CODE OF CONDUCT

14
 Habib University Student Rights and Responsibilities
PREAMBLE
Entrance into the Habib
University community is a
privilege and not a right. As
with any community, the
university has standards which
are judged in the best interest
of the community and to which
all of its members are held
accountable. It is the
responsibility of all students to
know and to uphold these
standards. The university shall
have the right to enforce its
standards whether alleged
infractions occur on or off
university property.
STUDENT RIGHTS
AND
RESPONSIBILITIES
All students at Habib University
are members and
representatives of the Habib
community. The core value of
the Habib University
community is yohsin, or the
thoughtful self-cultivation. As
such, their academic and
personal behavior should
reflect and uphold the values of
excellence, passion, respect,
beauty, and service both on
campus and off. Every student
has an obligation to be fully
acquainted with university
regulations and policies and to
comply with them.
As members of the Habib
community, all students can
expect equal and fair treatment
without discrimination. These
rights are protected by the
policies and procedures
outlined herein, as well as in
the Academic Policies and the
15
Student Handbook. Students
who feel that their rights have
been violated are encouraged
to advocate for themselves,
seek assistance from university
faculty and staff, and pursue
remedy through the
appropriate procedures and
processes.
Students have the
responsibility to report or
remove themselves from
situations that violate Habib
University policies, procedures,
or the Code of Conduct. By
not removing themselves from
such situations, and/or failing to
report them, a student could be
held in violation of the Habib
University Code of Conduct.
VIOLATIONS
It should be understood that
expectations concerning every
possible violation cannot be
specifically stated. Violations
might include but are not
limited to:
1.Weapons: Possession or
use of firearms, fireworks, other
weapons, or chemicals which
are of an explosive or corrosive
nature on university property or
at university events. This also
includes toy or lookalike
weapons such as squirt guns
or knives. Exceptions can be
made for educational purposes
that have the prior written
approval of the Chief Student
Affairs Officer (CSAO), or
designee;
2. Physical Assault/Battery:
Participation in or making an
attempt or threatening to use
violence, intending to cause
physical or psychological harm
to another individual;
3. Verbal Assault:
Participating or making any
verbal or written speech that
causes, or is intended to cause
psychological harm or the fear
of physical harm;
4. Sexual Assault and
Harassment: Participating or
being involved in conduct that
violates another person in a
sexualized way without
consent. This type of conduct
includes, but is not limited to,
jokes or remarks of a sexual
nature, verbal innuendo or
abuse of a sexual nature,
repeated and unwelcome
flirtations/advances, display of
sexually suggestive content,
indecent exposure, unwanted
touching or physical contact,
threats of a sexual nature,
sexual coercion, and forced
sexual contact;
5. Sexual Misconduct:
Engaging in overt sexual
activity on campus;
6. Harassment and
Intimidation: Participating in
or supporting persistent
unwanted, irritating and/or
provoking acts of an individual
or a group in person, via a third
party, or electronically, such as
making threats and demands
on another; stalking, or a
course of conduct towards a
person that would cause
another to feel fear or anxiety
for their safety;
7. Invasion of Privacy:
Unwanted intrusiveness, audio or
visual recording without another’s
consent, and/or the distribution of
audio or visual recordings of
another individual;
8. Theft: Participating in or
supporting acts in which
personal, private, or university
property is intentionally taken
without the owner’s consent or
permission. Violations of this
nature include robbery and
embezzlement;
9. Threats: Expressing a
determined effort to cause injury,
or damage to another university
community member, property or
to the university itself. Making
threats to do harm to another out
of anger, cruelty, or for personal
benefit. The person making the
threats need not be offering
details on how they plan to carry
out the threats to be under
conduct violation; threats of
impending danger, however
vague, to a person or the
university, would be considered a
violation of this code;
10. Bullying: Engaging in
written or oral expression, in
person or through electronic
means, that has the effect or will
have the effect of physically
harming a student, damaging a
student's property, or placing a
student in reasonable fear of
harm to the student's person or
property or is sufficiently severe,
persistent, and pervasive enough
that the action or threat creates
an intimidating, threatening, or
abusive environment;
11. Hazing: Participating in or
performing any kind of intentional
action or a situation caused, that
produces mental or physical
distress, embarrassment,
ridicule, or mental or physical
harm or injury to another person.
Additionally, pranks, no matter
the scope or impact, can be
considered hazing;
12. Disorderly Conduct:
Disorderly conduct such as, but
not limited to, acts that are
against the public peace, order,
or safety, and/or lewd, indecent,
obscene conduct or expression;
13. Dishonesty: Participating or
being involved in acts of
dishonesty, modification, forgery
or misuse of university
documents, records or
identification, abuse or misuse of
university email, tampering with
student personal or academic
files, and/or intentionally
presenting false information or
material to any university official,
student conduct officer,
committee or a hearing board;
14. Passive Participation:
Being knowingly present when a
conduct violation occurs and/or
not removing oneself from the
situation or notifying the
competent authority;
15. Filing False Charges:
Making intentional filing of false,
distorted and/or misleading
Security, Code of Conduct,
and/or Academic Integrity
violation reports;
The university reserves the right to hold students accountable regardless of where the actual behavior occurs. Major misconduct
includes acts of theft, possession of weapons, physical violence, and possession or use of illegal drugs and/or alcohol and shall not be
tolerated and may result in immediate dismissal or suspension of the student from the university and in some cases referral to law
enforcement officials, in addition to be processed by the student conduct system.
16. Vandalism/Misuse of
Property: Participating in
intentional or reckless acts of
invasion of property of another
person or the university. This
includes disfiguring, destroying
or damaging property, knowingly
taking control of stolen property,
blatant disregard for property,
and/or misusing university
classrooms, learning or
laboratory spaces and/or
equipment;
17. Unauthorized Entry:
Making unauthorized entry into a
university building, room, or
property by using methods of
force or trickery; or being in a
university building, room, or
property when the space is
closed or off limits to students;
18. False Alarm: Initiating or
spreading news about false fire
or explosion incidence, or
emergency alarms, bomb
threats; tampering with, misusing
or damaging university safety
equipment like fire extinguishers,
alarms or other equipment;
19. Drugs: Consumption,
manufacture, distribution, sale or
possession of drugs, narcotics,
or other illegal or illicit
substances, and/or drug
apparatus, without medical
prescription or being under
medical supervision; or
impairment which can be
attributed to the use of such
drugs;
20. Alcohol: Possession, use,
and/or distribution of alcoholic
beverages or paraphernalia in
any form, and/or impairment
which can be attributed to the
use of alcohol while on university
property or participating in
university-sponsored activities;
21. Smoking: Smoking outside
of designated smoking areas;
22. Arrest: Occurrence of arrest
for violation of any local or
country law, and/or conduct that
negatively influences the
student’s suitability as a member
of Habib University community.
The university reserves the right
to take disciplinary measures on
any student who is arrested on or
off campus;
23. Gambling: Gambling on
university property;
24. Non-Recognized Student
Organizations: Creating,
supporting or participating in any
student groups trying to function
on campus or under the
university’s name, without the
group being recognized by the
university;
25. Guest Conduct: Students
are completely responsible and
answerable for the conduct of
their guests on or inside
university property, as well as at
events sponsored by the
university or any recognized
university organization. This may
require compensation, fines, or
reimbursement by the student or
organization for any damages
caused;
26. Interference with
University Operations:
Participating in or supporting
intended or reckless interference
with activities managed by,
associated with, or participated
in by the university community.
These activities include, among
other such activities, teaching,
studying, campus activities, or
any of regular day to day
procedures of the university;
27. Failure to Comply: Refusing
or failing to follow any lawful, oral
or written instructions, of any
university official; refusing or
failing to respond to an official
request concerning alleged
misconduct violations or any
other university policy or
regulation;
28. Dress Code: Dress or attire
that is inappropriate;
29. Failure to Fulfill Sanctions:
Failing to complete those
obligations associated with a
disciplinary sanction, such as
reimbursement for damages,
community service, apology
letters;
30. Other University Policies:
Committing violation of other
university regulations, policies, or
procedures, referred to in
university publications, catalog
and notices, driving and parking
regulations, cafeteria and library
rules, posted notices, computer
or technology use policy, and
other departmental publications.
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 Student Organizational Misconduct
The university may hold a student organization accountable if one or more of the following occur:

1. If an officer or advisor supported or encouraged an alleged event of misconduct.

2. If university funds were used or misused to support an act of misconduct.
3. The majority of the organizations members supported or were directly involved.
4. The organization chooses to protect a member or attempts to cover up an incident.
5. An alleged offense occurred as a result of an organization sponsored event.
6. It is found to have existed a pattern of violations by individual members without appropriate organization control, remedy, or
sanctions.
7. A conclusion is made by the disciplinary committee or hearing officer that an organization is directly involved in an alleged
incident of misconduct.

Student Honour Code and Pledge

Central to the Habib University philosophy are the values of passion, personal excellence, and respect for and service to
others. Common to all of these is honor, ethics and integrity. It is therefore essential to the university community that these be
held to the highest regard. Violations to these principles, therefore, will be treated with the utmost seriousness.

HABIB UNIVERSITY PLEDGE

On my honor, as a member of the Habib University community, I will work to uphold the values of the university: excellence,
passion, respect, aesthetics, service, honor, ethics and integrity.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Scholastic dishonesty shall be considered a serious violation of these rules and regulations and is subject to strict disciplinary
action as prescribed by Habib University regulations and policies. Scholastic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to,
cheating on exams, plagiarism on assignments, and collusion.

PLAGIARISM: Plagiarism is the act of taking the work created by another person or entity and presenting it as one’s own for
the purpose of personal gain or of obtaining academic credit. As per university policy, plagiarism includes the submission of
or incorporation of the work of others without acknowledging its provenance or giving due credit according to established
academic practices. This includes the submission of material that has been appropriated, bought, received as a gift,
downloaded, or obtained by any other means. Students must not, unless they have been granted permission from all faculty
members concerned, submit the same assignment or project for academic credit for different courses.

CHEATING: The term cheating shall refer to the use of or obtaining of unauthorized information in order to obtain personal
benefit or academic credit.

COLLUSION: Collusion is the act of providing unauthorized assistance to one or more person or of not taking the
appropriate precautions against doing so.

FACULTY RESPONSIBILITY
It is the responsibility of the faculty to report all cases of academic integrity violations to the conduct officer for resolution.

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Administration of Alleged Violations
The model for resolving alleged
violations to the standards of
the university community is not
meant to resemble the
proceedings of a criminal or
civil court, but it is rather
designed as a process to
address responsibility for
violations of the Code of
Conduct. Often to the contrary,
it is an administrative process
suitable to operating in our
educational setting. It follows a
philosophy of education and is
not simply a method of
punishing student misconduct.
This does not prevent the use
of disciplinary measures during
the process of pursuing that
education. This means, rather,
that the conduct system
focuses on student education
and development as well as
ensuring protection of Habib
University community
standards.
All disciplinary matters of
students shall fall under the
authority of the student conduct
officer. In some cases, the
conduct officer may appoint a
designee. The student conduct
officer, or designee, will have
the authority to investigate
complaints, consider leniency
following a decision, settle
cases informally on behalf of
Habib University, and exercise
other such reasonably provided
authority. The student conduct
officer, or designee, will
oversee the preparation of all
cases in the conduct system on
behalf of the university. The
university Discipline Committee
and the complainants will
provide recommendations
concerning sanctions to the
student conduct officer, or
designee, and the latter will
have the final approval in
imposing appropriate
sanctions.
THE STUDENT
CONDUCT PROCESS
Any member of the university
community may report
instances of alleged
misconduct to the Student
Conduct Officer. After an
incident reports is received
appropriate action is taken and
if merited, the accused is/are
charged as appropriate. The
accused will receive a written
notification and a meeting will
be scheduled to discuss the
charges and the university’s
process for handling of alleged
cases of misconduct. If the
accused fails to attend such a
meeting, the Conduct Officer
may make a decision without
any input from the accused.
STANDARD OF
PROOF
The standard of proof that the
university uses to determine
whether a student or
organization has committed a
violation of the Code of
Conduct, is called
preponderance of evidence.
This means that the
determination or decision of
violation occurrence, based
upon the information or material
presented, is made considering
whether the alleged violation is
“more probably than not” or
‘51% likely’ to have occurred.
STUDENT RIGHTS
The students, while accused of
misconduct, have certain rights
given to them in any Habib
University conduct proceeding:
During the course of an
investigation of alleged
misconduct, the accused shall
have the right to:
1. Have the case processed
without unreasonable delay.
2. Receive prompt, written
notice of alleged violation(s)
according to Habib
University communication
policies.
3. Have reasonable access to
any written testimony to be
used against them through a
written request filed in a
timely manner with the
conduct officer.
4. Be able to, in a formal
hearing process, question
witnesses against them.
5. Produce witnesses and/or
evidence, according to
prescribed procedure.
6. Remain silent about
allegations until a formal
process has been initiated.
Such silence should not be
construed as admission of
misconduct.
7. A decision based on a
preponderance of the
evidence
INTERIM SUSPENSION
Until the time a particular case
of alleged misconduct has
reached a final decision, the
student shall retain the status
and privilege to attend classes,
use campus facilities and/or be
actually present on campus. As
an exception to this, in cases
when in the view of the CSAO a
threat to the teaching/learning
environment at the university, the
safety of community members, or
to ensure protection of university
property, the university may
decide to invoke an interim
withdrawal of these privileges.
When in the opinion of the
university an interim
withdrawal/suspension is to be
imposed, notification to the
student will come in both verbal
and written form. Within 3
business days of an interim
action a student should be
notified in writing of the
allegations. Further, the student
should be given the opportunity
to resolve the issue, either
formally or informally, within ten
business days according to the
policies and procedures
contained herein or in any other
university publication.
HEARING PROCESSES
Students charged with a
misconduct violation will have the
alternative of the case being
processed through an informal or
formal hearing process, as
outlined below:
INFORMAL HEARING
PROCESS - The conduct officer
may permit an alleged
misconduct violation case to be
decided through an informal
process. A meeting will take
place between the CSAO, or
designee, and accused student,
with the purpose of reviewing the
charges and sanctions, along
with case resolution alternatives.
The student will be given a
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 chance to resolve the matter for
any alleged violation(s). At any
point the student can choose to
go through the formal process
to resolve the matter.
FORMAL HEARING
PROCESS - The formal
hearing process will be followed
when, as outlined above,
students do not accept
responsibility for a violation
and/or the sanctions as
suggested or the student
requests a formal hearing.
A. Administrative Hearing: this
is an option afforded only to the
university depending upon the
nature and extent of the alleged
misconduct, and the overall
impact on the university, when it
is perceived in the best interest
of the community, or there is a
need to expedite the student
conduct process for whatever
reason. The hearing officer for
such Administrative Hearings
will be CSAO or designee.
B. Community Adjudication
Board Hearing: The University
Discipline Committee or
Community Adjudication Board
(CAB), comprising of five
members from the faculty, staff,
and students, will permit the
accused student the
opportunity to have the case
decided by a hearing board
that is representative of the
university community at large.
This hearing will be conducted
according to the procedures
established by the university.
A committee majority is
adequate to determine the final
outcome of a case. The
committee will recommend
sanctions to the student
conduct officer who may, if
necessary, make the
appropriate modifications to
those recommendations. Final
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sanctions, including how and
when they will be implemented,
will be communicated to the
concerned parties within seven
days of the hearing date.
COMMUNITY
ADJUDICATION
BOARD (CAB)
The University Discipline
Committee or Community
Adjudication Board, herein
referred to as the CAB, shall
have discretion to interpret,
vary, and adjust procedural
requirements in order to
promote a fair and just decision,
as long as student rights are
respected.
1) Membership: The CAB
shall be composed of five
members of the university
community. Ideally, each CAB
will be comprised of one faculty
member from each school, two
staff members, and one student
who may be nominated by
Student Council.
2) Conditions of Student
Membership:
a. Student members must be in
good academic and
disciplinary standing.
b. Student members must have
earned at least 15 credit
hours at Habib University and
be currently enrolled.
3) Advisor and Chair: The
student conduct officer shall
serve as the ex-officio advisor
and chair to the CAB. It is the
responsibility of the chair to
ensure that all facts and
findings of the case presented
to the board are relevant to the
case and that order is
maintained during the hearing
process. The chair shall have
the power to remove anyone in
the hearing room for disorderly
conduct.
All CAB members must partake
in any scheduled sessions for
training, as requested by the
student conduct officer and/or
designee, to ensure that they
understand their duties and
obligations as CAB members,
and to understand university
policies, procedures and
students rights during a
hearing.
SANCTIONS
Students found to have been
involved in misconduct may
have the following disciplinary
measures imposed upon them,
depending on the nature and
severity of misconduct:
1. Educational Sanctions:
While any sanction will be
disciplinary by nature,
educational sanctions are those
that are primarily educational in
nature. This could include an
essay, presentation, community
service, etc.
2. Verbal Warning: A verbal
warning is issued a student who
has violated a university rule or
regulation or policy. A verbal
warning will be issued in writing.
3. Written Warnings: A written
warning is a formal notice of a
violation and that persistence in
or repetition of such conduct
may be cause for further severe
disciplinary action. These
written warnings are to be
recorded in the student’s
permanent files and may be
used in any future conduct
proceedings.
4. Disciplinary Probation: A
student on disciplinary
probation is in poor disciplinary
standing with the university for a
defined time period. Students
in poor disciplinary standing
could be excluded from
participation in extracurricular
activities, leadership positions,
and/or external opportunities for
the specified period of time.
Further violations of any kind
during this disciplinary
probationary period may result
in suspension or expulsion from
the university.
5. Loss of Financial Aid: A
student who loses financial aid
loses a specific amount of aid
for a specific time period. Any
balance due as a result of the
loss of aid must be paid in full to
the university.
6. Grade Changes: Grade
changes, withdrawals or failing
grades, or having an
assignment or exam grade
lowered or given a zero may be
suggested to the by the hearing
officer or board.
7. Restitution: Restitution is
reimbursement for damages to
or theft of property. This may
take the form of financial
compensation or appropriate
service work or a combination
thereof in order to satisfy the
sanction.
8. Parental Notification:
Parental Notification may occur
in person or in writing. Parental
Notification will not occur
without the student being
notified that the Parental
Notification would occur.
 9. Suspension: Suspension is
the annulment of a student’s
privilege to enroll at the university,
have access to campus facilities
and to be physically present on
campus for a specific period of
time. The conditions for
reinstatement of a student’s
enrolled status shall be given to
the student in writing at the time of
the decision notification.
10. Expulsion: Expulsion is the
permanent annulment of a
Disciplinary Appeal Procedures
To ensure all parties that the
original findings of fact and
imposition of sanctions or other
solutions are consistent with
Habib University policies and
procedures an appellate
procedure has been
established.
Parties to the decision, either
complainant or accused, may
submit written requests for
appeal to the student conduct
officer within five business days
from the date of the original
decision, except for reasons of
new evidence, outlined below,
which should be filed within 30
days of the original decision
notice. The student should
outline the specific issues and
rationale for the appeal in a
written request. Requests for
appeal will be considered only
when based on one or more of
the following:
1. Occurrence of substantial
procedural irregularity based
upon a violation of student
rights;
student’s privilege to enroll at the
university and effectively ending
an academic career at the
university. An expelled student will
not be allowed to register for any
university courses or participate in
any academic events or
programs associated with the
university. Likewise, expulsion is
the annulment of a person’s
privilege to be actually present on
campus or have access to
campus facilities.
2. Decision influenced by bias
by the hearing officer or board,
resulting in a violation of
standards of fairness used in
disciplinary hearings;
3. Evidence not available at the
hearing which, had it been
available, would in all
reasonable likelihood, have
produced a different decision.
Once a completed appeal is
received, it will be forwarded to
the Chief Student Affairs Officer
(CSAO) for review. The CSAO
will first determine if the student
or organization has sufficient
basis for appeal, according to
the criteria above. If basis
exists the CSAO will refer the
case to the University Appeals
Committee (UAC). The UAC
may choose to modify the
finding of responsibility, modify
the sanctions, or modify both;
remand the case for a new
hearing; or uphold the original
decision. Appellants will be
notified of the decision within
ten (10) business days. The
SANCTIONS FOR
STUDENT
ORGANIZATIONS
Student organizations found to
have been involved in
misconduct, may have the
following sanctions imposed on
them, in addition to those stated
above:
1. Suspension: Suspension of an
organization is the termination of
privileges or activities of that
decision of the University
Appeals Committee is final.
UNIVERSITY
APPEALS
COMMITTEE (UAC)
The University Appeals
Committee, herein referred to
as the UAC, shall review any
formal academic grievance or
appeal to a conduct decision.
The UAC exists to provide
students with a final appeal
when requested. All decisions
made by the UAC will be final;
there are no further appeals
available.
1) Membership: The UAC
shall be composed of five
members of the university
community. Ideally, each UAC
will be comprised of one faculty
member from each school, two
staff members, and one student
who may be nominated by
Student Council.
recognized organization, as set
forth in the suspension notice for a
specific period of time. This
includes, but may not be limited
to, recruiting new organization
members, raising and requesting
funds, and holding events on
campus facilities under the name
of the organization.
2.Expulsion: Expulsion of a
student organization is the
permanent dissolution of status as
a recognized entity.
2) Conditions of Student
Membership:
c. Student members must be in
good academic and disciplinary
standing.
d. Student members must have
earned at least 15 credit hours at
Habib University and be currently
enrolled.
All UAC members must partake
in any scheduled sessions for
training, as requested by the
student conduct officer and/or
designee, to ensure that they
understand their duties and
obligations as UAC members,
and to understand university
policies, procedures and
students rights during a hearing.
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 Records of Disciplinary Actions
All records with respect to student violations of Habib University rules, regulations, policies and Code of Conduct will be maintained
as permanent and as part of the students overall academic record. These records are subject to university regulations and policies
concerning confidentiality. Students have the right to view their disciplinary records by filing a written request with the student
conduct officer.

Review of Student Code of Conduct

A complete review of the Student Code of Conduct shall be conducted every 3 years (starting in 2017) or at the request of the Chief
Student Affairs Officer, Chief Academic Officer, or the President. (Written, August 2014)

Code was reviewed and approved by the Academic Planning Committee in June 2015.

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