HONOR COUNCIL
The Honor Council, a component of the student government at Wofford College, administers the provisions of the Honor Code. The Council is composed of thirteen students (six seniors, five juniors, and two sophomores). Members of the Honor Council are elected each spring for the following year. Early in each spring semester the Chair of the Honor Council will solicit the student body for applicants for membership on the Council. Candidates will submit an application letter and two recommendations, one from a student and one from a faculty/staff member. The applicants are screened by the Electorial Board which consists of the outgoing chair of the Judicial Commission, the four outgoing officers of the Campus Union, the six outgoing senior delegates of the Campus Union, the Dean of Students, and two members of the faculty. The Board will pass the names of those applicants it approves to the six outgoing members of the Honor Council who will elect from those approved by the Board the Honor Council members for the upcoming year. In making its selection of new members of the Honor Council the Board and the seniors on the Council give primary consideration to a candidate’s moral character and commitment to the promotion of academic honesty.
The newly elected members of the Honor Council are eligible to assume their Council responsibilities effective the beginning of spring semester academic holidays. The Honor Council elects its chair, vice chair, and secretary. If for any reason a member of the Honor Council vacates a position, the seniors on the Council will name a replacement.
The chair of the Honor Council presides at hearings of accusations of academic dishonesty. For each case, the chair appoints a member of the Council to serve as prosecutor for that case. The chair also appoints a student requested by the accused to serve as defender. If the accused has no request, the chair will appoint a defender from the Council. If for any reason the chair is unavailable, the vice chair will act in his or her place. The secretary is responsible for all records and communications from the Council. The Dean of the College will appoint a faculty member to observe meetings of the Council and its trials and to give advice and guidance to the Council in meeting its duties. The faculty advisor will not vote. He or she will not attempt to persuade the Council in its verdict or sanction.