HE LOVED that bike. Sure, it wasn't the nicest one around, but he had gotten it in eighth grade. He brought it here first year and locked it up every night on the bike rack in front of his dorm. One morning, he walked downstairs to get his bike, and it wasn't there. The bike was unquestionably gone, an empty space on the rack where it once had rested. Stolen. But, wait, he thought - this wasn't supposed to happen here, with the honor system and all. He didn't know what to do, so he did the only thing he could do. He put an ad in The Cavalier Daily saying that his bike had been stolen. He said that it was more than just any bike to him - he had had it for so long, it had tremendous sentimental value. The next morning, he walked downstairs, and his bike was chained to the rack, just as if it had never been stolen. It was back.
The story is true, and he is now a support officer for the Honor Committee. This story would be one of a thousand warm and fuzzy honor stories, except the bike was stolen. A dishonorable act occurred, and the honor system did not, could not, stop it. In a way, the fact that this story begins with a dishonorable act makes it seem truer because it is closer to reality than the idyllic "Community of Trust" often touted by the Honor Committee. It shows that the honor system is not perfect. There was no investigation, no trial, and we don't even know who the thief was - the system failed in this respect. But the principle of honor made the thief think twice about his or her actions until the bike was returned. This act of self-reflection represents the system at work better than any trial. In the end, perfect or not, our system worked, and it usually does.
No, the honor system is not, never has been and never will be perfect, but that is OK. No system, 160 years of tradition or not, is perfect. This statement is bold for an Honor Chairman to make. But it is the truth, and truth is what we are all about. Should this make us believe any less in honor? Absolutely not.
Every time a professor gives a take-home exam, every time you write a check without showing identification and every time you put your bag down and leave the room for a moment, you and fellow community members put your faith in the honor system. You make the system real. And there's a reason you do these things and trust honor - it's because it doesn't let you down most of the time. Most of the time, you don't even stop to think that you are trusting the honor system. You don't think about it because it is a way of life here; it's the usual.
However, despite our system, dishonorable acts happen in our community. Sometimes, bikes are stolen. But think about it - why do you even notice when something dishonorable occurs, when something is stolen or someone cheats? You notice it because it's not normal; it's unusual. It's unusual because most students here value their personal integrity, and the honor system helps community members to continually reflect upon and reinforce this value. At many schools, cheating and distrust are just a way of life. But not here. Here, it does happen sometimes, but there's something sad about it, something shameful. And that's why you notice. You notice because the honor system is working most of the time.
When some see a dishonorable act or two or three, they question whether or not the honor system is actually worth anything. But in truth, it is the specific dishonorable act and the person committing it that should be questioned. After all, our Honor Committee is here, ready and willing to investigate any act of lying, cheating or stealing brought to it. Indeed, it's not the system failing, but instead, it's the person committing the dishonorable act who's failing. It is that person and that act that should be questioned, not our system.
Many people say that an honor trial is the essence of our system; they believe that dismissing a dishonorable student is the most important thing that the honor system does. I think that's dead wrong. Trials are important, but honor, at its heart, is a positive thing. You, and your integrity, are the essence of the honor system. At its heart and foundation, this system belongs to us, the students, and it is what we collectively make of it. Honor may not be perfect, but it is working. It is when we stop noticing and stop caring when dishonorable things occur that we are in trouble. We're not there yet, and hopefully, we never will be.
(Chris Smith is the chairman of the Honor Committee.)
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