University of Virginia Library

Honor Head Plans To Correct
Misconceptions About System

By Peter Shea
Cavalier Daily Staff Writer

Photo by Richard Wm. Wright

Honor Committee In Trial Session In Newcomb Hall Fourth Floor Offices

Committee Hopes To Develop Increased Student Awareness Of System's Operation

"The basic purpose of the
Honor System is to develop the
mutual trust between the students
which it has endowed us," explained
Whitt Clement, Chairman
of the Honor Committee.

"With an enlarged enrollment
and with the more diversified
academic programs and student
body, it is increasingly difficult for
the Honor Committee to present a
thorough orientation program to all
entering students," Mr. Clement
continued. "Orientation lays the
foundation of understanding of the
Honor System and that such a
foundation be established is crucial
for the continued operation of the
system."

Mr. Clement foresees a very
busy year for the Honor Committee,
and as Chairman, he has set
many important goals for that
body. In Mr. Clement's eyes, the
foremost problem will be to bring a
fuller understanding of the system
to the students.

Committee's Goals

"The Honor Committee hopes
to work toward a general goal of
making more students aware of the
system and its procedures. There is
a great need for more information
and better communication between
the committee and student body,"
Mr. Clement admitted.

According to the Chairman, this
lack of understanding and communication
was pinpointed by the
confusion last spring over the
changes implemented by the Honor
Committee last year. The present
Honor Committee hopes to eliminate
this confusion as well as the
general misconceptions that surround
the system.

System's Requirements

"The Honor System requires,"
explained Mr. Clement, "that a man
or woman shall act honorably in all
the relations and phases of student
life. Student life includes all actions
of students in Charlottesville and
Albemarle County and in addition
actions in other situations where a
student is trusted because of his
status as a University student."

To do this, the committee
intends to collect all the material
about the history, and procedures
of the Honor System for publication
as a manual for the student
body. "Hopefully, this project will
take a big step toward understanding
the operation of the
system," Mr. Clement said.

The second area concerns lying
which is, according to the Blue
sheet definition, "a knowing misrepresentation
intended to induce
reliance by another."

"The problem arises over the
clarifications of the rule," Mr.
Clement reported. "Spontaneous
misrepresentation, if immediately
and voluntarily withdrawn, is not
considered to have been intended
to induce reliance, and is therefore
not a violation," Mr. Clement said.

"The reason for this is the
importance of intent of an individual
in his actions," he explained.

"Last year, the Honor Committee
after its evaluation concluded
that the student body did not feel
that lying for the purchasing of
liquor should be considered a
dishonorable act that warranted
permanent dismissal," said the
Chairman.

"Since it is the student body
which determines whether an act
constitutes a violation and since last
year's committee read public sentiment
to have been against the
regulation, it cannot be considered
a violation."

Large Problem

When asked how the committee
determines what the sentiment on
such issues is, Mr. Clement agreed
that this posed a large problem.
Although some methods have been
proposed like polling and referendums,
Mr. Clement is not sure how
the committee can best act to solve
this problem.

"The actual problem is that
there has been no precedent set
that can guide our actions," Mr.
Clement claimed. "We have a
number of petitions against the
liquor charge but how many do we
need before we can act? We just do
not have any guidelines."

In order to avoid predicaments
like this in the future, the committee
intends to set up specific rules
whereby students can challenge an
interpretation of student opinion
already made by the committee.

Mr. Clement also cited other
common misconceptions which
have confused many students, one
of which concerns the role of the
Honor Committee.

"The Committee is not a police
force nor is it an investigative body;
rather, it is a board of appeals," he
stressed. "The committee protects
the accused against a miscarriage of
justice. It is the responsibility of
the student who must make the
accusation to investigate the case
thoroughly and as secretly as
possible before making an accusation."

Mr. Clement sees two major
areas where confusion exists over
the changes made last year. The
most basic concerns the scope of
the system.

Once he has made an accusation,
that is after he has investigated the
case, the student must report it to
his representative on the committee,
the president of his school, if
the accused leaves the University
without requesting a trial. Both the
accused and the accuser have the
right to counsel, almost always a
law student. As in all trials, the
burden of proof rests with the
accuser.

Following procedural charges
made last year, an accused person
will have the right to have a public
trial. The verdict of the committee
is final but a retrial can be granted
upon presentation of significant
new evidence.

Another of the major problems
that Mr. Clement hopes to improve
is that of continuity on the
committee. Each spring, almost the
entire committee is changed thus
creating a continuity problem much
like that which faces a new
administration in Washington. Mr.
Clement hopes to arrange staggered
elections so that there will always

be a number of committeemen who
are thoroughly experienced with
the system.

"In the long run, our objective is
to personalize the Honor System.
The more related to student life it
is, the stronger the system will be.

"We must make the student
more aware of the system. With a
solid understanding of the Honor
System, the student will respect it,
not fear it," he reasoned.

To do this, the committee hopes
to set aside times when a concerned
student can discuss any questions
about the system with one of the
members of the committee. Not
only would this enable the students
to become more knowledgeable
about the system, but it would help
the committeemen to better judge
student feelings on a personal basis.