Student Conduct

Policy on Academic Honesty

As members of the academic community, students are expected to recognize and uphold standards of intellectual and academic integrity. The Policy on Academic Honesty assumes as a basic and minimum standard of conduct in academic matters that students be honest and that they submit for credit only the products of their own efforts. The ideals of scholarship and the need for fairness require that all dishonest work be rejected as a basis for academic credit. They also require that students refrain from any and all forms of dishonorable or unethical conduct related to their academic work.

The Policy on Academic Honesty is published in the Student Code of Conduct and the Student Handbook and is available to all members of the university community. The policy represents a core value of the university, and all members of the university community are responsible for abiding by its tenets. Lack of knowledge of this policy is not an acceptable defense to any charge of academic dishonesty. Members of the academic community, students, faculty and staff, are expected to report violations of these standards of academic conduct in accordance with the procedures articulated in this Policy on Academic Honesty.

Student Code of Conduct

The Georgia State Student Code of Conduct contains policies and procedures to both promote the university mission and protect the rights of students, faculty and staff. The Office of the Dean of Students is responsible for upholding the university’s established policies and procedures that comprise the Student Code of Conduct. The Student Code of Conduct articulates the types of actions that infringe upon the campus' climate of civility and the academic integrity of the university. An overarching philosophy of the student conduct process is to provide students with the opportunity to reflect upon their actions, take responsibility for the outcomes of their life and develop ethical approaches to their decision-making process. Students are obligated to be knowledgeable of and to comply with the university’s rules, policies and procedures. Students are also individually responsible for understanding and exercising their rights, fulfilling their obligations and respecting the rights of others. A copy of the most current Student Code of Conduct may be accessed on the web.

For more information, visit the Office of the Dean of Students in the Student Center East, Suite 303, or call 404-413-1515.

FERPA

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) was enacted to give students access to their education records and to protect their privacy. Unless a student is legally dependent, the university is prohibited by FERPA from releasing student account information to a parent or guardian or other unauthorized third party without the student's consent.

Students who wish to authorize an individual to have access to their student records should complete the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act Waiver in the Office of the Dean of Students. For more information regarding access to student records, visit the Office of the Registrar.

Hearing Boards

Students charged with violations of the Student Code of Conduct may select to participate in a formal hearing process. These hearings are conducted by either the Student Ethics and Standards Board or the Sexual Misconduct Board, depending on the type of alleged code violations.

Reporting Code of Conduct Violations

The Georgia State Student Code of Conduct contains policies and procedures to both promote the university mission and protect the rights of students, faculty and staff. Students are obligated to be knowledgeable of and to comply with the university’s rules, policies and procedures. Students are also individually responsible for understanding and exercising their rights, fulfilling their obligations and respecting the rights of others. The Student Code of Conduct articulates the types of actions that infringe upon the campus' climate of civility and the academic integrity of the university. An overarching philosophy of the student conduct process is to provide students with the opportunity to reflect upon their actions and take responsibility for the outcomes of their life and to develop ethical approaches to their decision-making process.

Members of the university community who believe a student violation of the Student Code of Conduct has occurred should submit an Incident Report to the Office of the Dean of Students located in Student Center East, Suite 300. The complaint must state sufficient facts, including specific name(s), date(s), location(s) and description(s) of the alleged act(s) of misconduct to enable the Dean of Students to decide whether further fact finding is necessary.

Student Ethics and Standards Board

The Student Ethics and Standards Board (SESB) exists to uphold the standards of the Georgia State community by providing peer adjudication of alleged student violations of the Student Code of Conduct.

When the SESB is selected as a student’s hearing route, a SESB Hearing Panel will review all of the information presented and will respond fairly and effectively to alleged violations of the Student Code of Conduct. The Hearing Panel makes recommendations to the Dean of Students. The SESB may not hear cases of alleged violations of the Policy on Academic Honesty and the Sexual Misconduct Policy. The SESB receives yearly training on adjudicating a conduct case and strives to protect the Georgia State community while assisting with the student’s personal growth.

Student Organization Hearings

As outlined in the Student Code of Conduct, results of hearing boards involving student organizations are made public through the Office of the Dean of Students website.

No Hazing @ State

At Georgia State, we are committed to providing a safe educational environment for our students and student organizations. As outlined in the Student Code of Conduct, hazing is a violation of state law and is strictly prohibited by Georgia State both on and off campus. Violation of this policy may result in both disciplinary action and criminal charges.

In compliance with the Georgia SB 85 "Max Gruver Act", beginning July 1, 2021 Georgia State will publicly disclose administrative adjudication of hazing or hazing related convictions. The law requires that institutions establish policies to facilitate the:
(1) Reporting, investigation, provision of due process, and administrative adjudication of alleged incidents of hazing as related to students and student organizations; and
(2) Public disclosure of administrative adjudications of hazing or hazing related convictions within 15 calendar days of final adjudication or public notice of criminal conviction and remain posted for a period of no less than five years.

Below is the Hazing Policy, Prevention and Education information, a description of the specific hazing related findings, sanctions, adjudications, and convictions for any person or school organization. Public disclosure shall not include the personal identifying information of any individual student and shall be subject to the requirements of the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

Dean's Certification

What is a Dean's Certification?
A Dean’s Certification is a letter commonly requested by third parties for a variety of reasons (e.g., transferring to another institution, admission to graduate/professional programs, state bar associations, government agencies, and for certain forms of employment) to determine whether a student (past or current) has a disciplinary record(s) on file with the Office of the Dean of Students.

What Information will be Released?
Information about released information can be found here.

How do I Request a Dean's Certification?
A request for a Dean’s Certification Letter is submitted Dean's Certification Online Form and is typically completed by the student who as part of the request process gives consent for GSU to release the information to a third party. However, some requests are received directly from third parties using uploaded verification forms that include the student’s signature granting permission for the release of information. For more information, please email the Office of the Dean of Students.

When requesting your Dean's Certification Online Form, please attach any accompanying forms from the institutions for which you are requesting Dean's Certification. Please note that your forms must be signed and dated before any information can be released.

Please include the following information with your form:

• Your full name while attending Georgia State
• Panther ID number (or date of birth if you do not remember your Panther ID)
• Phone number and email address
• The form from the institution you are requesting information for
• An email address or physical address for where the form should go
• Your signature and date on the form (this is your permission to release the information). Note: The form cannot be submitted blank or processed without your signature.

What is the timeframe?
It will take approximately 1-2 weeks to complete the certification forms and get them emailed or sent postal mail to the institution requesting the information.

If you have any questions about this process, please email the Office of the Dean of Students or call 404-413-1515 during normal business hours, Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:15 p.m.