The Association for Student Conduct Administration (ASCA), formerly the Association for Student Judicial Affairs, is the leading voice for student conduct administration within

higher education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...

, conflict resolution, law and

public policy Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a Group decision-making, decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to Problem solving, solve or address relevant and problematic social issues, guided by a conceptio ...

related to student conduct administration. ASCA also attracts members who work in higher education prevention education and

Title IX Title IX is a landmark federal civil rights law in the United States that was enacted as part (Title IX) of the Education Amendments of 1972. It prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other education program that receiv ...

administrators in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Founded in 1987, ASCA has over 2,400 active members at over 1,000 institutions across the US, Canada, and abroad. ASCA's headquarters resided on the campus of

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

College Station, Texas College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, United States, situated in East-Central Texas in the Brazos Valley, towards the eastern edge of the region known as the Texas Triangle. It is northwest of Houston and east-northeast of Austin, ...

until 2018. ASCA is still based in College Station, but is now fully remote.

Mission

The mission statement of ASCA is to support higher education professionals by providing education materials and resources, intentional professional development opportunities and a network of colleagues to facilitate best practices of student conduct administration and conflict resolution on college and university campuses.

History

The creation of the Association for Student Judicial Affairs was proposed by Donald D. Gehring of the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public university, public research university in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. Chartered in 1798 as the Jefferson Seminary, it became in the 19t ...

during conversations with colleagues at the

Stetson University Stetson University is a private university in DeLand, Florida, United States. Established in 1883 as DeLand Academy, it was later renamed John B. Stetson University in honor of John B. Stetson. The university's main campus in DeLand spans 175 ...

Law and Higher Education Conference. ASJA officially came to form in 1987 with the creation of a steering committee and funding support from Raymond Goldstone at the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

. ASJA held its first annual conference in 1989 and began the annual Donald D. Gehring Academy for Student Conduct Administration in 1993. In 2008, ASJA changed its name to the Association for Student Conduct Administration (ASCA). In 2015, ASCA opened a satellite office in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, in collaboration with the

American College Personnel Association American College Personnel Association - College Student Educators International is a major student affairs association headquartered in Washington, D.C. at the National Center for Higher Education. Founded in 1924 by May L. Cheney, ACPA has 7 ...

, to facilitate more interaction with other higher education professional associations and to assist public policy advocacy efforts.

Professional development

ASCA produces several national professional development programs each year, including an annual conference, the Donald D. Gehring Academy for Student Conduct Administration, a

and Sexual Misconduct Institute, as well as national collaborations with other professional associations such as NASPA, the Association of Fraternity Advisors, and the

National Association for Campus Activities The National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) is an organization that provides resources for student activities programmers throughout the United States and Canada. Formed in 1960, NACA links higher education and entertainment in a busine ...

Structure and communities of practice

ASCA is organizationally divided into four geographic regions administered by regional chairs with each state having a state coordinator. The association sponsors committees and communities of practice on topics such as

conflict resolution Conflict resolution is conceptualized as the methods and processes involved in facilitating the peaceful ending of Conflict (process), conflict and Revenge, retribution. Committed group members attempt to resolve group conflicts by actively co ...

, research,

academic integrity Academic integrity is a moral code or ethical policy of academia. The term was popularized by Rutgers University professor Donald McCabe who is considered to be the "grandfather of academic integrity". Other academic integrity scholars and advoc ...

assessment Assessment may refer to: Healthcare * Health assessment, identifies needs of the patient and how those needs will be addressed *Nursing assessment, gathering information about a patient's physiological, psychological, sociological, and spiritual ...

community college A community college is a type of undergraduate higher education institution, generally leading to an associate degree, certificate, or diploma. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an open enr ...

fraternity A fraternity (; whence, "wikt:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular ...

and

sorority In North America, fraternities and sororities ( and ) are social clubs at colleges and universities. They are sometimes collectively referred to as Greek life or Greek-letter organizations, as well as collegiate fraternities or collegiate sorori ...

life,

and legislative issues,

mental health Mental health is often mistakenly equated with the absence of mental illness. However, mental health refers to a person's overall emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It influences how individuals think, feel, and behave, and how t ...

threat assessment Threat assessment is the practice of determining the credibility and seriousness of a potential threat, as well as the probability that the threat will become a reality. Threat assessment is separate to the more established practice of violence-r ...

and

sexual assault Sexual assault is an act of sexual abuse in which one intentionally Physical intimacy, sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or Coercion, coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their w ...

Advocacy efforts

After the release of the

Department of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

Office for Civil Rights The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is a sub-agency of the U.S. Department of Education that is primarily focused on enforcing civil rights laws prohibiting schools from engaging in discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex ...

(OCR) "Dear Colleague Letter" discussing

and campus

in April 2011, ASCA leadership and publications were frequently cited in the national media to discuss topics related to sexual assault response. ASCA has voiced support for the OCR-required

preponderance of the evidence In a legal dispute, one party has the burden of proof to show that they are correct, while the other party has no such burden and is presumed to be correct. The burden of proof requires a party to produce evidence to establish the truth of facts ...

standard in campus sexual assault adjudications, mandatory academic transcript notation for serious disciplinary matters, and advocacy for institutionally-based discipline processes. ASCA has received criticism from popular media outlets

Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers ...

and

Jezebel Jezebel ()"Jezebel"
(US) and

for a perceived focus on educational outcomes in campus sexual assault adjudication. ASCA responded to those concerns with the publication of a "Gold Standard" report on sexual assault adjudication practices.

Foundation

The Raymond Goldstone ASCA Foundation provides funds for scholarships to ASCA professional development opportunities such as the annual conference or Gehring Academy.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Association for Student Judicial Affairs Educational organizations based in the United States Organizations established in 1987 1987 establishments in Texas Organizations based in Texas American education-related professional associations