Office of Student Accountability and Conflict Response

The Office of Student Accountability and Conflict Response (OSACR) works to uphold community and university standards through compassionate interventions in which students are heard, respected, and treated with dignity. These students, including student organization leaders, have the opportunity to take part in fair and impartial resolution processes which encourage personal accountability and responsible decision-making; promote reflection and restoration; and reduce and prevent behavior which undermines student success and community safety.

Student Code of Conduct

OSACR handles the oversight and implementation of the Student Code of Conduct and related written procedures. The Code outlines community standards for student behavior, both on- and off-campus, while the written procedures explain how alleged violations of the Code are managed within the student conduct process.

When a student or organization is named in a report and/or takes part in a resolution process, a record is created and maintained by OSACR. (See information about the maintenance and distribution of Conduct records.)

In addition to managing formal allegations of misconduct, OSACR also offers a wide-range of Adaptable Resolutions and Conflict Response options. For information about these resolution options, please contact the office or encourage your student to speak with the case manager assigned to their case.

Parent and Family Notification

Under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), colleges and universities are afforded certain rights relative to notifying parents or guardians of information concerning their student. To involve students’ families in the total educational experience of the students and to facilitate communication between students and their parents/legal guardians, OSACR has established a notification and disclosure policy. The goals of this policy are:

  • To clarify when notification and/or disclosure may be appropriate
  • To partner with families in support of their student
  • To identify additional supportive points of intervention for students

When a dependent student accepts responsibility for a violation or is found in violation of the Code, a notification letter will typically be sent to their parent or guardian in the following circumstances:

  • There was a “Substance Use Misconduct” violation, and the student is under 21 years of age
  • The Action Plan includes suspension, expulsion, and/or loss of housing (including those administrative sanctions issued in a conditional status)

The notification letter summarizes the outcome of the process and lists the official University violation(s) and outcomes. It is recommended that the first response to receiving this letter is starting a conversation with your student. Follow-up questions can then be directed to the case manager in OSACR.

In unusual circumstances which qualify as an exception to FERPA, the University will notify parents and/or guardians of students who are not dependent students.

Read more about Parent and Family Notification and Disclosure.

Academic Integrity at Penn State

Academic integrity is a basic guiding principle for all academic activity at Penn State, and all members of the University community are expected to act in accordance with this principle. An academic integrity violation is an intentional, unintentional, or attempted violation of course or assessment policies to gain an academic advantage or to advantage or disadvantage another student academically.

Types of academic misconduct include but are not limited to:

  • unauthorized collaboration and/or accessing or using unauthorized or prohibited materials, information, tools, technologies, or study aids
  • misrepresenting another’s words, results, processes, or ideas in whole or in part without giving appropriate attribution, citation, or credit
  • providing false information in fulfillment of an academic assignment, exercise, publication, or another requirement
  • using the same academic work, in part or entirely, for credit more than once, unless specifically authorized by the instructor receiving the reused work

For more information, please review G-9: Academic Integrity

Free Speech

As a public university, Penn State supports and promotes the First Amendment and values the legal protections it offers for free expression, inquiry, and thought, even when viewpoints offend community members or contradict the institution’s values. The primary purpose of a university is to discover and disseminate knowledge, and this can only occur if freedom of expression is honored. Even words and other expressions that many people would consider to be “hate speech” are constitutionally protected under the First Amendment.

However, free speech is not without limits. For example, the University may restrict or discipline expression in a few instances, including speech that:

  • Incites imminent lawless action
  • Defames a specific individual
  • Rises to the level of harassment
  • Targets a specific individual or individuals with true threats of violence

The University also may regulate the time, place, and manner of expression.

The University encourages those who wish to counter views they find unacceptable to do so in responsible ways, including:

  • Taking part in alternative events
  • Lending their voices to causes with which they are aligned and that help foster a stronger community
  • Lawfully and actively protesting or speaking out if they desire

The University’s free speech website is intended to educate students, faculty, and staff on the University’s commitment to free speech, resources and support available to those impacted by hate-filled speech, and ways University community members are encouraged to use to engage in dialogue on difficult topics.

Community members, including parents or families, may report incidents of bias or discrimination to reporting.psu.edu University Police, or local police; to the Office of Equal Opportunity and Access (OEOA); or the Office of Ethics and Compliance.

Pennsylvania’s Anti-Hazing Law

In 2018, Pennsylvania adopted the Timothy J. Piazza Anti-Hazing Law, which:

  • Establishes a tiered penalty with stricter punishments for hazing (including felony-level violations)
  • Holds both individuals and organizations accountable for hazing
  • Requires schools to publish anti-hazing policies and publicly report hazing violations

To the extent possible, any student, organization, faculty or staff member, contractor, or volunteer of the University will be held accountable for hazing-related violations both by the University and by the appropriate law enforcement agency. Any allegations of hazing should be reported to the University’s Office of Ethics and Compliance or OSACR, in addition to University police.

The Timothy J. Piazza Anti-Hazing Law, in addition to Pennsylvania’s medical amnesty law (see below), provides immunity from prosecution when a student seeks help for themselves or others who need medical attention. Students who seek help may also avoid formal student conduct action under the Penn State Responsible Action Protocol (see below). 

Pennsylvania’s Medical Amnesty Law 

Pennsylvania law provides immunity from prosecution for underage drinking and/or hazing for an individual who seeks help for a friend who has a medical emergency due to underage alcohol consumption or hazing. The immunity also applies to the friend for whom medical assistance was sought. When a person violates underage drinking or hazing laws and calls 911 to get help for a person who needs immediate medical attention due to excessive alcohol consumption or hazing, the caller and the person for whom assistance was sought will not be charged with underage drinking or hazing as long as:

  • That persons’ phone call was the initial way law enforcement found out about the hazing and/or underage person’s drinking violation
  • The caller reasonably believed they were the first to call and report the emergency
  • The person correctly identified themselves by name when reporting the emergency
  • The person remained with the individual needing medical assistance until emergency services arrived

Pennsylvania Law (35 P.S. § 780-113.7) provides immunity from prosecution for a small number of drug possession related charges when an individual seeks help for themselves or another individual for a drug related medical emergency. This immunity would not apply to charges of delivering and/or possessing with the intent to deliver a controlled substance.

Penn State’s Responsible Action Protocol

Student safety is important, and the university works to create an environment that is conducive to reporting sexual misconduct and to seeking emergency assistance for hazing-related injuries and other serious medical issues. While the university does not condone underage drinking, illegal drug use, or other violations of university policy or the law, the university understands that students may hesitate to get help for themselves and others when they are worried about the potential consequences, including student conduct action. The university has set up the following safety protocols.

Emergency Protocol: Alcohol and other Drugs

A student who takes the initiative to get assistance by notifying the appropriate authorities (e.g., calling 911, alerting a resident assistant, or contacting police) and meets one or more of the criteria below, will typically not be subject to student conduct action for their own use or possession of alcohol or other drugs. The student will, however, be required to complete an alcohol or drug related educational intervention; any associated fees will be waived. This protocol may be appropriate when:

  • A student seeks medical assistance for themselves when experiencing an alcohol or drug overdose, or related problems
  • A student seeks medical assistance for a peer experiencing an alcohol or drug overdose, or related problems, and stays with that peer until the appropriate authorities arrive
  • A student experiencing an alcohol or drug overdose, or related problems, for whom another student seeks assistance

Students who are, or know someone who is, struggling with substance misuse are encouraged to access resources and support available through Penn State Health Promotion and Wellness, the Collegiate Recovery Community, and Counseling and Psychological Services.

Emergency Protocol: Hazing

A student who takes the initiative to get assistance by notifying the proper authorities (e.g., calling 911, alerting a resident assistant, or contacting police) AND meets the criteria below, will typically not be subject to student conduct action for Hazing. The student will, however, be required to complete educational interventions to prevent the recurrence of the reported behavior. This protocol may be appropriate when:

  • A student seeks medical assistance for a peerbased on a reasonable belief that the person needed immediate medical attention to prevent death or serious injury
  • the student provides their name
  • the student stays with that peer until the appropriate authorities arrive

Students are encouraged to notify the University as soon as possible when they become aware that hazing has, or may, occur. Reports can be filed with the Office of Student Accountability and Conflict Response, or submitted anonymously to the Office of Ethics and Compliance.

Reporting Sexual Misconduct Protocol

A student who makes a report to the University or other appropriate authority (e.g., law enforcement) about experiencing sexual misconduct, or is reporting the experience of another, will typically not be subject to student conduct action related to their own possession or consumption of alcohol or other drugs in connection with the reported incident. As appropriate, involved students may have to complete an educational intervention to address concerns about the student’s substance use; any associated fees will be waived.

Students are encouraged to notify the university as soon as possible when they become aware that sexual misconduct has, or may, occur. Reports can be filed with the Office of Sexual Misconduct Reporting and Response, or submitted anonymously to the Office of Ethics and Compliance.

When a student shows a pattern of problematic and/or high-risk behavior, or when the behavior involves other serious alleged violations of the Student Code of Conduct, the university may determine it is appropriate to initiate formal student conduct action in lieu of, or in addition to, these protocols.

Office of Sexual Misconduct Reporting and Response (OSMRR)

University Park:
email: [email protected]
phone: 814‑867‑0099
website: titleix.psu.edu

Wilkes-Barre campus:
Tracy Garnick, Student Affairs
email: [email protected]
phone: 570-450-3159
office: 123 Murphy Center

Penn State is committed to providing an environment that is free from sexual or gender-based discrimination or harassment. Resources are available to members of the University community to provide a prompt and effective response when such incidents occur. Behaviors that fall under policy AD‑85 Title IX Sexual Harassment and AD-91 Discrimination and Harassment and Related Inappropriate Conduct include:*

  • Gender-based Harassment — Behavior consisting of physical or verbal conduct based on gender, sexual orientation, gender-stereotyping, perceived gender, or gender identity
  • Sexual Harassment — Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature
  • Sexual Misconduct — Rape, sexual assault, sexual battery, sexual exploitation, and other forms of non-consensual sexual activity
  • Stalking — Repeatedly following, harassing, threatening or intimidating including by telephone, mail, electronic communication, or social media
  • Dating Violence — May include emotional, verbal, and/or economic abuse
  • Domestic Violence — May include emotional, verbal, and/or economic abuse
  • Retaliation — Adverse employment, academic, or other actions against anyone reporting or participating in an investigation of Title IX allegations

*These are intended to serve as representative examples. For full definitions of prohibited conduct, consent, and more information about reporting options and amnesty, please refer to the relevant policy.

Amnesty

Penn State offers confidential and non-confidential reporting options for those who have become a victim of sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, or stalking. The University strongly encourages students to report incidents violating this policy. Students who act responsibly by reporting information about sexual and/or gender-based harassment or misconduct typically will not face University disciplinary action for their own drug or alcohol possession or consumption in connection with the reported incident.

Consent

Any sexual contact that occurs without consent violates Penn State’s policy. Consent is a knowing, voluntary, and mutual decision among all participants to engage in sexual activity. Consent must be informed, freely given, and mutual. 

Reporting Sexual Harassment or Misconduct

Penn State offers a variety of confidential and non-confidential reporting options if a student is a victim of sexual or gender-based harassment or sexual misconduct. 

Student survivors, witnesses, and bystanders who report, in good faith, any incident of sexual assault, dating or domestic violence, or stalking will not be charged with an alcohol or drug violation of the Student Code of Conduct.

Confidential Reporting Options

Visit the University’s Title IX web page to learn more about campus, community and University resources.

Non-Confidential Reporting Options

Response to a Non-Confidential Report

A non-confidential report activates the campus response, which is overseen by the Title IX coordinator. This includes providing resource information and discussion of procedural options.

Accommodations and/or interim remedies may be taken, including:

  • a no-contact order
  • classroom and housing adjustments
  • access to on-and off-campus support services

The Office of Sexual Misconduct Reporting and Response (OSMRR) may conduct an investigation or resolve the matter through an informal process. The University will review all relevant information and determine if the behavior violates the University's Code of Conduct.