Honor Code

The Highland Park High School Honor Council exists to promote a culture of integrity and honesty, educate all students about academic integrity, and encourage peer accountability for academic integrity throughout the school. This role may include speaking at school assemblies, arranging outside speakers related to integrity, visiting classrooms, consulting with teachers and staff, sharing information at Honor Council elections, determining questions for the Honor Council application, or visiting elementary/middle schools.

The Honor Council also serves to provide students an appropriate forum where they may be heard when there is a disputed allegation of academic dishonesty. After careful deliberation, the Council will provide their assessment of innocence or guilt as well as any recommendations for resolution to the accused student’s administrator. This is an advisory role. The final determination and consequences are determined by the administrator. Regardless of the outcome, the Honor Council’s focus is to provide the accused student with a learning opportunity regarding the importance of academic integrity and ensure the student is fully aware of the damage that can and does occur in settings after high school should future dishonesty reoccur.

The Honor Council will consist of nine members – four seniors, three juniors, and two sophomores. Each spring, one junior, one sophomore, and two freshmen will be elected to the Honor Council. Candidates will submit an application, which will be reviewed by the current Honor Council. The Council will then reduce the application pool to five student candidates from each grade level. These fifteen candidates will then be interviewed by members of the Honor Council, who will select their top three candidates from each grade level to be placed on the ballot. These nine finalists will be introduced to the student body at an assembly, and the election will be held immediately following the assembly. The candidates for each grade level with the most votes from students in their grade level will be added to the Honor Council. New members will begin participating in all Honor Council hearings immediately. Once elected, members serve on the Honor Council until graduation, unless disqualified due to an Honor Code or other serious academic or conduct violation. Whenever an opening on the Council occurs, the student finalist for the grade level with the opening who received the next highest votes in the most recent election will be offered a seat on the council.

Honor Council members are expected to attend all hearings unless a legitimate conflict exists. If a member fails to attend more than one hearing without notifying the school sponsor in advance, they may be dismissed from the Council.