Students
IMPORTANT: If there is an immediate risk or threat, please contact Campus Security at (808) 689-2911, before filing an incident report.
FAQs
General Information
We understand the Student Code of Conduct may be an intimidating or an uncomfortable experience especially if you are unfamiliar with the conduct process or don’t know if an incident may be a potential violation under the Student Code of Conduct.
We are here to help! You can speak to our Student Conduct Officer, Trudy Asato, if you have questions about an incident, a notification, or the conduct process at uhwocode@hawaii.edu or (808) 689-2936.
You can contact the Student Conduct Officer/Deputy Student Title IX Coordinator, Trudy Asato at:
Email: uhwocode@hawaii.edu
Telephone: (808) 689-2936.
Location: C Building room C 237.
Yes! “The UH West O’ahu Student Code of Conduct shall apply to conduct that occurs on UH West Oʻahu’s premises, at UH West O’ahu sponsored activities, and to off-campus conduct that adversely affects the UH West O’ahu community and/or the pursuit of its objectives.” The Student Conduct Officer shall decide whether the Student Code of Conduct shall be applied to conduct occurring off campus, on a case by case basis, in his or her sole discretion.”
Students can submit a written incident report to the Student Conduct Office located in C – Building, C 240 or by using the online reporting form.
Due to limitations under the Federal Law (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, also known as “FERPA”), as well as the UH System Policy, AP 7.022 (also referred to “Procedures Relating to Protection of the Educational Rights and Privacy of Students”), the Student Conduct Office may be unable to share specific information about any student’s educational records, which may or may not include disciplinary action taken against a previously enrolled student.
The Student Code of Conduct explains, in detail, the procedure that each case will follow as stated in Article IV(A)(1-23), representatives, parents, or authorized campus personnel will only be allowed in this meeting at the discretion of the Student Conduct Officer when deemed appropriate. In addition, a FERPA release must be signed by the Respondent.
If you have questions about the process you may contact the Student Conduct Office at uhwocode@hawaii.edu or (808) 689-2936 for clarification.
Report
Any member of the UH West Oʻahu community (student, staff, and faculty) may file a report against a student for (an) alleged policy violation(s) under the Student Code of Conduct. We encourage you to help us support a positive educational environment that will benefit student success. When a student believes that she or he has been a victim of another student’s misconduct, the student who believes she or he has been a victim will have the same rights under this Student Code of Conduct as are provided to the Complainant, even if another member of the UH West Oʻahu community submitted the report.
The Student Conduct report form has an option to request that your information be kept anonymous. In Student Conduct cases involving an anonymous reporter, the Student Conduct Officer may be limited in attempting to resolve the issue or holding a student accountable for an alleged violation, unless additional information becomes available.
Yes! UH West O`ahu has an amnesty provision as of January 30, 2024.
You can find the amnesty provision in Article III(D) of the Student Code of Conduct.
Potential Violations
Please read the entire notification carefully! All of our notifications have directions, instructions, and information on next steps (if applicable), along with a summary of the allegations that may have occurred and the potential charges that you may have violated. Also, the notification has a deadline for the student to respond.
If you still have questions, please contact the Student Conduct Office at uhwocode@hawaii.edu or (808) 689-2936.
Article III(B) of the Student Code of Conduct, lists the 21 prohibited conduct. Some provisions include acts of dishonesty (cheating, plagiarism, and furnishing false information), disruption of teaching or administration, physical abuse or assaults, threats or threatening behavior, sexual misconduct, theft and failure to comply with directions of UH West Oʻahu officials or campus security officers.
Process
The Student Conduct Officer will:
- Conduct an impartial and reliable preliminary fact-finding investigation.
- Meet with the Complainant and/or any available witnesses;
- Make a determination:
- If the allegation(s) have merit; or
- Send a notification of the allegations to the Respondent.
- If the allegation(s) has no merit;
- Administratively resolve the report.
- If the allegation(s) have merit; or
- Consider an informal resolution if either party makes a request, as long as the other party agrees;
- The Respondent either:
- Schedules a meeting
- Submits a written statement.
- Written Statement:
- The Student Conduct Officer reviews the written statement where the Student Conduct Officer will:
- Ask clarifying questions
- Allow the Respondent the opportunity to provide any available witnesses, if any.
- Allow the Respondent the opportunity to provided any relevant documentation or information, if any.
- Make a determination on responsibility based on all the relevant information provided by all parties and witnesses if a potential violation(s) occurred or not.
- The Student Conduct Officer reviews the written statement where the Student Conduct Officer will:
- Conduct the Student Conduct Officer meeting where the Respondent will:
- Be able to provide witnesses.
- Be able to provide any relevant information or documentation.
- Be able to tell their side of the story regarding the alleged incident.
- The Student Conduct Officer will make a determination on responsibility whether “more likely than not” a potential violation occurred or not based on all the relevant information provided by all parties and witnesses at the conclusion of the Student Conduct Meeting.
The Student Conduct Officer will conduct an impartial and reliable preliminary fact-finding investigation to determine if the allegation(s) have merit and/or if they can be resolved administratively by the Student Conduct Officer.
The Student Conduct Officer may request a meeting with you, as the Complainant, to gather more information and/or ask clarifying questions regarding the alleged incident. The Student Conduct Officer will explain the Student Code of Conduct process and available options to resolve this incident.
If there is sufficient information that a policy violation may have occurred the student is notice for a potential violation under the Student Code of Conduct. However, if there is insufficient information that a policy violation occurred, the report is dismissed.
Educational Opportunity: The SCO will send an email to the student (Respondent) requesting a non-mandatory meeting to meet and discuss the issue and remind the student of their responsibility as a UH West O`ahu student. If the request is declined an email will be sent outlining the reporter’s issue, request, and remind them of their responsibility. If the behavior continues, the student may be notice for a potneital violation.
If the student is notice, the student is required to meet with the SCO for an opportunity to tell their side of the story. If the SCO makes a determines whether “more likely than not” the student either:
Violated the Student Code of Conduct: The student will be formally charged (found responsible) and sanctions imposed. A record of the discipline is placed in the student’s disciplinary file.
Did not violate the Student Code of Conduct: The student will not be formally charged (found not responsible) and the case is dismissed.
Informal Resolution: If either party request for an alternate form of resolution and the other party agrees. The parties will engage in an informal resolution. If the informal resolution results in mutual satisfaction the case is closed. If the case is not resolved, it may be forwarded to the SCO for a formal resolution.
Visual Illustration: The Student Code of Conduct Grievance Process.
Yes! If either party requests an alternate form of resolution and the other party agrees, the parties will engage in an informal resolution.
If the informal resolution results in mutual satisfaction of both parties, then the case will be considered resolved.
If the case is not resolved, the Student Conduct Officer may move to a formal resolution and both parties will be informed.
Note: Informal resolution is available for cases involving Sexual Misconduct [Article III(B)(4)(a-f)] only if a formal complaint has been filed and both parties agree to informally resolve the complaint. However, informal resolution is not available
for cases involving discrimination and/or sex/gender-based discrimination [Article III(B)(5)] unless the Complainant or Victim requests it, and the Respondent agrees to participate.
If you fail to contact the Student Conduct Office, fail to schedule an appointment, or fail to submit a written statement within five (5) business days of the date stated on the written notification (excluding Saturday, Sunday, and Holidays), a hold will be placed on your account until you respond to the notification, which may delay registration, transcript requests, or other institutional transactions.
The Student Code of Conduct shall apply to a student’s conduct even if the student withdraws from classes at UH West Oʻahu after a report was submitted or while a disciplinary matter is pending.
If an individual has violated the Student Code of Conduct on UH West Oʻahu property while not enrolled as a student at UH West Oʻahu, but then later seeks to enroll, he or she must first contact the Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs (VCSA) (or his or her designee). The same Due Process procedures listed in Article IV(A)(1-23) will be followed to determine an admission decision.
The people who are involved in the Student Conduct Officer Meeting are the Respondent and the Student Conduct Officer.
The Complainant and witnesses are not present at the Student Conduct Officer Meeting. The Student Conduct Officer will meet separately with the Complainant and witnesses for information regarding the incident before the Student Conduct Officer Meeting occurs.
The University of Hawai’i–West Oʻahu prohibits and will not tolerate retaliation as defined in the UH System Executive Policy EP 7.205 and the UH West Oʻahu Student Code of Conduct.
Retaliation will be reviewed as a separate offense under the Student Code of Conduct; that is a student can be found responsible for retaliation even if not found responsible for the underlying reported Student Code of Conduct violation.
Failure to complete any of your sanction(s) stated in your “Responsibility Letter” may result in a hold placed on your student account until your sanction(s) are submitted and accepted, which may delay registration, transcript requests, or other institutional transactions and you may receive a notice for a potential violation; “Failure to complete required sanctions.”
Yes! You (Respondent) or the Complainant may appeal a decision reached by the Student Conduct Officer. You will be provided information on the appeal process in your “Responsibility Letter” along with the link to the online appeal form.
For more information regarding appeals, please refer to Article IV(D)(1-6) in the Student Code of Conduct.
Responsibility/Sanctions
Contact us! We are here to help you! Every sanction has a purpose. Most sanctions are meant to be educational.
If you don’t understand what is expected of you or if you have questions about your sanction, please contact the Student Conduct Office to get clarification.
In cases where an UH West Oʻahu student is found responsible for a violation of the West Oʻahu Student Code of Conduct, UH West Oʻahu will impose discipline that is consistent with the impact of the offense on the UH West Oʻahu community. Article IV(B)(1-7) lists the potential sanctions a student may receive if they have been found “more likely than not” responsible for engaging in prohibited conduct. Some examples may include a written warning, discretionary sanctions, educational sanction, or suspension.
Questions?
If you have questions whether a potential violation occurred or if you are unsure on how to proceed in submitting an incident report, come talk with us.