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SUNY ESF
Student Rights and Responsibilities

Orange horizontal rule

ESF is an academic community in which all persons—students, faculty, administration, and staff—share responsibility for its growth and continued welfare. As members of the College community, students can reasonably expect that all College offices, programs, employees, and organizations will respect the following rights:

Speech/Expression/Press

Students have the right to express themselves freely on any subject provided they do so in a manner that does not violate the ESF Code of Student Conduct. Students, in turn, have the responsibility to respect the rights of all members of the College to exercise free expression.

Non-discrimination

ESF is committed to fostering a diverse community of outstanding faculty, staff, and students, as well as ensuring equal educational opportunity, employment, and access to services, programs, and activities, without regard to an individual's race, color, national origin, religion, creed, age, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, familial status, pregnancy, predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, or criminal conviction. Students have the responsibility to not discriminate against others in their individual roles or as members of student organizations.

Assembly/Protest

Students have the right to assemble in an orderly manner and engage in peaceful protest, demonstration, and picketing which does not disrupt the function of the College, threaten the health or safety of any person, or violate the ESF Code of Student Conduct, the SUNY Rules for the Maintenance of Public Order, or local, state, or federal law.

Religion/Political Association

Students have the right to exercise their religious convictions and associate with religious, political, or other organizations of their choice provided they do so in a manner that respects the rights of other members of the community, complies with the ESF Code of Student Conduct, and is consistent with State University of New York policies on use of facilities for religious and political purposes. Students have the responsibility to respect the rights of other members of the College community to freely exercise their religious convictions and to freely associate with organizations of their choice.

Privacy/Search/Seizure

Students have the right to privacy and to be free from unreasonable searches or unlawful arrest on College property and within their on-campus residences. Students have the responsibility to respect the privacy of other members of the College community in their person and in their place of residence.

Academic Pursuits

Students have the right to accurate and plainly stated information relating to maintenance of acceptable academic standing, graduation requirements, and individual course objectives and requirements. Students can expect instruction from designated instructors and reasonable access to those instructors. Students have a right to a productive learning environment and the responsibility to attend class and know their appropriate academic requirements.

Quality Environment

Students have the right to expect a reasonably safe environment supportive of the College’s mission and their own educational goals. Students have the responsibility to protect and maintain that environment and to protect themselves from all hazards to the extent that reasonable behavior and precaution can avoid risk.

Governance/Participation

Students have the right to establish representative governmental bodies and to participate in College and State University of New York governance in accordance with the rules and regulations of the College. Students who accept representative roles in the governance of the College have the obligation to participate responsibly.

Due Process

Students have the right to due process before and after formal disciplinary sanctions are imposed by the College for violations of the ESF Code of Student Conduct as provided in the published procedures of the Code of Student Conduct or other official College publications. No change in the status of any student shall occur for disciplinary reasons until after the student has been given written notice of, and opportunity for, a formal hearing—except in instances in which the student’s conduct constitutes a threat to persons or property. An expanded definition of student’s rights in the student conduct process is included below.

Confidentiality

Students have the right to access and to control access to their education records as provided by the federal Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974, also known as the Buckley Amendment. These include the rights to view and challenge the content of specific records, to control the release of personal and academic information to third parties, and to suppress all or some information categorized as “directory information” by legislation.