Evan Anthony

With contributions by Andy Rees.

Surviving RIT’s rigorous freshman course load is a challenge unto itself, and crossing paths with the Student Conduct Office (SCO) is probably not an experience that you want to remember as part of your college career. If you are on scholarship, encountering the SCO is also strongly discouraged. Here are things you shouldn’t do but, if you do, try not to get caught.

• The drinking age is 21, no exceptions!
• Stay away from anything illegal: drugs, guns, robbery, and so on.
• Respect RIT, its facilities, and everyone that expects the campus to be a safe place.
• Do not put incriminating photos on your Facebook or MySpace.
• Students are adults who are responsible for the consequences of their actions both on-and off-campus.
• In the words of RIT’s student conduct rules, “Students neither relinquish civil rights nor acquire additional rights by virtue of being within an academic community; they do, however, take on additional responsibilities.”
• In the 2007-08 school year, the three most common Public Safety referrals to the SCO centered around alcohol, drugs, and theft.
• In 2008, RIT introduced a Good Samaritan policy which grants leniency to students involved in an alcohol-related medical emergency. This means that if something bad does happen, students shouldn’t be afraid to use appropriate emergency services.

If you are accused of violating RIT’s code of conduct, you will enter into the student conduct process. This begins with a letter stating the allegations brought against you. Following this letter, you will be asked to schedule a hearing. During the hearing, a designated student conduct officer reviews the evidence and testimony of the case and renders a decision. It’s important to note that the hearings are not a court case and are not bound by the same rules. Lawyers are not allowed to participate in the proceedings, but you are allowed to bring a faculty or staff member as an advocate, who may participate in the hearing on behalf of the student. Appeals may be filed, but only in select circumstances. Refer to the student conduct website for more information.

Every incident has a different outcome but, unfortunately, freshmen are most likely to be the ones getting in trouble this year. The 2007-08 year had 1,297 incidences and 39 percent of them were committed by first year students. So have fun, but be smart.