Almost 26,000 students, faculty, and staff are part of the A-B Tech family. Every year hundreds of people graduate from the College, and hundreds of new freshmen take their places. To protect all these students and employees from the irresponsible actions of others, the College has adopted basic rules of student conduct.

Students who have been charged with a violation of these rules may be assigned consequences based upon the seriousness of the offense. A hearing will be conducted by the Vice President for Student Services. In some situations, a Threat Assessment Team may review and make recommendations to the Vice President for Student Services prior to a hearing. If a student engages in criminal activity or demonstrates threatening behavior that constitutes a clear and present danger to the physical and/or emotional well being of the student and/or other students, faculty and staff, the Vice President for Student Services shall immediately suspend the student and remove him/her from campus for no more than ten school days pending a hearing. In this situation, the Vice President for Student Services must convene a Team. See Threat Assessment Policy.

Consequences for violations include verbal warnings, written warnings, disciplinary probations, particular consequences adapted to the violation, suspensions, expulsions and recommendations by a Threat Assessment Team. Any disciplinary decision rendered by the Vice President for Student Services may be appealed to the President.

Any student charged with a violation of the Code of Student Conduct will receive a written copy of the charges and an appointment for a hearing. At a hearing, a student shall receive certain due process rights. It shall be the responsibility of the President or his/her designee to create and amend these rights and list them each year in the A-B Tech catalog.

The following actions are specifically prohibited on this campus under the Code of Student Conduct:

1. Academic Dishonesty - You may not deceive any official of the College by cheating on any assignment, examination, or paper. This includes plagiarism, which is the intentional theft or unacknowledged use of another’s words or ideas. Plagiarism includes (but is not limited to) paraphrasing or summarizing another’s words or works without proper acknowledgement, using direct quotes of material without proper acknowledgement, or purchasing or using a paper or presentation written or produced by another. The faculty at A-B Tech may also consider presenting as original work a paper written for one class to satisfy a requirement in another class to be academic dishonesty.
2. Alcoholic Beverages - You may not possess or use alcoholic beverages on campus. You may not be under the influence of alcoholic beverages on campus.
3. Animals - You may not have an animal of any kind on campus. This includes animals left within a vehicle.  Working dogs, such as police dogs and Seeing Eye dogs, are permitted.
4. Assault and/or Battery - You may not strike or threaten to strike another person for any reason whatsoever. Threatening to strike another person is defined as assault, and striking another person is defined as battery.
5. Bullying - You may not intimidate or threaten with harm any other individual.  Bullying is defined as “any pattern of gestures or written, electronic or verbal communications, or any physical act or any threatening communication that takes place on College premises or at any College sponsored function that: (i) places a person in actual and reasonable fear of harm to his/her person or damage to his/her property; or (ii) creates or is certain to create a hostile environment by substantially interfering with or impairing a student’s educational performance, opportunities or benefits, or a College employee’s ability to perform the essential functions of his/her job.”  
6. Code of Classroom Conduct - You may not violate any of the rules pertaining to the Code of Classroom Conduct. It shall be the responsibility of the President or his/her designee to create and amend these rules and list them each year in the A-B Tech Catalog.
7. Damage to Property - You may not damage property of the College or of any other person working at or attending the College.
8. Disobedience - You may not disobey the reasonable directions of College employees, including administrators, faculty members, security officers, and other staff employees.
9. Disorderly Conduct - You may not conduct yourself in a way which will interrupt the academic mission of the College or which will disturb the peace of the College.
10. Disrespect - You are expected to treat all college employees with respect and courtesy, particularly when and if disagreements arise.
11. Disruption - You may not disrupt the normal activities of the College by physically or verbally interfering with instruction, meetings, traffic, or scheduled administrative functions.
12. Drugs - You may not possess, use, or be under the influence of any narcotic or illegal drug on campus in violation of the laws of the state of North Carolina or of the United States.
13. False Information - You may not present to the College or its employees false information; neither may you knowingly withhold information which may have an effect on your enrollment or your status in the institution and which is properly and legally requested by the College.
14. Gambling - You may not gamble on campus.
15. Possession of Weapons - You may not have a weapon of any kind, including a knife, stun gun, or any firearm in your possession on campus. Law Enforcement officers are exempt from this prohibition. This includes facsimiles of weapons.
16. Professional Conduct - Various curricula have specific codes of professional conduct for which you may be held accountable, if you are enrolled in those curricula.
17. Public Laws    Violations of any federal, state or local laws occurring while on campus may lead to legal actions as well as campus discipline. Violations of federal, state or local laws occurring off campus may result in disciplinary action if the student’s continued presence on campus constitutes a threat to the safety and order of the campus.
18. Sexual and Other Unlawful Harassment - You may not harass any member of the College community, including other students, employees, or other persons on the College campus. This prohibition includes sexual, verbal or physical harassment for any reason including race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, veteran’s status, creed, sexual orientation, or political affiliation.
19. Skate Boards and Roller Skates - Skate boards and roller skates are not permitted to be used on campus.
20. Stalking - You may not follow another individual in a threatening manner. Stalking is defined as the severe intrusions on a victim’s personal privacy and autonomy. It includes, but is not limited to, a pattern of: observing or monitoring the victim or committing violent or intimidating acts, regardless of the means, against the victim.
21. Theft - You may not steal the property of another individual or of the College.  Students who are caught stealing will be required to make restitution and may be eligible for civil or criminal prosecution as well as College discipline.
22. Threats - You may not engage in any behavior that constitutes a clear and present danger to the physical and/or emotional well being of yourself and/or other students, faculty and staff.
23. Tobacco - You may not use tobacco of any form on campus.
24. Use of the Internet - The College has an extensive policy for appropriate use of the Internet.  Users of the College computers acknowledge the policy whenever they sign on.  You may not use the College’s access to the Internet for access to sexually explicit material or for downloading music. E-mail accounts are provided for student use; however, no right of privacy exists for use of e-mail.