Student Rights and Responsibilities

Student Code of Conduct

The Student Code of Conduct seeks to establish high standards of conduct for the student community at Nevada State College. The student Code, and its associated processes for the resolution of student misconduct, is intended to teach students to live and act responsibly in a community. As students participate in the campus community and its sponsored activities, they are responsible for their own actions and are subject to local, state, and federal laws as well as all College and Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) policies, procedures, rules, and regulations.

Any member of the College community may file charges against a student for violations of the Student Code. A charge shall be prepared in writing and filed with the student conduct officer. Any charge should be submitted as soon as possible after the event takes place. If a charge is determined by the student conduct officer and/or the President as violating federal, state, or local law, the matter will be referred to the appropriate law enforcement agency for their investigation.

All students should be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct available in its entirety at www.nsc.edu/policy under Student Policies.

Contact information for Student Officer: Chelsie Adams, Chelsie.Adams@nsc.edu, 702-992-2059, 303 S. Water Street, Ste. 200, Henderson, NV 89015.

Student Expectations

Students are expected to:

1. Attend class and complete all assignments in accordance with the expectations established by their instructors and programs of study.
2. Conduct themselves in the classroom in a manner which contributes to a positive learning environment for all.
3. Familiarize themselves with all college policies and procedures available at www.nsc.edu/policy.
4. Ask questions and seek clarification, direction, and guidance to any class assignment, college policy, or procedure which is unclear.
5. Students may be expected to complete class requirements beyond the published meeting times. This varies by course and instructor.

Student Responsibilities

It is the student’s responsibility to:

1. Read and understand the contents of the college catalog.
2. Become familiar with all college policies & procedures available at www.nsc.edu/policy.
3. Be aware of all college deadlines, including dates for registration, change of registration, withdrawal, and fee payment.
4. Contribute to the maintenance of a campus environment conducive to intellectual curiosity, civility, and diversity.
5. Keep the college informed of changes in address, phone number, enrollment changes which might affect financial aid awards and/or any other circumstances which could affect satisfactory progress toward a degree.

Disability Accommodations (RCSD Office)

At Nevada State College, we recognize our responsibility and embrace the opportunity to meet the unique educational needs of students with documented disabilities. The staff of Resource Center for Students with Disabilities (RCSD) is dedicated to providing a coordinated program of support services for student qualifying as disabled under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 Guidelines. Our mission is to ensure that all students with qualified disabilities have equal access to participate in, contribute to, and benefit from all college programs.

Confidential, sensitive, and individualized services are provided free of charge.

Students who have documented disabilities that may require accommodation should contact the Resource Center for Students with Disabilities in Dawson, Room 117 by calling (702) 992-2180 or through email at nsc.rcsd@nsc.edu.

Academic Standards

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a fundamental value at Nevada State College and is centered on honesty, trust, fairness, respect, and responsibility. Supporting and affirming these values is essential to promoting and maintaining a high level of academic integrity.

If knowledge is to be gained and properly evaluated, it must be pursued under conditions free from dishonesty. Deceit and misrepresentations are incompatible with the values of Nevada State College and shall not be tolerated under any circumstances. A violation of academic integrity is an act that is harmful to students, faculty, and ultimately, the institution.

Academic Dishonesty

Academic dishonesty is against college as well as system community standards. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to:

Plagiarism: Failure to properly acknowledge authorities quoted, cited or consulted in the preparation of written work. Examples of plagiarism includes, but are not limited to:

1. Directly quoting, summarizing or paraphrasing the work of others without specific indication of sources, or handing in work that is not the student’s own.
2. Copying and/or presenting the words of others as one’s own writing, including from Internet sources.
3. Copying words, even if you cite the sources, unless appropriate quotation is noted.
4. Expressing in your own words someone else’s ideas as your own.

Cheating: The deception about one’s own work or about the work of another. Examples of cheating include, but are not limited to:

1. Submitting another’s work as one’s own or allowing another to submit one’s work as though it were his or her own.
2. Several people completing an assignment that was not explicitly assigned as a group project and turning in multiple copies, all represented either implicitly or explicitly as individual work.
3. The use of textbook or notes during an examination without the explicit permission of the instructor. This includes WebCT and take-home exams.
4. Giving or receiving unauthorized help on assignment.
5. Stealing a problem solution from an instructor.
6. Tampering with experimental data to obtain ‘desired’ results or creating results for experiments not completed.
7. Tampering with or destroying the work of others.
8. Submitting substantial portions of the same academic work more than once without permission of the instructor.
9. Falsifying college records, forms or other documents.
10. Falsifying clinical hours, supervised field experience hours, or student teaching hours.
11. Unauthorized access of computer systems or files.
12. Attempting to bribe an instructor or administrator.

A faculty member who suspects a student of academic dishonesty shall notify the student and offer the student an opportunity for an initial meeting to discuss the allegation and to present any relevant information. When possible, this initial meeting shall occur within seven calendar days of discovery of the alleged violation. Proceedings in case discussions are informal and non-adversarial. The faculty member may make a verbal agreement on, or provide the student with a written or electronic notice, of, a scheduled meeting. The faculty member may request a witness to be present for this meeting. The purpose of this initial meeting is to review and discuss the charges before a decision is reached. The faculty member may use documentary evidence provided the student is allowed to respond to it at the meeting. At this initial meeting the following results may occur:

1. The allegations are dismissed;
2. The student accepts responsibility for the violation and accepts the academic sanction(s) proposed by the faculty member;
3. The student accepts responsibility for the violation but does not accept the sanction and requests a hearing;
4. The student does not accept responsibility for the violation and requests a hearing.
5. If the allegations are dropped or the student accepts responsibility for the violation and accepts the sanction(s), the case is closed..

Appeal Process

1. If the student appeals the action and requests a hearing, the following process will be followed: The student must appeal, in writing, to the Academic Dean, within 10 calendar days after the decision of the faculty member.
2. Within five calendar days the Academic Dean will notify the faculty member of the appeal.
3. The hearing will be scheduled no less than 10 calendar days from the date of the appeal. (The student may waive this period and have the hearing sooner).

Hearing Board

The Hearing Board shall consist of the following members with due consideration being given to possible conflicts of interest:

• Two undergraduate students.
• Three faculty members. To ensure the impartiality of the Hearing Board, members must be appointed from programs other than those in which the case originated and in which the accused student is majoring.

Hearing Procedure

1. The hearing will be held within 21 calendar days after the case has been referred.
2. The Dean will call the accused student to appear before the hearing board. If the student wishes to be accompanied by an advisor or an attorney, the board must be notified at least 48 hours in advance. The faculty member shall also be present, and may be accompanied by an advisor or by an attorney whenever the student chooses such counsel.
3. The Dean will state the content of the report of alleged academic dishonesty and the specific charges made.
4. The faculty member will appear before the board to present evidence against the student. The chair of the board may call other witnesses. The accused student and board members may cross-examine.
5. The student may present evidence on his or her own behalf.
6. The board members will then meet in closed session to make a final decision.
7. If the student is found to be guilty, the hearing board shall consult about any past record of academic misconduct.
8. The hearing board then shall recommend appropriate disciplinary sanctions to the Dean and apprise the faculty member of its deliberations. If the student has been found guilty, the faculty member may impose an academic sanction in addition to the disciplinary sanction (see below).

Academic Sanctions

The following academic sanctions may be imposed if a student has admitted responsibility for the violation or if the hearing board has found the student guilty:

• Cancel the student’s enrollment in the class without a grade;
• Give a grade of “0” or “F” for any assignment;
• Give a grade of “F” in the course;

Disciplinary Sanctions

In addition to the academic sanction imposed by the faculty member, disciplinary sanctions may be imposed in accordance with the Student Code of Conduct. For additional information, please visit the NSC Policy Library at www.nsc.edu/policy.

Contact information for Student Conduct Officer: Chelsie Adams, Chelsie.Adams@nsc.edu, 702-992-2059, 303 S. Water Street, Ste. 200, Henderson, NV 89015.

Appealing a Residency Decision

Initial residency classification is determined from the information supplied on the application for admission to the college. A student may appeal the decision for residency classification made by the Office of the Registrar. This appeal must be filed with the Residency Appeals Board within thirty days of the decision of the Office of the Registrar. If the appeal is not filed within this time frame, the decision of the Office of the Registrar becomes final.

The fact that a student does not qualify for in-state status in any other state does not guarantee in-state status in Nevada, because residency status is governed by Board of Regents policy. Residency classification for tuition purposes clearly places the burden of proof upon the student to provide clear and convincing evidence of eligibility.

Information submitted to qualify for in-state classification is subject to independent verification. Individuals submitting false information or falsified supporting documents are subject to both criminal charges and college disciplinary procedures.

Please contact The Office of the Registrar for instructions regarding the appeals process.

Grade Appeal Policy and Procedure

Grade Appeal Process

The procedures below are applicable only to examine a student’s claim of an unfair academic evaluation made by the instructor. The academic evaluation, resulting in grade assignment, will be subject to appeal if the instructor’s evaluation is based on any factors other than the student’s performance in the course and/or adherence to course requirements.

In the event a student has a dispute with the grade received in a course s/he shall discuss the accuracy of the grade with the instructor. An instructor’s clerical errors can be corrected by the completion of a CHANGE OF GRADE form, available from the student’s advisor or department. If a clerical error has not been made, and the student and instructor do not agree that the grading criteria were applied appropriately, the student can proceed to file a Departmental Grade Appeal form.

The grade appeal must be filed with the department offering the course within 20 business days of the beginning of the following semester (excluding summer). A student who fails to file within the specified time period forfeits his/her right to appeal. The department chair or designee shall attempt to resolve the conflict.

Upon receiving the Grade Appeal, the program director, department chair or designee will have five working days to request a written response to the grade appeal from the instructor. The instructor will have 10 working days to provide a response to the student appeal. No later than 20 working days after receiving the Grade Appeal, the program director, department chair, or designee will inform the instructor and student in writing of the recommended final grade. If neither the instructor nor the student contest the recommendation within five working days after receipt of the final grade recommendation, the recommendation is considered final and not subject to further appeal. The department chair will notify the student, faculty, and, in case the case that the original grade is changed, will submit a Change of Grade form to the Office of the Registrar. If the student or faculty contests the decision, they may request a College Level Appeal.

College Level Grade Appeal

A College Grade Appeal Committee will be created by the Provost to review grade appeals that either the student or faculty contest. Should the recommendation by the department chair be contested by the faculty and/or student, the Grade Appeal form and all related materials will be forwarded by the department chair/designee to the Provost within five working days.

The College Grade Appeal Committee will meet no later than 25 working days after the Grade Appeal documentation has been forwarded to the Provost. Within five working days of first meeting, the Committee shall make the final decision. The decision is not subject to appeal. The Committee chair will notify the dean, department chair, student, faculty, and, in the case that the original grade is changed, the Office of the Registrar.

Grade Changes/Appeals

Changing a Final Grade

After the final grades are filed in the Office of the Registrar, a grade may normally be changed only to correct a clerical error. For these changes, the instructor must file a completed Change of Grade form in the Office of the Registrar.

Appealing a Final Grade

The academic evaluation, resulting in grade assignment, will be subject to appeal if the instructor’s evaluation is based on any factors other than the student’s performance in the course and/or adherence to course requirements.

For additional information, please visit the NSC Policy Library available at www.nsc.edu/policy.

Appealing Grades Received for Improper Withdrawal

Under certain circumstances, students who do not withdraw from the college in accordance with official procedures may appeal the grades they have received that semester. The appeal procedure applies only to emergency or hardship situations, as defined below:

• Personal illness or accident involving extended hospitalization
• Sudden and unexpected departure from the area resulting in the student’s inability to return to the college (e.g. death in the immediate family, induction to military service)

The appeal must be made for all course work in the semester in question and must be made within six months of the issuance of final grades, unless the student can demonstrate incapacity beyond that date. It is the student’s responsibility to support the appeal with written, documented evidence, such as an official hospital record, to substantiate the claimed hardship. In addition, if the date of departure from the college comes after the 8th week of the semester, the student must also provide documented evidence from each instructor that he/she was passing each course listed on the record for that semester. Students who meet the specified criteria and elect to file an appeal must submit a written statement with supporting documentation to the Dean of their school.

Academic Renewal

Under certain circumstances, undergraduate students may petition the Office of the Registrar for academic renewal. If the petition qualifies, students may have a maximum of two consecutive semesters of course work disregarded in all calculations regarding academic standing, grade point average, and graduation eligibility. If summer work is to be included in the disregarded course work, then a six-week summer term shall count as one-half semester.

Eligibility for academic renewal is subject to the following conditions:

• At the time the petition is filed, at least five years must have elapsed since the most recent course work to be disregarded was completed.
• In the interval between the completion of the most recent course work to be disregarded and the filing of the petition, students shall have completed at least 15 acceptable credits of course work at a regionally accredited institution of higher education with a grade-point average of at least 2.50 on all work completed during that interval. Courses taken during the interval may be repeats of previously attempted college work.

The student's filed petition will specify the semester(s) or term(s) to be disregarded. If more than one semester or term is to be disregarded, the semester(s)/term(s) must be consecutive, be completed within two calendar years and include no intervening enrollments at the college.

If the petition qualifies under this policy, the student's permanent academic record will be suitably marked to indicate that no work taken during the disregarded semester(s), even if satisfactory, may apply toward graduation requirements. However, all course work will remain on the academic record, ensuring a true and accurate academic history.

Academic renewal can only be applied prior to graduation from the first undergraduate degree. Once a student graduates, academic renewal cannot be retroactively applied.

Academic Action

Academic action consists of warming, probation, suspension, and dismissal.

Points of Clarification

For Incomplete grades, the calculation of the GPA will be made in the semester in which the incomplete grade was assigned. Any academic action that is necessary due to a change from the incomplete grade to an earned grade will be taken at the end of the semester in which the incomplete grade is changed.

NSC Cumulative GPA calculations only include courses that are taken at NSC. Courses taken at another institute and transferred to NSC will not be included in the NSC Cumulative GPA.

Academic Warning

Students with the following actions will receive a Notice of Academic Warning from the Office of the Registrar:

• A student who earns a NSC Cumulative GPA of less than 2.0 based on his/her credits attempted (courses in which a grade of A, B, C, D, F, and/or W is earned).
• A student who withdraws from or fails to complete more than 70% of his/her attempted semester credits regardless of the NSC Cumulative GPA.

To help prevent academic probation, a student is required to meet with an academic advisor during the semester in which he/she is placed on academic warning.

Academic Probation

If a student fails to raise his/her NSC Cumulative GPA above the warning threshold by the end of the semester following the warning, he/she will be placed on academic probation according to the following:

• 0-29 total credits attempted and has a NSC Cumulative GPA of less than 1.6;
• 30-59 total credits attempted and has a NSC Cumulative GPA of less than 1.8; or
• 60 or more total credits attempted and has a NSC Cumulative GPA of less than 2.0.

A student on academic probation is required to meet with an academic advisor to develop an Academic Plan of Action as to how he/she will return to good academic standing. If a student on probation fails to develop an Academic Plan of Action with his/her advisor, an advising hold will be placed on the student’s account, and the student will not be permitted to register. A student who develops an Academic Plan with his/her advisor and maintains a semester GPA of 2.0 while on probation will be allowed to enroll each semester in a probationary status until the appropriate NSC Cumulative GPA based upon the total number of credits attempted has been earned.

Academic Suspension

If at the end of probationary semester, a student fails to achieve a semester GPA of 2.0 or higher, or raise his/her NSC Cumulative GPA above the probation level, he/she will be suspended from taking classes at NSC for one semester. If the student re-enrolls after suspension and earns less than a 2.0 semester GPA and has a cumulative GPA below the probation threshold, then the student will receive a second suspension and will be prohibited from enrolling for two consecutive semesters.

A student who has been placed on suspension has the option to appeal the grade(s) that resulted in the suspension. The Academic Status of students appealing final grades will not be affected until a final decision has been made regarding grades in questions. Please refer to the Grade Appeal Policy for specific instructions to complete the Grade Appeal process.

Reinstatement from Suspension

A student returning to NSC following a suspension must meet with an academic advisor to develop an Academic Plan prior to registration and the start of classes. The Academic Plan will include minimum requirements of a semester GPA of 2.0 or higher for each semester following reinstatement until the student achieves good academic standing (based on the NSC Cumulative GPA). The student is also recommended to take an appropriate course load as approved by his/her academic advisor. Students reinstated from suspension are placed on academic probation until such time that the student meets the appropriate GPA for credits attempted, as listed in the Academic Probation section above.

Academic Dismissal

A student will be dismissed from NSC if his/her NSC Cumulative GPA is below the probation threshold and the student does not earn a semester GPA of 2.0 or higher in any semester following their second suspension.

Appeal

If the student wishes to appeal dismissal decision or apply for reinstatement, the student can proceed to file an appeal to the Dean of his/her school through the Office of the Registrar. The appeal form and associated instructions are located in the Office of the Registrar. The Dean must render a decision on the appeal by the first day of class of the following semester. The Dean’s decision is final.

Student wanting to attend NSC after dismissal must reapply for admission through the Office of the Registrar at least one year after the date of dismissal.

Class Absences

There are no official absences from any college class. It is the personal responsibility of the student to consult with the professor regarding absence from class.

Religious Holiday Policy: It is the policy of NSHE to be sensitive to the religious obligations of its students. Any student missing class, quizzes, examinations, or any other class or lab work because of observance of religious holidays shall, whenever possible, be given an opportunity during that semester to make up the missed work. The make-up will apply to religious holiday absence only. It is the responsibility of the student to notify the instructor in writing if the student intends to participate in a religious holiday which does not fall on state holidays or periods of class recess. This policy shall not apply in the event that administering the assignment at an alternate time would impose an undue hardship on the instructor or the institution which could not have reasonably been avoided. Any student who is denied a make-up option after appropriately notifying the instructor shall have the right to appeal that decision through the normal appeal mechanism in place at the college. A student must make the initial appeal to the department chair or coordinator of the program in which the class is offered. If it is not resolved at that level, the student may appeal to the Dean or Director.