Any of the following acts, even if communicative in nature, are
prohibited "separation offenses" (charges that could lead to suspension
or expulsion from the university) under the provisions of the
University Code of Student Conduct:
1. Use of force against
the person or property of any member of the university community or
against the person or property of anyone on university premises, or the
threat of such physical abuse. (Verbal assault may be prosecuted as a
"threat of . . . physical abuse.")
2. Theft of, or intentional
damage to, university property, or property in the possession of, or
owned by, a member of the university. (Acts of graffiti or other
vandalism may be prosecuted as "intentional damage to . . . property.")
3. Harassment, which is statutorily defined by New Jersey law
to mean, and here means, purposefully making or causing to be made a
communication or communica-tions anonymously or at extremely
inconvenient hours, or in offensively coarse language, or in any other
man- ner likely to cause annoyance or alarm, or subjecting or
threatening to subject another to striking, kicking, shoving, or other
offensive touching, or engaging in any other course of conduct or of
repeatedly committed acts with purpose to alarm or seriously annoy any
other person. Harassment is considered a separation offense under the
University Code of Student Conduct.
4. Defamation, which is
judicially defined to mean, and here means, the unprivileged oral or
written publication of a false statement of fact that exposes the
person about whom it is made to hatred, contempt, or ridicule, or
subjects that person to loss of the goodwill and confidence of others,
or so harms that person's reputation as to deter others from
associating with her or him. Defamation is considered a separation
offense under the University Code of Student Conduct.
While
any of the four categories of acts listed above is a separation offense
that, if proven, could lead to a sanction of expulsion or suspension
from the university under the provisions of the University Code of
Student Conduct, clearly minor instances of such prohibited behavior
should be resolved at the college level and not be treated as
separation offenses requiring a university-level hearing. The initial
judgment of whether a particular act is of a separable or nonseparable
nature is made by the appropriate college official.
Students
who believe themselves to be victims of verbal assault, harassment, or
defamation should report such incidents to the dean or the dean of
students of their college or school. In addition, the following
individuals have been identified to handle complaints:
Brian T. Rose, associate vice president for student affairs, 83 Somerset Street, College Avenue campus (732/932-7312);
Cheryl Clarke, director of diverse community affairs and lesbian/gay
concerns, 3 Bartlett Street, College Avenue campus (732/932-1711);
Mary Beth Daisey, associate provost for student affairs, Armitage Hall, Room 248, Camden campus, (856/225-6043);
Marcia W. Brown, vice provost for student and community affairs, Center for Law and Justice, Newark campus (973/353-5541).
Some complaints can and should be resolved by informal methods, while
others will require the implementation of formal procedures. All
complaints are treated confidentially; complainants are encouraged to
report incidents even if they do not wish to pursue the matter beyond
the reporting stage.
