The Eagle - Home - Welcome - Bridgewater College

STUDENT CODE OF ETHICSWe all – students, faculty, and administrators – are joined in a community of learning. Ourcommunity can only thrive in an environment of trust and respect, where we are free to interacthonestly and openly, and therefore, participation in the Code is not optional. The Code does notreplace the policies listed below or elsewhere in The Eagle, such as those dealing with alcoholicbeverages, illegal drugs, or visitation. Instead, it incorporates into a positive statement, in anaffirmative manner, the attitudes and actions which are appropriate for a member of our community.Initiated and written by students, it is hoped that the student body will internalize the Code and use itas a mark against which to measure their behavior, not only during their time at Bridgewater, but alsoafter graduation.Student Code of ConductBridgewater College endeavors to promote student involvement in campus life by encouragingparticipation in co-curricular activities, providing a Student Government and an Honor Council, andby its tradition of seating students as members on many of the College‘s committees.The College assumes that members of the student body will exhibit mature and responsible behavior.The policies and regulations of the campus are designed to encourage students in this direction. TheCollege will not attempt to rigidly supervise the life of each individual student on campus or in thenearby community. However, as long as a person is a member of the student body, we expect thateach student will function in a manner that will reflect creditably on the College. Thus, unseemlyconduct by individual students or interpersonal behavior which violates acceptable communitystandards of conduct will subject the student or students involved to disciplinary action, includingpossible suspension or expulsion from the College.On occasion, it is necessary for the College to investigate, confront, and respond to matters of studentconduct. Thus, the College retains the right to enter any part of the campus at any time, includingsuch areas as residence hall rooms, storage rooms, and lockers. College officials have both theresponsibility and the authority to address incidents of alleged campus infractions and to issuecensure commensurate with the offense. Nevertheless, any student so confronted and accused willhave an opportunity to explain himself or herself through conversation with the appropriate Collegeofficial or through a hearing before a judicial board.Students are subject to the laws governing all private citizens as well as the rules of the College.Violation of laws by Bridgewater students on or off campus could result in legal action and/orjeopardize the student-College relationship. The College is not a sanctuary from the law or itsrepresentatives. Nor does the College abdicate its own responsibility to deal with internal affairs evenwhen civil authorities are involved. For example, shoplifting, whether on or off campus, is a felony,and students caught are subject to criminal prosecution as well as disciplinary action by the College.The College Administration makes every effort to avoid arbitrary, harsh, or unfair sanctions forstudent violations. Good citizenship in any community requires a great deal of responsibility on thepart of all members. With this responsibility comes the obligation to refrain from infringing on therights of others, whether through placing persons in danger or jeopardizing either personal well-beingor property. However, when a student displays poor citizenship, blatant disregard for College60