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The BYU Honor Code Office has changed the way it contacts students and tracks the progress and outcomes of its work.
New software adopted by the HCO provides secure communications so that students will know why they’ve been asked to meet with an administrator before their scheduled appointment.
“Our review of how we serve students showed the importance of clear communication from our office,” said Kevin Utt, Honor Code Office director. “This new system allows us to provide the details students want to know up front while still protecting student privacy.”
In the past, students would receive a generic phone call asking them to schedule an appointment. Then, the students would be informed of the reported misconduct at the beginning of their first meeting. Now the initial communication to students will be a message with a link that allows them to login and view a more detailed letter.
The secure letter will state the reported misconduct and include additional information about a student’s rights within the process. Alternatively, the letter may state that they are invited to meet with an administrator only as a witness.
“In both scenarios, the more detailed initial communication improves transparency and reduces anxiety regarding the process,” Utt said.
The new system will also help Honor Code Office leadership measure staff performance and look for important patterns. Over time they can assess whether student misconduct cases are being handled in a timely and consistent manner for all students.
“The hires we have made in recent years have increased the diversity of our Honor Code Office administrators,” Utt said. “This software will help identify specific areas for training and track overall outcomes. We are ready for a new school year and look forward to implementing these changes and assessing their effectiveness.”
Conflict Resolution Resources
Utt noted that in the past there was an element of students using the Honor Code Office to resolve conflicts that could have been settled directly through effective communication.
As a free service to students, BYU provides professionally-certified mediators in the Center for Conflict Resolution. Their staff can consult one-on-one with students to prepare them to work through a conflict on their own. They can also provide impartial and confidential mediation services that bring both sides together in hope of finding a solution.
“Learning how to resolve conflict effectively is such a vital life skill,” said Ben Cook, director of the Center for Conflict Resolution. “It can help you improve relationships and experience more peace in in your life. We are eager to help empower students with a better understanding of conflict and with communication tools they can use in their time at BYU and throughout their lives.”
Additionally, if a roommate situation is not conducive to the Honor Code, students may turn to resident assistants, hall advisors or the Off-Campus Housing office for help working it out.
“Students who combine personal commitment with respect and compassion help create the environment that BYU strives to foster,” Utt said.
LindaSeptember 1, 2019
I am glad to hear that students wil know in advance why they are being summoned, and will know who the report came from. When I was at the Y back in late ‘60s, I got called to the Dean of Womens office, along with 2 other girls in my dorm. We joked on the way over about why the 3 of us got called, knowing none of us had done anything wrong. It seemed odd, because we shared no classes together, and our dorm parents were baffled about it. The Dean truly thought we knew why we were there, and when we said no, she said it was for wearing too short skirst/dresses. Whaaat?! She she had us get down on our knees and see if our dress hems touched the ground (they did). She seemed perplexed. I asked her who had turned us in. She wouldn’t say. I said it had to have been some kind of prank, since we had no teachers in common. So, we were excused to leave, but I sure thought that was odd!
HalAugust 26, 2019
It's been over 30 years since I graduated from BYU and I still do not understand the furor over the Honor Code or the office charged to enforce it. I say this as someone who was once called in for an infraction (my hair was too long - I knew it when I got the notice to appear). I remember being disgruntled at the time - as most 20-something men probably are - but also knowing full well that I was in violation of the code and, therefore, deserving of the mild reprimand. I'm a firm believer that, if you are always where you are supposed to be and doing the things you should be doing, 98% of the time one need never worry about being called into the honor code office. Our youth have been taught this since the time of Brigham Young. If you are at a party where there is drinking, leave immediately. If you question the intentions of someone you're dating, don't go out with him / her. My guess is that most of the students called in for honor code violations know full well what they've done wrong but they seem to think the values in the For the Strength of Youth pamphlet no longer apply to them once they turned 18 and became an "adult." Unfortunately, I know many older "adults" who feel the same way.