Panhellenic Council

The judicial process begins when information and/or documentation is submitted to the Center for Community Standards or Panhellenic Council regarding a Drury-related Sorority Life incident.

This documentation can be a:

• Statement provided by faculty or staff member
• Statement provided by a member of the community
• Statement provided by Drury University student
• Drury University Facilities Damage Report
• Drury University Housing Policy Violation Report
• Drury University Security Report
• Drury University Policy Violation Citation
• Online information report www.drury.edu/information report

Panhellenic Council: Violation Reporting

• Where to find: www.drury.edu/greeklife, select “Greek Life Resources” in left side bar, find Join! Sorority Life section in forms section on right, select “Report a Sorority Recruitment Violation”
• Who can submit: Potential Member (for violations that happen to them or their friends), Chapter President (violations that chapter members report or that they witness), Panhellenic Recruitment Counselor (violations that they witness or that a PNM reports to them), Panhellenic Advisor (violations that they witness, that a PNM reports to them, operational violations)
• Form Review: example Violation Reporting Form in this Handbook

The Office of Greek Life and/or the Council Vice President of Standards will review documentation, check for previous incident files, and assess further steps that need to be taken in the judicial process. An incident file for the student or the student organization is kept on hand until the file is complete, and then turned in to the permanent file.

Panhellenic Council: Violation Report Review

• Form Receipt: violation reports are electronic documents received via email by Panhellenic Advisor
• Report Verification: Panhellenic Advisor contacts submitter immediately after receiving report to verify submission
• Required Standards: Report is reviewed for complete information and accuracy.
  • Meets Standards: Panhellenic VP of Standards is contacted to draft meeting/mediation scheduling letter
  • Doesn’t Meet Standards: Incomplete form is dismissed. Panhellenic Advisor contacts report submitter via email to re-complete the form completely and accurately.
• Form Review: examples Violation Reporting Form: Completed 1, 2, 3 in this Handbook

Based on the nature and severity of the incident, students or student organizations are contacted via within five working days of the incident/receipt of documentation to schedule a meeting with the appropriate office. Contact will be made via Panhellenic Scheduling Letter through e-mail to the Drury University e-mail account and may also include an official Drury letter to the involved student or student organization and, if applicable, the campus advisor.

If the student or student organization does not respond within five working days after efforts to contact them have been made, information will be reviewed and a determination will be made without the student’s or organization’s input regarding the incident.

• No Response (IQ SO): If the ‘in question’ student or student organization does not respond within five working days after efforts to contact them have been made, information will be reviewed and a determination will be made regarding the incident.
• No Response (R SO): If the ‘reporting’ student or student organization does not respond within five working days after efforts to contact them have been made, it will be understood that the charges are dropped.

Panhellenic Council: Meeting Scheduling

• Scheduling Letter Meeting: The Panhellenic Advisor and the Panhellenic VP of Standards meet to review documentation and draft the letters. Letters will be drafted within 24 hours of receipt of documentation.
• Scheduling Letters: Two scheduling letters are completed and sent via email. One is submitted to the ‘in question’ chapter president and the second to the ‘reporting’ chapter president
• Scheduling Letter Review: examples Scheduling Letter: In Question and Scheduling Letter: Reporting in this Handbook

The student or student organization will be given the Student Conduct Process Form and/or a Council Mediation Form as a guide for the meeting. The student or student organization will initial each section as it is reviewed and understood, and be advised on the nature of the alleged violation and their options and responsibilities. Options are to:

1. Proceed: Proceed with the informal disposition and/or mediation process. The incident and relevant information will be discussed with the student or student organization. The student or student organization have the opportunity to review the documentation and present any relevant information. A decision is made either at meeting, after deliberation, or after any additional investigation deemed necessary at the meeting.
2. Appeal: Instead of participating in this meeting or if a compromise cannot be reached or if additional investigation is deemed necessary, students and student organizations have the right to appeal to a formal review by the governing Council (IFC and/or Panhellenic). The governing Council Judicial Board will review all relevant information at the scheduled judicial hearing and make a formal decision based on the information provided during the hearing.

Panhellenic Council: Mediation Meeting

• Scheduling Letter Meeting: The Panhellenic Advisor and the Panhellenic VP of Standards meet to review documentation and draft the letters. Letters will be drafted within 24 hours of receipt of documentation
• Scheduling Letters: Two scheduling letters are completed and sent via email. One is submitted to the ‘in question’ chapter president and the second to the ‘reporting’ chapter president
• Council Mediation Form Review: example Mediation Meeting Form in this Handbook

Student or student organization and campus advisor will be notified of the decision in writing by e-mail and an official Drury letter of the Mediation Compromise. The letter will indicate specific charges and violations, including date, time, location and nature. It will also indicate the decision, findings, and sanctions (if appropriate), with any relevant information such as specificity and deadlines. Finally, it may include recommendation of parental notification (if appropriate).

The student or student organization has 24 hours following receipt of letter to respond to Informal Disposition (Mediation Compromise) Letter via signature and return to the Office of Greek Life. The student or student organization has the right to:

• Accept: Accept decision and sanction(s). The Office of Greek Life will monitor the completion of the sanctions. The incident file closes after completion of the sanctions.
• Appeal: Reject decision and/or sanction(s). Students have the right to invoke a hearing at the next level with the governing Council (IFC and/or Panhellenic). Typically petitions for review should but are not required to be based upon one or more of the following:
  1. Sanctions inconsistent with the level of the violation
  2. An error in the student conduct procedures
  3. New information relevant to the incident (presented within 7 days of the decision)
  4. Severity of incident
• No Response: No response after 24 hours indicates acceptance of the decision and sanction(s).

Panhellenic Council: Mediation Compromise Letter

• Mediation Letter Review: example Mediation Compromise Letter (compromise) and Mediation Compromise Letter (no compromise)

The Council judicial board is composed of equal representation from each chapter, traditionally represented by the senior council members. One member of the Greek Life staff will serve as ex-officio and Judicial Board Coordinator. The decision of the Judicial Board is final, unless otherwise subject to the right of appeal to the Drury University Judicial Board.

The student or student organization will be given the Council Judicial Form as a guide for the meeting. The student or student organization will initial each section as it is reviewed and understood, and be advised on the nature of the alleged violation and their options and responsibilities. Options are to:

1. Proceed: Proceed with the Council Judicial Hearing. The incident and relevant information will be discussed with the student or student organization. The student or student organization have the opportunity to review the documentation and present any relevant information. A decision is made either at meeting, after deliberation, or after any additional investigation deemed necessary at the hearing.
2. Appeal: Instead of participating in this meeting, students and student organizations have the right to appeal to a formal review by the Drury University Student Judicial Board. The Board will review all relevant information at the scheduled judicial hearing and make a formal decision based on the information provided during the hearing.

For a more complete listing of Drury University sanctions, refer to the current Student Life Guide.

Panhellenic Council: Council Judicial Board Hearing

• Room Set-Up: Four 8ft tables. Head table: Panhellenic Recruitment Counselors, Foot Table: Junior Panhellenics and Panhellenic Advisor. Left Table: Reporting Chapter. Right Table: In Question Chapter.
• Write down questions & statements: Panhellenic VP of Standards leads Judicial Hearing and the person speaking has the floor; others remain silent. If you have a question or comment, write it down to bring it up later.
• Council Judicial Form Review: (see example) What form looks like and what chapter leaders need to do

Student or student organization and campus advisor will be notified of the decision in writing by e-mail and an official Drury letter. The letter will indicate specific charges and violations, including date, time, location and nature. It will also indicate the decision, findings, and sanctions (if appropriate), with any relevant information such as specificity and deadlines. Finally, it may include recommendation of parental notification (if appropriate).

The student or student organization has 24 hours following receipt of letter to respond to Council Decision Letter via signature and return to the Office of Greek Life. The student or student organization has the right to:

• Accept: Accept decision and sanction(s). The Office of Greek Life will monitor the completion of the sanctions. The incident file closes after completion of the sanctions.
• Appeal: Reject decision and/or sanction(s). Students have the right to invoke a hearing at the next level. The next level hearing will be held with the Dean of Students or the Drury University Student Judicial Board, depending on the severity of the case and at the decision of the Dean of Students. Typically petitions for review should but are not required to be based upon one or more of the following:
  1. Sanctions inconsistent with the level of the violation
  2. An error in the student conduct procedures
  3. New information relevant to the incident (presented within 7 days of the decision)
  4. Severity of incident
• No Response: No response after 24 hours indicates acceptance of the decision and sanction(s).

The student or student organization has 24 hours following receipt of letter to respond to Official Decision Letter via signature and return to the Center for Community Standards.

Panhellenic Council: Council Decision Letter

• Right to Appeal: By participating in the Council Judicial Hearing, the reporting chapter agrees that they will uphold Panhellenic’s decision and waive their right to an appeal. The in question chapter may appeal Panhellenic’s decision based on the petitions listed above or another valid petition.
• Council Judicial Board Letter: example Council Judicial Board Letter: Completed 1, 2, 3 in this Handbook

The Drury judicial board is composed of three faculty/staff members and six students who are selected based on their involvement with Governing Student Organizations (RLA, IFC, and Panhellenic Council). The Dean of Students will serve as ex-officio and Judicial Board Coordinator.

Panhellenic Council: Hearing at the Next Level

• By participating in a hearing at the next level, both chapters and Panhellenic council are required to uphold the decision of the Dean of Students or the Drury Student Judicial Board.

Practices & Procedures
There are significant differences between the campus judicial and civil/criminal justice procedures.

• Overall, the campus judicial process is much less formal than criminal proceedings. The Office of Greek Life seeks to provide an atmosphere that is both supportive and reasonable. Students will find that more serious charges tend to be accompanied by a more formal process in an effort to protect the students’ rights.
• The decision process in campus judicial processes is that of a hearing, not a trial. Students and their advisors should expect a supportive and non-adversarial environment during the hearing process.
• The campus judicial process is intended to be educational, not punitive. Our goal is to help the student to better understand the impact of his or her actions and to help him or her take steps towards repairing the harm done to the University community. Sanctions are not always predetermined, in such a case a sanction will be designed to accommodate the individual circumstances.
• It is a privilege to attend Drury University, not a right. As such, removal of a student from campus through a sanction of suspension or dismissal is a possibility in certain circumstances in which the student has endangered the University community or engaged in repeated violations of the Code of Student Conduct.
• Findings of guilt in the campus judicial process will not result in any criminal record, but will be placed in the student’s permanent Drury University file.
• The standard of evidence in determining a student in violation is not as high as that of the criminal process. At Drury University, we use a level of “preponderance of evidence”, as opposed to “beyond a reasonable doubt”.
• Legal rules of evidence, i.e. whether something is “admissible”, do not apply in campus judicial cases. The hearing officers will gather and utilize any information that they deem is relevant, including hearsay or third party testimony.
• Campus judicial cases are confidential, in compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), a federal law.
• While students are entitled to an advisor (friend, parent, attorney, any person of their choosing), that advisor may not represent that student. Students are expected to speak for themselves at all times during the process. Any advisors disregarding these rules will be asked to leave any meeting or hearing.

Sanctions
Sanctions stated by the governing Council Judicial Board and/or the Drury University Student Judicial Board will follow the guidelines listed in the current Student Life Guide. The Council Judicial Board Sanctions and/or the Drury University Student Judicial Board will be consistent with the nature of the incident. Sanctions may include, but are not limited to:

• Career Counseling: Career counseling selected based on need for personal development and supervised by the Drury Career Center.
• Community Service: Community service hours selected based on the nature of the incident and monitored by the site supervisor.
• Counseling: Counseling selected based on need for personal development and assistance; supervised by the Drury Counseling Center.
• Disciplinary Probation: Exclusion from participation in privileged or extracurricular institution activities for a period of time not exceeding one academic year.
• Disciplinary Suspension: Termination of student group or student status for a determined period of time. The condition of readmission, if any, will be stated in the notice of suspension.
• Educational Assignments: Learning-outcome projects, classes or tasks based on the nature of the incident that provide an educational opportunity for individuals or groups involved.
• Fines: Monetary charges to the individual or group involved.
• Frozen Assets: Temporary or permanent hold on the student organization’s Drury University Budget account.
• Official Notification: Written notification to the National Governing Council, Chapter National Office, alumna, parents or guardians reviewing the incident and the judicial process.
• Peer Mentoring: Peer mentoring selected based on need for personal development and supervised by Panhellenic Council.
• Restitution: Reimbursement for damage to or misappropriation of property. This may take the form of appropriate service or other compensation.
• Warning: Notice, orally or in writing, that continuation or repetition of the conduct found wrongful within the period of time stated in the warning may be cause for more severe disciplinary action.

For a complete list of Drury University sanctions, refer to the current Community Standards Handbook.

Step 8:
Case Paperwork is Processed and Filed, Case is Completed Once the meetings and/or hearings are finished, all necessary paperwork has been compiled and the sanctions have been completed; the case paperwork will be processed and filed by the Greek Life Office.

To review the complete Drury University Judicial process or find information regarding cooperation during investigations and non-completion of sanctions resolutions, refer to the current Community Standards Handbook.