QIlj? Daily (Ear Hrrl
Testing the Value of Honor
Committee Eager to Start Campus Honor Discussion
As the school year began, the Carolina
community turned our collective atten
tion to some of the University’s most
cherished values - academic freedom, open
minds and collaborative inquiry
about our own and others deeply
held beliefs.
During the next few months
we will be afforded another rare
and important opportunity to
examine what makes UNC special - the princi
ples of academic integrity, honor and collective
responsibility that have shaped our campus
environment for many years.
Last fall, Chancellor James Moeser chal
lenged all of us to think in depth about the
Code of Student Conduct (including the Honor
Code and Conduct Code) and student judicial
system. He appointed a task force, chaired by
School of Law Professor Marilyn Yarbrough,
and charged it with examining the system’s
basic premises, substantive and procedural pro
visions, and administration.
This summer, the task force submitted its
report, reflecting its study of UNC’s and other
universities’ honor systems, observations drawn
from interviews and forums last spring and rec
ommendations for possible steps action to
DTH/KATE BLACKMAN
Student Body President Jen Daum (left) and Student Body Vice President Aaron Hiller participate in a mock Honor
Court trial Wednesday as part of Honor and Integrity Week, illustrating how the judicial process works.
Current Honor Court Flawed
You told your Spanish teacher that
you skipped class because you
were sick, but your roommate
knows you just didn’t feel like going.
What if your roommate tells the teacher?
If you ate at Lenoir Dining Hall during
Honor and Integrity Week,
this question might look
familiar to you.
An orange pamphlet
sponsored by the General
Alumni Association includ
ed this dilemma and others (although
from the point of view of the roommate
of the offender) in one effort to draw stu
dents’ attention to the school’s honor sys
tem and give them more reasons to fear
their roommates.
Right now there are a lot of issues to
care about in light of recently proposed
changes to the honor system by a special
task force.
The most common offense tried in
Honor Court is academic cheating -
looking at someone else’s exam, copying
and pasting pieces of essays off the
Internet or cooperating a little too much
with your classmates on a group project,
for example.
Right now, a typical sanction for cheat
ing is an F in the course and a one-semes
ter suspension. The task force recom
mended establishing a sanction consisting
of a grade of “XF’ in the class to denote
academic dishonesty with the option of
clearing the “X” by taking a special class
on honor. This would apply to all cases of
academic cheating, making it more obvi
ous on the student’s transcript.
The idea of teaching responsible
behavior to guilty students sounds nice,
but it is ultimately not worth funnefing
resources into a token class.
In his quest for truth in “Meditations
on First Philosophy,” Rene Descartes first
rejects all claims that are not indubitable;
he later modifies his stance to accept all
things that are clear and distinct to him
because he can assume that God will not
improve our system, as it now exists. The full
report can be found at
http://judicialreport.rmc.edu.
The chancellor then referred the report to the
Judith Wegner
Guest Columnist
Congress, Faculty Council and the campus com
munity at large. Efforts are already under way to
raise the community’s awareness of key issues,
beginning with the successful activities incorpo
rated into the recent Honor and Integrity Week.
Three significant questions underlie the find
ings and recommendations of the task force and
COSC’s ongoing work.
1. How can we best assure that “problem
cases” involving students charged with viola
tions of the Code of Student Conduct are han
dled fairly, efficiently and respectfully?
The task force recommended possible
changes in such matters as the standard of proof,
alternative sanctions, informal procedures and
appeals. It also highlighted the importance of
recruitment and training of students involved in
the honor system through the Office of the
deceive him.
UNC has not adopted an official
school God, but the task force is recom
mending that the standard of proof for
convicting someone in honor court be
changed from “beyond a reasonable
doubt” to “clear and con
vincing.” Most evidence is
convincing; that’s how it
gets the case to trial in the
first place. An Honor Court
conviction has serious
Glenna Goldis
Guest Columnist
effects on a student’s college career and
absolutely devastates a permanent
record; accused students must be given
the benefit of the doubt
The University of Virginia advertises
that because of its Honor Code, students
can take exams unproctored. Here at
UNC we tend not to take our Honor
Code that seriously, but that pledge you
sign every time you take a quiz does do
something for you: It guarantees your
right to a fair trial, which includes a
defense counsel.
The Honor Court is structured so that
students are assigned one from a pool of
staff that works for the attorney general -
the same pool from which the investiga
tor is chosen.
This is arguably a huge flaw in the sys
tem, which is why a few years ago a
group of concerned students formed the
Independent Defense Counsel
(http://www.unc.edu/idc) to provide
accused students with an alternative.
Now, IDC is a prominent organization
including many experienced members,
and all members are trained specifically
to fight for accused students in honor
court. They’re eager to defend guilty and
innocent students; they just like to help
people.
The challenge this presents to the
investigation only makes the whole
process even fairer by ensuring that the
defendant’s case is argued just as aggres
sively as the investigation’s.
Unfortunately, students are automati-
Committee on Student Conduct
for its consideration, asking
COSC by December to recom
mend an action plan based on
consultation with key campus
constituencies such as Student
cally assigned counsel from the attorney
general staff and not advised on their
other options, and IDC has limited
advertising capabilities. When the
Committee on Student Conduct makes its
final recommendations, it should include
a suggestion to give accused students easi
er access to outside counsel.
The task force worries that faculty
have been avoiding using the Honor
Court, preferring to handle situations
themselves.
They do not address the motivation for
this trend, however, which is that many
professors feel squeamish taking a case to
the courts because the system is too harsh
on students. If anything, the changes rec
ommended would make it easier for the
Honor Court to come down on students.
It is important that faculty use the system
in place because it guarantees students
fair trials.
So the Honor Court is missing out on a
number of cheating cases because certain
faculty members don’t agree with its
brand of justice.
Meanwhile, students are tried and con
victed for possession of marijuana if their
roommates have it in the room. Is that a
victory? In order for the University com
munity to take it more seriously, the
honor system should consider weakening
its sanctions.
The Honor Code is useful today and
will continue to be as long as we confront
issues of “honor” more uh, honestly.
This means not encouraging people to
tell on their roommates for skipping class,
not overzealously convicting people of
pot possession on technicalities and not
pretending that taking a class on the
meaning of honor isn’t a joke. If we make
the philosophy of the honor system about
real integrity, we will save it from irrele
vancy.
Glenna Goldis is a member of the IDC
and a sophomore majoring in philosophy.
Reach her at glenna@email.unc.edu.
Viewpoints
Student Attorney General and the Honor Court.
Some of these recommendations appear to war
rant further intensive study (for example, possi
ble changes in the burden of proof, introduction
of alternative sanctions or dispositions, develop
ment of informal mediation procedures), others
have already been introduced (expedited hear
ing arrangements, speed of disposition and
broader recruitment of honor court judges and
attorney general’s personnel). We hope to share
a detailed action plan on these and related issues
in about another month, and to engage in inten
sive consultation with Student Congress and
Faculty Council at that time.
2. How can we more successfully prevent
“problem cases” from arising?
It is not enough to handle “problem cases” in
the best possible fashion. Instead, we hope to
develop “best practices” and other forward
looking strategies for heading them off before
they occur. For example, research has shown
that cheating tends to arise in certain disciplines
or settings (often in business or the sciences, in
large classes, in settings where students are
unfamiliar with the meaning of plagiarism,
when faculty expectations are not clearly articu
lated and when students fear that they will not
achieve their objectives because their academic
standing is relatively low).
COSC hopes to work with the Center for
Teaching and Learning and academic depart
ments to assist faculty members in developing
standard approaches to clarifying expectations
and administering graded assignments before
problems occur. It will also be important to
identify emerging issues across the campus and
deal with them systematically (for example,
harassment through e-mail, disruptive conduct
during classes, hazing or drinking). We also
hope to make the honor system more transpar
ent and meaningful to all members of the com
munity, perhaps through creation of a recurring
ethics column describing common difficulties
and asking readers to think through possible
outcomes (“you be the judge”).
3. How can we renew and expand the facul
ty-student partnership that animates our honor
system and the process of teaching and learning
in order not only to meet minimum standards
but to assure that we set and achieve a higher
standard of honor and integrity that sets
Carolina apart?
UNC’s honor system places students at the
center of the process in important and benefi
cial ways. At the same time, according faculty a
more significant and intellectually engaging
Student Voices Needed in
Review of Honor System
The UNC honor system is coming off of a week
that was spent promoting the ideals of honor and
integrity on this campus.
We held a kickoff event in the Pit in which Dean
Smith participated. We held a mock hearing in order to
show the campus community what we do on a daily
basis; we sponsored a keynote speaker,
Dr. Jeffrey Wigand. We also had informa
tional Pit-sits and informal sessions about
the honor system and how students could
get involved.
The week was a success in that the
unity of student government was
expressed, as demonstrated by Student
Body President Jen Daum and others as they came out
to support our efforts. Finally, we feel that the week was
an overall success in that we started a dialogue about the
notions of honor and integrity and taught the communi
ty about the University’s tradition of student judicial
governance.
Philosophically, Honor and Integrity Week raised
some compelling issues. How do we reach out to the
University community? How do we educate and inform
the community in a manner that is interesting but still
serious? Are the ideals we are promoting outdated in a
modem university setting? Insofar as the first two ques
tions are concerned, we feel that we did a good job. The
final question, however, remains unanswered.
What is the role of honor at a modem university? Is
the notion of personal integrity something we think of
only after we find ourselves in a less-than-ideal situation
in which we have to answer for our actions?
Some will say the University’s role is different now
than it used to be. Education for the sake of enlighten
ment is tossed by the wayside in favor of nabbing a
degree in order to get a better job, end of story.
Clearly, getting a job matters.
But it is often the means, not simply the ends, that
build our character and make us better members of a
community.
To cap off Honor and Integrity Week, we all need to
carefully consider our personal notions of honor and
why we are at UNC. We are more than just the sum of
our parts. We are a University community with a certain
shared vision and a desire to be the best, not just acade
Honor Code's Future Rests on
Proving Relevancy to Students
Honor is an old-fashioned idea, one that
seems more suitable for discussions
about duels to the death in the 19th
century than academic life in the 21st.
The environment at UNC only emphasizes
that apparent discrepancy - witness the push
campuswide to use laptops and multimedia
presentations in everything from classroom
lectures to group projects.
In the desire for progress, some key aspects of
campus life inevitably get pushed aside and run
the danger of becoming irrelevant, which is the
danger facing the Honor Code and Honor Court
Granted, faculty members still expect students to sign
a pledge affirming that they followed the Honor Code
before turning in a paper for class or taking an exam.
But for most students, this marks the beginning and the
end of their interaction with the code during the course of
their campus career. A mere signature done largely for
the sake of routine hardly shows that students understand,
or even are interested in, the Honor Code.
Chancellor James Moeser recognized the decreasing
role of the Honor Code in campus life when he spoke
about the importance of rejuvenating the code in his
State of the University Address. “Let us resolve to return
the concept of honor to the center of the stage,” he said.
“It is clear that we have some major work to do.”
Last year, Moeser formed a special committee to
examine the Honor Code and honor system as a possible
solution. That committee’s proposed changes largely
Monday, September 23, 2002
role could significandy enhance the system and
overall campus fife. For example, COSC is con
sidering the possible creation of a “faculty advi
sory panel” composed of highly respected fac
ulty who could provide specialized expertise
and advice to the student attorney general or
Honor Court. It is also examining ways in
which the values of honor and integrity could
be incorporated more meaningfully into the
intellectual culture of the campus, perhaps by
development of a spring reading program that
would engage faculty members and students
across all years and programs in discussion of a
book that raises fundamental questions of per
sonal and intellectual values at its core.
COSC invites all members of the campus
community to assist us by reacting to the ideas
just outlined or suggesting others of your own
(these can be e-mailed to lstarr@email.unc.edu).
We will provide additional updates and open
forums over the next few months. Please join us
in this effort by making a commitment to honor
and integrity a central part of your personal
agenda this fall.
Judith Wegner is a professor at UNC’s law
school and and chairwoman of COSC. E-mail
her at judith_wegner@unc.edu.
mically or athletically, but ethically.
It is with this vision in mind that Chancellor James
Moeser began the task force review of the honor system
last year. Since the inception of the honor system in
1875, comprehensive reviews of the student-run system
have occurred every 30 years or so. This review follows
that tradition, as the last major judicial
revisions took place in 1974, culminating
in the creation of our current Instrument
of Student Judicial Governance.
A review of this nature is both neces
sary and healthy for our honor system,
and we are looking forward to improving
the honor system for the overall better-
Amanda Spillman
And Jonathan Slain
Guest Columnists
ment of the University community.
Along these fines, it is crucial to remember that while
certain issues, such as the current standard of proof
under which we operate, are topics of discussion, they
are by no means the only issues of note that the we are
promoting.
Improving efficiency and effectively reaching out to
the campus community are also realms we are improv
ing upon, and the fist goes on and on.
The point is, this review and the changes to follow
must be debated and embraced by all members of the
UNC community - students, faculty and administrators
alike. It is not simply for the good of the honor system
that these changes might occur, it is for the overall good
of our community of which we all are a vital part.
In conclusion, our encouragement to you is twofold.
First, think upon your own personal convictions and
the means by which you hope to achieve your personal
goals at UNC. Think not only about what the roles and
responsibilities the University has toward you, but about
what roles and responsibilities you have toward the
University.
Secondly, we ask you to get involved in this formative
process within the honor system. Only a debate in which
there are multiple voices and ideas may the best ones
ultimately rise to the top.
Reach Student Attorney General Amanda Spillman at
spillman@email.unc.edu. Jonathan Slain, Spillman’s chief
of staff, is a senior political science major. E-mail him at
slain@email.unc.edu.
fl
focus on administrative and technical changes,
such as weakening the standard of proof from
“beyond a reasonable doubt” to “clear and
convincing” and creating a faculty adviser posi
tion for the student attorney general.
But the committee’s best bet for preserving
the importance of the Honor Code rests on
their proposal to create a student advocate for
honor position, with the responsibility of
sponsoring public programs to boost student
awareness of the Honor Code’s function.
Administrators and student officials already
LUCAS FENSKE
EDITORIAL PAGE
EDITOR
have taken limited steps. Students returning to campus
this fall found signs posted in classrooms admonishing
them to follow the tenets of the code. A nice effort but
ultimately a waste of money since the signs carry even
less meaning than signing the pledge.
Honor and Integrity Week, a series of campus events
sponsored last week by the judiciary branch to demysti
fy the role of honor on campus, is a much better start
but needs to become an annual event
The code and honor system as a whole have some
thing of a mysterious aura that many students fail to
understand and appreciate.
Only by showing the average students how the code
impacts their day-to-day fives on campus can officials re
instill a culture of honor at UNC.
Editorial Page Editor Lucas Fenske is a senior history
major. Reach him at fenske@email.unc.edu.
11