The Missouri Students Association created a group to discuss issues and concerns with the Student Conduct Committee last week.

According to the Student Conduct Committee website, “The charge to the Student Conduct Committee is to decide cases in accordance with the University of Missouri Standards of Conduct and Rules of Procedures in student disciplinary matters and to report those recommendations to the provost or to the vice chancellor for Student Affairs.”

“I think (the committee) is a good chance to hammer out some consensus on what we think exists within the Senate,” Legislative Coordinator Ben Levin said in a previous Maneater article.

The first meeting was Wednesday, Feb. 13 with seven senators, the senate speaker and one MU student in attendance. The committee brainstormed six questions to take to Donell Young, the Office of Student Conduct senior coordinator.

The second meeting was a seven-minute meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 20 in which the group reviewed four questions to ask the committee.

One main concern addressed in the group was the appeals process if a court found a student innocent after the committee found the student guilty.

This decision could create a lot of irrevocable damage, especially in regard to financial aid, Budget Committee chairwoman Mckenzie Morris said on Feb. 13.

Another concern was the standards the committee makes a decision on. The committee makes a decision based on the preponderance of evidence — described as being 51 percent certain a student committed an act – whereas a court of law makes a decision without a reasonable doubt.

A third concern was the lack of transparency of the M-Book. The committee was concerned with how students were not notified of changes to the M-Book when they were made this summer.

A fourth concern was that students can be forced into following the conduct process by having a hold placed on their account. The hold is lifted when a student accepts or denies a sanction.

Two concerns were not readdressed at the second group meeting. One concern was Young’s dual role as prosecutor in the cases and trainer of the committee. Levin was concerned with this when the committee was first being debated in MSA, [according to a previous Maneater article.](https://www.themaneater.com/stories/2012/12/7/student-conduct-committee-discussion-continues/)

Another concern addressed at the first meeting was the selection and training of the committee.

The committee is comprised of 15 faculty members and 10 students, six of which are from MSA and four of which are from the Graduate Professional Council.

Senate Clerk Matt Kalish said on Feb. 13 he felt there should be more student representation. He also said the application process attracts people who are more active on campus, so the committee is not reflective of the entire school.