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Steamboat Springs — After handing down its first verdict in fall 2003, the student-run Honor Council at Steamboat Springs High School has seen its caseload drop each year.

But it is unclear whether that is a positive sign for academic integrity at the high school, a council member said this week.

"There have been significantly lower cases this year," said senior Travis Mouffe, the council's second presiding officer. "That could mean any of three things: less students are cheating, students are still cheating but getting better at hiding it, or teachers are turning in less cases."

The Honor Council is a group of 20 high school students -- five from each grade -- that rules on cases of reported student cheating, lying and plagiarism. The council rules according to the school's Honor Code, which outlines council procedures for punishing academic offenses. The school's Nuts and Bolts Committee voted unanimously to form the council in spring 2003 in response to a survey in which more than 70 percent of high school students admitted to cheating.

Three years later, high school staff and administrators praise the council's development.

"The key thing is they've been able to keep the basic concept and premise, but they've evolved in a very positive way," Principal Mike Knezevich said this week. "The kids are totally professional and totally confidential -- they treat this so seriously."

Former high school technology coordinator and business teacher Kandise Gilbertson, now a learning support specialist at Steamboat Springs Middle School, was a faculty sponsor for the Honor Council during its first two years.

"One of the things we saw was a decline in cases and a better understanding by the council of its role," Gilbertson said. "I feel like it's been really successful."

Downward spiral

The Honor Council could be performing so well that it may not be necessary in future years.

Presiding officer Katie Mat--teo, a senior, said the council heard 71 cases during the 2004-05 school year. This year, Matteo said, the council has heard 10 cases.

The number is so low that at a faculty meeting last week, Matteo reminded teachers about the council.

"We do exist," Matteo said jokingly.

Matteo and sophomore Tay--lor Miller-Freutel, the council's secretary, spoke at the meeting to remind teachers about their role in monitoring academic integrity among students.

Along with annually nominating students to be council members, teachers submit suspected cases of dishonesty to the council throughout the school year.

Several of the teachers at the meeting were new to the high school, so Matteo reviewed the procedure for submitting a case to the council.

Teachers give every assignment a numerical rating, Matteo said, that specifies the amount of sharing that is allowed on the assignment.

"A rating of 1 allows the sharing of work at the student's sole discretion," the school's Honor Code reads. "A rating of 2 allows the sharing of work but does not allow the sharing of final answers ... when a rating of 3 is established, the sharing of information at any level is prohibited."

If teachers suspect a student of cheating, lying or plagiarism, especially involving an assignment with a '3' rating, Matteo said they also must submit "clear copies" of evidence that supports their claim.

"We have no 'He said, she said' cases," Matteo said.

Mouffe said Thursday that a lack of teacher awareness about Honor Council policies may be a cause of the declining number of cases. That may change after last week's faculty meeting, Knezevich said.

"We'll probably see an increase in violations now," Knezevich said.

Adaptation

During an Honor Council trial, 12 of the 20 members must be present. A two-thirds majority vote confirms a final verdict. Because council members have different afterschool schedules and participate in different extracurricular activities, trials are held during the school day.

Matteo said that last year, the 71 cases heard by the council caused council members to miss more than 100 classes.

"We try to pull people out of the least-academic classes," Matteo said.

"And we do go back and make up all the work," added Miller-Freutel. "That's part of why teachers nominate students."

Still, Knezevich said the issue needs to be addressed. The Honor Council has more members this year than it has in the past, one of many adjustments praised by Knezevich.

"Any issue that's come to (council members), they've been able to adapt," he said.

Another issue, he said, was an Honor Code violation by a member of the Honor Council.

Although council members would not give details about the infraction because of required confidentiality, Mouffe had a simple answer for how the case was handled.

"We tried that person, that person was charged, we found that person guilty and that person was not on the council the following year," Mouffe said.

Knezevich said he isn't allowed to sit in on trials. He tried once but was rebuffed by Matteo.

"She kind of growled at me," he said. "She said: 'This is our thing.'"

Friends...after the trial

When the council was proposed three years ago, staff and teachers expressed concerns about student bias in trials. Could friends, teammates, boyfriends and girlfriends rule impartially?

The answer from council members is, with some exceptions, "yes."

"In most cases, unless it's a family member or you're dating the person, you can make yourself unbiased," Miller-Freutel said.

Matteo added that the Honor Code allows council members to recuse themselves from trials in which they can't be impartial. She also said that although students who are found guilty can appeal council rulings, a few have taken their feelings outside of the trial room.

"We have had a couple cases of harassment," Matteo said. "They were turned over to the administration."

According to Gilbertson, a student convicted of cheating rarely is seen by the council a second time.

"We had very, very few repeat offenders, which I think is pretty powerful," she said.

Positive change

Gilbertson said discussions have started about bringing an Honor Council, and the principles it teaches, to younger students.

"It's something we're sort of mulling bringing to the middle school," she said, adding that because "one of the biggest questions" is whether young students could act with the same responsibility as high schoolers, a middle school Honor Council could have more teacher involvement.

"We'd have to find a way to make it work," Gilbertson said.

Miller-Freutel, Mouffe and Matteo said they serve on the council to bring positive change to their school.

"I feel like, with each case, we make a difference," Matteo said.

-- To reach Mike Lawrence, call 871-4203

or e-mail mlawrence@steamboatpilot.com