Academic Honesty

Academic work is evaluated on the assumption and expectation that the work presented is the student’s own, unless designated otherwise. Presenting another’s work as one’s own is unacceptable and considered academically dishonest. Cheating and plagiarism, as described below, are considered forms of academic dishonesty, and students found responsible for such acts are subject to immediate disciplinary action.

Cheating

This policy applies to any test, quiz, examination or other graded project or assignment required to be independently completed. Students engaging in any of the following behaviors will be subject to disciplinary action for cheating:

Offering related information of any kind while a graded assignment is being completed – whether in class or off campus – and which violates the individual nature of the assignment, including information from prior graded assignments from prior quarters
Receiving information of any kind from another student or about another student’s work during the course of completing a graded assignment, whether completed in class or off campus, which violates the individual nature of the assignment – including information from prior graded assignments from prior quarters
Possessing any written material or other device, including information from prior graded assignments from prior quarters, that assists the student in completing a graded assignment, whether completed in class or off campus, unless authorized by the faculty member
Procuring in an unauthorized manner any piece of writing or other material which contains related questions and/or answers to a graded assignment scheduled to be given to any individual or group enrolled in any course of study offered by the University
Selling, lending or otherwise furnishing to any individual any document or device that contains the questions and/or answers related to a graded assignment scheduled to be given to any individual or group enrolled in any course of study offered by the University

Note: The unauthorized possession of any of the aforementioned pieces of information or writing shall be considered evidence of a violation of this policy and grounds for disciplinary action.

Plagiarism

Students engaging in any of the following behaviors will be subject to disciplinary action for plagiarism:

Intentionally and knowingly representing the words or ideas of another as their own in any academic exercise.
Using words, phrases or ideas of another without referencing the author or source.
Offering as their own work the words, ideas or arguments of another person without referencing the source by quotation, reference or footnote.
Copying material from a source and pasting it into a document as their own work without giving credit to the original author.
Sharing course materials or recordings, Moodle postings, or instructor or University intellectual or copyrighted property on the Internet or via social media without prior written permission from the instructor and the dean of the school in which the student is enrolled. Permission for use of class materials, etc., is specific, and students who use materials in any other way will be subject to disciplinary action as described below.

Due Process

All information regarding an incident of academic dishonesty will be treated confidentially, and necessary persons involved in the review and decision-making process will be informed as appropriate. Faculty members who discover or suspect a student of cheating or plagiarism should follow these procedures:

Notify and confer as necessary with the department chair in which the violation occurs regarding the student’s alleged violation.
Ask the dean of the school in which the student is enrolled to request from the registrar copies of any letters in the student’s file concerning previous violations of academic honesty policy. The registrar will forward copies of all such letters to the dean, and the dean may share that information with the respective faculty member and/or department chair and/or responsible school student progress committee as appropriate.
Meet with the student to discuss the reasons cheating or plagiarism is suspected and allow the student the opportunity to clarify the situation.
Report in writing to the department chair the outcome of the faculty member/student meeting and, if necessary, propose appropriate disciplinary action.
If a faculty member has not made a personal observation and does not have direct knowledge of student cheating or plagiarism as alleged by another student, the faculty member should:
- Listen to and thank the student for the information.
- Advise the dean (or designee) of the conversation in writing.
The faculty member’s dean (or designee) will send documentation of the incident to the Dean of Students and assist as needed with the resolution process.

In addition:

The department chair will ensure that the deans of the schools in which the faculty member teaches and the student is enrolled are informed of the disciplinary action taken.
A letter outlining the nature of the incident and disciplinary action taken will be placed in the student’s permanent file.
The dean of students will be copied on correspondence relevant to confirmed incidents of student academic dishonesty.

Disciplinary action, a full description of which should be included in the letter placed in the student’s permanent file, may include any one or more of the following:

Written warning to the student with a description of the act committed and consequences should a repeat violation occur.
Assignment of a special project to take the place of the graded assignment in question.
A failing grade for the specific graded assignment or a failing grade in the class in which the cheating or plagiarism occurred. If a failing grade is given in the class or if the failing grade in the assignment results in the class needing to be repeated to complete the student’s degree requirements, the student will not receive a refund for the failed class and must pay full tuition to retake the class.
Probation, suspension or dismissal from the University, particularly in the case of repeat violations, according to the respective procedures outlined in the University Catalog and Academic Policy and Procedure Manual regarding academic status, probation, remediation, suspension and dismissal. Only the provost may make decisions regarding academic dismissal.

Students may request that the dean of students, or designee, be present when speaking with a faculty member or other department, school, student progress committee or University administrators regarding their alleged act of academic dishonesty.

The student will be advised in writing of disciplinary action to be taken within 10 business days of meeting with the faculty member and/or department chair.

Appeal Process

Students may appeal the decision of the faculty member and/or department chair and/or student progress committee for all disciplinary action related to academic dishonesty except dismissal (see paragraph below) by submitting a letter within five (5) business days of the postmark date of the notice of disciplinary action to the dean of the school to whom the faculty member and department chair report. The appeal must be based on a factual error or misinformation. The dean will review the written appeal and meet with the student making the appeal. If the dean finds that the appeal has merit, s/he will meet with the student, faculty member and/or department chair and/or student progress committee, together or separately, to review the new/corrected information. After this review, the dean will issue a final decision, which may not be appealed.

Appeal of the provost’s decision for dismissal related to academic dishonesty must be made directly to the provost. The written appeal must be made within five (5) business days of the notice of dismissal postmark date and must be based on factual error or misinformation. Specific information on and/or alleged document copies regarding factual inaccuracy must be included with the letter of appeal. The provost will review the information and render a final decision within 10 business days. The decision of the provost is final.

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Academic Policy and Procedure Manual