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Athletes here are held to a stricter set of guidelines than the rest of us on campus. If they step out of those guidelines we may not see them on the field, on the court, or in the water.

Athletes have to be careful not to violate the Athletic Code of Conduct. The Code of Conduct is a set of behavior standards that athletes agree to obey when they suit up for Hamline. The university takes this code of conduct very seriously and they work hard to make sure that it is enforced.

Regardless of severity, all violations that the athletic department becomes aware of are handled according to the Code.

When the Code is cracked

A violation of the Code may require that the student-athlete have a mandatory meeting with their coach and the athletic director to discuss the matter, or the situation may require that the athlete be removed from his or her team, or the matter maybe so serious that the athlete has to leave campus.

Last semester, there was an incident that brought a black eye to the athletic department and a busted mouth to one unfortunate student. Around the beginning of November, a student, who wished to remain unnamed, attended a party that was also attended by several members of the Piper football team. The party was held at a house off-campus and alcohol was being consumed. A single football player ended his football career and his academic career at Hamline University that night. Unprovoked physically, the Piper athlete head butted another student in the mouth.

“I was talking to the owner of the house and he was asking everyone to leave because the party was getting too big,” said the student. He said “...then this kid came up from behind me, turned me around and head butted me in the face.”

The students had no prior introduction before the night of the party. Both individuals had been intoxicated at the time of the incident. The student’s mouth gushed of blood as he collapsed to the floor. The blow was brought with enough force that it broke out a tooth and killed three more teeth in the student’s mouth. The victim was brought to a nearby house and the football player stayed at the party until the police arrived. Although the party was not on campus property, the university has an obligation to step in anytime it catches wind of student-on-student violence. The university certainly fulfilled its obligation in this matter. The matter was so severe that it was out of the hands of the athletic department and became a matter for the student judiciary system.

The first set of guidelines that an athlete is judged by are the same guidelines that all students must follow.

“Whether you’re a student-athlete or you like drama, art...all of us are held to certain standard and code of conduct within the Hamline community.” The “code of conduct” said Athletic Director Dan O’Brien, referring to the Hamline the Judicial Code.

Court on campus

The Judicial Code details behavior that is prohibited by our university. It provides an outline for the behavior that is expected of all students, not just athletes. Because we all voluntarily are enrolled here, we all agree to abide by the rules and regulations set forth in the code. The Judicial Code goes on to say, “Each student is responsible for conforming his/her conduct to this code.”

The Judiciary System allows for a hearing process to take place to determine whether or not a violation has actually occurred. Hearings are an administrative process that make decisions based on the preponderance of evidence. A designated judicial officer presides over the each hearing. At a hearing, the officer reads each complaint. Next, both sides present their testimony, and evidence and witnesses are made available if they are present. After that closing statement by both sides of the incident are made.

The Judiciary System held a formal hearing to address the incident that occurred at the football party earlier this year. The hearing resulted in the university finding the student-athlete responsible for the injuries caused to the victim. The football player was forced to withdraw from the university. He violated the first set of guidelines that we all must follow everyday. He is currently in the midst of fighting a felony assault charge with the state of Minnesota’s judiciary system. Violations of the Judicial Code are not the jurisdiction of the Athletic Department. “We [the athletic department] don’t get involved in that process and we don’t want to be...that [the judiciary system] is a due process and it gets dicey,” O’Brien said.

Violations involving the Athletic Code of Conduct are jurisdiction of the Athletic Director and his staff. The judicial code is the set of guidelines we all must live by, but athletes have an additional set of rules that are explained in the Athletic Code of Conduct.

Violations of this nature maybe in regards to a student-athlete’s academic performance, being caught in the dorms with alcohol, or use of banned substances. Discipline can include suspension from the team, speaking with a counselor, or being released from his or her team. In most case of violation, a meeting between player, coach, and Athletic Director takes place. “Our job is to teach and prepare kids for life after college,” O’Brien said. “It’s someone else’s job to decide whether or not they [violators] should be here.” It is an attitude toward rehabilitation rather than retribution that the athletic administration applies to most cases but clearly some cases require mandatory action, such as the case earlier this year.

The victim of the incident that particular case holds no grudges toward the football team or anyone involved in athletics at Hamline. He also doesn’t believe that that act of violence brought upon him reflect the actions or attitudes of student-athletes overall.

“I think people on campus hear stories about one or two athletes on campus who enter Hamline and get in fights and do stupid things each year,” said the victim. If there is a perception at Hamline that all student-athletes act as reckless and violent as the individual in this incident, such a perception would be unfounded and untrue. The victim here would agree. “It’s a case of a few giving the rest a bad name,” he said.

Without conducting any sort of research, it is easy to see how someone could have preconceived notions and assume Hamline has a lackadaisical and halfway system for dealing with these individuals and situations of this kind. Such assumptions and notions are in fact wrong. Clearly, our university has the best interests of its students in mind. The systems that Hamline has in place to protect students and athletes alike, are in fact rigid and firm. It appears the university handles such matters with the utmost seriousness. The victim in this case agrees, “The process worked.”

It is a shame that one athlete’s actions can have an impact on the reputations of student-athletes across campus. Student-athletes in general, are not bad people. Most are hard working individuals who are dedicated to their academics. They have to be in order to be dedicated to their sport or sports. Across the board, athletes at Hamline average an impressive 3.0 GPA.

O’Brien put it well when he said, “we’re all a part of the Hamline community and there is a code of conduct we are all held to.” Athletes are as human as anyone, and they are prone to the same mistakes as the rest of us. Regardless of whether or not we play sports, we all make mistakes. The fact of matter, though, is that we all must be held accountable for our actions. We are responsible for our own actions all the time and it is the responsibility of each individual to keep his or her actions in bounds with the guidelines laid out for us by those who have bestowed upon us the privilege to further our education at Hamline. When an individual, athlete or student, finds themselves “out of bounds” of these guidelines they may find themselves out of luck.