Academic Honesty Process and Reporting

Key Resources

ALL PARTIES:

University Policy on Academic Dishonesty, CY 2024-2025 (PDF).
Wilson Library: Preventing and Detecting Plagiarism.
Appeal Process Diagram (PDF).
Student Disciplinary Software and Intake Forms: Maxient (About).
If Artificial Intelligence (AI) is involved or suspected, consider the following GUIDE courtesy of Elon University and AAC&U (free under Creative Commons license).
WaPo Article: “What to do when you’re accused of AI cheating”.

INSTRUCTORS

Incident Reporting Form (MAXIENT)

The incident report form is the instructor’s formal report of the incident to the University. Before submitting, please read below.
Instructor-Student Academic Dishonesty Resolution Form (Fillable PDF [Download First]) This form can be used to document the initial meeting between the instructor and the student (even if the student denies the accusation and/or academic penalty). The form is especially useful if the student accepted responsibility.
AAC&U Institute to Explore AI in Teaching and Learning. More.

STUDENTS

Student Appeal Form: Refer to the emailed letter received for the link to the appeal form. The student’s formal appeal after they’ve spoken with the instructor (Level I) begins with the department/program chair (Level II), followed by the College Dean (Level III), and ends with the Provost (Level IV) if they disagree with each level of appeal that might uphold the instructor’s accusation and/or academic penalty. NOTE: Begin with the department/program chair appeal if your effort (student) to reach an agreeable resolution with the instructor has failed.

The Importance of Academic Integrity

Academic honesty is important at the University of La Verne. Here are some reasons why maintaining academic integrity matters:

Maintaining Trust and Fairness: Upholding academic honesty ensures that students, faculty, and the institution can trust one another. When everyone adheres to honesty, it creates a fair environment where achievements are recognized based on merit.
Responsibility and Accountability: We expect students to perform academic tasks with integrity. Unless an instructor explicitly defines what is permissible in academic conduct, students are generally expected to maintain honesty in all their courses ¹.
Respect and Reputation: Academic honesty ensures a respectful learning environment, encourages growth, and maintains the student’s and the institution’s reputation.

Below are brief guidelines for instructors and students dealing with academic integrity issues. We strongly encourage everyone involved to read the “University Policy on Academic Dishonesty” in full (see “Key Resources” above), copied from the catalog for convenience.

Academic Penalties (Dropdown)

Students who are accused of academic dishonesty and the accusation is upheld by appeal or the student’s admission of guilt are subject to academic penalties that are proportional to the severity of the infraction. These academic sanctions might include one or more of the following (short list):

Partial credit or F on the assignment.
Rewrite of the assignment.
A grade of F for the course.*
Academic suspension or expulsion.
A case file of the incident for up to seven years.

*Students who earn an F on a course due to academic dishonesty can repeat the course to replace the “old” grade with the “new ” grade to improve the GPA. However, the case file of the original incident will not be expunged.

Academic Integrity Concerns (for Instructors)

WEIGHING THE EVIDENCE

Instructors who suspect a student of academic dishonesty should first evaluate the evidence, maybe even consult with the department/program chair. Is the evidence a “suspicion” or (reasonably) “strong”? A suspicion should be investigated further but it would not rise to sanctionable or reportable.

Example 1: Was the violation a “minor” citation error where the student forgot to cite a source in one area of an assignment but the rest of the paper was OK?

Example 2: Was the violation a blatant violation of academic integrity where they copy/pasted a whole paragraph from Wiki or generated an entire assignment using ChatGPT or a related artificial intelligence tool?

If the evidence is (reasonably) “strong” or if the suspicion rises to probable (most likely than not) that the student violated an integrity principle, the instructor should notify the student in writing and then meet with the student to discuss the concern (these are important steps in our policy).

Meeting with the Student

The instructor should use this meeting to show the evidence to the student and to get an explanation (maybe even a confession*). The instructor should approach the meeting with an open-mind and as a teachable opportunity (also a key new part of our academic honesty policy) [do you want to be a Cop or an Educator?].

According to the university policy on academic dishonesty, students “will have a chance for education.” Instructors should press the importance of academic honesty, what issues rose as concerning (show the evidence with specific examples and concerns), and how to avoid future incidents, including, possibly, a referral to Wilson Library to attend writing workshops that teach skills to avoid plagiarism.

The meetings with students can also be helpful to the instructor to consider the students’ reactions to the accusation(s) and the evidence, and allow for reasonable explanations from the student’s perspective before applying an academic sanction (if any).

*If the student admits to the violation, consider this acceptance of responsibility when you apply the academic sanction that is proportional to the offense.

Sanctioning the Violation(s)

The instructor has a duty to educate their students and part of this ethos is to fairly sanction academic integrity violation(s). In the above examples, the instructor should fairly sanction the incident that is proportional to the offense. Do both examples above deserve an F on the course? For Example 1, probably not. For Example 2, maybe (keep reading below). If you are not sure about the appropriate academic penalty, consult with your department/program chair.

Let us continue with other examples and how each might be sanctioned differently:

Example 1: A student wrote an assignment on their own but forgot to cite a quote or a paraphrase on the assignment (but everything else was OK). The student might be given a warning (or word of caution) and an opportunity for resubmission (or not). The violation probably might not need to be reported, or academically sanctioned.

Example 2: A second incident in the course from the same student might rise to a more stern warning, a partial credit penalty, and reported to the department/program chairperson and the University (using the Maxient form above).

Example 3: A different student produced an entire writing assignment using ChatGPT (or a related AI tool) and submitted it as their own. A case like this might warrant a more serious academic penalty such as a zero or F grade on the assignment and reported to the department/program chairperson and the University (using the Maxient form above).

Should the students in Example 2/3 earn an F in the course? It depends. Let’s say the student was under pressure with a deadline and things are not going well at home but confessed to “being desperate” or was careless in their citation work. The instructor might take this contrition (and admission of guilt) into consideration and lighten the academic penalty such as assigning an F/Zero on the assignment and a warning that another incident would result in an F in the course. The instructor also informs the student they will report this incident to the department/program chairperson and the University (using the Maxient form above).

However, let’s say the student in Example 2/3 is combative, argumentative, and outright denying the accusation (despite the overall strength of the evidence), then the instructor might decide that a more severe academic penalty is warranted such as an F/Zero on the assignment and an F in the course, and reported to the department/program chairperson and the University (using the Maxient form above).

Reporting the Violation^

Do the examples above rise to a reportable offenses? It depends. Consult with your department chair if you are unsure if the violation is a “minor” violation that merits attention (a teachable moment about the importance of proper citations and how to do it), along with a “stern warning” to avoid another incident, whether an academic penalty is needed, and whether it should be reported to the University. Or the incident is so “blatant”–and the student is so “out of line” in their response to the accusation, despite the evidence–that it might deserve a more severe academic sanction and rises to a reportable incident. Full stop.

You have every right to manage your course in ways that meet educational and professional standards, this includes broad discretion about whether an incident is reportable to the University. If you feel strongly that the incident should be reported then proceed to file the report (see Key Resources above for the link the reporting form).

^If the student admits to the violation, accepts the instructor’s academic penalty, and rises as reportable, the instructor and the student should sign the “Instructor-Student Academic Integrity Resolution” form. The instructor should submit the form as an attachment to the Instructor’s Maxient reporting form (see the “Key Resources, Instructor Forms” above).

What Happens After a Report is Filed with the University?

When the instructor reports an incident of academic dishonesty, the Administrator will create a case file in Maxient and send a letter to the student with a formal notification of the accusation(s) and the academic penalty.

The Administrator will also communicate with faculty administrators who have a need to know under FERPA (this includes, usually, the instructor, department/program chairperson, college dean, provost, the VP of Enrollment Management, and the student’s academic advisor).*

The student has the right to appeal if they disagree with the accusation and/or the academic penalty. The right to appeal after meeting with the instructor may include the program/department chairperson, the college dean, and provost separately (more below).

NEED TO KNOW UNDER FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act)

In addition the information above about who needs to know under FERPA, another consideration is whether the instructor has a “right to know any priors” of the student they are accusing of violating academic honesty. The short answer is “no, the instructor does not have a right to know any prior accusations the student might have”. Below is a longer answer on our rationale for this:

We need to ensure the student is treated fairly by the instructor in the current course only. We should not give any room for accusations of bias or influence on the instructor for considering more punitive academic penalties if the instructor “knows” the student is a “habitual plagiarist” and should be penalized more harshly by the instructor. The application of a harsher academic penalty is for the dean to consider and apply, not the instructor, for serious and/or habitual patterns of misconduct.

Prior cases, if there are any, can be used by the academic dean to consider academic suspension, for example, or recommend expulsion to the Provost based on the seriousness of the individual cases, taken together, that might show a pattern of behavior. Again, assuming there are prior cases of culpability.

Student Appeal Process

Students who disagree with an accusation and/or the academic penalty have the right to appeal. The student’s intent to appeal triggers a faculty-driven appeal process:

Level I Appeal (Instructor): the first step of an appeal is with the instructor to reconsider the accusation and/or the academic penalty they applied to the student.

Level II Appeal (Chairperson): If the student disagrees with the instructor’s accusation and/or academic penalty, then they can appeal to the department/program chair in the department where the course resides. The chairperson may meet with the student to review the evidence and decide whether to overturn the instructor’s accusation and/or academic penalty or uphold the instructor’s decision.

Level III Appeal (College Dean): If the student disagrees with the chairperson’s decision to uphold the instructor’s accusation and/or academic penalty, then they can appeal to the college dean where the department resides. The chairperson may meet with the student to review the evidence and decide whether to overturn the instructor’s accusation and/or academic penalty or uphold the instructor’s decision.

Level IV Appeal (Provost): If the student disagrees with the college dean’s decision to uphold the instructor’s accusation and/or academic penalty, then they can appeal to the Provost. The Provost or their designee might decide directly or assemble a faculty judicial board that consists of at least three faculty from outside the college where the incident occurred. A Provost decision is in writing and is considered final.

Frequently Asked Questions

Instructors and Students

Question As an instructor, do I have to report an incident of academic dishonesty?: Answer
No, you are not required to report an incident of academic dishonesty, but it depends on the severity of the incident.

Read the examples above when you consider the academic violation and its severity and whether it should be handled informally between you and the student (with a stern warning and/or academic penalty that is proportional to the incident) or the incident rises to “serious” and merits a “stronger” (but proportional) academic penalty that also deserves to be reported to the university.
Question As an instructor, do I have to meet with the student?: Answer
Yes, meeting with the student is a top principle in our academic dishonesty policy. Students are afforded a right to view the evidence if they are accused of academic dishonesty to give an explanation, confess, or to challenge the accusation directly with you. The meeting also serves as an opportunity for a teachable opportunity.

Said differently, if you’re willing to make an accusation that can have major academic consequences, then meeting with the student to show the evidence is the least we can ask of you.
Question As a student, will there be a penalty for withdrawing my appeal to challenge an accusation of academic dishonesty with the college dean or provost?: Answer
There is NO PENALTY for withdrawing your appeal to challenge the instructor’s initial accusation and/or the academic penalty against you (the student). However, in withdrawing, you are accepting the instructor’s accusation and/or academic penalty against you. The case file will be updated to acknowledge your decision to withdraw your appeal.
Question As a student, what consequences could rise from continuing an appeal beyond the instructor or chair?: Answer
There are NO CONSEQUENCES against you, the student, for pursuing appeals to the college dean and/or provost. Said differently, university academic policy grants you a right of appeal. However, be mindful that if you pursue an appeal to the dean and/or provost level, either the dean or the provost can impose more punitive academic penalties if your case is considered serious or severe. For example, a first-offense, might be treated as “less severe” in the application of an academic penalty that is proportional to the “offense” versus a repeat offense of academic dishonesty or outright theft of intellectual property that might merit a more punitive response.
Question As a student, will a case against me affect future graduate school admission or scholarships or career prospects?: Answer
If you return to ULV for another degree, the admission application is not flagged in any negative way unless the transcript has language that raises concerns such as, for example, “academic probation” or “academic warning” or “disqualified” or “suspended” or “expelled” or related language. The same goes if you transfer to another college or apply to another college as each school will have their own way of signaling or saying you were tagged as having earned a specific academic penalty.

If the academic penalty for dishonesty was an F in the course the transcript will NOT be marked in any way unless you, the student, is suspended or expelled and these terms are printed on the transcript. The same goes for an earned F on an assignment even if the grade was a passing grade, the transcript will NOT be marked in any way that would signal or suggest you earned a failing grade on an assignment due to an academic honesty violation in the course.
Question How long will a case file against me, the student, be on my academic record?: Answer
The case file will remain active for at least seven (7 ) years according to the Registrar’s document retention policy.
Question I have been accused of academic dishonesty more than once, what am I risking if the additional accusation(s) is upheld by appeal?: Answer
If you, the student, is accused of another incident of academic dishonesty–and that appeal process upholds the accusation and/or academic penalty–this second (or third) case would show a pattern of dishonest behavior that might result in more severe penalties that might include academic suspension or expulsion.