3 Carroll University students suspended, breached Code of Conduct
WAUKESHA, Wis. - Three Carroll University students are taking a semester off this year, but not by choice. They got suspended for throwing a party.
Typically when you think of college parties, there is underage drinking, OWIs, and drunkenness. But for the Carroll students, they did not have any of that. What they are in trouble for is breaching the university's Code of Conduct.
Carroll University, Waukesha
"On the night of August 21st, we had a small get together with a few friends. We all invited a few people over," said Alec Hamilton, senior.
Alec Hamilton
For the Carroll University upperclassmen, a return to school meant the opportunity to catch up with old friends. But what started off as a small get-together...
"Started to get a little out of hand, up to 20 people," Hamilton said.
It quickly became a problem.
"I was on the basketball team, but I was obviously kicked off because of this," said Blake Williams, junior.
Blake Williams
It was a single photo, snapped by a neighbor, that got the party's hosts suspended from school for an entire semester.
"In the rules, the Code of Conduct, they state that they're not going to give us our tuition back for our suspensions. So we kind of have to make up those $10,000 plus that we lost in the suspension," Hamilton said.
Carroll University, Waukesha
A statement from Theresa Barry, Carroll University's Vice President of Student Affairs, on this matter reads as follows:
"Everything we have implemented in our Fall 2020 Carroll Comeback Plan has been done to protect our students, faculty, staff and the greater Waukesha community.
"We can only be successful if we all pull together. However, three students chose to have an off-campus, non-university sanctioned event at their residence without social distancing and masks. As a result, the students who hosted were suspended for a semester. They appealed the decision, but the appeals were denied and the suspensions upheld by the appellate officer.
"All Carroll University, students were required to sign a supplemental code of conduct agreement pertaining to COVID-19. Any student who fails to live up to that code can face sanctions up to and including suspension.
"Students also were required to present a negative COVID test before being allowed to attend classes. For more information on our policies: https://www.carrollu.edu/coronavirus/mandatory-policies"
"We did sign some, we initialed a few things, that they sent out via e-mail about on-campus guidelines, wearing masks, and just other on-campus things -- it never said anything about off-campus," said Tanner Hoffman, junior.
Tanner Hoffman
The students admitted to being aware of gathering restrictions being limited to ten people but did not think it applied to them off-campus. The students appealed the decision, but that appeal was denied.
"We didn't violate any legal matters or anything so I think they were pretty unfair in their punishment," Hamilton said.
As they collectively try to figure out how to spend their newfound free time, one has a warning to his classmates.
"Just like, 'Hey, don't make the same decision that we did,'" Hamilton said.
The three students tell FOX6 News that only they, the hosts of the party, were suspended. Their friends who attended were required to quarantine for two weeks, but are still allowed to take their classes this semester.
Additional information from Carroll University: (released Sept. 8):
- To clarify, the students are being refunded 80% of their tuition, as is consistent with our refund policy for all students.
- Our conduct policy clearly states in the first paragraph that the rules apply both on and off campus. These rules have been online since the beginning of June.
- In addition to signing the conduct policy, all student-athletes were made aware of these policies by their coaches and were invited to a special town hall with the president to discuss.
- The university’s director of Student Conduct is meeting with Carroll students who attended the party. In addition to being quarantined for 14 days, they all will receive additional sanctions, including meeting with university officials, a documented warning, housing probation (for those who live on campus) and a notice that further parallel violations could/may result in a mandated move to virtual learning.
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