Revised October 4, 2021

It is the responsibility of all students to understand the standards and methods of proper attribution and to clarify with each instructor the standards, expectation, and reference techniques appropriate to the subject area and class requirements, including group work and internet use. Students are encouraged to seek out information about these methods from instructors and other resources and to apply this information in all submissions of academic work. Each of the following constitutes a violation of the Code of Academic Responsibility:

I. Plagiarism: A. Appropriating the ideas, concepts, images (including but not limited to drawings, designs, or photographs) or language of another person and presenting them without attribution, constitutes plagiarism. Great care should be taken in academic work to acknowledge fully the source or sources of all ideas, language, diagrams, charts, etc. For specific questions the faculty member should be consulted, but the following rules must be observed:

Any sequence of words which are taken verbatim from another source must be enclosed in quotation marks and the source identified in the manner designated by the instructor.
Paraphrases and interpretations from a source should have the source identified.
Unless otherwise directed, students doing laboratory work are expected to make all necessary measurements, drawings and calculations independently, based on their own work. Observations, including numerical data, are to be collected independently.
Borrowing various words, ideas, phrases, or data from original sources and blending them with one's own requires acknowledging the sources.
If instructors permit seeking assistance of other students on academic work, the exact nature of the assistance must be acknowledged in detail. This includes papers, laboratory work, and computer programs.
Any use of a commercial writing service is forbidden.

II. Other Academic Misconduct: A. Submitting the same work for credit in more than one course without permission of each instructor involved. B. Attempting to give or to receive unauthorized assistance on academic work, and attempting to hinder others in their academic work. C. Furnishing false information to University officials on matters relating to academic work. This is to include but not be limited to:

False information provided for the purpose of obtaining special consideration (for example, postponement of examinations or of deadlines for written work).
Fraudulent registration for classes.
Signing the name of an absent person to an attendance sheet.
Reporting the results of experiments or surveys not performed.

D. Attempting to gain unauthorized access to exams or tests. E. Cheating during examinations, which includes:

Attempting to look at another student’s exam.
Attempting to communicate concerning the content of the exam with another student.
Attempting to use any materials (such as notebooks, notes, textbooks) not specifically authorized by the faculty member.

F. Failure to follow any of the procedures outlined above in regard to taking examinations, tests and quizzes. G. Failure to sign a book or periodical out of the Library or from other consortium libraries. 

Procedures for Reporting Violations

1. A student who has violated academic regulations, may self report to the faculty member involved within 36 hours of the infraction.
2. A student who suspects that a violation has occurred, may submit to the instructor of the course a written, dated and signed report of the suspected violation within 14 days of witnessing or discovering the violation. Persons who have knowledge of the violation may be summoned by the faculty member to be questioned, or may be called to give testimony before the Judicial Board.
3. Charges against students which cannot be resolved by the end of the semester may be continued to the next semester.

Procedures for Determining Level of Responsibility for Violations and Penalties 

After a violation has been alleged, one of the two following procedures must be followed: I. The student who is accused of the violation and the faculty member involved may choose to have the faculty member decide the case and assess the penalties as he or she determines. There will be no appeal process for cases decided in this fashion.

1. A faculty member who suspects a student of violating academic regulations will notify the student of the allegation, within seven days of the discovery by the faculty member, and of the grounds for suspicion.
2. Within seven days of this notification, the student must sign a Statement of the Charges form agreeing to abide by the decision of the faculty member.
3. Should the faculty member find the student to be responsible for the infraction, the faculty member must submit the Statement of the Charges form to the Dean of Students describing the violation and the penalties applied within one week of the resolution of the case. A copy of this form must be sent to the student. The form will be kept in the student’s file in the Student Affairs Office for a period of five years.
4. Should the Dean of Students find upon receipt of the form that the student has previous violations, the Dean of Students shall promptly consult the Chairperson of the Judicial Board for purposes of convening a hearing before the Board to determine the sanctions to be imposed. The Board shall follow the procedures set down for pre-hearing notification of the accused student, for the conduct of the hearing to determine the sanctions, and for the post-hearing.
5. If, within a reasonable period of time after a decision is rendered, new evidence becomes available or extraordinary circumstances are revealed, a student may request the Judicial Board to reconsider the case. Such a request must be made in a letter addressed to the Dean of Students, who will then consult with the Chairperson of the Judicial Board as called for in the pre-hearing procedures to decide whether to grant the request.

II. The student accused of the violation, or the faculty member involved, may choose to have the case heard directly by the Judicial Board.

1. In this instance, the party so choosing must present to the Dean of Students a written, dated and signed statement of the reasons for the hearing within 15 days of discovery of the violation.
2. The Dean of Students, in consultation with the Chairperson of the Judicial Board, will initiate the pre-hearing procedures followed by the Board, and, if warranted, the hearing, sanction, and post-hearing procedures.
3. Should the Dean of Students be aware of previous violations by the student, or be made so aware examining the student’s file, such information must be withheld from every member of the Judicial Board until such time as the accused student may be found responsible for the violations under consideration. After such a determination of the level of responsibility, the Board will consult with the Dean of Students to learn of any previous violations and will use such knowledge in determining the sanctions.
4. The faculty member involved must await the results of the Board’s procedures before assessing any penalties in the course.
5. If the student is found responsible for the infraction, the Board must submit a letter to the Dean of Students describing the violation and the penalties applied.
6. This letter will be kept in the student’s file for five years. A copy must be sent to the student and to the faculty member involved.
7. In every case concerning academic integrity, the faculty member has the final authority for determining penalties to be applied within the course. Sanctions as called for in the procedures of the Judicial Board involving course grades are only advisory to the faculty member involved. The Judicial Board has authority to determine administrative sanctions.

Please direct all questions to the Student Affairs Office in The Commons, 215-572-2933.