Disciplinary Procedures
Any academic or administrative official, faculty member, or student may file a complaint with the Office of Student Affairs or directly with the Assistant Vice Provost of Student Affairs against any student for violations of University policies and procedures.
If a student poses a threat to or harasses any person on Strayer premises, or through Strayer online, is disruptive or uncontrollable, damages or threatens to damage any property, or some other serious behavioral issue exists, the Assistant Vice Provost of Student Affairs may immediately suspend or expel a student and may have the student escorted from Strayer University premises, or removed from Strayer online, in accordance with the University's policy on Suspension or Expulsion for Violence or Harassment. If none of the above behaviors are involved, the following procedure will be followed. Students should expect a more severe disciplinary sanction to be administered for each consecutive Code of Student Conduct violation reported (which may culminate in dismissal from the University). If a student does not exhibit conduct that warrants immediate suspension and/or expulsion under the Suspension for Harassment or Violence policy, the following procedures will be followed for a violation of University policies and/or procedures with the exception that conduct governed by the University’s Title IX Sexual Harassment Policy will be covered under that policy.
Level I (Warning) –Incidents of student misconduct shall be reported to the Office of Student Affairs at studentaffairs@strayer.edu. If the Office of Student Affairs investigates and determines that the Code of student Conduct has been violated, a warning letter will be issued to the student, stored electronically in a 360 case, and an electronic copy provided to the Vice President of Advising and Student Services. Although a Level I Warning may not be appealed, the student will have the opportunity to submit his or her response to the admonition. The student must email his or her response to the Office of Student Affairs at studentaffairs@strayer.edu within five (5) days of receiving the admonition. Violation deemed by the Office of Student Affairs to be of a serious nature may proceed to Level II or Level III without a warning.
Level II – If an incident of student misconduct is reported to the Office of Student Affairs and the Office of Student Affairs investigates and determines that the student has already received a prior Level I Warning for misconduct, or determines that the violation is of a sufficiently serious nature to warrant a Level II warning, the Office of Student Affairs will issue a Level II warning letter to the student, stored electronically in a 360 case, and an electronic copy provided to the Vice President of Advising and Student Services. Although a Level II Warning may not be appealed, the student will have the opportunity to email his or her response to the warning letter within five (5) business days after receiving the admonition to studentaffairs@strayer.edu. Violations of a serious nature may proceed to Level III without a warning.
Level III - If further disciplinary action is warranted, due to a violation of the Code of Student Conduct, or if the violation is considered by the Office of Student Affairs to be of a serious nature, then the Assistant Vice Provost of Student Affairs will investigate and consider additional disciplinary sanctions, including suspension or expulsion from the University. The Assistant Vice Provost of Student Affairs or designee, in consultation with the Legal Department, may immediately suspend or expel a student if the student poses a direct threat to the health and safety of any other person on University premises or through Strayer University online, or to Strayer University property. The Assistant Vice Provost of Student Affairs will provide written notice to the student that the matter has been referred to the Office of Student Affairs, the section of the Code of Student Conduct the student has violated, and the sanction that will be imposed. The Assistant Vice Provost or Student Affairs will also provide the student with the opportunity to appeal the decision within ten (10) business days after receiving notice. An electronic copy of the student notice will be provided to the Vice President of Advising and Student Services and the written student notice will be stored electronically in a 360 case, along with any appeal submitted by the student.
Appeal to Disciplinary Committee
A student may appeal a disciplinary probation, restitution, suspension, dismissal/expulsion, revocation of degree, or a grade reduction associated with any of the forgoing Sanctions. The Disciplinary Committee shall be comprised of at least three members in addition to the University Provost. The University Provost or Provost designee will appoint the three upper-level University leaders to serve as members of the Disciplinary Committee upon receiving the student's request to appeal; provided, however, no member of the Disciplinary Committee may have any prior involvement in the matter which the student is appealing. The Committee will include an upper-level leader from JWMI if the appeal is made by a JWMI student. The only grounds for a disciplinary appeal shall be: (a) new evidence was discovered; (b) the consequences were not commensurate with the offense; and/or (c) failure to follow procedures constituted an error. Prior to granting an appeal hearing, the University Provost or designee will review whether or not the student's appeal letter and supporting evidence establish sufficient grounds for an appeal hearing. If the University Provost or designee determines that sufficient grounds have not been established for an appeal hearing then the decision of the Assistant Vice Provost of Student Affairs is the University's final response.
- If a student requests an appeal, the request must be in writing to the Assistant Vice Provost of Student Affairs. The request must be postmarked or emailed within ten (10) days of the Assistant Vice Provost of Student Affairs' decision letter. The Assistant Vice Provost of Student Affairs will forward the appeal to the Disciplinary Committee along with all other information collected in the matter.
- If the University Provost or designee determines that there are sufficient grounds for an appeal hearing, the Disciplinary Committee will schedule a disciplinary hearing via teleconference, giving the student reasonable time to prepare for the hearing. The student has the right to be accompanied by counsel and/or other advisers such as parents or relatives. Any student under the age of 18 at the time of the hearing must be accompanied by a parent or other legal guardian. The counsel and/or advisers will be at the student’s own expense. No more than three of the aforementioned parties shall be present in the hearing at any one time. Although counsel and/or advisers may be present for the teleconference hearing, counsel and/or advisers may not speak or participate directly in the hearing. The student must speak for him or herself. A student also has the right to remain silent at disciplinary hearings; such silence will not be used as a factor in the determination or outcome of the matter.
- Witnesses may be called on the student’s behalf or on the University’s behalf and the student may confront all adverse witnesses. Witness names should be presented at least 24 hours in advance of the hearing .
- A recording of the hearing will be kept by the University.
- A written decision will be issued by the University Provost or designee on behalf of the Disciplinary Committee within ten (10) days after the hearing. This decision of the Disciplinary Committee will be final.
- The Disciplinary Committee and the University are not required to hear or respond to appeals related to other forms of disciplinary action taken (including, but not limited to, Code of Student Conduct Warning letters at Levels I or II).
- The student is advised that in all circumstances, the Disciplinary Committee and the University reserve the right to sever the relationship or to terminate the enrollment of any student from the University for any appropriate reason at any time without notice, a hearing, an explanation, or any other process.
- The student is advised that every favorable inference will be given to the Disciplinary Committee and the University in the interpretation and application of the Code of Student Conduct Policy.
- Students who have been suspended or expelled will not be permitted to enroll until and if a decision is made by the Disciplinary Committee to overturn a suspension or expulsion.
- Students understand that the Code of Student Conduct Policy may at times be revised, and in all such instances students agree to remain apprised of developments and abide by the most recent version of the Code of Student Conduct Policy.