SMSU Code of Conduct - Preamble

Southwest Minnesota State University is committed to an educational environment that is conducive to the intellectual, personal, social, and ethical development of its students. Respect for the rights of others and responsible behavior is essential to learning and civility within the campus community.

Interpretations of regulations

Student conduct regulations at Southwest Minnesota State University are set forth in writing as required by Minnesota State Policy 3.6 to give students general notice of prohibited conduct.

These regulations, though not exhaustive, set forth standards of behavior, which protect your rights as well as outline your responsibilities to the University Community. By attending Southwest Minnesota State University, you automatically place yourself under the jurisdiction of the Code of Conduct. Therefore, it is important for you to become familiar with the rules and regulations affecting you.

If you violate this Code, general law, or university or system regulations, you shall, after due process, be subject to university sanctions, which may include probation, suspension, eviction, and expulsion. Violations of other than University regulations are also subject to sanctions external to the University.

Authority, Jurisdiction and Discipline Responsibility

Southwest Minnesota State University reserves the right to take necessary and appropriate action to intervene with student’s behavior, on or off campus, when the behavior poses a direct threat to the safety and well-being of those students or those around them. Responsibility for campus judicial matters is vested in the Provost who delegates to the Associate Vice President for Student Affairs the task of policy development and adjudication of student conduct issues. Students and staff are asked to assume positions of responsibility within the campus judicial system to utilize their skills and insights in the resolution of disciplinary referrals. Final authority in disciplinary procedure is vested in the university administration with reserved right to refer cases of criminal conduct or other behaviors as stipulated by State or Federal legislation to the Marshall Police.

Standards of Disciplinary Hearing Process

Allegations of violations of the code of conduct are heard by an administrative hearing officer.  Students who violate the terms of a sanction(s) or failure to complete such sanctions imposed by a hearing officer in an informal meeting may heard by either the Student Association Judicial Council or Administrative Hearing Committee depending on the severity of the violation and the discretion of the Coordinator of Student Judicial Affairs. The committee having jurisdiction will hear a violation or failure to complete a sanction established by one of the hearing committees. 

The focus of inquiry in disciplinary proceedings will be: whether it is more likely than not the accused violated the disciplinary regulations set forth in the university’s Student Code of Conduct. Formal rules of evidence will not be applicable, nor will deviations from prescribed procedures necessarily invalidate a decision or proceeding unless significant prejudice to an accused student or the university exists.