Last week, The Daily Pennsylvanian ran “Surviving Silence,” a four-part series on sexual violence at Penn. We applaud the DP’s excellent coverage of such an immensely important issue, but we would like to call special attention to one particular reality on campus: Most Penn students are unfamiliar with how to navigate the University’s disciplinary process.
We, the University Honor Council, are a group of undergraduate students designated under the Student Judicial Charter with a two-part mission: to help educate students on university policy and to sit as representatives of the student body on university disciplinary hearings. In light of the recent conversation on campus surrounding sexual violence, we wish to make Penn students aware of their rights and options so that they can navigate the university’s disciplinary process if necessary.
If a student is a victim of sexual assault, they are strongly urged to immediately find a safe space away from the perpetrator, seek assistance from the Penn Police and receive medical attention. At this point, students may pursue legal action outside of the University through civil or criminal means. Additionally, students have the option to initiate the university disciplinary process, by filing a complaint with the Office of Student Conduct. When filing a complaint with OSC, both the complainant and the accused have the option of having an advisor to help them through the process.
Once a complaint is brought, OSC will investigate and then either dismiss the complaint (with the option for the complainant to appeal) or levy sanctions against the accused student. The accused student can then accept or appeal those sanctions. If the accused student does appeal the sanctions, there is a disciplinary hearing, adjudicated by a panel comprised of two faculty members and three University Honor Council members.
At Penn, the standard of proof for a sexual misconduct case is “preponderance of the evidence,” which means that it must be more likely than not that the alleged violation occurred in order for the panel to find the accused student responsible and impose proper sanctions. If the standard of proof is not met, the panel will not hold the student responsible. However, both parties involved in the hearing and OSC can appeal the given sanctions or findings.
While the University disciplinary process can seem complex, it is our hope to provide all students with opportunities to understand the university’s policies related to these important issues. To further this mission, we provide educational presentations to all types of student groups to educate students about the university’s policies and additional resources available at Penn.
If you individually, or if a student group you are involved in is interested in this information, please contact us for more information at universityhonorcouncil@gmail.com. Additionally, our website — universityhonorcouncil.org — provides an abundance of resources related to navigating the University disciplinary process.
We recognize that this is an extremely sensitive topic and hope that by further educating students about how to navigate the university’s policies relating to sexual violence, we can make Penn a safer and stronger campus in the fight against sexual violence.
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