Code of Conduct

ETHICAL CONDUCT POLICIES

As part of its mission and its academic program, Truett Seminary is entitled to prescribe appropriate standards of conduct in addition to, and independent of, those prescribed by the University. Accordingly, Seminary students are expected to conduct themselves in an ethical and moral manner becoming of a minister as that role has been historically understood within Baptist tradition.

The Seminary reserves the right to place a student on probation from the Seminary, to suspend or expel a student from the Seminary, to withhold a degree from the student, or to take other action appropriate for the Seminary (including the revocation of denominational tuition funding or scholarships), if the conduct of the student prevents, or will prevent, acceptable representation of Truett Seminary in light of the standards of Baptist tradition, Truett Seminary or Baylor University.

Seminary students, as students enrolled in Baylor University, are subject also to general University regulations, including, but not limited to, the Student Disciplinary Policy, Honor Code, Academic Probation, Policy for Information Systems Usage, Home Web Page Policies, Electronic Mail List Policies, Policy Statement on Alcohol or Other Drugs, Policy on Sexual Misconduct, and the Policy on Sexual Harassment. No student may be admitted to or retained in the Seminary who is excluded for disciplinary or other reasons from the University.

GENERAL INFORMATION

1. Truett Seminary is a Christian institution whose primary purpose is to train men and women for ministry and theological education.
2. Students who have given evidence of a divine call, have been certified by a local church to prepare for the Christian ministry, and seek entrance into this institution shall conduct themselves in a manner deemed by the seminary as conduct becoming of a Baptist minister as it has been historically understood. Non-Baptist students are held to this level of conduct as well.
3. Students who commit any form of academic misconduct, which includes but is not limited to, plagiarism or cheating, will be subject to the Baylor University Honor Code. Incidents will be reported to the Office of Academic Integrity and students will be sanctioned in accordance with the Honor Code. The process for student appeal is outlined in the Honor Code.
4. The Seminary may take disciplinary action as it deems necessary should the standard of personal and ethical conduct be violated. Violation of this standard shall include, but is not limited to:
   1. Academic misconduct including, but not limited to, plagiarism or cheating;
   2. Public or private alcohol intoxication;
   3. Use of illegal drugs;
   4. Abuse of any drugs;
   5. Heterosexual misconduct or homosexual behavior;
   6. Sexual harassment;
   7. Involvement with pornography;
   8. Giving false statements to the seminary orally or in writing including, but not limited to, one's application for admission or registration or altering records;
   9. Financial malfeasance;
   10. Fighting; abusive or vulgar language;
   11. Theft of seminary or personal property;
   12. Violation of seminary academic regulations and policies; and
   13. Disrespect toward a Seminary or University employee.
5. Students involved in a civil infraction are accountable to civil authorities but may also be subject to discipline by the Seminary.

ORGANIZATION

1. Students who have violated the ethical conduct code listed above, or who have committed any act that is not congruent with their calling as a minister will have to appear before the Seminary Ethical Conduct Committee.
2. The Seminary Ethical Conduct Committee, comprised of the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, the Director of Student Services, two faculty representatives, and as ex officio, Baylor general counsel, shall administer this Seminary policy.
3. The Committee will exercise Christian concern in its dealings with students, and its actions will be intended to be occasions for learning, personal growth, and professional development.
   
   The welfare of the student, of the seminary community, and of the churches are its primary concerns (Gal. 6:1-2). The Committee, or any member thereof, shall provide written notice of the allegations, and of supporting information, to the student of a violation of the requirements of Ethical Conduct. The Committee shall provide the student an opportunity to be heard in person and in writing.
4. The Committee will decide if the student has demonstrated ethical misconduct that would indicate that the student is not prepared to serve in Christian ministry. If the Committee so finds, the Committee shall also determine an appropriate sanction. The Committee shall notify the student in writing of the results.

ETHICAL CONDUCT DISCIPLINARY ACTION

Actions of the committee include, but are not limited to:

1. Reprimand and disciplinary probation;
2. Temporary suspension with time and terms of re-admission indicated;
3. Indefinite suspension with time and terms of re-admission not indicated;
4. Removal of scholarship assistance;
5. Permanent dismissal; and
6. Any of the above may be noted on the student;s transcript and may be removed at the discretion of the committee.

REVIEW

A student may seek a review of the decision of the Ethical Conduct Committee through the office of the Dean of the Seminary. It will be the Dean's decision to overturn or support the decision of the committee. Upon a review of the decision of the Ethical Conduct Committee, the Dean will render a final decision from which there will be no further review or appeal.

STYLE GUIDE FOR SEMINARY COMMUNITY

In preparing papers, reviews, and other written materials, students are required to follow the style guide developed by the Society of Biblical Literature (P.H. Alexander, et al., eds., The SBL Handbook of Style, Peabody, MA; Hendrickson, 1999). Students may access a truncated version at http://www.sbl-site.org/assets/pdfs/pubs/SBLHSsupp2015-02.pdf. This style guide provides the necessary information related to formatting a paper and also provides helpful examples for proper citation of various sources.

PLAGIARISM & ACADEMIC DISHONESTY

According to the Seminary catalog, all Seminary students, as students enrolled in Baylor University, are subject also to general University regulations, including the Honor Code. Plagiarism is listed among the potential academic violations in the Honor Code. Baylor University has defined plagiarism as "incorporating into one's work offered for course credit passages taken either word for word or in substance from a work of another, unless the student credits the original author and identifies the original author's work with quotation marks, footnotes, or another appropriate written explanation."

Students may claim that they did not mean to plagiarize or that it was unintentional. Intent, however, cannot be judged in such matters. If you submit a document that plagiarizes another source, then you have committed plagiarism. It is the responsibility of the student to check and recheck sources to insure that proper citations have been included. If in doubt, consult with your professor about proper procedure. All students must submit papers, exams, and other written materials to Turnitin.com. This computer source will scan your document and determine if there is evidence of plagiarism. This search engine will also provide a citation of the source from which you have taken the the text in question. Please be advised of the following statement:

"Students agree that by taking this course, all required papers, exams, class projects or other assignments submitted for credit may be submitted to turnitin.com or similar third parties to review and evaluate for originality and intellectual integrity. A description of the services, terms and conditions of use, and privacy policy of turnitin.com is available on its web site: http://www.turnitin.com. Students understand all work submitted to turnitin.com will be added to its database of papers. Students further understand that if the results of such a review support an allegation of academic dishonesty, the course work in question as well as any supporting materials will be submitted to the Honor Council for investigation and further action."

CONSEQUENCES OF PLAGIARISM

Students who have submitted plagiarized work will face the following consequences:

1. The student will be penalized in accordance with the Baylor University Honor Code. Possible sanctions include, but are not limited to, failure/grade penalty on the assignment, rewriting the assignment, failure/grade penalty on the test, and failure/grade penalty in the course. The professor is required to report all forms of academic misconduct to the Office of Academic Integrity. All matters of academic dishonesty, including student appeal, will be handled according to the University's Honor Code.
2. If a student commits plagiarism a second time, then according to the Baylor University Honor Code, the Office of Academic Integrity will refer the student's file to the Honor Council. The Honor Council will consider additional sanctions for repeat violations. Possible sanctions include, but are not limited to probation, suspension, and expulsion.