Contrary to popular belief, as chair of the Honor Council, I can’t expel you.
If I could, all of you who insist on taking up two seats on a crowded C-1, one for you and one for your backpack, would certainly now be sporting a lighter shade of blue.
Also contrary to popular belief, the Honor Council is not an adjudicating body.
Any alleged violation of University policy, including academic dishonesty, goes through the Office of Student Conduct. Around 10 percent of these cases are referred to a hearing of the Undergraduate Conduct Board (UCB), a group of faculty and staff and headed by undergraduates. Cases that are serious in nature, involve complicated facts, lack a legal precedent and/or involve students or groups with previous disciplinary violations may be forwarded to the UCB.
But know this: You have the option to have your case heard by a panel of the UCB if you face a possible sanction of suspension or expulsion. The same goes for groups facing possible dissolution.
So what does the Honor Council do?
I like to think that it’s like the marketing club of the Duke Community Standard: “I will not lie, cheat or steal in my academic endeavors; I will conduct myself honorably in all my endeavors; and I will act if the Standard is compromised.”
It’s a hard job to market three lines that are rather ambiguous and difficult to measure. For example, what exactly does it mean to “conduct myself honorably in all my endeavors?” And how do we tell people “Don’t cheat!” or “Stop being so dishonorable!” without sounding like the honor po-po? When your organization is simply charged with “promoting” the Community Standard, it makes you dazed and confused.
That’s why we’re working on expanding our mission to include not just promoting the Community Standard, but also promoting the community.
I propose that when you create a supportive, open and respectful community, you are able to get its members to adopt the established standards. So, this year, what we’ve tried to do is to develop a greater sense of community beyond just the confines of Cameron and K-ville—through DukeEncourage.
It’s a two-pronged initiative—consisting of #DukeEncourage and DukeEncourage—with the end goal of strengthening our connection with the larger community. #DukeEncourage is focused on spreading positive messages through the Plaza Wall, post-it notes and Twitter.
DukeEncourage is a series of candid campus conversations that seeks to make us more aware and empowered through peer reflection and dialogue on issues of identity and mobility on campus. We come to Duke with a particular identity and may feel pressured to take on a new identity that is reflective of the group(s) we quickly become associated with. Leaders from the Honor Council and the program’s co-sponsors lead great discussions on relevant campus topics.
So, if there is greater love for the Duke community that extends beyond the affiliations that unfortunately divide us (greek life, SLGs, independent houses, ethnic groups, religious groups, sports teams, etc.), we will all come to respect and appreciate each individual here, despite our differences. And if we all love one another and have genuine mutual respect for one another, we will hold each other accountable for our actions.
Once we live and breathe the Community Standard, through conducting ourselves honorably and making sure we live in a community of honesty, fairness, respect and accountability, we will transform this place.
And if, upon leaving the 919, we apply these same standards to our new community, we will transform that place.
The transformation begins with you, me and even that guy on the C-1. But not his backpack. Seriously, dude, put it on the floor.
Michael Habashi, Trinity ’13, is chair of the Duke Honor Council. This column is the seventh installment in a semester-long series of weekly columns written by dPS members addressing the importance of social action, as told through personal narratives. You can follow dPS on Twitter @dukePS.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.