Committee to Study Honor Court Policy

Chancellor James Moeser called for a review of the judicial system last year after Honor Court procedures came under intense scrutiny when two students accused of cheating opened their hearings to the public.

Moeser assigned the task of inspecting UNC's judicial procedures to a review committee composed of three students and four faculty members.

Senior curriculum public policy analysis major Erica Lee, graduate student Stephanie Schmitt and Student Body Vice President Rudy Kleysteuber were the students selected to the committee.

Karen Gil, senior associate dean of undergraduate education, English Professor George Lensing, School of Medicine Professor James Bryan and School of Law Professor Marilyn Yarbrough will be the faculty representatives on the committee.

The committee's first meeting was held Dec. 3. Members discussed the details and objectives of the review with Moeser.

The committee's objectives -- listed in a charge obtained from the chancellor's office -- include identifying the strengths and weaknesses in the present system and submitting recommendations for improvements in various aspects of the judicial system, such as the Code of Student Conduct and sanctions.

Kleysteuber said the committee will examine whether penalties are in proportion to crimes as part of their inspection of sanctions.

Kleysteuber also said the committee will look at the judicial systems of other universities, such as the University of Michigan and the University of Virginia, in order to see what features work well in their honor systems. "Where it's appropriate, we will look at what other schools have done right," he said.

Although Kleysteuber said examining the systems of other universities will be beneficial, UNC's unique and long history of a student-led judicial system will be taken into account when making recommendations.

Kleysteuber said an important part of the committee is exploring how to make the system better, not simply concentrating on the shortcomings of the current system. "We don't want to limit ourselves in what our system could be by just focusing on what it is now," he said.

Committee members also plan to involve more students in their evaluation process, Lee said. "We're hoping to have student forums, and we hope to interview several students that have been involved in the (judicial) process in some form or fashion."

The committee's second meeting was held Jan. 7, said Yarbrough, who is the committee's chairwoman. She said the meeting was primarily organizational, and members reviewed their objectives and divided up assignments. The third meeting is scheduled for Feb. 4.

Kleysteuber said the final objective of the committee is to give a document to the chancellor by the end of the semester with the results of its Honor Court examination and its recommendations for improvement.

He said, "We want to make sure the judicial system can swiftly and justly execute itself."

The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu.