Academic and Professional Standards

Mount Carmel College of Nursing (MCCN) faculty and staff are dedicated to facilitating student development of intellectual, moral, and professional standards. This development requires the student to become increasingly responsible for self-directed and engaged learning, thus practicing and achieving academic and professional standards in order to become a highly educated, skilled, and professional nurse. For a complete copy of the Academic and Professional Standards policy, click here .

The nursing profession demands that the individual in practice be responsible, accountable, self-directed, and professional in behavior. The process of becoming a professional begins upon entering a professional education program such as the programs offered at MCCN. Opportunities to develop and practice these qualities exist in the student role. MCCN expects that students will demonstrate their professionalism by:

• Attending all clinical experiences and all classes (onsite or online).
• Exhibiting courteous behaviors in the classroom, clinical sites, while on the MCCN campus, within Residence Halls, and while representing MCCN at community events.
• Being prepared for class and clinical assignments, being punctual for classes and MCCN appointments.
• Being respectful toward all members of the MCCN community (faculty, staff, and students; particularly in the Residence Halls and even “off duty”).
• Being conscious of information shared over all social media platforms-in personal and professional communications and especially over MCCN-sponsored social media platforms.
• Using effective communications, verbally and non-verbally, by remembering always the MCHS/MCCN guiding behaviors:
  • We support each other in serving our students, patients, and communities.
  • We communicate openly, honestly, respectfully, and directly.
  • We are fully present.
  • We are accountable.
  • We trust and assume the goodness of intentions.
  • We are continuous learners.

Code of Conduct

It is understood that the administration, faculty, staff and student body share in the responsibility of upholding the Mission and Core Values of Mount Carmel College of Nursing. The Code of Conduct, strives to:

• ensure the integrity of the nursing and allied health professions;
• create an academic and professional environment that reflects the College’s Mission and Core Values;
• reflect the policies of the College on standards of conduct; and
• follow the policies on nursing practice from the Ohio Board of Nursing.

In accordance with the above, faculty, staff, and students will commit to:

Academic Excellence

1. Achieving the highest level of academic excellence through honesty and integrity both in and out of the classroom and in clinical settings.
2. Striving to embody excellence and providing the highest quality work in the academic and in the clinical settings.
3. Acting in a professional manner while in the College of Nursing and in all activities, functions, and clinical sites associated with the College and the profession of nursing.

Respect

1. Contributing to creating a safe, respectful, and supportive atmosphere for teaching and learning.
2. Regarding privacy and confidentiality as essential obligations.
3. Communicating with peers, staff, and faculty in a professional and respectful manner.
4. Taking responsibility for my words and actions.
5. Following the appropriate chain of command.

Compassion

1. Demonstrating a commitment to the attributes of compassion, empathy, altruism, responsibility, and tolerance.
2. Demonstrating caring behaviors at all times.
3. Respecting individual diversity through a non-judgmental attitude and approach.
4. Working to become a creative problem solver.

Social Responsibility

1. Refusing to tolerate discrimination, harassment, retaliation, disrespect, or bullying.
2. Committing to bring any act of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, disrespect, or bullying to the attention of the administration.
3. Refusing to tolerate incidents of dishonesty or lack of integrity.
4. Committing to bringing incidents of dishonesty or lack of integrity to the attention of the administration.

Diversity

Creating a culture and climate of inclusion that welcomes and celebrates diversity.

Prohibited Conduct

Students are expected to abide by federal, state, and local laws and ordinances, as well as to adhere to all College policies and procedures. In cases where students engage in any prohibited conduct, the student is subject to disciplinary action.

1. Violation of local, state, and/or federal laws.
2. Violation of the Ohio Board of Nursing Laws and Rules. (http://www.nursing.ohio.gov/Law_and_Rule.htm)
3. Violation of the National Student Nurses’ Association Code of Ethics, Code of Professional Conduct, and Code of Academic and Clinical Conduct. (https://www.nsna.org/nsna-code-of-ethics.html)
4. Violation of College Policies and Procedures as outlined in the College Catalog-Handbook.
5. Violation of any of the following Compliance Policies:
   • Anti-Discrimination, Anti-harassment and Anti-Retaliation Policy
   • Anti-Bullying Policy
   • Concealed Weapons Policy
   • Drug and Alcohol Policy
   • Title IX Policy
6. Violation of the following General College Policies:
   • Attendance
   • Cell Phone Use
   • Classroom Recording Policy
   • Children on Campus
   • Copyright Infringement
   • CPR Requirements
   • Criminal Background Check
   • Dress Code
   • Food in Classrooms
   • Smoking Policy
7. Violation of the following College Technology Policies:
   • Technology Policy
   • Social Media Policy
8. Violation of the Academic and Professional Standards Policy
9. Unprofessional Conduct:
   • Any behavior which affects a student’s ability to fully participate in the benefits of the College or negatively impacts the College community, including:
     • Failure to show due respect and courtesy
     • Engaging in vulgar behavior
     • Using obscene language
     • Participating in disorderly conduct
     • Unprofessional behavior in the classroom, online environment, clinical settings or on/off-campus activities
10. Damage: Negligent or intentional damage to personal, public, or College property is prohibited.
11. Dishonesty
    • Presenting, using and/or possessing a falsified ID or another’s College issued ID as one’s own.
    • Misrepresentation; furnishing false information; and falsification or forgery of documents.
    • Any form of Academic Dishonesty, to include, but not limited to: plagiarism, self-plagiarism, cheating, fabrication and using false citations.
12. Encouraging, permitting, or assisting another to commit an act that could subject them to discipline.
13. Failure to Comply with directions of, or interference with, any College official, Safety and Security officer, or individuals working in conjunction with the College who are acting in performance of their duties or failure to comply with any established requirement, policy or procedure.
14. Fire Safety
    • Setting a fire, whether deliberately or accidentally.
    • Intentionally pulling a fire alarm.
    • Improper use of, vandalism, destruction or tampering with fire-safety or electrical equipment.
    • Failure to evacuate a building during a fire alarm.
    • Causing or contributing to a fire-safety hazard.
15. Off-Campus Misconduct
    • The College requires behavior on and off campus, in academic, co-curricular and off-campus locations, consistent with the principles and rules of behavior outlined in the Student Code of Conduct. Whenever the College becomes aware of violations of the College’s Policies and Procedures, regardless of where such conduct allegedly occurs, appropriate follow-up (including potential discipline) may take place. If the behavior poses a disturbance, is threatening to the safety and security of individuals or property, or is required to be reported by law, law enforcement may be contacted and a report filed.
16. Theft of property or services from the College
17. Unauthorized Access
    • Unauthorized entry into College buildings or areas, even when unlocked.
    • Tampering with locks to College buildings, unauthorized possession or use of College keys, and alteration or duplication of College keys.
18. Violent or Endangering Behavior
    • Conduct that recklessly or intentionally threatens or endangers the physical or mental health and safety of any person, including:
    • Physical abuse, verbal abuse, threats, intimidation, harassment, and/or coercion.

Criminal prosecution by a government entity does not preclude College disciplinary action against the student for the same conduct. Similarly, any action by the College does not preclude subsequent action by a local, state or federal entity. The College reserves the right to resolve a disciplinary matter before the conclusion of any criminal process. If a student withdraws from the College, the College may resolve the disciplinary matter, regardless of the student’s withdrawal. A student who withdraws will be afforded all the procedural rights of an enrolled student.

Students who do not adhere to academic and professional standards may encounter allegations of misconduct.

Academic Dishonesty/Violations of Standards of Academic Integrity:

Plagiarism: Plagiarism, whether intentional or unintentional, violates standards of academic integrity. Plagiarism is the act of submission of work that is not the student’s own work or submitting the ideas, writings, or thoughts of another person without proper documentation; use of someone’s exact words as quotes in assignments without proper citation; also use of material from the internet without proper citation, etc. Students are responsible for educating themselves as to the proper mode of attributing credit, where credit is due.

Self-Plagiarism: Students are required to submit original work for all courses; papers and written work submitted for one course may not be used for an assignment in another course, this includes work first produced in connection with classes at MCCN or other institutions attended by the student, except with prior and explicit approval of all faculty members to whom the work will be submitted. Submitting duplicate work is considered self-plagiarism and violates standards of academic integrity.

Cheating: Cheating is the use or attempted use of unauthorized materials, information, study aids, or unauthorized collaboration on in-class examinations, take-home examinations, or other academic exercises. It is the responsibility of the student to consult with the professor concerning what constitutes permissible collaboration. Cheating or assisting another student to cheat in connection with an examination or assignment violates standards of academic integrity. Examples of cheating include, but are not limited to: using notes or textbooks without the instructor’s consent, looking at another person’s paper, bringing items with notes written on them with the intent of using the notes during an exam, communicating with another student during an examination, using electronic devices (phones, wristwatches) without the instructor’s consent.

Fabrication: Defined as constructing, manufacturing, inventing, or creating for the sake of deception, any classroom or clinical assignment; forging or falsifying any clinical or academic information; documenting clinical hours that were not actually completed; falsifying any patient record or other document used during clinical experiences. Fabrication includes submitting false data, data that has been fabricated, altered or contrives in such a way as to be deliberately misleading. Fabrication also includes falsifying academic documentation.

Using False Citations: False citation is the attribution of intellectual property to an incorrect or fabricated source with the intention to deceive.

Academic and Professional Standards in Residence Halls

Please note that the Academic and Professional Standards policy and procedures will be implemented for misconduct that occurs in the Residence Halls in addition to the rules, policies, and sanctions for students living in the Residence Halls. Please refer to the Residence Life policies in the Residence Life Handbook in the student tab under Residence Life in CARMELink (requires student login): https://carmelink.mccn.edu/ICS/Student/Residence_Life.jnz

Standards Outlined by Professional Nursing Organizations

The National Student Nurses Association, as well as the American Nurses Association, stipulate Codes of Professional, Academic, and Clinical Conduct. These codes are fully supported by MCCN and students are expected to be familiar with and follow these codes (National Student Nurses Association, www.nsna.org).

The conduct of nursing students in providing patient care is also regulated by the state of Ohio through the Ohio Board of Nursing in accordance with Ohio Revised Code 4723-5-12(C). See section below for details.

Student Conduct in the Nursing Care of Patients

The following policy is taken from the Ohio Board of Nursing’s Rules Promulgated From the Law Regulating Practice of Nursing, effective December 19, 2016, 4723-5-12(C) (accessed on the Ohio Board of Nursing website).

The policy, related to student conduct in providing nursing care, includes, but is not limited to the following:

1. A student shall, in a complete, accurate, and timely manner, report and document nursing assessments or observations, the care provided by the student for the patient, and the patient’s response to that care.
2. A student shall, in an accurate and timely manner, report to the appropriate practitioner errors in or deviations from the current valid order.
3. A student shall not falsify any patient record or any other document prepared or utilized in the course of, or in conjunction with, nursing practice. This includes, but is not limited to, case management documents or reports, time records or reports, and other documents related to billing for nursing services.
4. A student shall implement measures to promote a safe environment for each patient.
5. A student shall delineate, establish, and maintain professional boundaries with each patient.
6. At all times when a student is providing direct nursing care to a patient the student shall:
   a.   Provide privacy during examination or treatment and in the care of personal or bodily needs; and
   b.   Treat each patient with courtesy, respect, and with full recognition of dignity and individuality.
7. A student shall practice within the appropriate scope of practice as set forth in division (B) of section 4723.01 and division (B)(20) of section 4723.28 of the Revised Code for a registered nurse, and division (F) of section 4723.01 and division (B)(21) of section 4723.28 of the Revised Code for a practical nurse;
8. A student shall use universal and standard precautions established by Chapter 4723-20 of the Administrative Code;
9. A student shall not:
   a.   Engage in behavior that causes or may cause physical, verbal, mental, or emotional abuse to a patient;
   b.   Engage in behavior toward a patient that may reasonably be interpreted as physical, verbal, mental, or emotional abuse.
10. A student shall not misappropriate a patient’s property or:
    a.   Engage in behavior to seek or obtain personal gain at the patient’s expense;
    b.   Engage in behavior that may reasonably be interpreted as behavior to seek or obtain personal gain at the patient’s expense;
    c.   Engage in behavior that constitutes inappropriate involvement in the patient’s personal relationships; or
    d.   Engage in behavior that may reasonably be interpreted as inappropriate involvement in the patient’s personal relationships.

For the purpose of this paragraph, the patient is always presumed incapable of giving free, full, or informed consent to the behaviors by the student set forth in this paragraph.

11. A student shall not:
    a.   Engage in sexual conduct with a patient;
    b.   Engage in conduct in the course of practice that may reasonably be interpreted as sexual;
    c.   Engage in any verbal behavior that is seductive or sexually demeaning to a patient;
    d.   Engage in verbal behavior that may reasonably be interpreted as seductive, or sexually demeaning to a patient.

For the purpose of this paragraph, the patient is always presumed incapable of giving free, full, or informed consent to sexual activity with the student.

12. A student shall not, regardless of whether the contact or verbal behavior is consensual, engage with a patient other than the spouse of the student in any of the following:
    a.   Sexual contact, as defined in section 2907.01 of the Revised Code;
    b.   Verbal behavior that is sexually demeaning to the patient or may be reasonably interpreted by the patient as sexually demeaning.
13. A student shall not self-administer or otherwise take into the body any dangerous drug, as defined in section 4729.01 of the Revised Code, in any way not in accordance with a legal, valid prescription issued for the student, or self-administer or otherwise take into the body any drug that is a schedule I controlled substance.
14. A student shall not habitually or excessively use controlled substances, other habit-forming drugs, or alcohol or other chemical substances to an extent that impairs ability to practice.
15. A student shall not have impairment of the ability to practice according to acceptable and prevailing standards of safe nursing care because of use of drugs, alcohol, or other chemical substances.
16. A student shall not have impairment of the ability to practice according to acceptable and prevailing standards of safe nursing care because of a physical or mental disability;
17. A student shall not assault or cause harm to a patient or deprive a patient of the means to summon assistance;
18. A student shall not misappropriate or attempt to misappropriate money or anything of value by intentional misrepresentation or material deception in the course of practice;
19. A student shall not have been adjudicated by a probate court of being mentally ill or mentally incompetent, unless restored to competency by the court.
20. A student shall not aid and abet a person in that person’s practice of nursing without a license, practice as a dialysis technician without a certificate issued by the board, or administration of medications as a medication aide without a certificate issued by the board.
21. A student shall not prescribe any drug or device to perform or induce an abortion, or otherwise perform or induce an abortion.
22. A student shall not assist suicide as defined in section 3795.01 of the Revised Code.
23. A student shall not submit or cause to be submitted any false, misleading or deceptive statements, information, or document to the nursing program, its faculty or preceptors, or to the board.
24. A student shall maintain the confidentiality of patient information. The student shall communicate patient information with other members of the health care team for health care purposes only, shall access patient information only for purposes of patient care or for otherwise fulfilling the student’s assigned clinical responsibilities, and shall not disseminate patient information for purposes other than patient care or for otherwise fulfilling the student’s assigned clinical responsibilities through social media, texting, emailing or any other form of communication.
25. To the maximum extent feasible, identifiable patient health care information shall not be disclosed by a student unless the patient has consented to the disclosure  of  identifiable  patient  health  care  information.  A  student  shall report individually identifiable patient information without written consent in limited circumstances only and in accordance with an authorized law, rule, or other recognized legal authority.
26. For purposes of paragraphs (C)(5), (C)(6), (C)(9), (C)(10), (C)(11) and (C)(12) of this rule, a student shall not use social media, texting, emailing, or other forms of communication with, or about a patient, for non-health care purposes or for purposes other than fulfilling the student’s assigned clinical responsibilities.

Effective: 12/19/2016
FYR Date: 12/19/2021
Promulgated Under: 119.03
Statutory Authority: 4723.07
Rule Amplifies: 4723.06
Prior Effective Dates: 2/1/96, 4/1/97, 2/1/02, 2/1/04, 2/1/07, 2/1/08, 2/1/12, 2/1/14

Academic Success Plans

The purpose of the Academic Success Plan (ASP) is to manage and improve student performance and progress in coursework completed at Mount Carmel College of Nursing. The ASP is designed to help students by providing academic structure and support, motivating learners, and encouraging positive study and learning habits. The ASP also serves as a vehicle to bring faculty and students to agreement on course/clinical goals and identify ways for the student to achieve those agreed upon goals. It is also a means to document college outreach to students who need extra help (and is stored in student files). The ASP template will be available on CARMELink. Faculty should complete an ASP to help with improvement and success of students within a course.

As needed, students are expected to meet with faculty to discuss and agree upon goals and objectives to aid in their academic success. The ASP will outline a description of student performance, identified measures to improve performance, and a timeline and goals for completion. As part of an ASP, the student may also be referred to the Academic Resource Center (ARC) and required to complete a certain number of hours at the ARC. The student will be asked to initial each area addressed in the ASP, as well as sign the final document. If a student does not sign this document, it will still be provided to the student and they will be expected to follow through on the outlined goals/timelines for completion.

Student Academic and Professional Standards

Maintaining academic and professional standards is a serious matter for the professional nurse and nursing student, both in the work setting as well as outside the work setting. At MCCN, students with alleged academic or professional misconduct will be evaluated using the following processes and procedures: Initiation of a Performance Improvement Contract and/or Hearings by the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee.

Initiation of a Performance Improvement Contract:
Definition: The Performance Improvement Contract (PIC) is one of a larger repertoire of tools used to promote student learning, improvement, development, and success. Each PIC is initiated to assist the student in identifying, managing, and improving conduct and behaviors that inhibit a student’s full success at MCCN. The PIC is meant to provide the student with guided learning towards improvement and evaluation of that improvement. The PIC is intended to provide the student with Due Process regarding observed conduct and behaviors that may be questionable in terms of possible misconduct.

Faculty and staff members initiate PICs when students demonstrate a potential infraction of college or Health System policies, conduct themselves in a less than professional manner, and/or demonstrate patterns of behavior that impede their ability to provide safe, high quality patient care. The PIC is initiated to help students examine behaviors that are causing them to be less than successful, to identify behaviors that may help them improve, and to engage with faculty and staff in an action plan for making progress toward improvement and success. Because the PIC is a learning tool, there is no appeal process once a PIC has been initiated. Click here  to view process and procedures for a PIC.

Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee Hearing

Students whose conduct/behaviors do not meet identified expectations and/or who may have incurred three PICs are subject to hearings performed by the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee. Serious violation of prohibited conduct may be referred directly to the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee without the initiation of a PIC. Additionally, egregious violations of prohibited conduct may be referred directly to the Academic Dean for administrative sanctioning which will bypass the initiation of a PIC or a hearing before the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee. Due process right will still be an inherent part of these processes, which are outlined below.

Suspected Misconduct

When academic or professional misconduct is alleged, it is the responsibility of the faculty/staff in either the graduate or undergraduate nursing program or Residence Halls to both discuss the matter with the student and file a written account of the alleged misconduct with the Chairperson of the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee. The written account will include recommendations for action.

Interim Suspension
In cases where faculty and college officials are concerned that students pose immediate dangers to self or other people and property, especially in clinical cases related to patient safety, the student’s academic and clinical educational progression will be temporarily suspended by the MCCN Academic Dean until the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee hearing is conducted and recommendations are made about outcomes and potential sanctions.

When a student suspects misconduct by a peer:

Student peers have a responsibility to report alleged misconduct to the lead instructor or relevant staff member. The reporting student, lead instructor or staff member may submit an allegation of misconduct to the Chairperson of the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee. The reporting student is expected to participate as a witness at the scheduled misconduct hearing, but he/she may request that the accused student provide their questions to the chairperson so as to not be directly cross examined by another student. Alternatives to participation can be offered, upon request from the reporting student (such as participation via video conference, etc).

The faculty/staff member will:

1. Maintain confidentiality at all times; not discussing the student conduct/behavior with anyone except those involved directly with the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee.
2. Hold a conference with the student to discuss the alleged misconduct.
3. Maintain a detailed account of all documentation, emails, communication, etc. with regard to the students’ conduct/behaviors.
4. Submit all documents relevant to the alleged incident(s) to the Chairperson of the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee within five (5) business days of the conference with the student. If requested by the Chairperson, a meeting will take place between the faculty/staff member and the Chairperson to gain clarity regarding any submitted documentation.
5. Be prepared to serve as a witness during the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee Hearing.

The Chairperson of the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee will:

1. If the Chairperson determines, after any needed consultation, sufficient information exists to support an alleged policy violation, he/she will schedule a hearing withing ten (10) business days. An extension of this timeline may be necessary, and can be requested by the student or the chair, and approval is made at the discretion of the chair.
2. The hearing shall consist of the following parties:
   • Three faculty, at least one from the program in which the student is currently enrolled.
   • Two students, at least one from the program in which the student is currently enrolled.
   • the referring faculty/staff member or student,
   • the responding student;
   • as well as any appropriate witnesses at the discretion of the chairperson.
3. At least four business days prior to the scheduled hearing date (unless mitigating circumstances exists, or the student has granted flexibility in the timeline, summer and College closure days may impact timeline), the Chairperson will notify the student via email that the documents related to the allegations involved in their hearing are prepared. These documents may be emailed or provided via hard copy for pick up by the student. In addition, the chairperson will prepare and send the student a letter containing the following information:
   • The allegation of academic or professional misconduct;
   • The date and time of the hearing; and
   • Information about where and when the student can provide any mitigating evidence for the Committee’s packet of materials prior to the hearing.
4. The student has two business days upon receipt of hearing documents to review and provide any additional mitigating evidence to the Chairperson, to be provided to the Committee.
5. Once the Chairperson receives all the relevant mitigating evidence from the student, the Chairperson will forward all documents to the Committee members at least two (2) business days prior to the hearing (unless mitigating circumstances exists, or the student has granted flexibility in the timeline, summer and College closure days may impact timeline).
6. With the approval of the Chairperson, the student may also present documentation/information at the date of the hearing and the committee will take the appropriate time to review.

PLEASE NOTE:  The Director of Compliance must be informed by the Chairperson of each new case presented to the committee for review.  Due to FERPA protections, only the Chairperson of the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee or the Director of Compliance will have contact with the student or the student’s parents. Faculty and staff who are contacted by the student or parents must immediately refer these individuals to the Chairperson or to the Director of Compliance for information.

The student will:

1. Be offered the opportunity to attend all meetings scheduled by the faculty or staff member or Chairperson as related to the alleged incident of Academic or Professional Misconduct. The processes outlined in this policy will continue, with or without the student’s participation.
2. Cooperate with the faculty or staff member and the Chairperson.
3. Not be permitted to record any part of the proceeding. A record will be maintained by the hearing recorder, which the student is permitted access to review.

Student Due Process Within the Policy

Students alleged to have violated College policies and/or committed acts associated with academic and professional misconduct will have their cases heard before the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee (see policies and procedures below).. Students have a right to due process, or fair procedure, that includes:

1. Presumption of innocence until proven guilty.
2. Submission of reasonable standards of proof or evidence.
3. Right to an impartial hearing.
4. Freedom to appropriately defend themselves.
5. Right to an advisor/support person of their choice, excluding legal counsel, to attend the hearing with them (the student’s advisor/support person may not speak on their behalf).
6. Right to review members of the board for possible conflict of interest.
7. Right to submit witnesses and evidence prior to the hearing, to be considered by the committee.

Due to the hearing, the student is provided the opportunity to:

1. Speak on his/her behalf,
2. present a written statement,
3. provide materials to be considered as mitigating evidence (character references, etc.) or invite witnesses directly involved with the case to present information at the hearing.
4. The faculty/staff may also present witnesses, and both the student and the Committee members may question witnesses.

Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee

The Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee is composed of five faculty members, two students from the undergraduate program, and one from the graduate program. The Chairperson must be a faculty member and will be selected by members of the Committee.

This Committee is charged with hearing allegations of misconduct and making recommendations to the Associate Dean of the appropriate program.

In the event that a Committee member is involved in a case of alleged misconduct, the Committee Chairperson shall appoint a substitute. The Chairperson is responsible to orient the alternate Committee member prior to the hearing. Should the Chairperson require substitution, the Chairperson shall appoint another faculty committee member to serve as Chairperson.

Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee Hearings

• The Chairperson of the committee will schedule a hearing within ten (10) business days after determining that the student’s alleged misconduct warrants a hearing.
• The student accused of misconduct is encouraged by the Chairperson to attend the Committee hearing. Online education students may participate via teleconference, SKYPE, Google Talk/Hangouts, or Blackboard Collaborate (Method of communication is at the discretion of the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee).

Hearings are considered closed meetings (i.e., only the Committee members, the recorder, the student, and other individuals directly involved in the incident are permitted to attend). All persons involved in committee hearings are required to sign a statement of confidentiality.

The student is provided the opportunity to speak on his/her behalf, present a written statement, provide materials to be considered as mitigating evidence (character references, etc.) or invite witnesses directly involved with the case to present information at the hearing. The faculty/staff member may also present witnesses, and both the student and the Committee members may question witnesses.

Legal counsel will not be permitted to attend the hearing.

The student’s academic record is not available to the Committee unless a recommendation to sanction is made. Once the recommendation to sanction is made, the student’s academic record is reviewed to assist in determining the type of sanction.

During the hearing, “preponderance of the evidence” is the threshold whereby all the information is determined by the committee members to support, more likely than not, the allegations. This preponderance is based on the more convincing evidence and its probable truth or accuracy, and not on the amount of evidence. Thus one clearly knowledgeable witness may provide a preponderance of evidence over a dozen witnesses with haze testimony. The “preponderance of the evidence” means the greater weight of evidence; i.e., that the evidence on one side outweighs, preponderates over, or is more than, the evidence on the other side.

Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee Recommendations

The Committee will consider the following recommendations:

1.  Dismiss allegations without any documentation in the student’s record of the alleged misconduct; or
2. Recommend that the faculty member provide the student with a PIC and use this situation as a learning opportunity to discuss the student’s performance or behaviors that are contributing to the student’s lack of success. Use this opportunity to help the student improve; or
3. Sanction the student. Sanctions are placed in the student’s academic record maintained in the Office of Records and Registration. Sanction recommendations may include,  but are not limited to:

Warning: defined as a notification that a student has committed certain violations and that continuance of such conduct will result in more severe disciplinary action.

Educational Sanctions: These include but are not limited to alcohol education, counseling assessment and adherence to professional counseling recommendations, research paper or project, hall or building program with a residential life staff member, group education program, etc.

Disciplinary Probation: defined as the student is not in good disciplinary standing with the College (for a specified period of time, ordinarily no less than one term/semester), and any future violations may result in an additional immediate referral to the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee hearing process, with a recommendation of a more severe disciplinary action.

Disciplinary Suspension: defined as the denial of the opportunity to continue in the College for a specified period of time (ordinarily no less than one term/semester). While suspended, a student is not allowed to be on campus or to attend any official College event. In the event that additional educational sanctions are imposed in conjunction with the suspension, these sanctions will most likely be expected to be completed prior to an application for reinstatement to be considered before the Academic Progress Committee. A student wishing to return after a period of suspension must apply for reinstatement and is not guaranteed reinstatement.

Disciplinary Dismissal: defined as the denial of the opportunity to continue as a student at the College. A student who is disciplinarily dismissed is not allowed to be on campus or to be at any official College event at any time, unless given prior written approval. A student who is disciplinarily dismissed will not be afforded the opportunity for reinstatement or readmission to the College at any time.

All recommendations of this Committee will be forwarded to the appropriate Associate/Assistant Dean for decision. The student will be provided a letter via email and certified mail with the outcome of their hearing. The student may also be asked to meet with the appropriate Associate/Assistant Dean, depending on the severity of the sanctions. The Chairperson of the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee, will be provided with a written letter outlining the decision of the Associate Dean within five (5) business days of the hearing. The appropriate Associate Dean will forward a copy of the notification letter to the Academic Dean of MCCN. In the notification letter to all parties, the Associate Dean must address the decision and sanctions that result from the recommendations of the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee. The letter must also provide the student with information about the Appeals Process (see Appeals Process below). If a conflict of interest exists between the student/situation and the appropriate Associate Dean, the decision will be made by the Academic Dean, and the appeal would shift to the College President.

The Associate/Assistant Dean who issued the outcome letter is required to keep track of the 10 business day appeal timeline. On the date the timeline is exhausted, they are to check with the Academic Dean to determine if an appeal has been filed. If not, they are to notify the Office of Records and Registration of any sanctions requiring notation in the students file, or other actions with respect to course registration/enrollment, etc. Additionally, if the student is being disciplinarily suspended or dismissed, and they reside in on campus housing, the Associate/Assistant Dean is to notify the Director of Student Life to ensure any appropriate check out procedures occur.

Please note: A student who is dismissed from SDAP cannot be admitted to the pre-licensure program if she/he has a pending academic misconduct hearing. The case must be resolved prior to consideration of admittance to the pre-licensure program.

Record of Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee Hearing

Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee minutes constitute the record of the hearing. Should the student decide to appeal the decision of the appropriate Associate/Assistant Dean, a hard copy of the hearing record will be made available to the student. The student should contact the appropriate Associate/Assistant Dean and schedule an appointment to read the hard copy of the hearing record while seated in the Associate/Assistant Dean’s office. The student will not be provided with an electronic or hard copy of the hearing record.

The hearing record and other related documents may be released only to individuals who have a valid reason to know the outcome, according to FERPA guidelines. The hearing record and documents related to a student’s Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee hearing will be maintained in the student record located in the Maxient electronic database.

Appeals Process

The appeal must be based on one or more of the following criteria:

• material or significant procedural error(s) made during the hearing;
• new information unavailable at the time of the hearing;
• sanctions imposed are substantially disproportionate to the severity of the violation; and/or
• decision(s) made absent a preponderance of evidence.

Students have the right to appeal the decision of the appropriate Associate Dean and may do so by submitting a written appeal to the Academic Dean of the College. The appeal must be filed in the Office of the Academic Dean as a formal, written letter within ten (10) business days from the date of the Associate Dean’s decision letter. If a student encounters a serious circumstance prohibiting them for keeping to the 10 business day appeal timeline, they may request an extension, in writing, to the Academic Dean, prior to the exhaustion of the 10 business day window. Extension request decisions are made by the Academic Dean, at their discretion. The appeals letter must be accompanied by and provide firm and persuasive evidence, in the form of data, letters, documents, etc., to support the written appeals letter. The Academic Dean will review the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee hearing record and relevant documents, as well as the appeal and evidence provided by the student, and will make a determination within ten (10) business days of receiving the appeal. The Academic Dean’s decision is final. If a conflict of interest exists between the student/situation and the appropriate Associate Dean, the decision will be made by the Academic Dean, and the appeal would shift to the College President.

Administrative Hearing

Should a student be alleged to have exhibited behavior(s) that are considered serious or egregious, in that either the student, another member of the MCCN community, or a patient’s health and safety may be at risk due to the student’s behavior or potential behavior, an administrative hearing may be held between the student and the Academic Dean, or appropriate MCCN administrator. Depending on the severity of the alleged behavior, a student may be placed on interim suspension, as defined in this policy, during the pendency of this process. The Academic Dean will gather all appropriate documentation and call a hearing with the student. The same student due process rights apply that are outlined above under the Academic and Professional Misconduct Committee hearing process. The student will have the opportunity to respond to the allegations. The Academic Dean will make a decision regarding responsibility and sanctioning within 3 business days, following the sanction options listed in this document. The student will be informed of the outcome in writing. The student has the right to appeal the outcome of the Administrative Hearing to the next level administrator from whom heard their case (for example, if the case is heard by the Academic Dean, the student will appeal to the College President). The student will be notified of the appropriate appeal authority in their written outcome letter.

The appeal must be based on one or more of the following criteria:

• material or significant procedural error(s) made during the hearing;
• new information unavailable at the time of the hearing;
• sanctions imposed are substantially disproportionate to the severity of the violation; and/or
• decision(s) made absent a preponderance of evidence

The appeal must be filed in the Office of the Academic Dean as a formal, written letter within 3 business days from the date of the written outcome letter. If a student encounters a serious circumstance prohibiting them for keeping to the 3 business day appeal timeline, they may request an extension, in writing, to the appropriate appeal authority, prior to the exhaustion of the 3 business day window. Extension request decisions are made by the appeal authority, at their discretion. The appeals letter must be accompanied by and provide firm and persuasive evidence, in the form of data, letters, documents, etc., to support the written appeals letter. The appeal authority will review administrative hearing record and relevant documents, as well as the appeal and evidence provided by the student, and will make a determination within 3 business days of receiving the appeal. The decision of the appropriate appeal authority is final.