Active Sanctions - Personal Development & Self-Care

These sanctions support a student's personal growth and physical, mental, and emotional health and well-being.

• Written Ethics Workshop
• In-Person Ethics Workshop
• Well-Being Article Review
• Well-Being Self-Care Plan
• Student Organization Involvement Plan
• Career Services Referral
• Other Campus Office Referral
• Future Employer/HR Interview
• Counseling Assessment
• Off-Campus Counseling Assessment
• Behavioral Agreement
• Probationary Review Meetings
• Checkpoint Meeting

Written Ethics Workshop

• Description: Workshop in which student responds in writing to various ethical scenarios
• Appropriate for: Minor violations in which the student has demonstrated an inability to understand the impact of their actions upon other individuals or the University community
• Not appropriate for: Major violations (may be appropriate as a supplementary sanction, but not as a stand-alone sanction)
• Availability: No restrictions
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): Assignment sheet
• Instructions to student (included with sanction letter): “Answer the questions on the attached assignment sheet. The purpose of this assignment is to stimulate your thinking about the effects of an individual’s actions upon others. While this is intended to be a reflective assignment, and your completed work will not be evaluated on its content (other than to make sure you have answered all of the questions), be advised that your paper cannot serve to justify your own actions or evaluate the actions of others. You should also be sure to utilize appropriate language, grammar, and spelling.”

In-Person Ethics Workshop

• Description: A one-hour, interactive, in-person workshop conducted by Student Conduct or Dean of Students staff, followed by a short reflection paper
• Appropriate for: Minor violations in which the student has demonstrated an inability to understand the impact of their actions upon other individuals or the University community
• Not appropriate for: Major violations (may be appropriate as a supplementary sanction, but not as a stand-alone sanction)
• Availability: As scheduled by the Office of Student Conduct
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): None
• Note: As of March 4, 2022, the in-person ethics workshop is not being offered. Please refer students to the written ethics workshop above.
• Instructions to student (included with sanction letter): “You are required to complete the free Ethics Workshop offered by the Office of Student Conduct. Once you have completed the ethics workshop, you are also required to write a paper reflecting on what you have gained from this experience. This paper must be no less than 250 words in length and should address the following questions/issues:

A. Reflect on the program materials. Write a summary of the information presented. Is this new information to you?
B. How does this information relate to the policies that you have violated in this instance?
C. If placed in the same situation that led to incident, how would your actions be similar or different?
D. Why would your actions be similar or different?
E. What is the most important thing you have learned from this experience?

Be advised that this paper may not serve to justify your own actions or evaluate the actions of others. The paper should utilize appropriate language, grammar, and spelling.”

Well-Being Article Review

• Description: The student is required to read an article on some aspect of well-being and write a reflection paper
• Appropriate for: Incidents in which the student's actions jeopardized their own well-being
• Not appropriate for: Major violations (may be appropriate as a supplementary sanction, but not as a stand-alone sanction)
• Availability: No restrictions
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): None
• Instructions to student: "Find an article (Forbes, Huffington Post, Harvard Business Review, etc.) on an aspect of well-being that is important or pertinent to you, or that you hope to improve upon. Explain what you learned from the article, how the information you learned will help you prioritize your well-being, and how you plan to implement what you have learned from the selected article. Include a link to the article.

Your essay may not serve to justify your own actions nor evaluate the actions of others. It should be at least 250 words (typed, double-spaced) and utilize appropriate language, grammar, and spelling."

Well-Being Self-Care Plan

• Description: The student is required to develop a month-long self-care plan
• Appropriate for: Incidents in which the student's actions jeopardized their own well-being
• Not appropriate for: Major violations (may be appropriate as a supplementary sanction, but not as a stand-alone sanction)
• Availability: No restrictions
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): None
• Instructions to student: "You will develop your own Well-Being Self-Care plan for the next month. Once the plan is approved by your Conduct Officer you will check in with your Conduct Officer in person twice a month to share your progress."

Student Organization Involvement Plan

• Description: A plan to strengthen the student’s connection to the University community and educate them about student organizations and clubs on campus
• Appropriate for: Violations in which the student’s lack of positive social connections may have played a role; students having difficulty adjusting to the Rutgers community
• Not appropriate for: All other violations
• Availability: As scheduled between the student and the organization
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): None
• Instructions to student: “You will use the website https://rutgers.campuslabs.com/engage/ to explore the various student organizations and clubs Rutgers has to offer. Identify at least three organizations that are of interest to you. Provide a summary of these organizations’ missions, contact information, what draws you to these groups, how joining a club or organization will benefit you, and how you plan on getting involved. Your summary should utilize appropriate language, grammar, and spelling. You must attend one meeting of one of the organizations of interest.”

Career Services Referral

• Description: A consultation with a staff member at the Office of Career Services to help the student prepare to discuss their disciplinary record with potential employers and graduate programs
• Appropriate for: Violations that may hinder student’s career and educational aspirations; students in need of career guidance
• Not appropriate for: All other violations
• Availability: As scheduled with the Office of Career Services
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): None
• Instructions to student: “You are required to meet with a staff member from Career Services in order to better prepare you to answer questions about your conduct history from future employers and graduate schools. You must schedule your appointment directly on Rutgers Handshake: (careers.rutgers.edu/Handshake). After your appointment, please send a confirmation email to your Conduct Officer and copy the Career Services staff member.”

Other Campus Office Referral

• Description: A consultation with a staff member at a Rutgers office related to the violation, or an office that provides support services suited to the student’s needs
• Appropriate for: All violations
• Not appropriate for: N/A
• Availability: As scheduled with the University office
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): None
• Instructions to student (included with sanction letter): “You are required to schedule a meeting with another office (either chosen by you or your Conduct Officer) on campus that can help you progress through this incident and this specific time in your life. You can also meet with another office for any other reasons you deem helpful.”

Future Employer/HR Interview

• Description: An interview with a potential future employer or college admissions professional and a reflection paper
• Appropriate for: Students whose actions have the potential to jeopardize their future career or education
• Not appropriate for: All other incidents
• Availability: As scheduled between student and interview subject
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): None
• Instructions to student: "Contact one employer or graduate school. This employer or graduate school should be a company or school that you would ideally like to work for or attend upon graduation from Rutgers. Interview someone in the Human Resources department or someone at the company/school who makes hiring/admissions decisions and ask them what types of experiences they look for on student resumes. Ask how conduct records of new college graduates are interpreted, and how multiple conduct violations or one serious conduct violation can impact an applicant. Please note, you do not need to share your personal conduct history with the individual you interview.

After completing your interview, write a summary of your interaction (at least 250 words, typed and double-spaced). The summary should include the name of the person you spoke with. Then you should reflect on your conversations and discuss how your actions will impact your future at Rutgers. This summary may not serve to justify your own actions nor evaluate the actions of others. It should utilize appropriate language, grammar, and spelling."

Counseling Assessment

• Description: A psychological assessment conducted by the University’s Counseling, ADAP & Psychiatric Services
• Appropriate for: Situations in which the student may be facing personal issues that may be impacting their behavior
• Not appropriate for: Minor, first-time violations
• Availability: As scheduled between student and Counseling, ADAP & Psychiatric Services
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): Release form
• Note: Hearing Board/Conduct Officer cannot sanction student to ongoing counseling or therapy, only an assessment. Student must provide written release permitting counselor to discuss assessment with Conduct Officer.
• Instructions to student (included with sanction letter): “You are required to undergo a counseling assessment at Counseling, ADAP and Psychiatric Services.  Be advised that you are required to sign a release of information (attached) to allow your counselor to inform the Office of Student Conduct of your attendance. The counselor is not authorized to provide any information to the Office of Student Conduct about the content of the assessment meeting.”

Off-Campus Counseling Assessment

• Description: An psychological assessment conducted by an outside mental health professional
• Appropriate for: Serious cases where the student has demonstrated a clear pattern of behavioral concerns
• Not appropriate for: All other cases
• Availability: As scheduled between student and off-campus counseling facility
• Note: Hearing Board/Conduct Officer cannot sanction student to ongoing counseling or therapy, only an assessment. Student must provide written release permitting counselor to discuss assessment with Conduct Officer.
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): List of counseling programs, release form
• Instructions to student (included with sanction letter): “You are required to complete an off-campus counseling assessment. A list of counseling programs is attached to this letter. It is your responsibility to make sure that the Office of Student Conduct receives a written report stating your completion of this assessment. A mandatory confidentiality waiver form is enclosed. Be advised that Rutgers University bears no obligation for treatment fees. You are required to abide by all recommendations made by certified professionals as a result of this program.”

Behavioral Agreement

• Description: An agreement between the student and the Office of Student Conduct governing the student’s future behavior (for example, the agreement may bar the student from particular locations or prohibit certain activities)
• Appropriate for: Repeated violations of minor policies which impact the community and where previous attempts to educate have been unsuccessful or met with resistance
• Not appropriate for: Serious violations of policy which violate the physical or emotional well being of another person, or serious violations of the law
• Availability: No restrictions
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): Behavioral Agreement form
• Instructions to student: “You are required to review and sign the enclosed behavioral agreement. This agreement is designed to indicate to you that your behavior has become problematic within the University community and continued misconduct will result in more serious levels of sanctioning in the future. Failure to sign and return this agreement or to abide by its provisions will result in additional disciplinary action.”

Probationary Review Meetings

• Description: Regular meetings with a Conduct Officer to ensure student’s compliance with the conditions of Disciplinary Probation
• Appropriate for: Cases in which the student has been placed on Disciplinary Probation. Only to be utilized in serious situations, where suspension or dismissal is likely to be an outcome of further violations.
• Not appropriate for: All other cases
• Availability: As scheduled between student and Conduct Officer
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): None
• Instructions to student: “In addition to being placed on Disciplinary Probation, you are also required to attend regular Probationary Review meetings. During this period, you must meet with [CONDUCT OFFICER] once every two weeks for thirty minutes. The purpose of these meetings is to ensure your compliance with University regulations through dialogue about the decisions you face on a regular basis. Your probationary supervisor may assign additional written assignments of no more that 250 words for each meeting, as deemed necessary. Be advised that one unexcused absence from a Probationary Review meeting will be considered a violation of your Probation.”

Checkpoint Meeting

• Description: A meeting with a Conduct Officer to monitor the student's progress
• Appropriate for: Any case in which the student may benefit from guidance and supervision
• Not appropriate for: All other cases
• Availability: As scheduled between student and Conduct Officer
• Supporting materials (included with sanction letter): None
• Instructions to student: “You must meet with your Conduct Officer approximately two to three weeks after the resolution of your case to see how you have been progressing since the incident.”