Principles of Group Responsibility



Any student organization can be held responsible for its actions or the actions of a collection of its members acting together.

Students may be held accountable as individuals under the Rules of Conduct for their conduct, whether the students are acting in an individual capacity or the students are acting as a member of a student organization.

Should a reported incident occur where an organization is named as allegedly violating an Organizational Rule of Conduct, the University may hold an investigation to gather facts to help provide further context to the original complaint

A student organization will be measured on the following and if the organization can be held responsible for the actions of one or more individual:

  • A violation arises out of an organization-sponsored, financed, or otherwise sanctioned activity or event, where the organization provided the context for the violation.
  • A pattern of individual violations has occurred and/or continues to occur within the organization without adequate control, response, or disciplinary action on the part of the student organization or its executive board members or officers.
  • The action resulting in the violation has received either the implied or overt consent of the student organization or any executive board members or officers of the RSO.
  • The student organization or any executive board member or officer of the student organization fails to report and take reasonable action against invitees/members responsible for the Organizational Rules of Conduct violation.
  • The student organization chooses to protect one or more individual offenders who are active members of the student organization from official actions.

For more information regarding group responsibility, refer to the Golden Rule Student Handbook UCF-5.011