VIII. Process for Respondents to Respond to the Three Forms of Complaint

In all matters before the COD, a respondent is provided all the relevant information available to the Chair and the COD and an opportunity to respond. Refusal or failure by the respondent to participate in any part of the COD process shall not prevent the COD from resolving the complaint based upon the information available, but it may result in the Chair restricting the information a respondent can provide at a hearing.

A. General Complaint

Following receipt of a general complaint not involving discrimination or discriminatory harassment, OSCCS will review the allegations. If OSCCS reviews the general complaint and, accepting all factual allegations as true, determines that the allegations do not rise to the level of a policy violation, OSCCS may dismiss the complaint without notifying the respondent. OSCCS may, but is not required to, consult with the Chair before dismissing a complaint at this stage. Otherwise, OSCCS will proceed with the resolution of the complaint. OSCCS will refer complaints of discrimination and discriminatory harassment to IDHR for review.

  1. If a complaint is not dismissed, OSCCS will notify the respondent(s) that a complaint has been received and will provide a list of policies alleged to have been violated. In some situations, OSCCS or COD may send an informal warning or educational reminder of policies without meeting with the respondent. Otherwise, the respondent is required to meet with OSCCS. The purpose of this initial meeting is to provide notice of the nature of the complaint and give the respondent an initial opportunity to respond to the allegations verbally, and discuss the COD procedures.
  1. Following the initial meeting, the respondent has an opportunity to submit a written statement to the COD. If the respondent chooses to submit a statement, it must be submitted to OSCCS within three business days of the initial meeting with OSCCS. The respondent may waive the right to this three-day period to request expedited COD action. The waiver must be submitted in writing to OSCCS. If an investigation is conducted, the respondent can submit the written statement within three business days after receiving the investigative report. In certain time-sensitive circumstances, subject to the COD Chair’s discretion, the COD/OSCCS may alter the procedures for a written statement, including omission of the statement opportunity or changing the length of time a respondent has to submit a statement.
  1. The respondent will be required to certify that their written response is their own original work and the respondent must cite sources, editors, and collaborators appropriately.
  1. Respondent’s response may include the names of any witnesses or advisors or those may be submitted at a later date, should the case proceed to a hearing.
  2. Following the completion of an investigation, if any, and submission of a written response by the respondent or the deadline to submit a response elapsing without a statement being submitted, the case will be reviewed by the Chair to determine which method will be used to resolve the case as described in Section VIII.
    • a. If the Chair determines the case should be resolved using administrative resolution, the respondent will be notified of the outcome of the case in writing following the administrative resolution.
    • b. If the Chair determines the case should be resolved using a hearing or sanctioning panel, the respondent will be notified of the date, time, and place of the hearing or sanctioning panel and an opportunity to submit additional statements, or other documents in advance of the hearing or the sanctioning panel. Hearings will be conducted according to the procedure described in Section IX.  Sanctioning panels will be conducted according to the procedure described in Section X.

           vi. In all cases that progress to a COD hearing or sanctioning panel, unless the Chair provides an exception, the respondent’s academic transcript will not be released either to the respondent or to any third party pending the resolution of the complaint.

B.  Sexual Misconduct, Sexual Harassment, Intimate Partner Violence, Stalking, or Title IX Sexual Harassment Complaint

See Section XIII for special procedures for investigating and resolving complaints of sexual misconduct, sexual harassment, intimate partner violence, stalking, and Title IX Sexual Harassment.

C.  Faculty Letter to File

The Chair and OSCCS will review any faculty letter to file (see Section VI.D.) and may consult with the referring faculty member to determine if there needs to be any further action on the complaint. The Chair and OSCCS may also consult with a faculty member or department head if the academic subject matter is outside the Chair’s area of expertise. The Chair may direct the case to be resolved by administrative resolution, hearing, or sanctioning panel. In such cases, the letter to file will be treated as a complaint (see Section VI.D.ii.). If the Chair accepts the letter as a faculty letter to file, the respondent will have three business days to choose one of the following responses to such a letter to file:

  1. The respondent may choose not to respond. If the respondent chooses this option, the faculty letter to file will be considered a finding of responsibility for the academic integrity violation specified in the complaint. No sanctions other than the notation of the situation in the faculty letter to file will be assigned.
  1. The respondent may choose to submit a written response to be maintained with the faculty letter to file. In this case, the faculty letter to file will be considered a finding of responsibility for the academic integrity violation specified in the complaint. No sanctions other than the notation of the situation in the faculty letter to file will be assigned. The response submitted by the respondent will be reviewed in the event of further allegations. The respondent will be required to certify that their written response is their own original work and the respondent must cite sources, editors, and collaborators appropriately.
  1. The respondent may challenge the faculty letter to file by requesting a COD review of the case. If the respondent chooses this option, the faculty letter to file will be considered a general complaint and the appropriate procedures will be followed.

 

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