involved, or at most, with the Associate Vice President Academic Services and Registrar, the Dean of Students and the Vice President Academic and Research.
Discipline Committee
The Discipline Committee is a standing University committee, with male and female representatives, established to adjudicate matters of student behavior. This committee is composed of the following members appointed by the President:
1. Three representatives of the student body, elected by the Student Association.
2. The Vice President Academic and Research, the Associate Vice President Academic Services and Registrar and the Dean of Students.
3. A member of the Senate not employed by The King's University or registered at the University as a student, to serve as Chairperson.
Procedures
1. Any person believing that a student has committed a serious non-academic offense may notify the Dean of Students in writing, whereupon the Dean of Students will conduct a preliminary investigation to see if there are sufficient grounds for the charge. The Dean of Students will then inform the Vice President Academic and Research who will then inform the Chairperson of the standing committee.
2. The Chairperson, upon deciding that there are sufficient grounds for a charge, shall convene a hearing for the student concerned during which the charges are heard. Both the student charged and the party or parties bringing the charge shall be present at the hearing.
Any person believing that a student has committed a non-academic offense against University rules should refer to the terms of the student handbook.
A party who feels that the issue has not been fairly resolved has the right to appeal the decision to the Senate through the office of the President. The Senate shall then appoint an Appeal Board to hear the appeal. The Appeal Board shall include one member of the faculty or staff of the University, one community member, and three students, one of whom may be selected by the student charged.
Penalties
The Discipline Committee, by delegation of authority from the Senate, is empowered to take appropriate disciplinary action, including the levying of fines, suspension, expulsion, or an alteration of the student's applicable marks and academic standing. Recommendation for expulsion must be approved by the Senate. Every attempt shall be made in dealing with an offense to preserve the integrity of the University’s regulations and the student's dignity.