Disciplinary Sanctions & Falsification of Transcripts

San Jacinto College (“SJC” or “the College”) maintains a process to review and determine the application and registration status of potential students who have indicated prior school disciplinary history to determine if such potential students meet eligibility to continue the enrollment or registration process.

Notated Transcripts from San Jacinto College

Under Texas State law, if a student is ineligible to reenroll in a postsecondary educational institution for a reason other than an academic or financial one, including determinations made as a result of the student disciplinary process, the institution shall include on the student’s academic transcript a notation stating that the student is ineligible to reenroll.

A student who has been expelled from San Jacinto College is ineligible to reenroll at the College. A student who has received a disciplinary suspension is ineligible to reenroll at the College for the specified time noted on the student’s transcript. 

Following a student disciplinary hearing and after the affected student has exhausted all College appeal options, the College will apply the appropriate notation to the student’s transcript.

If a student withdraws from the College prior to a final resolution of the College’s published student disciplinary process, the College must complete the student disciplinary process until a final determination is made. If a final determination of responsibility is made and the student is ineligible to enroll at the College, the College shall include the disciplinary notation on the student’s transcript.

Upon request by a student, the College may remove from a student's transcript a disciplinary notation if:

• the student becomes eligible to reenroll at the College; or
• the College determines that good cause exists to remove the notation.

A current or former student who desires removal of an adverse notation may seek review of the notation by completing and submitting the Transcript Notation Review form. The request must be in writing and must articulate specific, factual reasons demonstrating that good cause exists to remove the notation. The affected student may submit supporting evidence. 

Definitions

Disciplinary Suspension: Separation from San Jacinto College, due to a student disciplinary process, for a specified period of time or until certain conditions are met.
Expulsion: Permanent separation from San Jacinto College, due to a student disciplinary process, whereby the student is not eligible for readmission.
Ineligible to Enroll: Student is not allowed to register for and take classes on any San Jacinto College campus or extension center.

Notated Transcripts Received by the College

The College reviews incoming transcripts for all potential students, and will follow the process below for those transcripts that include a notation stating that a student is ineligible to reenroll at a prior institution for reasons other than financial or academic ones (a “Transcript Notation”).  These Transcript Notations often represent a disciplinary matter that prevents a student from returning to a particular college or university for a specified amount of time. 

The College will take the following action(s) in reviewing these transcripts:

• The College Registrar’s office will promptly complete a preliminary review of a transcript that contains a Transcript Notation and determine the status or next steps for the potential student. The Registrar will take into account any specific comments and effective dates and timelines notated on the transcript.
• If the transcript contains a Transcript Notation with a date that is no longer in effect, the College Registrar’s office will proceed with processing the transcript as normal. 
• If the transcript contains a Transcript Notation with an active effective date, the College Registrar’s office will contact the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities, who will review the transcript, contact the potential student, collect information regarding the notation, and make determinations regarding possible conditions and outcomes.

The following actions are possible by the College and could include additional actions not listed:

• Contacting and alerting the potential student about the review process for disciplinary notations.
• Requesting of additional documentation or explanation regarding the disciplinary notation.
• Informing the potential student about other potential review actions.

The following conditions and outcomes may result from a review of a transcript that contains disciplinary sanctions:

• The potential student’s ability to continue the enrollment process may be delayed.
• The potential student may be admitted but with certain conditions, which will be communicated to the potential student in writing.
  • The College will ensure that the required conditions are met and will address failure of the potential student to meet the conditions.
• The potential student may be admitted without conditions.

Criminal History Review

In some cases, a certified criminal history may be required if the potential student’s application and supporting material present one or more of the following:

• Factual circumstances calling into question the reliability or accuracy of the information, including but not limited to inconsistencies in the information provided.
• Disclosure of active and/or pending criminal charges or other charges from another institution relevant to the disciplinary sanctions noted on the potential student’s transcript.
• Any other factors that the College determines warrant further clarification.

The College will review the criminal history information, and if there are no concerns with the accuracy or reliability of the information provided, and the College determines that the potential student does not pose a significant threat to campus safety, the potential student will be allowed to continue in the enrollment process.

If there are concerns with the accuracy or reliability of the information provided, the College will allow the potential student an opportunity to explain them or to provide additional documentation to the College. The College will review the additional information and if there are no additional concerns with the information provided, and the College determines that the potential student does not pose a significant threat to campus safety, the potential student will be allowed to continue in the enrollment process. Any decisions regarding the potential student’s enrollment status will be communicated in writing to the potential student.

If there are significant concerns with the accuracy or reliability of the information provided, or the potential student does not provide additional documentation, the College will make a decision based on the information available to the College at the time. The College will determine whether the nature of the crime allegedly committed or other behavior disclosed suggests that the applicant may be a potential threat to campus safety. Any decisions regarding the potential student’s enrollment status will be communicated in writing to the potential student.

The College will maintain a record of criminal history reviews, if any, conducted on each potential student and the results of those checks.

Falsified Documentation Provided to the College

When the College determines that a student or potential student has provided false documentation to the College for the purpose of fulfilling an enrollment requirement, the College will promptly investigate these instances. Instances requiring investigation could include, but are not limited to, providing false documentation for admissions to the College or providing false documents for admissions to a competitive instructional program.

The following actions may result from a discovery of false documentation:

• The College may contact the institution previously attended by the student to verify the authenticity of the documentation.
• The student or potential student’s enrollment eligibility may be delayed.
• The College may pursue an investigation of the incident using the Student Conduct Process found in the Code of Student Conduct.
• The student’s tuition and charges may not be refunded.
• A hold may be placed on the student’s records, which prohibits the completion of any College business, including but not limited to adding or dropping courses and paying for courses. 

Falsification of SJC Transcripts to Other Institutions

When it has been discovered that a student or potential student has provided a false SJC transcript or other documentation to another college, the College will promptly communicate with and verify authenticity of the transcript in question.

The following actions may result from a discovery of false documentation:

• The student or potential student’s enrollment eligibility may be delayed.
• The College may pursue an investigation of the incident using the Student Conduct Process found in the Code of Student Conduct.

Review of Admission Decisions

The College does not have authority to modify or remove a Transcript Notation placed on a student transcript by another institution. However, a potential student can request a review of any admissions decision made by the College as a result of a Transcript Notation on the potential student’s transcript by submitting a request to the Disciplinary Notations on Transcripts Review Committee (the “Committee”) using this form. The Committee will review the request, any information provided by the applicant, and any information provided by the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities, and will make a recommendation to the Associate Vice Chancellor of Student Services regarding the potential student’s enrollment status.