Honor Board Hearing Procedures

Once a student conduct case has been referred for a hearing, the Honor Board will work to schedule the hearing as soon as possible. At least five business days prior to the hearing, the Respondent will be notified in writing of the charges against them, as well as the date, time, and location of the hearing. In certain circumstances, with the agreement of the Respondent in the case, the five-day notification policy may be waived. In cases where the student Respondent is facing external charges filed by a law enforcement agency, the Honor Board may decide to hold a hearing prior to a court hearing. The Respondent may request a postponement of the hearing in writing to the Associate Vice President for Student Affairs. The Associate Vice President for Student Affairs, in consultation with the Honor Board Chair and/or Vice-Chair, will determine whether to grant the request.

For matters involving sexual misconduct or sex discrimination/harassment, both the student filing the complaint (Complainant) and the student who is the subject of the complaint (Respondent) are equally entitled to participate in the hearing, receive written notification of the hearing date, time, and location and copies of materials, present witnesses and question witnesses through the Honor Board Chair, and appeal the outcome of the hearing.

Cases involving more than one Respondent are typically heard in one hearing. Either/any Respondent has the right to request a separate hearing. The administrator referring the case will decide whether to grant the request.

A student Respondent may request that specific witnesses appear at their hearing. The request must be received by either the Honor Board Chair or the administrator of the hearing at least five business days prior to the hearing. Prior to the hearing, witnesses will receive written notification that they are required to attend and will be expected to participate in the hearing.

If a student chooses to have an advisor present at the hearing, the advisor’s name must be submitted to the Honor Board Chair five days prior to the hearing. With the exception of cases involving sexual misconduct, the advisor must be a member of the College community (faculty, staff, or student).

In sexual misconduct cases only, the Complainant and the Respondent may have no more than two people (i.e. a personal supporter, an attorney, a trained advocate, or an advocate supervised by an attorney) at any hearing, meeting, or interview during the investigation and hearing process. Support persons may not also be witnesses to the matter. The support person, advisor, and attorney is permitted to provide private advice and counsel to the student only, and is not permitted to participate in hearings, meetings, or interviews directly (for instance, the advisor is not permitted to address the investigators or Board). Disruptive supporters, attorneys, or advisors may be removed and prohibited from further participation in the investigation and hearing process. Student Complainants and Respondents may access attorneys paid for by the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) or who agree to participate on a pro bono (without charge) basis.  Information regarding accessing counsel through MHEC can be found on the MHEC website, https://mhec.state.md.us.  Students may knowingly and voluntarily choose not to have counsel. 

The Honor Board’s decision regarding responsibility for Honor Code violations will be based solely on the information submitted during the hearing using the standard of “more likely than not”.

A student Respondent's prior Honor Board or conduct record will be made available to the Board only if the student has been found responsible and only for the purpose of informing the sanction phase.

The Honor Board is committed to the principles of consensus when making decisions about a student Respondent's responsibility and any resulting sanctions. On the rare occasion when a vote becomes necessary, four out of five votes will be required to find responsibility and to impose sanctions.

For Title IX hearings, two of three are required.

Abstentions are not permitted.