Procedures Relating to Student Discipline

THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
PROCEDURES RELATING TO STUDENT DISCIPLINE

The following procedures will govern complaints regarding the conduct of a student enrolled in the School of Medicine.

1. A student’s record within the School of Medicine will contain documentation reflecting conduct during the period of enrollment.
   
   
2. A student will have access to his School record, including those documents, if any, reflecting conduct, in accordance with the standards set forth in the Family Educational Rights to Privacy Act and applicable University policy. The University’s policy on access to and release of student records is published annually and a copy may be obtained from the Office of the Registrar of the School of Medicine. 
   
   
3. When information reaches the School indicating that a student has engaged in behavior unbefitting a physician and/or a medical scientist, the student will be requested to confer with the Associate Dean for Student Affairs.
   
   
4. Where a matter involving student conduct cannot be resolved to the satisfaction of the Associate Dean for Student Affairs, or where the gravity of the acts with which the student is charged appears to warrant further attention, the Dean of the Medical Faculty will appoint an ad hoc committee of the Advisory Board of the Medical Faculty to hear the charge of misconduct. The Committee may include such other persons, for example, student peers, as may be deemed appropriate. Each person appointed to the ad hoc committee shall be free of bias or personal interest in the matter. The Dean, Vice Dean, Associate Dean and Registrar shall be non-voting ex-officio members of the ad hoc committee. The Dean, Vice Dean, or an Associate Dean shall preside at meetings of the ad hoc committee and may vote when the ad hoc committee is equally divided on a question.
   
   
5. A student charged with misconduct will be given written notice of the charges and of the date and time of the Committee hearing. Prior to the hearing an accused student shall be given access to all documentary evidence to be presented against him. An accused student may request an opportunity to consult with the Dean, Vice Dean, or an Associate Dean prior to a hearing.
   
   
6. A student may be accompanied to the hearing by a faculty member or student advisor.  Representation of the accused student or the accusing party at the hearing by attorneys will not be permitted.
   
   
7. In the course of the hearing, a student will be given the opportunity to present evidence and witnesses in his behalf, to question all witnesses, and to make statements to the Committee.
   
   
8. Members of the ad hoc committee may ask questions of the student charged and of witnesses appearing before the Committee.
   
   
9. A hearing before the ad hoc committee will be closed and persons other than Deans appearing as witnesses will be asked to absent themselves before and after their testimony. Parents of the accused student will be permitted to accompany a student throughout the hearing, and, if they should wish to do so, to make a statement.
   
   
10. A hearing shall be recorded but the deliberations of the ad hoc committee shall not be recorded.  Following the hearing, the accused student shall be permitted to listen to the recording upon request, but all copies of the recording shall remain in the School’s possession.
    
    
11. All parties, witnesses, and representatives shall be excused at the conclusion of the hearing and the ad hoc committee shall deliberate privately. The Committee shall make findings as to the truth or falsity of the charges against the student and, where necessary, shall submit to the Dean a recommendation of a penalty.
    
    
12. The options for disciplinary action, should the Committee decide that the student’s behavior warrants discipline, will include, but will not necessarily be limited to the following:
    1. Reprimand without probation or suspension.
    2. Probation for a specified time period or until explicit* conditions are met.  Review and final decisions to be administrative.
    3. Suspension for a specified time period or until explicit* conditions are met.  Review to be administrative.
    4. Suspension for a specified time or until explicit* conditions are met.  Review by the ad hoc committee of the Advisory Board.
    5. Unconditional Expulsion
       
    *Explicit conditions are to be unambiguous and as objective as the conditions allow.
    
    
13. A student may appeal an adverse decision to the Dean of the School of Medicine, or, in the absence of the Dean, appeal may be made to the Vice Dean or an Associate Dean. A student may appeal an adverse decision of the Dean, Vice Dean, or Associate Dean to the Provost of the University.
    
    
14. A student may attend classes pending the proceedings before the ad hoc committee unless the student is judged by the Dean, Vice Dean, or Associate Dean to be a danger to himself or others. A student must seek the permission of the Dean, Vice Dean, or Associate Dean in order to continue the educational program pending appeal from the recommendations of the ad hoc committee.