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4.1 Student Bill of Rights
Preamble
Randolph‑Macon College exists for the transmission of knowledge, the pursuit of truth, the development of individuals, and the general well‑being of society. Freedom is a key concept and the basis for day‑to‑day living. Students should be encouraged to make decisions for themselves, for it is believed that there are no easy prescriptions for dealing with the variety of situations which confront them in college. Education involves not merely the mastery of a body of information but also the development of skills in human interaction.
The freedom to learn depends upon appropriate opportunities and conditions in the classroom, on the campus, and in the larger community. The College should recognize the importance of the encounter of students and instructors both in and outside of the classroom to maintain academic freedom. Freedom to teach and freedom to learn are inseparable prerequisites of this academic freedom. As members of the Randolph‑Macon College community, students should be encouraged to develop the capacity for critical judgment and to engage in a sustained and independent search for truth. Free inquiry and free expressions are indispensable to the attainment of these goals; however, freedom is not meaningful without the exercise of responsibility to secure and to respect general conditions conducive to the freedom to learn.
Affirming that each student must take upon himself the responsibility to insure the basic rights of personal freedom to the individual, and realizing that an atmosphere of academic freedom and truth is necessary to develop persons of humane instincts, and of disciplined and creative minds for lives of leadership, service and self‑fulfillment, each student accepts the responsibility to help develop the policies and procedures which safeguard these basic freedoms and rights.
This statement is not a device by which to establish any strict rules for any member of this community, but it is to enumerate the essential provisions for student freedom to learn.
I. Freedom of Access to Higher Education
The admissions policy of Randolph‑Macon College is a matter of institutional choice provided that the College makes clear the characteristics and expectations of students which it considers relevant to success in the institution's program. Under no circumstances should a student be barred from admission to this institution on the basis of race, creed, religion, ethnicity, or sexual orientation. Thus, within the limits of the facilities and services, Randolph‑Macon College should be open to all students who are qualified according to admissions standards. The facilities and services of the College should be open to all of its enrolled students, on an equal basis and to the utmost extent.
II. In the Classroom
The professor in the classroom or in conference should encourage free discussion, inquiry, and expression. Student performance should be evaluated on an academic basis and not on opinions of conduct in matters unrelated to academic standards.
A. Protection of Freedom of Expression
Students should be free to take reasoned exception to the data or views offered in any course of study and to reserve judgment about matters of opinion, but they are responsible for learning the content of any course of study for which they are enrolled.
B. Protection Against Improper Academic Evaluation
Students should have the right of protection through orderly procedures against prejudiced or capricious academic evaluations. At the same time, they are responsible for maintaining standards of academic performance established for each course in which they are enrolled.
C. Protection against Improper Disclosure
Information about student views, beliefs, and political associations which professors acquire in the course of their work as instructors, advisors, and counselors shall be considered confidential. Protection against improper disclosure is a serious professional obligation. Judgments of ability and character may be provided under appropriate circumstances, normally with the knowledge and consent of the student.
D. Student Records
Randolph‑Macon College has carefully considered policy as to the information which should be part of a student's permanent educational record and as to the conditions of its disclosure. To minimize the risk of improper disclosure, academic and disciplinary records shall be separate, and the conditions of access to each shall conform to the rights as set forth in the Buckley Amendment. Transcripts of academic records shall contain only information about academic status. Information from disciplinary or counseling files shall not be available to unauthorized persons on campus, or to any person off campus without the express consent of the student involved except under legal compulsion or in cases where the safety of persons or property is involved. No records shall be kept which reflect the political activities or beliefs of students. Provisions shall also be made for periodic routine destruction of non‑current disciplinary records. Administrative staff and Faculty Members shall respect confidential information about students which they acquire in the course of their work.
III. Student Affairs
In student affairs, certain standards shall be maintained if the freedom of students is to be preserved.
A. Freedom of Association
Students bring to the campus a variety of interests previously acquired and develop many new interests as members of the academic community. They shall be free to organize and join associations to promote their common interests.
1. The membership, policies, and actions of a student organization will be determined by vote of only those persons who are members of the college community.
2. Affiliation with an extramural organization shall not itself disqualify a student organization from institutional recognition.
3. If campus advisors are required, each organization shall be free to choose its own advisor, and institutional recognition shall not be withheld or withdrawn solely because of the inability of a student organization to obtain an advisor. Campus advisors should advise organizations on the exercise of responsibility, but they shall not have the authority to control the policy of the organization.
4. Student organizations are required to submit a statement of purpose, criteria for membership, rules of procedures, and a current list of officers. They shall not be required to submit a membership list as a condition of institutional recognition.
5. College organizations, including those affiliated with an extramural organization, shall be opened to all students without respect to sex, race, creed, national origin, or sexual orientation.
B. Freedom of Inquiry and Expression
1. Students and student organizations shall have the right and freedom to examine and discuss all questions of interest to them, and to express opinions publicly and privately. They shall always be free to support causes by orderly means which do not disrupt the regular and essential operation of the institution. At the same time, it shall be made clear to the academic and the larger community that in their public expressions or demonstrations, students or student organizations speak only for themselves.
2. Students of Randolph‑Macon College may invite any persons of their own choosing to speak on campus, with the exception of persons who advocate the violent overthrow of the United States government or those who advocate the disruption and destruction of colleges and universities. Those routine procedures required by the institution before a guest speaker is invited to appear on campus shall be cleared with the proper authorities of the College to insure that there is orderly scheduling of facilities and adequate preparation for the event, and that the occasion is conducted in a manner appropriate to the academic community of Randolph‑Macon College. The institutional control of campus facilities shall not be used as a device of censorship. It should be made clear to the academic community of Randolph‑Macon College that sponsorship of guest speakers does not imply approval or endorsement of the views expressed, either by the sponsoring group or the College.
C. Student Participation in Institutional Government
As members of the Randolph‑Macon College community, students shall be allowed, individually and collectively, to express their views on issues of institutional policy and on all matters of general interest to the student body. The student body shall have clearly defined means to participate in the formulation and application of institutional policy affecting academic and student affairs. The role of the Student Government is stated in Fishtales, and the actions of the Student Government within the areas of its jurisdiction are reviewed only through orderly and prescribed means and procedures.
D. Student Publications
Student publications and the student press are a valuable aid in establishing and maintaining an atmosphere of free and responsible discussion and of intellectual exploration on the campus of Randolph‑Macon College. They are the means of bringing student concerns to the attention of the faculty and the institutional authorities and of formulating student opinions on various issues on the campus of Randolph‑Macon College and in the world at large.
In the delegation of editorial responsibility to students, the institution shall provide sufficient editorial freedom to maintain their integrity of purpose as vehicles for free inquiry and free expression in an academic community such as Randolph‑Macon College.
The institutional authorities at Randolph‑Macon College, in consultation with students and faculty, shall have the responsibility to provide written clarifications of the role of the student publications, the standards to be used in their evaluations, and the limitations of external controls on the operation of publications. At the same time, the editorial freedom of student editors and managers entails corollary responsibilities to be governed by the canons of responsible journalism, such as the avoidance of libel, indecency, undocumented allegations, attacks on personal integrity, and the techniques of harassment and innuendo. As safeguards for the editorial freedom of student publications, the following provisions are necessary:
1. The student press at Randolph‑Macon College shall be free of censorship and advance approval of copy, and its editors and managers shall be free to develop their own editorial policies and news coverage.
2. Editors and managers of student publications shall be protected from arbitrary suspension and removal because of student, faculty, administrative, or public disapproval of editorial policy or content. Only for proper and stated cause shall editors and managers be subject to removal and then by orderly and prescribed procedures. The Board of Publications shall be responsible for their removal.
3. All Randolph‑Macon College student publications shall explicitly state on the editorial page that the opinions there expressed are not necessarily those of the College or of the student body.
IV. Off‑Campus Freedom of Students
A. Exercise of Rights of Citizenship
Randolph‑Macon College students are both citizens and members of the academic community. As citizens, students shall enjoy the same freedom of speech, peaceful assembly, and right of petition that other citizens enjoy and, as members of the academic community, they are subject to the obligations which accrue to them by virtue of this membership. Faculty Members and administrative officials shall insure that institutional powers are not employed to inhibit intellectual and personal development of students.
B. Institutional Authority and Civil Penalties
When activities of R‑MC students result in violation of civil law and students incur civil penalties, institutional authorities shall not duplicate the function of civil laws. Only where the institution's interests as an academic community are distinctly and clearly involved shall the special authority of Randolph‑Macon College be asserted.
V. Procedural Standards in Disciplinary Proceedings
Randolph‑Macon College has a duty to protect its educational purpose through the setting of standards of scholarship and conduct for the students of the College. To resolve problems of student conduct and to insure proper procedural safeguards, the College has established a Code of Student Conduct, which is found in Fishtales.
A. Standards of Conduct Expected of Students
The general behavioral expressions and the resultant specific regulations which are printed in the College handbook, Fishtales, represent a reasonable regulation of student conduct. Offenses are clearly defined and interpreted in a manner consistent with the aforementioned principles of relevancy and reasonableness. Disciplinary proceedings shall be instituted only for violations of standards of conduct as stated in Fishtales.
B. Investigations of Student Conduct
Students should have the right to privacy of their dorm rooms, subject to the College’s right to enforce its rules of conduct and to maintain its physical property. Searches in dormitory rooms for objects believed to be stolen or for objects believed to be illegally contained within such rooms shall be made only after application to make such search has been made to the Provost or Associate Dean or his or her designee. Such application shall specify the reasons for the search and the objects and/or information sought. The student whose room is sought to be searched should be notified and be present, if possible, during the search.
C. Status of Student Pending Final Action
Pending action on the charges, the status of a student shall not be altered, or his right to be present on the campus and to attend classes suspended, except for reasons related to the safety and well‑being of the students, faculty, administration, or Randolph‑Macon College property.
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