Runninghead:INSTITUTIONALRESPONSES

Institutional Responses to Legal Issues

Audrey Hale, Kelly Johnson, and Taylor Rilling
Azusa Pacific University

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Institutional Responses to Legal Issues

Harvard University, Pasadena City College and Bob Jones University are the three
institutions we chose to research. From a four-year Ivy League school, to a two-year community
college, to a four-year Christian university, each school has its varying characteristics. Though
each school uses their own values and morals to shape their policies, the core of each university
standard is to protect and promote positive experiences among its students, faculty and staff. We
especially considered the policies surrounding sexual harassment, alcohol use and judicial
procedures for each of our three institutions.
Harvard University is one of the most prestigious private universities in America. It is an
Ivy League school and has a high academic standing. Founded in 1636, Harvard has about 21,00
students and an extended amount of honors achievements to their name. According to the
mission statement, Harvard strives to create knowledge, to open the minds of students to that
knowledge, and to enable students to take best advantage of their educational opportunities.
They eventually hope that upon graduating students will continue to advance knowledge,
promote understanding, and serve society. The underlying philosophies of Harvard mainly focus
on the advancement of learning and truth. Harvard wants to foster an environment where
students can create, explore, challenge, and lead in the realm of knowledge and learning. Critical
thought and advancing the academic world is the goal Harvard has for each of its students.
Harvards policy on sexual harassment is based of its commitment to maintain a safe
and healthy educational and work environment in which no member of the University
community is, on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity
(http://diversity.harvard.edu/files/diversity/files/harvardsexual_harassment_policy). On the basis
of sexual harassment Harvard defines it as anything that is in sexual nature and unwelcome

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including: sexual advances, verbal and nonverbal sexual conduct, graphic or physical sexual
conduct, and requesting sexual favors. The university does not allow any discrimination based
on gender to occur in a way that denies a member of the Harvard community the ability to
participate in and/or benefit from University.
In the case of alcohol Harvard permits students who are 21 years of age or older to
possess, store, and consume alcohol in their assigned rooms. However, the sale, delivery, or
furnishing of alcohol to persons under the age of 21 is prohibited. Harvard University policy on
alcohol use is defined and enforced by the governing law of the state of Massachusetts. Harvard
expects students to be responsible if they decide to use alcohol within the law and policies. The
students are considered adults and therefore must exercise responsibility within the law and
policies of the institution. Students take full responsibility for any ramifications that follow the
breaking of the law and policy with a further understanding that their actions affect the larger
Harvard community.
The judicial process at Harvard consists of an administrative board. This board exists to
handle and hear all undergraduate petitions and disciplinary issues. Within this there is a
governing faculty for all aspects of legislation as they apply to the rules and standards of student
conduct as implied in the student handbook. There is also a student-Faculty judicial board,
which oversees disciplinary cases for which there is no clear governing precedent, policy, or
Faculty legislation. It also handles governing wherein the Administrative Board would be
deemed inappropriate or where the outlook of the case will have a distinct effect on the
community of Harvard.
Pasadena City College is a fully accredited community college through the Western
Association of Schools and Colleges. It serves over 24,000 students each year and offers 160

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academic programs areas. PCC is a 2-year institution that offers Associate Degrees,
certifications, and numerous program options for students hoping to transfer to 4-year colleges
and universities. The focus of PCC is to foster learning whether a student is working towards a
degree at PCC, taking courses for transfer, or taking no credit courses. Because of this, its
policies and procedures are fairly standard and reflect values that accommodate the public
domain.
Pasadena City College abides by the policies set out by the Pasadena Area Community
College District. To ensure that all employers and students are treated fairly, the sexual
harassment policy submits to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which states that
employers may not discriminate based on race, ethnicity, religion, color or national origin. All
forms of sexual harassment are prohibited, which includes but is not limited to: verbal,
nonverbal, physical and visual conduct, and or reprisal
(http://www.pasadena.edu/ipro/policies/pcc_2200.pdf). This policy extends to all people who
use any of the Pasadena Area Community College District facilities. Disciplinary action is
decided upon after a prompt investigation by the Dean of Human Resources.
The alcohol policy of PCC prohibits: Unlawful use, possession, sale or presence on
campus while under the influence of alcohol, narcotics, or other controlled illegal substances
(http://www.pasadena.edu/studentaffairs/grievances/documents/StudentDueProcessManual.pdf)
. This policy applies to all College owned or controlled property and at any off-campus
function sponsored or supervised by the College. Outside law enforcement may get involved
for offenses against the alcohol and drug policy.
The judiciary processes begin with the Vice President of Student and Learning Services
who reviews the case, decides if disciplinary action is needed. The VPSLS can seek to find

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informal or formal dispositions. There are two informal approaches: mutual consent to a set of
signed contracts and campus mediation. Formal processes occur when an understanding cannot
be reached through the informal process. It has three levels: an administrative disposition, a
formal hearing, and a final appeal with the Board of Trustees, who ultimately have the final
decision
(http://www.pasadena.edu/studentaffairs/grievances/documents/StudentDueProcessManual.pdf).
Bob Jones University is a Christian liberal arts university that has the gospel of Jesus
Christ and Christian wholeness at its center. From their website, BJU states that they exist to
challenge our students to prepare thoroughly to serve Christ. Bob Jones University is known
for being one of the most conservative universities in the country with policies such as one that
requires a chaperone to accompany any dates.
While there was not a lot of information on the general judiciary process, there was a
statement about the appeals process for demerits. If a student breaks a policy at BJU, they are
issued a certain number of demerits, of which they may appeal to a committee. This committee is
located in the Office of Student Life. If a student feels that the decision by the committee is
unfair, they are also allowed to take up their appeal directly with the dean of students, who has
the power to convene a special committee, which is made up of student life members, academic,
and student leadership representatives, and the dean of students. BJUs conservative philosophy
is definitely reflected in their policy on alcohol. Simply stated, any student (regardless of age)
who drinks an alcoholic beverage is subject to dismissal from the university.
Consistent with Title IX regulations, BJU outlines the definition of sex
discrimination/harassment in their policy handbook and take sexual harassment on their campus
very seriously. I did not find any sanctions listed for proven cases of harassment. Upon further

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investigation, I did discover that BJU has recently taken to review and improve their policies in
regards to reported abuse. Among some of the improvements, the university has mandated
awareness training and has hired a full-time counselor to respond to such cases.
Within the university, and even as I explored various other policies, I believe that BJU is
consistent with their conservative approach to discipline. That being said, I can understand how
an outsider would be outraged at some of the policies. Out of the three explored in this paper, the
alcohol policy is definitely the most conservative and may cause an outsider to claim that BJU
has gone too far. That to say, I do not believe that any of these three policies have caused any
room for concern.
In the case of these three institutions they all have different ways of approaching the
judiciary process. Bob Jones University will only have their Appeals committee hear a student
case if it is first appealed by the student. The dean of students is highly involved in all action
being taken. PCC also solely has the Vice President of Student and Learning Services involved
in every aspect. This is similar to Bob Jones because the one Administrative professional
decides what action needs to be taken with the student. Harvard on the other hand has an
administrative board that handles all discipline issues from the start. What accounts for these
differences is the mission and size of the institution. Bob Jones is a small, very conservative
school and handles student judiciary issues in a way that makes the job of the student to seek it
out. Harvard and PCC make it the role of the institution to automatically hear out the student in
order to make a decision. However, each of the institutions does have the similar process of
student hearings through some type of judicial board made up of faculty, staff, and in some cases
students.

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When comparing each schools sexual harassment policy, I found that Pasadena City
College does not make mention of Title IX. I thought this was perhaps because they hadnt
updated their policy since the big push for Title IX began. When I went to check, the policy was
approved on May 19, 1999. This was concerning to me for a couple of reasons. First, because
they have neglected to update their policy in fifteen years, and second, because of the growing
momentum of Title IX. I feel that if PCC neglects to incorporate mention of Title IX, it could
cause problems. Bob Jones University has taken some reactionary changes to their policy, which
is good, but I would hope that colleges (like PCC) would take the proactive route instead. Each
of the three schools defines sexual harassment and outlines types of offensive behaviors that
violate their policies. Though there are some variances among the three policies, the purpose of
each document is to protect students and offer fair trial to those influenced by sexual harassment
issues on their campuses. When it comes to something as serious as sexual harassment, it is not
surprising that values and morals are not discussed as much in the policy. These rights and
protections fall easily into the laws that have already clearly been defined by government.
Across universities, the view towards and policies relating to alcohol vary across a
spectrum. Bob Jones University, on one end of the spectrum, completely prohibits alcohol for all
students, regardless of age. Near the middle of the spectrum we have Harvard University, which
allows students to drink in their rooms if they are the legal age. That being said, though, they are
vocal about students being responsible and keeping their actions beneficial for the greater good
of the community. On the opposite end of the spectrum is PCC, which simply states that students
must adhere to the legal drinking laws and must not be on campus while under the influence.
Beyond following the law, PCC does nothing to lay out specific ramifications for students or a
philosophy behind their alcohol policy.

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Among the differing views each of these institutions offer, the policies of Harvard
University most closely align with the philosophy of our group. The policies of Harvard are in
place in order to better the Harvard community and allow students to develop into responsible
decision-making adults. We think that this aligns with the commitment of student affairs to
develop students into responsible adult members of society. Overall, the policies of an institution
should not only adhere to the law, but also seek to help students learn from mistakes. When an
institution has policies in place it allows students to learn what it means to live healthy lives
within a community of people.