If you're a student at Oakland University and someone has mentioned the possibility of dismissal to you—either for grades or for some form of misconduct—you have to treat the situation seriously. Dismissal isn't a minor penalty, and it's not the kind of trouble you can transfer your way out of. Dismissal almost always comes with a transcript notation about the nature of your offense, and very few colleges and universities are willing to admit a student who's already been dismissed elsewhere.
What do you do?
- First, you find out everything you can about the charges against you. What exactly have you been accused of doing or not doing? That's crucial information for building a defense.
- Next, find out everything you can about Oakland University's administrative and judicial procedures. What's involved in mounting a defense, and how do you navigate the process?
- Last, but most important, find out how you can get help. A dismissal defense is the kind of thing you just can handle all on your own.
The Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team is here when you need us. We know the law and we know how the OU system operates. We're ready to use what we know to help you fight for your academic future. Call 888-535-3686 to find out what we can do for you. Or, take a few minutes right now and fill out our online form.
Reasons for Dismissal from Oakland University
Your first job any time you're trying to defend yourself is to understand the charges against you. You can't prove your innocence or explain why you made the mistake you did if you don't truly understand what you've been accused of doing.
There are dozens of reasons OU might decide to dismiss you. All of them, though, can be grouped into four simple categories.
- Poor Academic Performance: You're a student. You're expected to go to class and to study. To make sure you do that, Oakland University maintains a strict academic standing policy. A GPA below 2.0 means academic probation. A term GPA below 2.0 while you're on probation means dismissal.
- Academic Misconduct: Strict academic standing policies sometimes put pressure on students to bend the rules. Academic dishonesty, though, can get you dismissed as quickly as a low GPA. The first time you're caught cheating or plagiarizing, you can expect a serious in-class sanction, like a lowered grade. Second and further offenses, though, can result in dismissal.
- Disciplinary Misconduct: You're not just a student at OU. You're also part of a community, and you have certain obligations as a member of that community. The Student Code of Conduct outlines all of your responsibilities. Underage drinking, drug abuse, hazing, assault, weapons possession: any one of these can get you expelled, even if it's just a first offense.
- Sexual Misconduct: These offenses are almost always punished with dismissal. Sexual misconduct isn't just a violation of school policy. Under Title IX, it's a violation of federal law, and dismissal is the most common penalty.
Misconduct Procedures
Once you're clear on the charges against you, your next job is to figure out how you're supposed to go about defending yourself. If you're facing misconduct charges, you have the right to an investigation and a hearing. In addition, you have several due process rights to protect you.
Here's how the process usually works.
- Cases begin with an allegation. That allegation might be lodged with the Dean of Students' Office or the Title IX Coordinator.
- Any time you are under investigation, you are entitled to Notice of the Charges. This Notice should include details about the allegations and a list of your due process rights, such as the right to a presumption of “Not Responsible” (innocence) and the right to review all evidence in the case.
- Among your other rights, you're entitled to an advisor, someone to help you prepare your case and to accompany you to meetings and proceedings. In disciplinary and academic misconduct cases, that advisor must be someone from the OU community. In Title IX cases, you're allowed to select an attorney to fill this role.
- As part of the investigation, you'll be asked to provide a statement. Additionally, investigators will talk with the Complainant (your accuser or alleged victim) and any other potential witnesses. They'll also gather any physical evidence.
- Once the investigation is complete, investigators submit a report of their findings. This report serves as the foundation for the hearing that follows.
- The hearing offers you an opportunity to make your full case before a panel of decision-makers. You may present arguments, introduce evidence, and call witnesses to testify. Of course, the Complainant has these same rights.
- All disciplinary cases at OU are decided using a legal standard known as “preponderance of the evidence.” According to this standard, decision-makers must find you guilty if they are more than fifty percent convinced you committed an offense.
- Your final right is the right to appeal the outcome of your hearing. However, you must have grounds for an appeal. Possible grounds at OU include
- “Substantial” new evidence
- Procedural error that “significantly” affected the outcome of the case.
This outline applies to all disciplinary cases at Oakland University. However, procedures can differ depending on the specific nature of the offense. For instance, as noted, you're allowed to bring an attorney with you to Title IX hearings (though they cannot speak for you), but not to other types of hearings.
Whatever your situation, you can count on the attorneys at the Lento Law Firm to know what to expect from the process. Keep in mind as well that your attorney isn't here just to sit beside you in hearings. They're responsible for developing your entire defense strategy. They'll help you to find and organize evidence, draft documents, and come up with questions for witnesses. They'll even coach you in presenting your case.
Academic Dismissal Cases
Academic dismissal cases can be significantly different from disciplinary dismissal cases. For starters, your “guilt” isn't really in doubt. Your GPA is either high enough, or it isn't. In addition, there's no process to follow—no investigation, and no hearing. Decisions are virtually automatic.
The one exception is if you've been dealing with extenuating circumstances. If you've been dealing with a family emergency, for example, or suffered from a lengthy illness, OU does have an appeals process that can gain you an additional semester on probation. Your Lento Law Firm attorney knows how appeals work at OU and can guide you through the entire process.
In addition, your attorney knows some useful strategies for avoiding academic sanctions like dismissal, strategies you might not hear about from your academic advisor. For instance,
- It could be that your low GPA is the result of a learning disability, like ADD or ADHD. If it is, you may deserve certain course accommodations to give you an equal shot at passing exams. Disability Services can help you find out, and they can work with the university to help you drop low grades. Then, you can retake courses without penalty.
- You can go through OU's grade appeals process. Especially if you think an instructor has treated you unfairly, this can be a quick and easy way to raise your grade and, thus, your GPA.
- Another tried and true strategy is to ask for extra credit or makeup work. Not all instructors are open to these requests, but it could be that an extra lab assignment or a paper rewrite is all you need to get your GPA back on track.
Fighting for Your Future
By this point, it should be abundantly clear why trying to defend yourself from dismissal is always a dangerous proposition. It's no easy task taking on a university, and the stakes are incredibly high. Luckily, you don't have to go it alone. The Lento Law Firm was built to help students. Our Student Defense Team can also be fierce when it comes to protecting our clients, and we're not afraid of faculty and administrators.
Let us help you fight for your academic future. To find out more, call the firm today at 888-535-3686. Or, fill out our online questionnaire.
