Although a student can be punished by the university for lying to a university official, there is no written code that prohibits a faculty member or administrator from lying to a student.

NIU has a student judicial code setting standards of behavior for students, and penalties in case those standards are broken, but similar standards for administrators and faculty members do not exist.

“There are campuses in which a code of standards, a code of ethics applies to the whole university community. However, on this campus the Judicial Code applies only to students,” said NIU Ombudsman Tim Griffin. “I could see how it could be problematic in some situations. I could see how some people would think it isn’t fair.”

Griffin said there were codes setting procedures in some cases, such as fraudulent research by faculty, but he said these codes were written “piecemeal,” with no cohesiveness or organization.

NIU Legal Counsel George Shur agreed there were no comprehensive codes applying to the university as a whole.

Still, he said there were strict standards and rules that applied to specific professions, such as law and accounting, and that guidelines were laid down by organizations such as the American Association of University Professors and the Board of Regents, NIU’s governing board.

Shur said despite a lack of written codes, faculty members and administrators still were held accountable for their actions. If a faculty member lied to a student, that student could file a grievance. If it was determined the incident indeed happened, then the faculty member’s supervisor would decide what action to take.

“Faculty and administrators operate under common law. Common law is law which evolves over time,” Shur said. “Nothing in the rules says, ‘Thou shall not yell at students,’ but is it reasonable for faculty to do that? Hell, no.”

He said a lack of written guidelines for the whole university community was actually a disadvantage to faculty and administrators.

He said although a student could avoid being tried on criminal charges by going through the university judicial system, faculty and administrators were not afforded the same right.

Also, if an administrator or faculty member does anything wrong, it could end up as a letter of reprimand in his or her permanent employment record, Shur said.

“It’s arguably a little more frightening than the student (judicial code),” Shur said.

Griffin, in his “Office of the Ombudsman Annual Report” for the 1992-93 academic year, said the current system was unfair.

“Hundreds of students have reported behavior by faculty and staff during the past year which would be objectionable under the NIU Student Judicial Code.

“There currently exists no policy applicable to faculty and staff which provides procedures for students to challenge, in any formal venue, demeaning behaviors which would not be tolerated from other students,” the report stated.

The report recommends the creation of a set of “standards and expectations related to professional behavior for all faculty and staff members,” including procedures for disciplinary action for those failing to comply.

Shur said a code that would universally apply to the whole university community was not necessary, since what was already in place worked fine and any changes would “limit the discretion we have,” concerning the ability of the university to handle minor infractions.