The Honor Committee approved a preponderance standard for investigating evidence as well as clarified language in the Committee bylaws during its Sunday meeting. The Committee also proposed the creation of a reporting guidebook for those interested in reporting an honor offense and discussed preparations for transitioning to the next term’s representatives.
Cassidy Dufour, School of Law Rep. and Law student, introduced a proposal to adopt a preponderance of evidence standard for the Investigative Panel — a rotating panel of three Committee members tasked with deciding whether sufficient evidence exists to accuse an individual of an honor offense. According to Dufour, this proposal represents a move away from ambiguous language.
In the proposal, Dufour advocated for legalistic terms to be defined within the Committee’s bylaws to improve public understanding and proposed that the Committee adopt a clearer standard for evidence review. The preponderance of evidence standard was initially introduced at a meeting Feb. 2 but discussions were tabled as two of the proponents of this standard — one of which was Dufor — were unable to attend this meeting.
The preponderance of evidence standard mandates that the party bearing the burden of proof establish that there is more than a 50 percent chance that a claim leveled against a student or faculty member is true when initially investigating an alleged offense. This marks a change from the language of the previous evidence standard in which Investigative Panels assessed whether an offense was “more likely than not” to have occurred.
"Previously, the bylaws stated that the preponderance standard for the [Investigative Panels] and the clear and convincing standard for appeals was the way that it was supposed to be,” Dufour said. "In practice, though, I've seen both representatives, [Support Officers], and those generally participating in the honor process confused about whether more likely than not is stricter than very likely."
Following discussion, the Committee voted overwhelmingly to approve this change, ensuring that future appeals will adhere to the “greater than 50 percent chance” preponderance of standard for Investigative Panels when reviewing alleged offenses.
After the Committee approved this standard, Laura Howard, Committee Chair and fourth-year College student, proposed creating a reporting guidebook to streamline the process for those considering filing honor reports. The guidebook would provide clear statistics on success rates of cases, an overview of case procedures and a breakdown of expected time commitments for reporters.
Howard explained the necessity of the guidebook, noting that it would improve the reporting process by providing necessary information for those thinking about submitting a report. There was further discussion on how best to digitally distribute this information to the University community to enhance accessibility.
“I was thinking it would be virtual so it would be easier for us to update [each semester],” Howard said. “It could be a link on our website and I think it would also be nice to email it out to people.”
Several Committee members supported the initiative, stressing the importance of balancing accessibility with professionalism in the guidebook’s presentation. According to Howard, it is possible this guidebook could also be included in the Committee’s monthly newsletter sometime this year.
With only a few weeks remaining in the current term, the Committee turned its attention to preparing for incoming representatives. Student election voting for Committee representatives, among other positions, will begin March 3 and end March 5 with results being posted electronically shortly thereafter, beginning a transition to new officeholders. Candidates are currently in the campaign process wherein they secure endorsements and present their platform to all students in their respective schools
The Committee discussed ways to make this transition easier by providing transition documents summarizing key projects, relationships with faculty and ongoing initiatives. Dufour proposed the centralizing of all Committee-related information into a single location for new representatives, stating that a comprehensive document with role specific information would have been helpful to her as she was transitioning into the role of Law School representative.
"One thing that we didn't have at the Law school was any sort of document that said what our reps had done previously,” Dufour said. “I think having something on paper … at least one document that summarizes ‘okay here's what we did, here's what we didn't do’ ... could be really helpful.”
Howard supported the idea of developing a transitional document and also noted the importance of bonding between incoming and returning representatives as a way to support interpersonal communication and teamwork skills for the upcoming term. According to Howard, representatives will need to know and understand each other to work together effectively.
A key bonding event for incoming Committee members will occur at the Committee’s annual retreat at Graves Mountain Lodge from March 29 to 30. According to current Committee members, the retreat is meant to foster meaningful relationships between the new members through various activities. This retreat is also where the chair and new executive committee members will be elected before the new Committee members officially assume their roles.
At the Graves retreat, new representatives will have to make their case to their fellow recently elected representatives during a series of debates and questions and answer sessions, according to Howard in a previous interview. Elections for the chair and executive committee members differ from general representative elections in that they only involve the newly elected representatives.
With elections for new representatives soon to be underway, the Committee remains focused on ensuring a seamless transition while reinforcing the values of integrity and fairness for University community members.
The Committee will reconvene Sunday at 7 p.m.
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