Honor Board

The Roger Williams University School of Law Honor Board is charged with investigating alleged Honor Code violations, holding hearings on alleged violations when appropriate, and upholding the professional standard and integrity of RWU Law. The Honor Board is an elected body consisting of twelve students, nine of whom will be in their third year of study, and three of whom will be in their second year of study. It is led by the chair and vice-chair, elected by the Honor Board. Honor Board elections are held in the spring semester of each academic year. Board members serve one year terms, commencing after a transitional meeting that occurs no later than the last week of classes in the spring semester.

What We Do

The Honor Board conducts matters in accordance with the Roger Williams School of Law Honor Code located in the Student Handbook.

The RWU Law Honor Code

The Honor Code is located in the Roger Williams School of Law Student Handbook. The Honor Code applies to any student who has received an offer of admission to RWU Law, or who has been accepted for enrollment in one or more classes offered by the law school, and who has subsequently enrolled. The Honor Code sets out prohibited conduct, establishes procedures for filing and adjudicating allegations of Honor Code violations, establishes sanctions for a finding of guilt, creates avenues for appeal, and establishes the Honor Board.

Submitting a Complaint

Any member of the Law School community with personal knowledge of Prohibited Conduct by a student or students should file a complaint by delivering it to the student chair of the Honor Board. Complaints may be submitted electronically to honorboard@rwu.edu. Form and content requirements for a complaint are explained in Section IV of the Honor Code and a sample complaint form is provided as Appendix A.

Contact Us

The Honor Board is located in the Student Bar Association Suite, Room 257C. We may be contacted by email at honorboard@rwu.edu.

Honor Board for the 2025-2026 Academic Year

Chair
Brianna Peñaranda

Vice-Chair
Tatiana Sotelo

Honor Board Members
India Awe
Robert Dimuccio
Rose-Ellen Kane
Nilda Chajon Navas
Karen Perez
Raven Risco
Brittany Sedlak
Kristen Taylor
Cameron Wessel
Naomi Zhang

Faculty Prosecution Counsel (FPC)
Professor Jonathan Gutoff - Chair and faculty advisor to the Board
Professor Tatiana Gomez - Prosecution advisor
Professor Martsyl Joseph - Defense advisor

Close Course Type Descriptions

Course Types

We have classified RWU Law classes under the following headers. One of the following course types will be attached to each course which will allow students to narrow down their search while looking for classes.

Core Course

Students in the first and second year are required to take classes covering the following aspects of the law—contracts, torts, property, criminal law, civil procedure, and constitutional law, evidence, and professional responsibility.  Along with these aspects, the core curriculum will develop legal reasoning skills.

Elective

After finishing the core curriculum the remaining coursework toward the degree is completed through upper level elective courses.  Students can choose courses that peak their interests or courses that go along with the track they are following.

Seminar

Seminars are classes where teachers and small groups of students focus on a specific topic and the students complete a substantial research paper.

Clinics/Externships

Inhouse Clinics and Clinical Externships legal education is law school training in which students participate in client representation under the supervision of a practicing attorney or law professor.  RWU Law's Clinical Programs offer unique and effective learning opportunities and the opportunity for practical experience while still in law school.