FAQs for Parents

The letter that your student has received states that they have been alleged to have violated one or more of Florida Tech University’s regulations in the Student Code of Conduct. The letter states which policy may have been violated and provides a brief description of how the policy may have been violated. The letter also provides a link to schedule your student’s Intake Meeting. It is imperative that your student attend his/her student Intake Meeting.

We highly encourage students to attend an Intake Meeting otherwise their case may be forwarded to a Board. The date, time, and location of the Board is included in your student's letter and if the student does not attend a decision will be made in their absence and/ or a hold will be placed on their account until this is resolved.

In some circumstances, a student may be asked to come to an educational meeting to discuss their behavior. Their letter may not include formal disciplinary charges, and this meeting serves only as an educational conversation. 

A student Intake Meeting is encouraged by the office of Student Conduct. This meeting will give your student an opportunity to review the documents in their conduct file, meet with a staff member to discuss their rights, to talk about the student conduct process and their options moving forward, and to have their questions answered. The time and date are scheduled by the student within one week of the letter being sent (unless noted otherwise) and location of the information session is included in your student's letter.

The Intake Meeting is a time for your student to tell their side of the story. In order for the hearing officer to make the best decision possible, they need a full picture of what happened. This is their time to officially respond to the alleged violations and the information in their case file.

When your student arrives for their meeting, they will have the opportunity to review all documents in the case. 

Your student will then have an opportunity to explain their perspective on the incident that has been documented. They will have a chance to explain what they agree with, what they disagree with, and to explain their involvement with the documented incident. The hearing officer will then have some questions for your student about the incident documented.

Your student may enter into an Administrative Agreement and accept responsibility or they may dispute the allegations for the alleged violation(s) that have been assigned to their incident and request a Board meeting or Administrative Hearing.

If the student accepts responsibility and the student and Hearing Officer come to an agreement on the resolution then they will be issued appropriate sanctions for their involvement. If the student chooses an alternative resolution option, the case will be forwarded to the Office of Student Conduct to schedule a Board Meeting or Administrative Hearing. The student will receive a follow up email giving the student the date, time, and location of the meeting. The student may bring any witnesses with them during this meeting that have direct knowledge of the alleged violation(s). The student is permitted one character witness in writing.  

During the meeting, the student will be allowed to confront their accuser, accept or dispute the allegations against them, provide an opening/ closing statement, and provide any witnesses who have direct information regarding the documented incident. Upon the conclusion of the meeting, the student will receive an outcome letter that includes the findings of the student conduct meeting, their sanction(s) (if any), and information about the appeals process. If your student is found not responsible, they will be notified in a follow-up letter sent to their University e-mail account after the meeting.

Florida Institute of Technology uses a standard of proof called Preponderance of the evidence when the available information indicates that it is more likely than not that a violation occurred. This means there is more than a 50% chance that the allegation is true, which is used to determine whether a violation of the Student Policy has occurred.

Several factors are considered by the Hearing Officer or Board when determining an appropriate sanction. The student conduct administrator will examine the following:

• Nature of the violation
• Previous conduct history
• Aggravating or mitigating circumstances surrounding the violation
• Motivation for the behavior
• Developmental and educational impact of the sanction

In some instances, students are separated from the University. These sanctions are suspension and expulsion. Examples of behaviors that may warrant separation are violations associated with Major Violations outlined in the Student Handbook.

If your student is found not responsible for all of the alleged violations, he/she will not have a disciplinary file. If your student is found responsible for any of the alleged violation(s), the University will maintain their disciplinary file for a period of seven years. The university also retains the right to maintain a disciplinary record for a longer period of time or indefinitely.

Your student is protected by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99).

FERPA is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. Your student may discuss his/her case with anyone of their choosing. The university is restricted to discussing the case with your student, those your student designates that we can communicate with, and those with an educational need to know such as University administrators. If you want to speak with us concerning specifics of your student’s case, please have a conversation with your student. He/she may sign a FERPA waiver that will allow us to speak with you.

Your student can obtain form and documents from the Registrar. Your student must specify who they would like to release their records to and what type of information they would like to release.

The student has the right to be assisted by an advisor who must be a current member of the Florida Tech faculty, staff, or student body. An advisor, however, is not eligible to participate in the disciplinary conference (e.g., by presenting the student’s information about the alleged violation or questioning witnesses or the student allegedly in violation). Disciplinary conferences are not legal proceedings. As such, attorneys may not be permitted.

Your student will need to resolve both issues separately. Students have a separate relationship to the University that is different from their responsibilities as citizens in the larger community. The disciplinary meeting will only resolve conflicts with Florida Institute of Technology policies. 

Unless a student allows their records to be released to a specific individual(s), then the specific details of their student conduct proceedings are typically not released. However, the university does reserve the right to notify parents in cases that result in alcohol, controlled substances, or health and safety concerns. If you would like to speak with a staff member about your student's incident, please have them complete the Registrar's Office - Forms and Documents.

Students often display different behaviors when they are away from home, especially for the first time. Your student is experiencing many changes including independence and exploration of identity. We encourage you to have a candid conversation with your child about their behavior. We view your student as an adult and hold them to that standard.

Please contact Student Conduct at 321-674-8080 or in person at Denius Student Center, Suite 210.  You may also contact us via email at studentconduct@fit.edu.