Academic Integrity
Academic honesty is essential to the integrity of the mission and success of the University and is expected of all students. It is the responsibility of every student to avoid dishonest practices. There are eight broad areas of academic dishonesty: (1) obtaining unauthorized aid or information; (2) giving unauthorized aid or information; (3) committing plagiarism from written, electronic or internet sources; (4) misrepresenting facts or data; (5) offering bribes; (6) using the library resources unethically; (7) using computer resources unethically; and (8) knowingly assisting in any of the above practices.
A charge of academic dishonesty can be brought against a student by an instructor, a staff member, or another student in consultation with an instructor. The instructor or staff member will consult with the chairperson who may then notify the Registrar to put an academic hold on the course to prevent the student from dropping the class. The instructor or staff member then will notify the student in writing of the formal charge. If the instructor involved is a chairperson, the instructor will consult with the dean of the appropriate college before moving forward with the process. While in standard cases the student will earn an automatic “F” in the course, and be disallowed from dropping the course, the instructor, in consultation with the chair or dean, has the discretion to alter sanctions as appropriate. If the student chooses to appeal the charge of the instructor, the student may stay in the class until the appeal process is completed. All cases of academic dishonesty will be reported by the chairperson to the academic dean, graduate dean and the provost.
Once the charge is made, the student has the right to appeal. The student must make the appeal in writing to the department chairperson within ten academic days of receiving the charge. The chairperson (or dean if the case involves a chairperson) will then appoint a committee of at least three faculty or staff members from the department who are not directly involved in the case to consider the appeal. If the appeal fails, the student may then petition the Graduate Council. A charge that is successfully appealed will be reported by the appropriate committee to the chairperson of the appropriate department, to the academic dean, the graduate dean, and to the provost so the charge that has already been reported will be expunged from the record.
During the appeals process, the departmental committee or the Graduate Council may alter the sanctions. In standard cases, the instructor’s sanction will stand and the student will be prohibited from further attending the course. The second instance of academic dishonesty will result in immediate dismissal from the University.