Chapter 17: Relevant Student Policies, Procedures, and Resources

This code states that Emory is dedicated to providing educational opportunities, transmitting and advancing knowledge, and providing a range of services to both students and the general community. The university endeavors to foster in each student a love of learning, commitment to fair and honorable conduct, and respect for the safety and welfare of others. It also strives to protect the community from the influence of those who do not embody these values in their conduct and to protect the integrity of the university and its property for the benefit of all. The guiding principle of university regulation of undergraduate conduct is the responsible exercise of freedoms and privileges. Members of the university community are granted the greatest possible degree of self-determination correlative to acceptance of the full responsibility for their conduct and the consequences of their actions. 

This code applies to undergraduate students enrolled in Emory College, the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, and the Goizueta Business School in their conduct both on and off campus. It provides that the Vice President and Dean for Campus Life is delegated responsibility pertaining to all student organizations, student government, and fraternities and sororities. Further, this individual has the responsibility and authority to discipline students and organizations and may choose to handle such matters in a direct and expedient manner, including taking interim action. 

Academic misconduct falls within the jurisdiction of the individual academic units of Emory University, not this code. Allegations of non-academic misconduct will be resolved in accordance with the procedures outlined in this code. Other units within the university may choose to implement more rigorous standards (for example, members of fraternities and sororities, or student organizational leaders), but such standards and penalties shall be in addition to, not a replacement of, this code. Continuation as a student is conditional upon compliance with the expectations of student conduct expressed or implied in this code. 

All students and members of the faculty in the Laney Graduate School are expected to cooperate in maintaining academic integrity. The LGS Handbook defines in the Honor Code section, academic dishonesty, and the procedure for hearings in cases where academic misconduct is suspected. Further, the Conduct Code in the LGS Handbook outlines requirements of student conduct and specifies that students are individually responsible for their own conduct and for their violations of the requirements of student conduct. The code further describes in detail the operation of the conduct procedures within the graduate school. 

All members of the faculty, administration, and clerical staff must respect confidential information about students which they acquire in the course of their work. At the same time the university must be flexible enough in its policies not to hinder the student, the institution, or the community in their legitimate pursuits. Each of the record-keeping administrative units within the university may develop its own additional specific procedures in accordance with the general policy found here. This policy is related to and based on a federal law, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99). Information about FERPA is posted on the Office of the Registrar's website and on the website of the Office of the General Counsel. 

Emory University considers the safety and welfare of its students, faculty, and staff a top priority. In contrast to the Student Conduct Code that treats student behavior that violates Emory's rules of conduct as a disciplinary matter, this Involuntary Withdrawal Policy and Procedure is not a disciplinary code, policy, or process. It applies when a student's observed conduct, actions, and/or statements indicate a direct threat to the student's own health and/or safety or a direct threat to the health and/or safety of others. There may be situations in which both this Involuntary Withdrawal Policy and the Student Conduct Code apply. In all cases, the dean of the student's school has the final authority regarding the decision, enactment, enforcement, and management of the involuntary withdrawal of a student. The policy also authorizes the referral of a student for a mandatory evaluation by an appropriate mental health professional or other appropriate professional under specified conditions and the actions that can be taken based on the evaluation, and it provides procedures for hearing and appeal by students, for emergency suspension, and the conditions for re-enrollment. 

Emory provides unpaid internship opportunities to eligible individuals in certain fields of study to help further an intern's training, education, or career learning by providing planned and supervised activities within a practical setting in which the intern may apply what the intern is learning or has learned in a classroom setting. This policy provides that each department and unit at Emory University that offers an internship program establish its own specific eligibility and qualification requirements for interns, but also provides a list of additional requirements that an individual must meet in order to hold an internship at Emory. 

It is important for faculty to be aware of the full range of services offered to keep Emory students healthy, including programs that highlight prevention and wellness (sleep hygiene, stress management, healthy relationships, lowering risk for drug and alcohol use, preventing violence, nutrition, sexual health, etc.). 

The first choice for student care is the Emory University Student Health and Counseling Services (EUSHCS). EUSHCS offer a variety of preventive, outpatient primary care, and mental health services. The staff can assist students with concerns that might otherwise impair academic performance, including sleep, stress, nutrition, illness, relationships, anxiety, depression, and alcohol and other substance use. 

Emory students are responsible for notifying professors or instructors of absences caused by illness or injury. EUSHCS providers do not write medical excuses for missed classes or examinations. Of course, EUSHCS health care providers can supply the necessary documentation for extended illnesses or injuries, including those necessitating withdrawal from classes. 

The Counseling and Psychological Services Center provides free, confidential counseling for enrolled undergraduate, graduate, and professional students at Emory University. The Emory Counseling and Psychological Services Center helps students understand the transition to college, find ways to cope with crises, and grow from experiences. Counselors maintain strict confidentiality, with exceptions only when extreme harm could come to the client or another person or when required by law. Students may also receive services through the Emory Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. 

If a faculty member is concerned about a student, the first step might be talking to the student, expressing concern, and then making the student aware of the Counseling and Psychological Services Center as a resource. Because of confidentiality constraints, faculty will not receive treatment-related information about a student whom they have previously referred to the center. However, faculty are encouraged to communicate specific concerns about a student before or after the referral to the center. 

Faculty are encouraged to act when they are concerned about a student. 

Students might disclose an incident of sexual misconduct or violence to a trusted faculty member. If this happens, the faculty member must promptly channel any and all reports involving prohibited conduct under the Sex and Gender-Based Harassment and Discrimination Policy (“Policy 8.2”) to Emory’s Title IX office. Response guides and other information about sexual assault and relationship violence are available online for faculty and staff.