College Policies and Statement on Academic Freedom

Statement on Academic Freedom

The San Mateo County Community College District is dedicated to maintaining a climate of academic freedom encouraging the sharing and cultivation of a wide variety of viewpoints. Academic freedom expresses our belief in inquiry, informed debate and the search for truth; academic freedom is necessary in order to provide students with a variety of ideas, to encourage them to engage in critical thinking and to help them understand conflicting opinions.

Academic freedom encompasses the freedom to study, teach, and express ideas, including unpopular or controversial ones, without censorship or political restraint. Academic freedom, rather than being a license to do or say whatever one wishes, requires professional competence, open inquiry and rigorous attention to the pursuit of truth.

The District’s faculty have the right to express their informed opinions which relate, directly or indirectly, to their professional activities, whether these opinions are expressed in the classroom, elsewhere on campus or at college-related functions. In a search for truth and in a context of reasoned academic debate, students also have the right to express their opinions and to question those presented by others.

Employment by the District does not in any way restrict or limit the First Amendment rights enjoyed by faculty as members of their communities. Faculty members are free to speak and write publicly on any issue, as long as they do not indicate they are speaking for the institution.

Protecting academic freedom is the responsibility of the college community. Therefore, in a climate of openness and mutual respect, free from distortion and doctrinal obligation, the District protects and encourages the exchange of ideas, including unpopular ones, which are presented in a spirit of free and open dialogue and constructive debate.

Privacy Rights of Students

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) affords students certain rights with respect to their educational records. These rights include the following:

1. The right to inspect and review the Student’s education records within 45 days of the day the College receives a request for access. Students should submit to the Dean of Counseling and Enrollment Services, a written request that identifies the record(s) they wish to inspect. The Dean will make arrangements for access and notify the student of the time and place where the record(s) may be inspected.

2. The right to request the amendment of the student’s education records that the student believes are inaccurate or misleading. Students may ask the College to amend a record that they believe is inaccurate or misleading. They should write the Dean of Counseling and Enrollment Services for the record they want changed, and specify why it is inaccurate or misleading. If the College decides not to amend the record as requested by the student, the College will notify the student of the decision and advise the student of his or her right to a hearing regarding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding the hearing procedures will be provided to the student when notified of the right of a hearing.

3. The right to consent to disclosures of personally identifiable information contained in the student’s education records, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent. One exception, which permits disclosure without consent, is disclosure to school officials with legitimate educational interests. A school official is a person employed by the College in an administrative, supervisory, academic or research, or support staff position (including law enforcement unit personnel and health staff); a person or company with whom the College has contracted (such as an attorney, auditor, or collection agent); a person serving on the Board of Trustees; or a student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee, or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks. A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibility.

4. The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by the College to comply with the requirements of FERPA.

The Act provides that the College may release certain types of “Directory Information” unless the student submits a request in writing to the Admissions and Records Office that certain or all such information not be released without his/her consent. Currently enrolled students may request that “Directory Information” be withheld by notifying the Admissions and Records Office in writing each term or semester. Such requests must be submitted within two weeks after the first day of instruction.

“Directory Information” at the College includes: (1) student’s name and city of residence, (2) participation in recognized activities and sports, (3) dates of enrollment, (4) degrees and awards received, (5) the most recent previous educational agency or institution attended, and (6) height and weight of members of athletic teams.

A copy of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (Sec. 438, P.L. 93-380) is available in the Admissions and Records Office, Building 8, Administration, during normal business hours or on the web.

Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act

In order to make Cañada College a safe and pleasant environment for students and employees, the College has established procedures in compliance with the Student Right-to-Know (SRTK) and Campus Security Act (Federal Public Law 101-542). Persons seeking information concerning Cañada College law enforcement procedures, crime prevention efforts, and crime statistics should contact the College Security Office, Building 13, Room 28, (650) 306-3420.

The Act also requires institutions to make available the completion or graduation rate of certificate or degree-seeking full-time students. A paper copy of this information may be obtained at the Admissions and Records Office, Building 8, Administration, (650) 738-4251.

More information about SRTK may be found on the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office website at http://srtk.cccco.edu/index.asp.

Conduct

Students enrolled in Cañada College are expected to conduct themselves as responsible citizens and in a manner compatible with the District and College function as an educational institution. Students are also subject to civil authority and to the specific regulations established by each college in the District. Violators shall be subject to disciplinary action, including possible cancellation of registration, and may be denied future admission to the Colleges of the San Mateo County Community College District. Each student has the obligation to know and uphold College Rules and Regulations as detailed in the Student Handbook.

Any student may be subject to disciplinary action, including suspension and/or expulsion, if his/her actions on campus or in class are disruptive or are in violation of College rules and regulations. In cases involving disciplinary action, the student will have access to established appeals procedures.

Social or other functions which have been approved by the appropriate administrative office may use the name of the College and are thereby identified as College functions and become subject to the same high standards of conduct and of supervision, whether conducted on or off the campus.

Social or other functions for which no patrons are listed from the membership of the faculty are not College functions. No off-campus organizations may use the College name or imply College sponsorship in any publicity or other information.

Academic Integrity Policy

As members of the college community, students at Cañada are expected to demonstrate integrity in all academic endeavors. Students are evaluated on their own merits, so they should protect academic integrity at Cañada College and be proud of their achievements.

General principles of academic integrity include the concept of respect for the intellectual property of others, the expectation that individual work will be submitted unless otherwise allowed by an instructor, and the obligations both to protect one’s own academic work from misuse by others and to avoid using another’s work as one’s own. Faculty, with the full support of the College, have the right to take standards of academic integrity into account when assigning grades. All students are expected to understand and abide by these principles.

Any act which gains or is intended to gain an unfair academic advantage or which compromises the integrity of the academic standards of the college may be considered an act of academic dishonesty.

Forms of Academic Dishonesty:
Violations or attempted violations of academic integrity include, but are not limited to: cheating, fabrication, plagiarism, multiple submissions, or facilitating academic dishonesty. Please note that culpability is not diminished when academic dishonesty occurs in drafts which are not the final version. Also, if the student receives any type of assistance or disability accommodations in the preparation or submission of materials, the student is expected to proofread the results and is responsible for all particulars of the submission.
Cheating-failure to observe the expressed procedures of an academic exercise, including but not limited to:

communicating with fellow students during an exam, copying material from another student’s exam, allowing another student to copy from an exam, allowing another person to take a quiz, exam, or similar evaluation in lieu of the enrolled student
using unauthorized materials, information, or study aids (e.g., textbook, notes, data, images, formula list, dictionary, calculator, etc.) in any academic exercise or exam
unauthorized collaboration in providing or requesting assistance, such as sharing information on an academic exercise or exam
unauthorized use of another person’s data in completing a computer exercise
using computer and word processing systems to gain access to, alter and/or use unauthorized information
altering a graded exam or assignment and requesting that it be regraded -- submission of altered work after grading shall be considered academically dishonest, including but not limited to changing answers after an exam or assignment has been returned or submitting another’s exam as one’s own to gain credit
attempting to hinder the work of another student

Fabrication-falsification or invention of any information in an academic exercise, including but not limited to:

altering data to support research
presenting results from research that was not performed--submitting material for lab assignments, class projects or other assignments which is wholly or partially falsified, invented or otherwise does not represent work accomplished or undertaken by the student
crediting source material that was not used for research
falsification, alteration or misrepresentation of official or unofficial records or documents including but not limited to academic transcripts, academic documentation, letters of recommendation, and admissions applications or related documents
Plagiarism—the presentation of another’s words, images or ideas as if they were the student’s own, including but not limited to:
the submission of material, whether in part or whole, authored by another person or source (e.g., the internet, book, journal, etc.), whether that material is paraphrased, translated or copied in verbatim or near-verbatim form without properly acknowledging the source (i.e. all sources of information must be cited in work submitted for a grade)
the submission of material edited, in part or whole, by another person that results in the loss of the student’s original voice or ideas (i.e. while an editor or tutor may advise a student, the final work submitted must be the work of the student, not that of the editor or tutor)
translating all or any part of material from another language and presenting it as if it were student’s own original work
unauthorized transfer and use of another person’s computer file as the student’s own
unauthorized use of another person’s data in completing a computer exercise

Multiple Submissions-resubmission of a work that has already received credit with identical or similar content in another course without consent of the present instructor or submission of work with identical or similar content in concurrent courses without consent of all instructor

Facilitating Academic Dishonesty-assisting another to commit an act of academic dishonesty, including but not limited to

taking a quiz, exam, or similar evaluation in place of another person
allowing one student to copy from another
attending a course posing as another student who is officially registered for that course
providing material or other information (e.g., a solution to homework, a project or other assignments, a copy of an exam, exam key or any test information) to another student with knowledge that such assistance could be used in any of the violations stated above.
distribution or use of notes or recordings based on college classes without the express permission of the instructor for purposes other than individual or group study. This includes, but is not limited to, providing materials for distribution by services publishing class notes. This restriction on unauthorized use applies to all information distributed or in any way displayed for use in relationship to the class, whether obtained in class, via email, on the Internet or via any other media.

*Some parts of this document were borrowed from the academic integrity policies of UCLA, De Anza College and USC. Modifications were made in order to address the specific needs of the Cañada College community.

Consequences of Academic Dishonesty:
Disciplinary sanctions may be applied in cases of academic dishonesty. Depending on the seriousness of the infraction, a student may:

Receive a failing grade on the test, paper, or examination.
Have his/her course grade lowered or fail the course.
Under the District standards of Disciplinary Sanctions, the student may be subject to:
• A Warning: An instructor may give written or verbal notice to a student that continuation or repetition of specified conduct may be cause for further disciplinary action.
• Temporary Exclusion From An Activity Or Class: An instructor may remove a student who is in violation of the guidelines for student conduct for the duration of the class period or activity during which the violation took place and, if necessary, for the day following. The instructor shall immediately report such removal to the college chief executive officer or his/her designee for appropriate action.
• Censure: The Vice President, Student Services may verbally reprimand a student or may place on record a written statement which details how a student’s conduct violates District or College regulations. The student receiving such a verbal or written statement shall be notified that such continued conduct or further violation of District/College rules may result in further disciplinary action.
• Disciplinary Probation: The Vice President, Student Services or his/her designee may place a student on disciplinary probation for a period not to exceed one semester. Repetition of the same action or other violations of District/College rules and regulations during the probationary period may be cause for suspension or expulsion. Disciplinary probation may include one or both of the following: a. Removal from any or all College organization or offices; or b. Denial of privileges of participation in any or all College or student sponsored events.
• Disciplinary Suspension: The termination of student status for a definite period of time. A suspended student may not be present of campus and is denied College privileges including class attendance and all other student body or College granted privileges. Refer to Suspension Policy for details.
• Expulsion: A permanent termination of student status and all attending rights and privileges. Expulsion of a student is accomplished by action of the Board of Trustees on recommendation of the college chief executive officer and the Chancellor. An expelled student shall not be allowed to register in any subsequent semester without the approval of the chief executive office of the College. Refer to Expulsion Policy or details.
• If a sanction entails any action greater than a written or verbal notice, the instructor must submit a Notice of Student Violation of the Cañada College Academic Integrity Policy to the Vice President, Student Services for review and appropriate follow up. This form will identify the infraction and the sanction, and should be signed by both the student and instructor.
If a student receives any of these sanctions, he/she must first address his/her concerns with the instructor. If the student believes that the instructors’ decision is unfair, the student may appeal the decision to the Vice President of Student Services in accordance with the Student Discipline Policy and Appeals Process.
The Vice President of Student Services maintains a record of students who have engaged in academic dishonesty. This information is used to identify and discipline students who have been reported for academic dishonesty more than once, and may be shared with other faculty in whose classes the student is
Any record of academic dishonesty will be maintained in the Vice President of Student Services’s records for a period of two years at which time, barring further infractions, it will be permanently removed.

Attendance Regulations

Regular attendance in class and laboratory sessions is an obligation assumed by each student at the time of his/her registration. When a student fails to attend class, he/she misses the content of the session, and course continuity is lessened. When failure to attend class places a student’s success in jeopardy, the instructor may drop the student from the class.

Total hours of absence which exceed twice the number of hours a class meets in a week define “excessive absence” as used by many instructors in dropping students for nonattendance. Instructors may, however, utilize stricter attendance requirements.

Absence due to participation in college-sponsored activities may be considered excused when the student informs and receives permission from the instructor in advance of the absence and makes up all work missed.

A student dropped from any class for nonattendance may appeal in writing to the Division Dean within five College calendar days of such a drop if the student thinks the absences should be excused, and reinstatement in class can be justified. Students may, with the permission of the instructor, remain in class while their appeal is being reviewed. A recommendation regarding the appeal will be forwarded to the instructor whose decision is final.

Emergency Leave of Absence

A student who finds it necessary to withdraw from all enrolled courses at any time after registration must obtain a petition for semester leave of absence. This petition may be obtained from the Health Center if the emergency is of a medical nature. A petition for non-medical emergency leave of absence may be obtained from the Admissions and Records Office. It is the student’s responsibility to complete the petition process. The leave of absence shall only be used when verified circumstances beyond the student’s control force a complete withdrawal from all courses. Withdrawals resulting from an approved leave will not be included in the determination of the student’s academic progress.

A student absent 5 days or more with a medical problem should notify his/her instructor(s).

Student Grievances and Appeals

Students are encouraged to pursue their academic studies and become involved in other sponsored activities that promote their intellectual growth and personal development. The College is committed to the concept that, in the pursuit of these ends, the student should be free of unfair and improper actions on the part of any member of the academic community. If, at any time, a student feels that he/she has been subject to unjust actions, or denied his/her rights, redress can be sought through the filing of an appeal or grievance. Detailed information is provided in the Student Handbook which is available in the Student Activities Office. For further information concerning any aspect of student grievances or rights of appeal, students should contact the Vice President of Student Services at (650) 306-3234.

Policy of Non-discrimination

Cañada College is committed to equal opportunity regardless of age, gender, marital status, disability, race, color, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, or other similar factors, for admission to the College, enrollment in classes, student services, financial aid, and employment in accordance with the provisions of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (45CRF 86), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (P.L. 93-112), and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

It is important that students, staff, and all others associated with the College understand the importance of reporting concerns about possible violations of this policy. The College’s commitment to equal opportunity demands full investigation of possible violations and an opportunity for a fair and impartial hearing on any matter relating to these laws and policies.

Any person seeking information concerning these laws and policies or claiming grievance because of alleged violations of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 should contact the Vice President of Student Services.

All grievances will be reviewed in terms of Title VI and Title IX law, and persons involved will be advised of the provisions of the law and their legal rights. If normal channels are not available or fail to meet legal requirements, the necessary action will be initiated.

Inquiries regarding Federal laws and regulations concerning nondiscrimination in education or the District’s compliance with those provisions may also be directed to:
Office for Civil Rights
U.S. Department of Education
50 United Nations Plaza, Room 239
San Francisco, CA 94102

Policy on Americans with Disabilities Act

The purpose of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), PL 101-336, is to extend to people with disabilities civil rights similar to those now available on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex and religion through the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in private sector employment, services rendered by state and local governments, places of public accommodation, transportation, and telecommunications relay services. The ADA says that no covered entity shall discriminate against a qualified individual with a disability because of the disability of such individual in regard to job application procedures; the hiring, advancement, or discharge of employees; employee compensation; job training; and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment.

Major employment provisions of the ADA require equal opportunity in selection, testing, and hiring of qualified applicants with disabilities (applicants with disabilities may request that special accommodations be made in order to complete these processes); equal treatment in promotion and benefits; reasonable accommodation for applicants and workers with disabilities when such accommodations would not impose “undue hardship”; and prohibits discrimination against workers with disabilities. (This provision is similar to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title V of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973).

Employers may require that an individual not pose a direct threat to the health and safety of others; may not make pre-employment inquiries about an applicant’s disability or conduct pre-employment medical exams; and may conduct a test for illegal drug use and prohibit all workplace use of illegal drugs and alcohol.

If you need further information or if there are any problems or complaints on campus regarding compliance, please contact the Vice President of Student Services.

Policy on Sexual Harassment

Pursuant to California Code of Regulations Title 5, Section 59300 et seq., it is the policy of San Mateo County Community College District and Cañada College to prohibit, in any and all forms, the sexual harassment of its students and staff. Sexual harassment of students by other students or staff, and/or the harassment of staff by students, is considered intolerable behavior that will be investigated and acted upon immediately.
Students or staff seeking further information concerning this policy or claiming grievance because of alleged violation of this policy should contact the Vice President of Student Services to file a written grievance.

Additional Redress
In addition to, and concurrently with, the filing of a written grievance, a student has the right to file a complaint or charges with other appropriate governmental agencies such as the Equal Opportunity Commission, the Office for Civil Rights, the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, the Chancellor’s Office of the California Community Colleges, or State or Federal court.

Policy on Smoking

In order to provide a safe learning and working environment for students and employees, smoking is prohibited in all indoor locations, outdoor balconies, terraces and stairs, and within a distance of fifteen (15) feet from any District doorway, entrance to an interior area, or air intake vents. Violation of this policy could lead to disciplinary action under disciplinary procedures.

Policy on Drug-Free Campus

The San Mateo County Community College District and Cañada College, in compliance with the Federal Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act Amendments of 1989, prohibits the use, possession, sale or distribution of alcohol, narcotics, dangerous or illegal drugs or other controlled substances, as defined in California statutes, on District or College property, or at any function sponsored by the District or College. Students are expected to conduct themselves as responsible citizens and in a manner compatible with the community college function as an educational institution. Students are subject to civil authority and to all District and College rules and regulations.

Students found to be in violation of the drug-free campus policy by manufacturing, distributing, dispensing, possessing, or using controlled substances, as defined in California statues, on any District property will be subject to disciplinary procedures up to and including possible cancellation of registration.

Persons seeking further information concerning this policy or the health risks and effects associated with alcohol and narcotics or other dangerous or illegal drugs, should contact the College Health Center.