Section Three
IMPORTANT UNIVERSITY POLICIES

FUNDAMENTAL STANDARD

Students are expected to observe the Fundamental Standard of student conduct, which was stated as follows by Stanford's first president, David Starr Jordan, in 1896:

"Students at Stanford are expected to show both within and without the University such respect for order, morality, personal honor, and the rights of others as is demanded of good citizens. Failure to observe this will be sufficient cause for removal from the University."

Over the years, the Fundamental Standard has been applied to a variety of situations; actions which have been found to be in violation of the Fundamental Standard include:

• Physical assault
• Property damage; attempt to damage University property
• Theft, including theft of University property or individual property
• Forgery, such as signing an instructor's signature to a grade change card
• Sexual harassment or other sexual misconduct
• Charging computer time or long-distance telephone calls to unauthorized accounts
• Misrepresentation in seeking financial aid, University housing, discount computer purchases or other University benefits
• Misuse of University computer equipment, systems, or e-mail
• Driving on campus while under the influence of alcohol
• Sending threatening or obscene messages to another student via e-mail, phone, or voice-mail

There is no standard penalty which applies to violations of the Fundamental Standard. Infractions have led to penalties ranging from warning to expulsion. In each case, the nature and seriousness of the offense, the motivation underlying the offense, and precedent in similar cases are considered.

Violations of University policies, including the following, may also be considered violations of the Fundamental Standard. The full text of each policy is located on the Judicial Affairs website:

• Alcohol/Controlled Substances
• Campus Disruptions
• Computer Usage
• Prohibition of the Possession of Dangerous Weapons
• Sexual Assault
• Sexual Harassment
• Smoke-Free Environment

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