Resident Conduct
Accommodation Conduct Process
Members of the University’s Residential Community are responsible for their own actions as well as the actions of their guests. It is the expectation of the University that each resident will respect all other residents and their property and the residential environment. However, some members of the community may, either by error or intent, violate community standards or push/test boundaries. As these situations occur it will be necessary to hold these members accountable for their actions. It is the intention of the University to approach these violations from an educational perspective, when appropriate. However other sanctions or requirements may be necessary to insure that the Residential Community continues to be a positive and supportive community, conducive to growth and academic achievement. It is the responsibility of each student to be aware of Residential Rules and expectations the University has for residents.
Conduct process steps:
Residents who violate Residential Rules will be subject to a conduct process. The Resident conduct process typically occurs as follows
1. Incident report or formal complaint: Incident reports regarding alleged violations of the Residential Rules are submitted by staff members. Any community member may report an incident by submitting a written account of the incident to an Accommodation staff member.
2. Investigation and request for information: The Resident Manager/Coordinator and/or Head of Operations review the report. After the review, staff will either close the case with no action deemed necessary or conclude that a potential violation may have occurred and a conduct meeting or request for more information is necessary.
3. Conduct meeting: If a conduct meeting is necessary, any one of the following may occur:
- The Resident Manager/Coordinator and/or Head of Operations will manage the meeting and process
- Cases involving allegations or serious violations or continued repeated offences may be referred up to a Head of Operations and/or the Associate Director (Accommodation), Campus Environment
- Cases may be also heard by the University Student Discipline committee, if deemed appropriate by the Associate Director (Accommodation), Campus Environment
The appropriate conduct meeting forum is determined by a member of the Accommodation management team. The Resident will receive notice via email through the student’s preferred email listed in SSO or phone call to their listed cellphone. Notices include information about who will be present at the meeting, a brief outline of the incident, and the date, time and location of the meeting. If a Resident chooses not to attend the meeting, the designated manager will review all of the available information in their absence and determine a response in conjunction with an Head of Operations. Attendance is important at these meetings, therefore if a Resident cannot attend due to an academic conflict or other significant engagement then they will need to reschedule as soon as possible with the relevant manager. The conduct meeting will serve as an opportunity for the Resident to share their perspective of the incident and any other relevant information and for staff to engage in a conversation about appropriate community living here at the University of Auckland. During the conduct meeting the manager will introduce the situation, outlining the incident, why a conduct meeting has been called and the relevant Residential Rules that have been broken and asking for the resident’s version of events. The resident is welcome to bring a support person and/or residents that may have been involved in the incident in question but not noted on the report. After the meeting the manager will go away and think about the evidence given and then make a judgement. The resident will be invited back to hear the decided outcome of the incident and any sanctions that may be issued.
Sanctions:
Sanctions that may be issued at the Residence level by a Resident Manager (and delegated Resident Coordinators) include:
- Verbal warning
- Written warning
- Community Service
- Monetary fines or donation to an approved charity up to $100
- Room reassignment
- Alcohol / Drug education
- Counselling and/or health services evaluation
- Restriction of privileges
- Guest bans
- Educational project
- Cost recovery
Sanctions that may be issued at the Residence level by the Head of Operations include those of the Resident Manager, with the addition of:
- Behaviour agreements
- Transfer to another University operated or affiliated Residence
- Exclusion from the Residence
- Recommendation for eviction from the Residence to the Associate Director - Accommodation
- Monetary fines or donation to an approved charity up to $1500
- Referral to the Associate Director – Accommodation
Sanctions that may be issued at the Residence level by the Associate Director – Accommodation include those of the Head of Operations, with the addition of:
- Immediate emergency eviction from University Accommodation
- Eviction from University Accommodation
- Trespass Orders for University Accommodation
- Referral to the University disciplinary committee managed by the Proctor
The Head of Operations has the power to take disciplinary action as outlined in the University Statutes (refer: University Statutes /Statute for Student Discipline, clause 3(g)).
Appeal of decisions:
A Resident can appeal the outcome of a conduct meeting. However, Residents wishing to appeal an outcome are encouraged to first discuss the decision with the Manager who made the determination.
To lodge an appeal, a Resident must submit a written appeal to the Associate Director (Accommodation), Campus Environment within 5 working days of receiving written notification of the outcome. The Associate Director may, at their discretion, accept an appeal lodged outside this timeframe where exceptional circumstances exist. Residents may appeal based on one of the following:
- Lack of due process followed
- The severity of the sanction
- Reasonableness of the decision
- New and substantial information, not available at the time of original conduct meeting which is now available
An appeal is not intended to be a rehearing of the original matter and dissatisfaction with a decision alone is not sufficient grounds for an appeal.
The Associate Director (Accommodation) will review the appeal, the original decision, and any relevant information before making a final determination. Where the sanction involves a decision made by the Associate Director (Accommodation) the Director of Campus Environment or their nominee will undertake the appeal review.
The appeal may result in one of the following:
- All findings and sanctions of the initial conduct meeting are upheld
- Findings and/or sanctions will be modified as deemed appropriate
- Additional sanctions may be enacted in light of new information discovered during the appeal process
Only one appeal of the outcome of a conduct meeting may occur. Residents are not afforded multiple appeals for a decision.
