Academic Policies

While matriculating as full-time or part-time students, UUC students are required to observe the student code of conduct. The following behaviors are unacceptable and violate the student code of conduct:

• Use, possession or sale of illegal drugs on campus
• Academic Dishonesty, including but not limited to cheating and plagiarism, detailed below under ‘Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism’
• Sexual harassment or assault on any member of the UUC community, described below under ‘Sexual Harassment and Assault Policy’
• Willful obstruction of the activities of the institution in carrying out its stated mission, purpose and objectives
• Calumniation of others in discussion either in class or online, raising political debates in discussion either in class or online, or humiliating religious or social individuals or institutions in discussion, either in class or online.

Note: as a Christian school, UUC reserves the right to discipline students who violate moral and legal boundaries of Christianity and/or their state or nation.

Students who violate the Student Code of Conduct will be subject to disciplinary action commensurate with the type and severity of the violation. When students violate the Student Code of Conduct the case is referred to the Disciplinary Committee of the University. This is an ad hoc committee convened whenever deemed necessary and composed of the following: Dean of the School, Vice-President, Director of Student Services, the Chair of the Department, and a student representative (normally, president of the student government or his or her designee).

After careful deliberation of all relevant and material facts, the committee will make a decision on a disciplinary action against the student in violation of the student code of conduct. The following disciplinary action may be taken against the offending student:

• Written reprimand and probation
• Loss of credit in course(s) where academic dishonesty was involved and verified
• Temporary suspension of specific duration (one or two academic terms, with permission to re-apply)
• Indefinite suspension with time and terms of re-admission not given Immediate dismissal.
• The disciplined student may request a review by appealing to the Board of Trustees.

Academic dishonesty in any form will not be tolerated. Academic dishonesty is any form of cheating including but not limited to:

• Plagiarism, or presenting another person’s work as your own
• Self-Plagiarism, or submitting your own work more than once without permission
• Cheating, or giving or obtaining academic help without proper acknowledgement
• Deception, falsifying information regarding an academic task, i.e. lying to a professor about reasons for absences
• Fabrication, or making up citations, information or data
• Sabotaging, or intentionally obstructing another person’s academic progress.

One or more of the following disciplinary actions are available to the instructor who suspects that a student has been cheating or plagiarizing:

• • Oral or written reprimand
  • Requiring that the work in question be repeated
  • Assignment of “F” grade for the specific work in question
  • Assignment of “F” for the course
  • Referral to the Faculty Committee for appropriate action.
  • If the involved student has already graduated, the University will consider nullifying his or her granted degree.

Any student whose grade point average falls below the stipulated minimums for their degree program will be placed on academic probation (See “Academic Standards” listed above). The student will not be able to do online registration herself/himself. No record of this status will be recorded on the student’s transcript. Probation begins with the semester following notification. A student on academic probation may not be allowed to take a full load. His or her academic progress will be closely monitored by the Dean of Student Affairs who will evaluate the following factors very carefully and recommend remedial measures:

• Written reprimand and probation
• Temporary suspension of specific duration (one or two academic terms, with permission to re-apply)
• Indefinite suspension with time and terms of re-admission not given
• Immediate dismissal.
• Students will be removed from academic probation and restored to good standing when the cumulative GPA has improved to meet the Academic Standards.

The Board of Trustees of Union University of California is committed to providing an academic learning and working environment that is free from sexual assault and harassment, and shall take preventive measures to ensure that faculty, staff, students and visitors are appropriately protected from such actions. This safe environment includes all campus locations and all off-campus, university-related activities and sites.

Commission of a sexual assault is a violation of the university policy and of state criminal law. Sexual assault is broadly defined as being any unwanted attempted or actual sexual activity, including forcible and non-forcible sexual offenses. A forcible sexual offense is any sexual act directed against another person, including unwanted touching, that is against that person’s will or which involves the use of force or violence or the threat of force or violence, or a sexual act against a person incapable of giving consent. Forcible sexual offenses include rape, sodomy, sexual assault with an object, and all forms of non-consensual touching, such as fondling. Non-forcible sexual offenses are acts of unlawful sexual activity against persons incapable of giving consent, such as statutory rape. Acts which are commonly expressive of familiar or friendly affection and accepted medical purposes are not included.

Sexual harassment is a form of sexual discrimination that is prohibited by federal and state law. It is defined as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors or other physical or verbal conduct of a sexual nature, including, but not limited to, the following circumstances:

• When submission to such conduct is made explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment or a part of the educational process; or
• When submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment or academic decisions affecting such an individual; or
• When such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work or academic performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive working or educational environment. Examples of conduct which violate this policy include, but are not limited to, intentional physical conduct which is sexual in nature; unwanted sexual advances, propositions, or other sexual comments; preferential treatment, or the promise of such, for submitting to sexual conduct; displaying pictures, objects, or materials which are sexually offensive; physical assault of a sexual nature or attempts to commit such an assault; and retaliation for making a sexual harassment complaint or participating in a sexual harassment investigation.