Most organizations involved in the Community Standards process go through an investigation, so it is helpful to know what this might look like. Investigations occur after an organization has been reported for potentially violating the Code of Student Conduct. Reports that spark an investigation can come from a variety of places, including: Oxford Police Department, Miami Police Department, Residence Life, current or past organization members, faculty or staff, community members, or bystanders.

Once a report is received by the Office of Community Standards, the office determines who all should be interviewed in the investigation. Sometimes, this group includes entire pledge classes or organizations, and other times it only includes a few members. This is all determined by the nature of the report submitted. Community Standards will then send the necessary parties a date and time to come in and speak to an investigator. The nature of this interview is to gather more information about the reported incident. While we recognize this process can feel intimidating, the Office of Community Standards focuses on keeping the Miami community safe. While students do not always know exactly why they are being interviewed prior to their meeting, it is important to come prepared to share the truth in response to whatever questions you are asked.

After an investigation concludes, the Office of Community Standards produces an Investigation Report that is shared with organization presidents, advisor(s), Student Activities, and any other governing body. Examples of other governing bodies include athletics, national headquarter staff, or correlating academic units. This report will include information gathered through the investigation process, and will make a determination on whether or not reasonable cause exists to believe the Code of Student Conduct was violated. If the investigation team does believe the code was violated, the hearing process will begin. If the investigation team does not believe the code was violated, then the process ends and no charges are brought forth.