Student Code of Conduct
Morgan expects all students, regardless of delivery format, to exhibit mature behavior and personal conduct consistent with the highest business standards. All students are expected to abide by Morgan’s Student Code of Conduct.
Article I
1. The term “Morgan” means Morgan Holding and any of its subsidies and affiliates, d/b/a, Morgan
2. The term “Students” includes all persons taking courses or receiving services or materials from Morgan. Persons not officially enrolled for a particular session but who have a continuing relationship with Morgan are considered “Students.”
3. The term “instructor” means any person hired by or contracted with Morgan to conduct instructional activities, either in person or online.
3. The term “Morgan staff” means any person employed by Morgan or one of its subsidiaries.
4. The term “member of the Morgan community” includes students, instructors or Morgan staff, and or any other individuals associated with Morgan. The Director, Client Services or designee shall determine a person’s status in a particular situation.
5. The term “Morgan premises” includes all land, buildings, offices, facilities and other property in the possession of or owned, used, rented, leased or controlled by Morgan (including parking lots, adjacent streets and sidewalks).
6. The term “judicial advisor” means a Morgan official authorized on a case-by-case basis by the Manager, Client Services or designee to determine whether a student has violated the Student Code of Conduct and impose sanctions upon students found to have violated the Student Code of Conduct. Nothing shall prevent the Manager, Client Services or designee from authorizing the same judicial advisor to impose sanctions in all cases.
7. The term “shall” is used in the imperative sense.
8. The term “may” is used in the permissive sense.
9. The Manager, Client Services or designee is that person designated by the CEO of Morgan to be responsible for administration of the Student Code of Conduct.
10. The term “policy” is defined as the written regulations of Morgan as found in, but not limited to, the Enrollment Agreement, Terms of Service,Software license, End User License Agreement, In-Class Policies and Procedures, and catalogs.
11. The term “organization” means any number of persons who have complied with the formal requirements for Morgan recognition/registration.
Article II: Judicial Authority
1. The Program Manager shall develop procedures for administration of the judicial program and for the conduct of hearings, which are not inconsistent with provisions of the Student Code of Conduct.
2. Decisions made by the Program Manager shall be final, pending the normal appeal process.
Article III: Proscribed Conduct
Jurisdiction of Morgan
The Code of Conduct applies to Student behavior that affects the Morgan community, irrespective of where that conduct may occur.
Conduct – Rules and Regulations
Any Student found to have committed the following misconduct may be subject to disciplinary sanctions outlined in Article IV. (This list is not all-inclusive but does include categories of misconduct as defined by Morgan.)
1. Acts of dishonesty, including but not limited to the following:
a) Furnishing false information to any Morgan official, instructor or office.
b) Forgery, alteration or misuse of any Morgan document, record or instrument of identification. This includes, but is not limited to, Morgan Promise documents, performance summary, scholarship documents, and verification documents for affiliation with a firm or society.
c) Computer piracy, including duplication or sharing of course access or login information, computer software, copyright infringement and unauthorized computer entry.
2. Illegal copying or reproduction of any course materials or knowingly purchasing counterfeit materials from an illegal source.
3. Disruption or obstruction of teaching, administration, disciplinary proceedings and other Morgan activities.
4. Physical abuse, verbal abuse, threats, intimidation, harassment, including but not limited to sexual harassment, coercion and/or other conduct that threatens or endangers the health or safety of any person, either by phone or on Morgan premises or at any Morgan-sponsored activity.
5. Attempted or actual theft of and/or damage to property of Morgan or property of a member of the Morgan community or other personal or public property.
6. Gambling on Morgan premises, at Morgan functions or through the use of Morgan equipment.
7. Failure to comply with directions of Morgan officials or law enforcement officers acting in performance of their duties and/or failure to identify oneself to these persons when requested to do so.
8. Unauthorized possession, duplication or use of keys to any part of Morgan premises, or unauthorized entry to or use of Morgan premises.
9. Violation of published Morgan policies, rules or regulations or license agreement.
10. Violation of local law on Morgan premises or at Morgan-sponsored or Morgan-supervised activities, or other violation of federal, state, or local law which has an adverse effect on the Morgan community.
11. Use, possession or distribution of narcotic or other controlled substances, or being under the influence of such substances.
12. Use, possession or distribution of alcoholic beverages, except as expressly permitted by law and Morgan regulation; or public intoxication on Morgan premises.
13. Illegal or unauthorized possession of firearms, explosives, other weapons or dangerous chemicals on Morgan premises or at any Morgan-sponsored activity.
14. Participation in activities that disrupts normal operations of Morgan or infringes on rights of other members of the Morgan community; leading or inciting others to disrupt the scheduled and/or normal activities within any Morgan office or area; intentional obstruction that is unreasonable and interferes with freedom of movement and/or free flow of pedestrian or at a Morgan-sponsored or supervised activity.
15. Conduct that is disorderly, lewd or indecent; breach of peace; or aiding, abetting or procuring another person to breach the peace on Morgan premises or at functions sponsored by the Morgan community.
16. Aiding, abetting or inducing another to commit a violation of the Morgan Code of Conduct.
17. Theft or other abuse of Morgan computer systems including but not limited to:
a) Unauthorized entry into a file, to use, read or change contents, or for any other purpose.
b) Unauthorized transfer of a file.
c) Unauthorized use of another individual’s identification and password.
d) Use of Morgan computing systems to interfere with work of another student, instructor or Morgan official.
e) Use of Morgan computing systems to send obscene or abusive messages.
f) Use of Morgan computing systems to interfere with normal operation of Morgan.
g) Introduction, reproduction and/or promulgation of any computer virus, malware, trojan horse or time bombΩ.
18. Abuse of the judicial or disciplinary system, including, but not limited to:
a) Failure to appear before a judicial advisor or Morgan official.
b) Falsification, distortion or misrepresentation of information before a judicial advisor.
c) Disruption or interference with orderly conduct of a judicial proceeding.
d) Knowingly instituting judicial proceedings without good cause.
e) Attempting to discourage an individual’s proper participation in, or use of, the judicial system.
f) Attempting to influence the impartiality of a judicial advisor prior to, and/or during, the course of the judicial proceeding.
g) Harassment (verbal or physical) and/or intimidation of a judicial advisor prior to, during and/or after a judicial proceeding.
h) Failure to comply with sanction(s) imposed under the Student Code of Conduct.
i) Influencing or attempting to influence another person to commit an abuse of the judicial system.
Violation of Law and Morgan Action
1. If a student is charged with violation of local law, Code of Conduct proceedings may be initiated if the violation of law holds the potential of an adverse impact on the Morgan community.
2. Morgan proceedings may be instituted against a student charged with violation of a local law that is also a violation of the Student Code of Conduct (for example, if both violations result from the same factual situation). Proceedings under this Code may be carried out prior to, simultaneously with, or following civil or criminal proceedings.
3. When a student is charged by federal, state or local authorities with a violation of law, the Morgan judicial advisor may, at his/her discretion, request or agree to special consideration for that individual because of his/her status as a student. If the alleged offense is also the subject of proceeding before a judicial advisor under the Student Code of Conduct, however, the Morgan judicial advisor may advise authorities of the existence of the Student Code of Conduct and of how such matters will be handled internally with the Morgan community. Morgan will cooperate fully with law enforcement and other agencies in enforcing criminal law on Morgan property and in the conditions imposed by criminal courts for rehabilitation of student violators. Individual student or instructors, acting in their personal capacities, remain free to interact with a governmental representative or law enforcement official as they deem appropriate.
Article IV: Judicial Policies
Charges and Hearings
1. Any member of the Morgan community may file charges against any student for misconduct. Charges shall be prepared in writing and directed to the judicial advisor. Any charge should be submitted as soon as possible after the event takes place.
2. The judicial advisor may conduct an investigation to determine if charges have merit and/or if they can be resolved by mutual consent of parties involved on a basis acceptable to the judicial advisor (such as mediation). Such disposition shall be final, and there shall be no subsequent proceedings.
3. All charges shall be presented to the accused student in written form. A time will be set for a hearing after the student has been notified.
4. Hearings shall be conducted by the judicial advisor according to the following guidelines:
a) Hearings shall be conducted in private.
b) Admission of any person to the hearing shall be at the discretion of the judicial advisor.
c) In hearings involving more than one accused student, the judicial advisor, at his/her discretion may permit hearings concerning each student to be conducted together.
d) The complainant and accused have the right to be assisted by any advisor they choose, at their own expense. The advisor may be an attorney. The complainant and/or accused are responsible for presenting his/her own case and, therefore, advisors are not permitted to speak or to participate directly in any hearing before a judicial advisor.
e) The complainant, accused and judicial advisor shall have the privilege of presenting witnesses, subject to the right of cross-examination, by the judicial advisor.
f) Pertinent records, exhibits and written statements may be accepted as evidence for consideration by the judicial advisor.
g) All procedural questions are subject to the final decision of the judicial advisor.
h) After the hearing, the judicial advisor shall determine whether the student has violated the specific section(s) of the Student Code of Conduct that the student is charged with violating.
i) The judicial advisor’s determination shall be made on the basis of whether it is more likely than not that the accused student violated the Student Code of Conduct.
5. There shall be a single verbatim record, such as a tape recording, of all hearings before a judicial advisor. The record shall be the property of Morgan, shall be retained in a separate disciplinary file and retained in accordance with the Morgan’s record retention procedures. Recordings are not done during deliberations, as these are held in private. All recordings are considered Morgan property.
6. Except in the case of a student charged with failing to obey the summons of a judicial advisor or Morgan official, no student may be found to have violated the Student Code of Conduct solely because the student failed to appear before a judicial advisor. In all cases, the evidence in support of the charges shall be presented and considered.
Sanctions
1. The sanctions listed below may be imposed upon any student found to have violated the Student Code of Conduct. The listing of the sanctions should not be construed to imply that students are entitled to progressive discipline. The sanctions may be used in any order and/or combination which Morgan deems appropriate for the conduct in question.
a) Warning – A verbal or written notice to the student that the student is in violation of or has violated Morgan regulations.
b) Probation – A written reprimand for violation of specific regulations. Probation is for a designated period of time and includes the probability of more severe disciplinary sanctions if the student is found to be violating any Morgan regulation(s) during the probationary period.
c) Restitution – Compensation for loss, damage or injury. This may take the form of appropriate service and/or monetary or material replacement.
d) Morgan Expulsion – Permanent separation of the student from all Morgan locations and or services and course access without refund of paid prograsm cost or fees.
2. More than one sanction listed above may be imposed for any single violation. In each case in which a judicial advisor determines that a student has violated the Student Code of Conduct, sanction(s) shall be determined and imposed by the judicial advisor. Following the hearing, the judicial advisor shall advise the accused in writing of his/her determination and of the sanction(s) imposed, if any.
Interim Suspension
In certain circumstances, the Manager, Client Services, or a designee, may impose a Morgan interim suspension prior to the hearing before a judicial advisor.
1. Interim suspension may be imposed:
a) to ensure the safety and well-being of members of the Morgan community or preservation of Morgan property;
b) to ensure the student’s own physical or emotional safety and well-being; or
c) if the student poses a definite threat of disruption of or interference with the normal operation of Morgan.
2. During the interim suspension, students shall be denied access to Morgan premises (including classes and online course access) and/or all other Morgan activities or privileges for which the student might otherwise be eligible, as the Director, Client Services or designee or the judicial advisor may determine to be appropriate.
Appeals
1. A decision reached by the judicial advisor or a sanction imposed by the judicial advisor may be appealed by the accused student or complainant to the Manager, Client Services or designee within the session in which the sanction occurs, or within the time frame otherwise identified in the sanction notice. Such appeals shall be in writing. In cases where the Manager, Client Services or designee is the judicial advisor, the appeal shall be directed to the next administrative level, the contact for which will be identified in the sanction notice.
2. Except as required to explain the basis of new evidence, an appeal shall be limited to review of the verbatim record of the initial hearing and supporting documents for one or more of the following purposes:
a) To determine whether the original hearing was conducted fairly in light of the charges and evidence presented, and in substantial conformity with prescribed procedures giving the complaining party a reasonable opportunity to prepare and present evidence that the Student Code of Conduct was violated, and giving the accused student a reasonable opportunity to prepare and present a rebuttal of those allegations.
b) To determine whether the decision reached regarding the accused student was based on reasonable evidence; that is, without substituting his/her judgment for that of the judicial advisor, the appellate decision-maker shall consider whether the facts in the case were reasonably sufficient to establish that a violation of the Student Code of Conduct occurred.
c) To determine whether the sanction(s) imposed were reasonably appropriate for the violation of the Student Code of Conduct the student was found to have committed.
d) To consider new evidence, sufficient to alter a decision or other relevant facts not brought out in the original hearing, because such evidence and/or facts were not known to the person appealing at the time of the original hearing.
3. If the Manager, Client Services or designee upholds an appeal, the matter shall be remanded to the judicial advisor for re-opening of the hearing to allow reconsideration of the original determination and/or sanction(s).