The last time Central Washington University updated its student code of conduct, Bill Gates was stepping down as CEO of Microsoft. It was the same year the Kingdome was demolished in Seattle.

For the first time in over 15 years, after a year and a half of development, Central staff are revising the current code, with a likely completion date of as early as December.

The current code of conduct has raised several issues involving federal regulations, a lack of appeal rights and difficult to understand language.

This nearly complete redraft of the current code will address these issues and is expected to be implemented within the coming months.

“The [new] code itself looks like it’s a complete rewrite,” said Richard DeShields, associate dean of student living, who is in charge of enacting edits to the code. “There were some pieces we needed to help fall under federal guideline.”

Central’s assistant attorney general, Alan Smith, made sure those pieces fit within state regulation.

Specifically the code needs to comply with the Violence Against Women Act and Title IX by using particular wording to describe cases.

Currently, cases involving stalking, domestic violence and sexual assault fall into two categories. The new code revision will separate these all into their own classification.

“While we have harassment and sexual assault already in our current code,” DeShields said. “We wanted to be very specific to have the language in there so that we can also separate violations by those types.”

This specific wording will allow Central to keep track of student violations more accurately.

The revised code will also provide students with new opportunities to appeal.

According to the current code, students can appeal if they’re suspended, expelled or fined. If the revised code passes, students could potentially appeal on any other case given they provide new information to the case or believe the sanction is too harsh.

Central has a standard of “preponderance of the evidence,” meaning a student is more likely than not in violation of a rule. Despite that, DeShields argues that Central is more focused on the education of students than on the punishment.

“Our goal is to change the behaviors,” DeShields said. “And in most instances, we don’t have a lot of repeat violations.”

While the current code of conduct isn’t quite up to par with federal regulation, it still falls under the Administrative Procedures Act of Washington. Meaning, the code isn’t only “rules for Central students,” but an approved administrative policy. This regulates how Central communicates with students about their violations.

According to DeShields, this is the part of the conduct process that is the hardest.

“The letters [we send] are very strict sounding because we have to include all of this language,” DeShields said.

He said this can scare students, but the school only needs more information regarding the violation.

Central deals with about 700 cases of conduct code violation per quarter.

While some cases provide difficulties, according to DeShields, Central has never had a case that was challenged through the court. DeShields and his team plan to keep it that way.

The new code has a lot of rewording but, according to DeShields, not much overall is changing.

“It’s really about the appeal rights and making sure we are using the language appropriate to fit all the federal requirements,” he said.

On Oct. 26, there was a public hearing to discuss the changes and allow formal community feedback on the new code. DeShields and his team expect to implement the new code within the next two or three months if they receive a final approval from the board of trustees.