Student Code of Conduct, Rights, & Responsibilities

Rights and Responsibilities

The submission of an application for admission to Randolph Community College represents a voluntary decision on a prospective student's part to participate in the programs offered by the college pursuant to its policies, rules, and regulations. College acceptance of the application represents the extending of the privilege of joining the college community, and of remaining a part of it as long as established standards for academics and conduct are met.

Students who enroll accept college policies and procedures and acknowledge the right of Randolph Community College to take action, up to and including suspension or expulsion, when a student is found responsible for misconduct. Students are responsible for becoming familiar with RCC policies and procedures.

Students have the following rights, and the privilege of exercising those rights without fear or prejudice, as long as they respect state and federal laws, college policies, and the rights of others on campus.

Randolph Community College strives to create an atmosphere where students have the following rights:

Education

Students are free to pursue educational goals through appropriate opportunities for learning in the classroom and on the campus. Student performance will be evaluated on an academic basis, not on opinions or conduct matters unrelated to academic standards.

Freedom of Expression

Students can freely study and discuss various ideas in a courteous manner inside and outside of the classroom.

Participation

Students have the right to inquire about and to propose improvements to policies, regulations, and procedures affecting their welfare through established student government procedures, campus committees, and college offices.

Safe Environment

Students have the right to expect a safe environment that ensures the continuity of the educational process.

Privacy

Students have the right to expect that their official college records will be safeguarded. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (as amended) provides safeguards regarding confidentiality of and access to student records. Other than directory information, no records shall be made available to unauthorized personnel or groups inside or outside the college without the written consent of the student involved, except under legal obligation.

Record Review

Students and former students have the right to review their official records and to request a hearing if they wish to challenge the contents of those records.

Student Grievance Procedures (Due Process)

Students have the right to receive reasonable notice to be heard, prior to conduct sanctions being given, and the opportunity to grieve sanctions.

Academic Integrity Appeal

Students have the right to appeal academic integrity policy sanctions.

Freedom from Discrimination

Students can expect to engage in the college community without discrimination as defined by federal and state laws and college regulations.

Students also have responsibilities, as part of the college community, including but not limited to:

Civility

Respecting the rights of others and exercising courtesy and politeness in all situations.

Academic Integrity

Respecting the highest standards of academic integrity and reporting any violations of those standards for appropriate investigation and disposition.

Safety

Refraining from actions that endanger the health, safety, or welfare of any member of the college community or college visitors.

Compliance

Adhering to the normal standards, rules, and regulations of the college as well as with federal, state, and local laws.

References

Vendor sales personnel are allowed only at the request of RCC personnel. Cold calling is prohibited. Product or services information may be left at the Welcome Center for subsequent distribution to appropriate personnel.

Faculty members are not to be interrupted in their teaching by sales personnel and visitors. All sales personnel and visitors must obtain clearance from the Welcome Center prior to visiting instructors. The faculty member in charge of a shop, lab, or class is responsible for keeping unauthorized persons out of his/her department during class hours.

At no time will any visitor confront students as they move about campus. Any visitor wishing to speak with a student must be taken to the Welcome Center. Visitors on campus are subject to the same code of conduct required of students and College personnel.

Companies and organizations must have educational related materials, i.e., class rings, graduation invitations, etc., if they expect to set up in a designated area on campus. Representatives must have prior approval from the vice president for student services before expecting to set up any displays.

Membership drives and materials distribution must be limited to the mission of the College. The vice president for instructional services is charged with the determination of approval.

Loitering on Campus

Loitering is strictly prohibited. Individuals who are loitering will be asked to leave campus. Refusal to leave or returning to campus will be considered trespassing and law enforcement will be called.

News Media on Campus

Permission to visit any class may be granted to the news media by the Office of College Marketing or the College president. Members of the media may not disrupt classroom instruction by unauthorized visitations, interviews, or filming. Interviews with students, faculty, or staff are also not allowed until it is cleared with the Public Information Officer or the College President. It is important to note that RCC has underage students on its campus as the Randolph Early College High School is located within the Asheboro Campus location.

Children on Campus

Non-RCC students under the age of 16 are not permitted on RCC campuses unless they are accompanied by a parent or guardian, and are not permitted in classes under any circumstances. Non-RCC students age 16-17 are considered adults and are responsible for their conduct. Randolph Early College High School students are considered RCC students.

Animals on Campus

Individuals are generally prohibited from bringing animals onto campus property. However, Randolph Community College welcomes the presence of service animals, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), assisting individuals on campus. Animals that are part of instructional activities may also be permitted on campus property once approval from the vice president for instructional services has been granted. Students needing accommodations other than the use of a service animal should contact the disabilities coordinator in Student Services.

Tobacco Free Policy

RCC is committed to providing its employees and students with a safe and healthy working and learning environment. RCC recognizes that the use of tobacco products on campus grounds is detrimental to the health and safety of students, staff, faculty, and visitors. RCC also recognizes that it has the legal authority to prohibit tobacco use pursuant to G.S. 115D-20.1 and G.S. 143-599.

Therefore, beginning July 1, 2010, RCC implemented the following policy:

1. Use of tobacco (including electronic cigarettes) is prohibited by students, staff, faculty, or visitors:
   1. In all campus buildings, facilities or property owned or used by RCC, including outside areas; Tobacco use shall be permitted in personal vehicles as long as no tobacco litter is left on campus.
   2. On campus grounds, facilities or vehicles that are the property of the campus.
   3. At lectures, conferences, meetings, and social/cultural events held on school property or school grounds.
   4. For the purposes of this policy, tobacco is defined as any type of tobacco product including, but not limited to, cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos, pipes, hookahs, smokeless or spit tobacco or snuff, and electronic cigarettes.
2. The sale or free distribution of tobacco products, including merchandise, on campus or at school events is prohibited.
3. Student organizations are prohibited from accepting money or gifts from tobacco companies, including
   1. Parties sponsored by tobacco companies or allowing tobacco companies to distribute free, reduced-price, or fully-priced tobacco products (T-shirts, hats, etc.) on campus.
   2. All tobacco advertising, such as billboards and signs owned and used by RCC.
4. Tobacco advertisements are prohibited in college-run publications and on grounds or facilities, including athletic facilities, owned or used by RCC.
5. Through existing health plans, the EAP, and community sponsors, RCC publicizes free, accessible tobacco cessation classes, seminars, and support groups on or off campus.
   1. These tobacco cessation classes, seminars, and support groups appear regularly in student and staff publications. They are posted in buildings, through Student Services and through other appropriate means.
6. Implementation and compliance:
   1. The college provides appropriate signage and other physical indicators of our policy.
   2. Smoking waste management products such as ashtrays were removed.
   3. Violators of the policy will be issued a verbal reminder of the policy. Visitors who repeatedly violate the policy will be asked to leave campus.
   4. Student Services is responsible for student compliance at all campus locations, per the Student Code of Conduct located in the RCC College Catalog.

Drugs & Alcohol

Under no conditions will illegal drugs, alcoholic beverages, or narcotics be permitted in or on the school premises. No one under the influence of illegal drugs, alcohol, or narcotics will be allowed on school premises.

Drug and alcohol abuse poses a serious threat to our society. The problems are complex with no easy solutions. Randolph Community College, in an effort to protect the well-being of its students and employees, the educational environment, and the properties of the College and students and employees, does strictly enforce the following policies in regard to the illegal use, possession, or distribution of drugs and alcohol.

No student or employee shall illegally own, possess, use, transport, distribute, manufacture, buy, sell, or be under the influence of any narcotic drug, alcoholic beverage, or any other controlled substance (as defined by the North Carolina General Statutes or 21 U.S.C. subsection 812) while on College premises or during the time when the student or employee is participating in any College-sponsored activities. Use of drugs as prescribed by a registered physician is not a violation of policy. However, individuals shall be held strictly accountable for their behavior while under the influence of prescribed drugs. Under no circumstances may prescription drugs be bought, sold, or given from one individual to another.

Any student or employee violating the above policies will be subject to disciplinary action (consistent with local, state, and federal law) up to and including expulsion, termination, and referral for prosecution.

Individual counseling sessions will be available in Student Services during normal operating hours. Students should contact Student Services for further information.

As an added resource, RCC counselors may make a referral to the Randolph County Mental Health Center. Contact an RCC counselor for further details.

The College reserves the right to maintain a safe and orderly educational environment for students and staff. Therefore, when in the judgment of College officials, a student’s conduct disrupts or threatens to disrupt the College community, appropriate disciplinary action will be taken to restore and protect the safety of that community.

Students are expected to conduct themselves in accordance with generally accepted standards of scholarship and behavior. The purpose of this statement is to protect the rights of all students in their academic pursuits.

Student Conduct

Students at Randolph Community College are considered responsible adults; therefore, each student should use discretion and common sense in his/her appearance and behavior. All behavior which is prohibited by federal, state and local laws is prohibited on campus and may result in immediate dismissal, arrest or other appropriate action. Faculty and staff are authorized to handle minor violations. Any student whose behavior or other attribute is in violation of these provisions, the College official will take appropriate corrective and disciplinary action.

The following types of student behavior are explicitly prohibited.

• Violations of academic integrity – See Academic Integrity policy for specific details
• Misuse, damage, or theft of College property
• Drug and alcohol use or possession – See Tobacco, Drugs & Alcohol Usage policy on this page for specific details
• Violations of civility (e.g., rude, disrespectful, lewd, indecent, or offensive conduct or apparel).
• Mental, physical, psychological, cyber or verbal abuse
• Harassment – See Student Grievance Procedures (Due Process) on this page for specific details
• Possession or Use of a firearm, incendiary device, explosive, or other weapons – See Weapons policy for specific details.
• Forgery
• Unlawful conduct
• Other misconduct – This type of student behavior is deemed by a College official to be a violation of commonly accepted standards of decency and safety or threatens the learning environment of students or the working environment of College employees.

Zero Tolerance

Randolph Community College Policy does NOT allow any individual(s) to disrupt or threaten its learning environment. While faculty and staff are authorized to handle minor violations of the Student Code of Conduct, there are behaviors that will be addressed by the appropriate College officials on a zero tolerance basis.

The following types of student behavior will not be tolerated.

• Weapons of any kind
• Illegal drug sales, transaction or use
• Gang activity – see details below
• Fighting
• Physical, cyber, or verbal abuse
• Threats of physical action against another individual
• Harassment (Title IX) - see Student Grievance Procedures.

Corrective/Disciplinary Action

If a minor act of misconduct continues or occurs at the Zero Tolerance level and threatens the health, well-being, function, or orderly conduct of a class, person, activity, or the College as a whole, then the following actions should be taken:

• The instructor or other College official should immediately suspend the student from the class, function, or activity.
• If necessary, the School Resource Officer or sheriff’s department (if the SRO is unavailable) should be contacted to escort the student off campus.
• Information regarding the incident should be provided to the appropriate dean, staff director, or school resource officer, as soon as possible after the incident.
• The dean, staff director, or school resource officer will immediately forward to the vice president for student services for further action. After investigating, the vice president for student services will make the decision as to whether the student may return to campus, is suspended for a period of time appropriate to the infraction, or is permanently expelled.

The president and the vice president for student services are authorized to expel immediately any student(s) who commit(s) behavior that is prohibited by federal, state, or local laws.

An individual who is not a Randolph Community College student and who violates the procedures will be removed from campus immediately and not allowed to return. Any attempt to return to the campus will be considered trespassing.

Randolph Community College maintains the right to file formal legal proceedings against any student or individual who commits behavior prohibited by federal, state, or local laws.

Student Appeal

After the vice president for student services decides the corrective/disciplinary action, if the student has grounds to believe the corrective action is unjust, then the student may appeal in writing to the president within 5 working days. The president may arrange a hearing with the student after receiving the student’s request. The president’s decision is final.

Gang Activity

The Zero Tolerance Policy will apply to gang activity or gang related activity. This includes any activity which will lead College officials to reasonably believe that such behavior, apparel, activities, acts or other attributes are gang related and would materially interfere or substantially disrupt the College environment or activity and/or educational objectives. The following is prohibited at Randolph Community College:

• Wearing apparel of a gang related nature, including but not limited to clothing, clothing accessories, jewelry, hair accessories, tattoos, emblems, badges, symbols, signs, or items which indicate a student’s membership in or affiliation with a gang.
• Presenting a physical safety hazard to self, students, staff, faculty or other persons on the College campus.
• Communicating either verbally or non-verbally (gestures, handshakes, slogans, drawings, etc.) to convey membership or affiliation in a gang.
• Defacing College or personal property with gang-related graffiti, symbols, or slogans.
• Requiring payment for protection, insurance, or otherwise intimidating or threatening any person related to gang activity.
• Soliciting others for gang membership.
• Committing any other illegal act or other violation of College policies that relate to gang activity.

Introduction

• Randolph Community College encourages the development, writing, invention, and production of intellectual property designed to improve the productivity of the College and/or to enhance the teaching/learning environment.
• Intellectual property is defined as intellectual and creative works that can be copyrighted or patented, such as literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works, computer software, multimedia presentations, inventions, etc.
• Please note that notwithstanding the following information and conditions, a student retains portfolio rights to works created by the student as a class assignment or as part of a pro-bono commission approved as a student project by an instructor. A pro-bono commission is work that an instructor may approve for students to undertake as a skill-building opportunity. Students may receive token payments provided by the person or group that commissions such a work.
• The ownership of a copyright or patent resulting from the development of intellectual property and any rewards or recognition attributed to the copyright or patent will be determined according to the following conditions.

Ownership Resides with the Employee or Student

• Ownership resides with the employee or student if the following criteria are met:
  • The work is the result of individual initiative, not requested by the college.
  • The work is not the product of a specific contract or assignment made as a result of employment with the college.
  • The work is not prepared within the scope of the individual’s college job duties.
  • The work does not involve use of college facilities, time, and/or other resources and is not derivative of any other college-owned copyright. (Students may not use college equipment or resources for works for hire.)
  • Inventions or discoveries made by the Employee entirely on his/her personal time (e.g. made during non-working hours) and not involving the use of the college facilities or materials are the property of the inventor except as may be specified in any applicable agreement between the college and the federal or state government, or an agency thereof.
• The Employee shall disclose promptly to the college all discoveries and inventions made during the term of any Agreement or Contract.  The duty to disclose arises as soon as the Employee has reason to believe, based on his or her own knowledge or upon information supplied by others, that the discovery or invention may be patentable.  Certainty about patentability is not required before a disclosure is made.  The Employee shall execute such declarations, assignments, or other documents as may be necessary in the course of invention evaluation, patent prosecution, or protection of rights to insure that title to such inventions shall be held by the College.

Ownership Resides with the College

• Ownership resides with the College if the following criteria apply:
  • The work is prepared within the scope of an employee’s job duties.
  • The work is the product of a specific contract or assignment made in the course of the employee’s employment with the college.
  • The development of the work involved significant facilities, time, and/or other resources of the college including, but not limited to, released time, grant funds, college personnel, salary supplement, leave with pay, equipment, or other materials or financial assistance, or is derivative of any other college-owned copyright.
• Although an employee may not personally profit from college-owned property which he or she developed, the employee may include it as representative in a personal portfolio.

Copyright

If the Employee does not satisfy all of the criteria set forth in Section II, "Ownership resides with the employee or student," then the College asserts copyright ownership in all original works of authorship created by the Employee during the term of any Agreement or Contract. All such works shall be deemed “works-for-hire” under the U. S. copyright law; but to the extent a work does not qualify as a “work-for-hire,” the Employee hereby assigns to the College all rights, title and interest in and such to work throughout the world. Works subject to this provision include, but are not limited to, textbooks, course content as taught at the college, and course design materials used to present course content.

Patents

With the exception of inventions made on personal time, every invention or discovery or part thereof that results from research or other activities carried out at the college by the Employee or that is developed by the Employee with aid of the college’s facilities, staff or through funds administered by the college during any Agreement or Contract shall be the property of the College and, as a condition of employment, shall be assigned by the Employee to the College in the manner prescribed by the College.

Joint Ownership

• Joint ownership agreements should be negotiated prior to creation of the property.  When it can be foreseen that commercially valuable property will be created, the College and the employee or the College and the student should negotiate an agreement for ownership and the sharing of benefits. The College and the employee or the College and the student may enter into an agreement for an equitable arrangement for joint ownership, sharing of royalties, or reimbursement to the college for its costs and support. In all such joint ownership cases, the agreement shall provide that the college will have a perpetual license to use the work without compensation to the employee or student for such use.
• If an employee is granted full or partial leave with pay (e.g. release time or educational leave), to write, develop, produce, or invent intellectual property, the employee and the college will share in any financial gain, and the college's share will be negotiated prior to the time the leave is taken. Notwithstanding the provisions of this policy, in the case of a work created under a grant accepted by the college, the ownership provisions of the grant shall prevail.

Use of Revenue

The revenue derived from college-owned intellectual property is considered to be the same type of funding as that which allowed the development of the intellectual property, i.e. federal, state, county, or institutional.  Revenue from intellectual property generated by more than one type of funding is allocated to that revenue source in the year it is received in the same proportion as the funding that allowed the property to be created.  The College shall determine the use of the funding.

Liability Issues

All College faculty and staff will ensure that the courses and materials created by them are original except for such materials from copyrighted sources that are reproduced with the written permission of the copyright holder; that the courses or materials will in no way constitute a violation of or an infringement upon any copyright belonging to any other party; that the courses or materials will contain no information previously published or copyrighted by the faculty member unless such information is noted in the course or material; and that the course or material will contain no matter which is libelous or in any way contrary to law.

Disciplinary Action

Individuals are responsible and liable for their own actions in the creation, use, and distribution of intellectual property.  Violations of this policy may also result in disciplinary action by the College including expulsion from the College and/or termination of employment.