COLUMBUS – A draft of the Ohio University Student-Athlete Code of Conduct and Discipline introduced at the Board of Trustees meeting on Friday will feature clear, standardized punishments, an OU administrator said.

“I believe our policy is where it needs to be, given our situation and what we’ve been through,” said Kirby Hocutt, athletics director. “Other administrators have said they stopped just short of where we went, and they’ve applauded us for taking that extra step.”

Hocutt and other athletic officials have spoken with more than 60 Division I-A schools since Oct. 19 to compare codes.

“We’ve already received three calls requesting copies of the new policy,” he said.

Like the university’s alcohol policy, the student-athlete policy defines various levels of offenses and subsequent consequences, ranging from judiciary referral to felony charges or convictions.

“This was a very important leadership step,” said J. Michael Lawrie, a national trustee. “It removes the double standard present between the student population and the athletic community.”

The plan will be implemented Jan. 3, when Winter Quarter begins.

“The real proof is in the policy’s administration, consistency and enforcement,” said Trustee Larry L. Schey. “This is definitely not one of those policies we can just put in the books and let sit.”

Renovation plans taking shape

William Decatur, vice president for Finance and Administration, introduced a proposed $100 million construction schedule for renovating 12 dorms through 2015.

“Now, we really can’t afford a $100 million project,” Decatur said. “It’d be nice if we could, but our budget is closer to $50 million.”

Brailsford & Dunlavey, a facility management and consulting firm, planned for an increase of 2,625 beds. Of the 12 dorms up for renovation, 8 were on East Green. Each dorm would receive 100 to 400 additional beds. In addition to the new dorm on South Green that will open Fall Quarter 2007, the study included the possibility of constructing another dorm.

Decatur says he plans to present a more concrete plan to the board in April, adding that East Green is the oldest green and needs the most attention.

Tentative Renovation Schedule:

Jefferson, Lincoln: open Fall 2009

Perkins, Scott, Shively: open Fall 2010

Washington: open Fall 2011

Bush: open Fall 2012

Boyd, Gamertsfelder: open Fall 2013

James: open Fall 2014

Ryors, Tiffin: Fall 2015

CIO search starting over

The university also will restart its search for a new Chief Information Officer as it decided not to offer the position to either Michael Hites or Margaret Cline, the final two candidates for the job who interviewed at open forums in Athens during Fall Quarter. The position was vacated when William Sams resigned after last year’s security breach compromised 173,000 individuals’ Social Security Numbers.

“With the holidays, I’m not expecting any major developments,” said Joe Brennan, executive director of University Communications and Marketing. “We’ll most likely start looking at resumes and starting that process again around January, and we’ll just go from there.”

Brennan said the university might name another interim CIO in the meantime to take over for Sams, and McDavis estimated a hire would be made by the end of Winter Quarter.

Other notes

-- The Board officially removed Bob Ney’s name from the Eastern campus’ Health and Physical Education Center, which is open to both campus and community members. The former congressman asked the university to remove his name after he was convicted of bribery and corruption charges earlier this year.

-- The Academic Honesty Hearing Committee has examined 14 cases of plagiarism in the Russ College of Engineering and Technology, resulting in three dismissals, three rewrites with the option of a hearing and eight hearings to be scheduled soon.

The Russ College Research Integrity Committee has reviewed 26 of 111 masters’ theses. Nineteen warrant no further action, and seven – all from the Chemical Engineering department – have been forwarded to the Academic Honesty Hearing Committee, McDavis said. The committee anticipates reviewing 10 to 15 theses every two weeks.

-- OU authorized an 80-year lease for a 16.14 acre property on Stimson Avenue with National Church Residences, a non-profit developer that proposed plan for the construction of a retirement center. The lease and construction plans have been delayed because of a lawsuit filed by neighbors, as well as threatened litigation from the project’s competition.