Once the Student Title IX office has completed its investigation process, if the case was not informally resolved, it will be referred to Community Standards for a formal hearing. This hearing is to determine if there was a violation of the Student Conduct Code and/or the Sexual Harassment, Abuse, and Assault Prevention Policy.
Scheduling:
Community Standards will typically schedule at least two full days for a hearing process, depending on the number of parties (including witnesses) that will be participating. A student can request that the hearing be rescheduled one time.
Hearings are never scheduled during midterm or final exams. If a student has class during a scheduled hearing, they can request a notice be sent to their faculty/instructor asking them to excuse them from class (the faculty/instructor is not provided any details of a case), but it is the student’s responsibility to make up any missed work.
Procedural Advisors:
Students participating in any Title IX process may be advised by an advisor of their choice, including an attorney, throughout all phases of the process. This includes any interviews, other meetings, or hearings.
If a party does not have an advisor for the live hearing, Community Standards will provide one without fee or charge to that party. This advisor may be, but is not required to be, an attorney. Advisors assist with preparing a student for a hearing, as well as conduct cross-examination on behalf of that party.
The role of a Procedural Advisor is outlined in Part 3.8 of the Student Title IX Policies and Procedures Handbook. If you have questions about obtaining an advisor, please contact Community Standards at 315.443.3728 or email studentconduct@syr.edu.
Hearing Format:
All hearings are conducted via Zoom. Students must have their camera on during the hearing. It is always a student’s choice if they want to participate in this process, and they can change their level of participation at any time.
Hearings will generally consist of the following steps, allowing the parties equal opportunities at each stage:
(a) introductions;
(b) review of procedural rules;
(c) presentation of information and testimony by the parties and their witnesses;
(d) the hearing officer will ask questions of the parties and their witnesses;
(e) the advisor for each party will ask the other party and any witnesses all relevant questions; and follow-up questions, including those assessing credibility; and
(f) closing remarks.
Students will not speak directly to one another during this process.
Students should carefully review all letters they are sent and consult with their assigned and/or chosen Procedural Advisor for all steps within the adjudication process.
If a Respondent is found responsible for any policy and/or Student Conduct Code violations, sanctions are assigned by the Director of Community Standards or designee, based on the context and nature of the behaviors and the status of the student. Specific information about sanctions can be found in Part 9 of the Student Conduct System Handbook.
Communications:
All communications sent by Community Standards are sent to each party simultaneously.
A student’s advisor and select support offices on campus are copied on notices related to these hearings.
Students should fully read any communications and be aware of any specific deadlines that may be important for their hearing (ex. Pre-Hearing Submissions, Impact Statement Deadlines, Appeals Information).
When an outcome is ready to send to the student, Community Standards will send a notice in advance informing students that the outcome will be shared that day so they can coordinate with their support systems if needed.
Outcomes are not sent to students during final exam weeks.
The full description of the Student TIX Formal Hearing Process is outlined in Part 3.9A of the Student Title IX Policies and Procedures Handbook.