Stanford Center for Professional Development
Non-Degree Option (NDO) Program: Community Standards Review Process

The Stanford Center for Professional Development Community Standards Review Process is the set of policies and processes used to adjudicate concerns or allegations of NDO student misconduct, including violations of the Fundamental Standard or Honor Code. By accepting the offer to enroll in a course through the Stanford Non-Degree Option (NDO) program, students consent to be subject to the procedures as outlined in this Community Standards document and agree to cooperate in any investigation into any matter concerning their alleged misconduct. All NDO students should familiarize themselves with the policies and expectations governing participation in the Stanford University Non-Degree Option program.

Non-Degree Option Student Rights in the Community Standards Review Process

1. To be informed, in writing, of any formal concern of allegations of their misconduct.
2. To be informed, in writing, of their student rights as per the NDO student handbook.
3. To be considered innocent until found guilty by a preponderance of the evidence.
4. To be assured their identity and the circumstances of allegations against them will be kept confidential, except in extenuating circumstances.
5. To be given access to the details and content of the evidence in the case, both incriminatory and exculpatory. Stanford Center for Professional Development reserves the right to withhold the personal identifying information of reporting parties and other potential witnesses.
6. If conduct is being reviewed by the Executive Review Board, to appear before the Board. The proceedings shall be scheduled in such a way as to allow the student a reasonable opportunity to participate.
7. To be sent a written statement of the review outcome.
8. To have the right to appeal an adverse decision (further outlined on page 4).
9. To be assured that no record of any violation or alleged violation will be placed on their transcript. When the sanction of an Honor Code violation is modification of a grade, no reference will be made on their transcript to the cause of the grade change.
10. To be offered reasonable protection from retaliation, intimidation, harassment, and/or malicious prosecution.

Student Expectations in the Community Standards Review Process

1. To cooperate in any investigation and adjudication process involving alleged misconduct.
2. To be honest in their dealings with the University staff (including not omitting relevant facts or information during the investigation). NDO students who are willfully dishonest face further sanctions, including removal from the program.
3. To represent themselves during the Community Standards Review Process; NDO students are not assigned advocates or representatives and cannot assign their own.

Community Standards Review Process Bodies

STUDENT CONDUCT REVIEW COMMITTEE

The Student Conduct Review Committee is a three-person committee that hears cases involving NDO student conduct, including alleged violations of the Stanford Honor Code or Fundamental Standard. When a concern is brought to the attention of the Student Conduct Review Committee, one senior member of the Stanford Center for Professional Development Staff, one current Stanford faculty member, and one staff member of the Stanford Center for Professional Development Academic Programs team will be selected to serve on the Student Conduct Review Committee. The Committee is chaired by the Director for Student Services, who is a non-voting member.

EXECUTIVE REVIEW COMMITTEE

The Executive Review Committee is a three-person board that hears the most egregious NDO student conduct matters, in which dismissal from the program is considered. The Executive Review Committee also hears appeals from cases heard by the Student Conduct Review Committee. The Committee comprises the Stanford Center for Professional Development Director for Student Services, one current Stanford faculty member, and a current member of the Stanford Center for Professional Development Senior Leadership Team.

Community Standards Review Process Officers

INVESTIGATOR

The Stanford Center for Professional Development Director for Student Services serves as the primary investigator for alleged NDO student misconduct. They are supported by the Stanford Center for Professional Development Academic Programs team, corresponding university academic department and associated faculty member(s). The investigator or their designee will gather all evidence, incriminatory and exculpatory, and create a report to be presented to the relevant Community Standards review committee. Investigators may at times serve on the Student Conduct Review or Executive Review Committees to review the alleged violation in question.

ADVISORS

An NDO student whose conduct is under review may elect to have an advisor. Advisors can be a member of Stanford staff who is neither involved with the investigation nor serving on the Student Conduct Review Committee adjudicating the charge. The role of the advisor is to clarify the Community Standards Review Process. Advisors will not provide assistance in writing statements or preparing for interviews, nor will they represent an NDO student during the review process.

Community Standards Review Process

PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION

A preliminary investigation begins once a concern is brought to a Stanford Center for Professional Development staff member. At this stage the Director of Student Services, or their designee, gathers evidence to determine whether or not misconduct occurred. This can include meeting with students or instructors, speaking with potential witnesses and participants, reviewing messages, images, reports, or other evidence furnished to the investigator.

CHARGE NOTIFICATION

If the investigator determines there is enough evidence for a charge to proceed, the NDO student suspected of misconduct will be notified via e-mail of the charge made against them. The notification will be sent by the primary investigator to the NDO student within 90 days of the suspected violation.

INVESTIGATION

After a charge is made against an NDO student, the student has the opportunity to submit a formal written statement to the designated Review Committee detailing their stance in relation to the charge. Within this statement, NDO students can offer exculpatory evidence, explain circumstances, and generally offer more insight and detail about the charges in question. Student refusal to participate in the investigation will not prevent the review process from moving forward.

• An NDO student who is charged with misconduct by the Student Conduct Review Committee or the Executive Review Committee will have 72 hours from the issue of the charge notification to submit an initial statement. The statement should be addressed to the relevant review committee and should provide whatever information the NDO student thinks is relevant to the investigation.

DELIBERATION AND DETERMINATION

Once the investigation is complete, the primary investigator will present their findings to the relevant Community Standards review committee. A student is found responsible for a charge based on a two-thirds vote of the presiding review committee. The evidentiary standard applied is a preponderance of the evidence -- in essence, that it is more likely for the behavior to have occurred than not. Note that this differs from the beyond a reasonable doubt standard used by other judicial bodies.

OUTCOME NOTIFICATION

Once the corresponding Community Standards review committee arrives at a determination, the chair will notify the NDO student of the outcome. The student will have 5 business days from receiving an outcome notification to file a petition indicating their intent to appeal.

APPEALS

NDO students have the right to appeal an adverse decision. Appeals are heard only if there is new evidence unavailable to the corresponding Community Standards review committee at the original time of review. The Stanford Center for Professional Development Director for Student Services will review all petitions and serve as the primary investigator. Failure or refusal of an NDO student to participate in the original Community Standards Review Process is not grounds for appeal.
If a petition is found to have merit, the Stanford Center for Professional Development Director for Student Services will initiate an appeal process. NDO students will have 5 business days (or a suitable time frame at the discretion of the Director) to provide additional statements and evidence to support their petition. Once the appeals investigation is complete, the Executive Review Committee will convene. Decisions on submitted appeals will be made by two-thirds vote using the preponderance of the evidence standard. The decision of the committee following an appeal is final.

SANCTIONS

• If an NDO student is found to have engaged in misconduct, the Student Conduct Review Committee may impose appropriate sanctions. These may include, but are not limited to:
• Educational outcomes, including attending workshops, conducting interviews, creating presentations, writing papers, etc.
• Apology letters to impacted parties.
• A formal warning. NDO students who receive a warning should expect escalated sanctions for subsequent violations, even if they are unrelated to the original charge.
• Probation. Probation is a strong warning from the program. NDO students who are placed on probation should expect escalated sanctions for subsequent violations, even if they are unrelated to the original charge.
• Removal from the NDO program may result from egregious and/or repeated violations of Stanford Center for Professional Development and/or Stanford University policies. A student who is removed from the NDO program for misconduct is ineligible to enroll in Stanford Center for Professional Development programs in future academic quarters.
• In the case of Honor Code violations, Stanford University faculty will assist in the determination of the corresponding academic sanction. This could include recommending a grade/score penalty for an assignment or exam, or recommending a grade penalty for the course as a whole. The Student Conduct Review Committee may also apply additional sanctions.

Important Notes

INTERIM ACTION

The Director of Student and Services may impose appropriate interim sanctions to ensure the welfare of students and staff involved, including the program, and the university community. Interim actions can include, but are not limited to, removal from a course or program and reporting incidents to campus public safety, law enforcement or other non-University/non-program agencies.

FINANCIAL OBLIGATIONS

Financial obligations resulting from removal from a course or program are the responsibility of the student. Should an NDO student be removed from a course or program for any reason, the student forfeit rights to any refunds for course or program tuition and any related expenses.

SANCTIONS NOT SPECIFIED

Not every type of possible sanction is specified in this Community Standards Review Process document. The designated University staff and faculty, in their roles as the University’s Community Standards officers for NDO students, must consider each matter before them on an individual basis and are the final authority in the University in matters pertaining to Stanford Center for Professional Development NDO students.

CONSULTATION

The Student Conduct Review Committee and Executive Review Committee may choose to consult with colleagues in the University with the relevant jurisdiction or expertise (e.g., the Office of Accessible Education, Office of Sexual Assault & Relationship Abuse Education & Response, Title IX, faculty, the Office of General Counsel).

MORATORIUM ON VOLUNTARY WITHDRAWAL

No NDO student will be permitted to voluntarily withdraw from a Stanford Center for Professional Development course or program while being investigated for community standards matters (unless prior consent is obtained from either the Initial investigator, Student Conduct Review Committee or Executive Review Committee). If an NDO student attempts to voluntarily withdraw while subject to an ongoing Stanford Center for Professional Development community standards review, the student will be prevented from officially withdrawing from the program until an outcome is reached, even if the NDO student stops attending class. Should the outcome of the review result in removal from a course or program, the outcome will supersede the intent to voluntarily withdraw, the NDO student’s record will reflect the community standards violation, and the student will incur the penalty, including the forfeiture of right to relevant refunds.
Should the outcome be less than removal from course or program, then the voluntary withdrawal will be accepted, effective on the date of the outcome of the community standards review, not the original date of submission to withdraw. The NDO student in this case will have the right to relevant refunds, if any, from that date.

RELATIONSHIP OF STANFORD CENTER FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT NON-DEGREE PROGRAM COMMUNITY STANDARDS REVIEW PROCESS TO LEGAL PROCESS

It is important to note that the Stanford Center for Professional Development NDO program Community Standards Review Process is distinct from any federal, state, or local legal or police undertakings. For certain matters (e.g., cases involving sexual assault, weapons, or physical violence, among others), the two processes may occur concurrently. When this happens, the Stanford Center for Professional Development Community Standards and legal procedures differ and may proceed in parallel with each other, with interview priority going to law enforcement. It is important to note that there are different standards of behavior, evidence, and culpability in the two systems.

While violation of law does constitute a violation of the Stanford Center for Professional Development and University policies, and may be met with programmatic sanction, it is not the case that every NDO student found to be in violation of Stanford Center for Professional Development and University policy will necessarily incur legal ramifications, when the two processes are considering the same actions. NDO students not charged in the legal realm are still subject to Stanford Center for Professional Development and University policies and the Community Standards Review Process outlined in this document.

The Stanford Center for Professional Development Community Standards Review Process does not necessarily follow the lead of the legal process, and the two processes may work on very different timelines and standards of decision-making. As such, an NDO student may be found to have violated University or Stanford Center for Professional Development policy, but not be charged in either matter in the legal realm.

Additionally, a Stanford Center for Professional Development investigation and review may be conducted and concluded within a matter of days, while the legal matter may take weeks or months. Neither failure of law enforcement or legal agents to bring legal charges against an NDO student, nor successful defense by the student in the legal realm, is exculpatory evidence within the Stanford Center for Professional Development Community Standards process, and such legal outcomes will not exonerate an NDO student from a prior outcome handed down by Stanford Center for Professional Development, which is the final arbiter of matters related to Stanford Center for Professional Development NDO students and their relationship to Stanford University.

It is also important to note that neither the University nor its staff can be understood to be providing protection or sanctuary from existing federal, state or local laws. Similarly, educational records, including any disciplinary-judicial statements retained by Stanford Center for Professional Development, are subject to the laws governing privacy of student records.

DOUBLE JEOPARDY

There is no prohibition against reopening a case (“double jeopardy”) in the Stanford Center for Professional Development Community Standards review process. A case may be re-opened or reviewed again in light of new evidence at any time, even after an initial or appellate decision has been issued and written notification of that decision made.

RELATIONSHIP OF THE NDO PROGRAM COMMUNITY STANDARDS REVIEW PROCESS TO OTHER STANFORD COMMUNITY STANDARDS PROCESSES

Unless the Student Conduct Review Committee or Executive Review Committee determines otherwise, this Community Standard Review Process is the only University process for adjudication of misconduct allegations that is applicable to NDO students. In particular processes for matriculated students shall not apply unless otherwise determined by a Review Committee.