A. A tenured member of the faculty may be dismissed for serious neglect of academic duties, for serious violation of the College’s policies on scholarly misconduct or harassment or for such public misconduct as disqualifies him or her from continued association with the College. The remaining provisions of this Chapter VII shall not apply to any matter that is adjudicated pursuant to the College’s discrimination and harassment policies, including the Sexual Misconduct Policy.
B. If the Provost and Dean of the College, after consultation with the department Chair, (or other tenured faculty member in the department, if the Chair is implicated in the dismissal process), determines that a tenured member of the faculty should be dismissed for one of the reasons above stated, he or she shall so recommend in writing to the President. The Provost and Dean of the College shall include with this recommendation a written statement specifying the charges against the tenured faculty member and the facts pertaining to the case. He or she shall forthwith furnish to the accused tenured faculty member a copy of all papers so submitted to the President.
C. If the President determines that in the best interests of the College immediate action is required, he may summarily suspend the accused tenured faculty member, but without loss of salary.
D. The President shall give written notice to the accused tenured faculty member that he or she has the right to a hearing on the charges before the subcommittee on appeals (see Chapter III.C.1.a.(1)), provided that the individual makes written request to the President within ten days after the sending of such a notice.
E. If no such request for a hearing is made, the President shall refer the case to the Board of Trustees for decision. If request for a hearing is duly made, the President shall refer the case for hearing to the subcommittee on appeals, and shall transmit to the subcommittee the recommendation for dismissal, received from the Provost and Dean of the College, with statement of charges and facts.
F. Upon the referral of the case to it, the subcommittee shall as soon as practical conduct a hearing. The subcommittee shall prescribe rules of procedures for the conduct of such hearings and shall inform the accused tenured faculty member of such rules prior to the commencement of the hearing. The subcommittee may, with the approval of the President, retain counsel to assist it at the hearing. If the accused tenured faculty member so requests, prior to the commencement of the hearing, or if the subcommittee determines it to be necessary, a stenographic record of the testimony shall be made. A transcript of such testimony shall, if the accused tenured faculty member so requests, be furnished at his or her expense.
The accused tenured faculty member shall have the right to the assistance of counsel or an advisor, the right to be present at the hearing at all times when evidence is being presented to the subcommittee, and the right to have the subcommittee call witnesses on his or her behalf. No member of the subcommittee shall consult any person as to any matter in issue or discuss the case with any person apart from meetings of the committee. The hearing shall be private.
G. Upon completion of the hearing, the subcommittee shall submit to the President its written findings and recommendations, together with any statement of dissent. A copy of such findings, recommendations, and statement of dissent, if any, shall be sent by the Chair of the subcommittee to the accused tenured faculty member.
H. If the report of the subcommittee recommends that the accused tenured faculty member be dismissed or that other disciplinary action be taken, the President shall refer the case to the Board of Trustees for decision. Within ten days after the subcommittee sends its report to the accused tenured faculty member, the accused tenured faculty member may make written request to the Board of Trustees for a hearing. The Board of Trustees may, at its discretion, grant a hearing limited to the consideration of the subcommittee's report and the record of the proceedings before the subcommittee. In any event, the accused tenured faculty member shall, on his or her request, be granted the opportunity to submit to the Board of Trustees a written statement of defense or explanation within [ten] days after notice thereof is provided by the Provost and Dean of the College. The Board of Trustees shall make written findings and the final decision with respect to dismissal or other disciplinary action. These findings and the decision shall be communicated by the President to the accused tenured faculty member.
I. If the report of the subcommittee does not recommend dismissal or other disciplinary action and if the President determines that no further proceedings in the matter are necessary, the findings of the subcommittee shall be accepted as final and the President shall give notice to the accused tenured faculty member of such determination.
J. If the report of the subcommittee does not recommend dismissal or other disciplinary action, but the President determines that further proceedings in the matter are necessary, he shall, within thirty days after receiving the subcommittee's report, refer the case to the Board of Trustees for final decision. The President shall, concurrently with such referral, transmit to the Board of Trustees the subcommittee's report and the record of the subcommittee hearing. The Board of Trustees shall grant the accused tenured faculty member, as it may deem appropriate in the particular case, either a full hearing or a hearing limited to a consideration of the subcommittee's report and the record of the proceedings before the subcommittee. The Board of Trustees shall make written findings and the final decision with respect to dismissal or other disciplinary action. These findings and the decision shall be communicated by the President to the accused tenured faculty member.
K. If, in the case of an appeal of the Scholarly Misconduct Policy, the Committee finds that a minor procedural error has occurred and recommends that the Scholarly Misconduct Investigation Committee conduct additional deliberations, or the Committee finds that a gross procedural error has occurred and recommends that the case be heard by a new Scholarly Misconduct Investigation Committee, and the President determines that further deliberations are required, he shall, within fifteen working days after receiving the Committee’s report, notify the Provost and Dean of the College of his decision in writing. The Provost and Dean of the College shall, within five working days of the receipt of the President's decision, send a copy of the President's decision to the Research Integrity Officer and direct the Research Integrity Officer to reconvene the original Scholarly Misconduct Investigation Committee, or to convene a new committee according to the President's decision. At the same time, the Provost and Dean of the College shall send copies of the President's decision and his letter to the Chair of the original Scholarly Misconduct Investigation Committee and to the accused tenured faculty member.