A2000.05 Academic Honesty

 

Statement

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Shawnee Community College values a culture of academic honesty and integrity to ensure all members of our community engage in ethical practices and promote a fair learning environment. Our commitment to these principles not only enhances the academic experience but also prepares students for ethical citizenship in a diverse and interconnected world.

 

Definitions

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Academic dishonesty is defined as, but is not limited to:

Cheating – Using or attempting to use unauthorized materials, study aids, or information in any academic exercise, including copying from another person’s work, preparing work for another person that is to be presented as the other person’s own work, or using AI-generated content and submitting it as one’s own work if this is expressly stated in the course syllabus as not permitted by the instructor.

Fabrication – Furnishing false information to a college official relative to academic matter, including but not limited to misrepresentation of written information provided in admission documents.

Plagiarism – Representing the words or ideas of another as one’s own in any academic exercise.  Plagiarism is stealing ideas or creations from others and taking credit for that work as if it were one’s own creation.  For assistance or further clarification about plagiarism, please contact the Shawnee Community College Library or the Student Success Center.

 

Types of Cheating and Plagiarism

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• turning in someone else’s work as one’s own, whether borrowed, copied, or purchased, including AI generated content
• copying words, ideas, statistics, phrases, music, or artwork from someone else without giving credit through use of quotation marks and correct citation
• paraphrasing or summarizing someone else’s ideas (expressing the other person’s ideas in one’s own words) without crediting that person for the ideas
• supplying false citation information for sources
• using more material from sources than from one’s own thoughts (even if sources are cited, it cannot make up the majority of one’s work, because instructors usually require original work)
• submitting the same work for multiple courses without prior approval or proper self-citation

 

Penalties

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For the first offense in a course, an instructor shall determine the initial course of action which can include reprimand/warning, rewriting/redoing the assignment and/or receiving a failing grade on the assignment.  If the instructor feels it is warranted, the instructor may report it to the Vice President for Academic Affairs which shall initiate the steps below.  Progressive discipline shall occur for multiple offenses across the College in any one semester. The office of the VPAA shall keep a record of all offenses to inform the following steps.

First Reported Offense –

1. The instructor shall inform the student of the violation and report the offense to the Vice President of Academic Affairs (VPAA).
2. The instructor shall determine the initial course of action which can include reprimand/warning, rewriting/redoing the assignment and/or receiving a failing grade on the assignment.
3. The VPAA shall send the student a written warning.
4. The student shall be required to attend and complete the plagiarism remediation session led by the College Librarian, if applicable, within 10 calendar days of the reported offense. If the student chooses not to complete the remediation session within the 10-calendar day timeframe, the student shall automatically receive a “F” in the course.
5. Once the remediation requirement is fulfilled, the Librarian shall communicate to the VPAA and the instructor.

Second Reported Offense –

1. The instructor shall inform the student of the violation and report the offense to the Vice President of Academic Affairs (VPAA).
2. The VPAA shall send the student a written formal notice of the second offense.
3. The student shall receive a grade of “0” for the assignment.
4. If the student did not complete the required plagiarism remediation session after the first reported offense, the student shall be required to attend and complete the plagiarism remediation session led by the College Librarian, if applicable, within 10 calendar days of the reported offense. If the student chooses not to complete the remediation session within the 10-calendar day timeframe, the student shall automatically receive a “F” in the course.
5. Once the remediation requirement is fulfilled, the Librarian shall communicate to the VPAA and the instructor.

Third Reported Offense –

1. The instructor shall inform the student of the violation and report the offense to the Vice President of Academic Affairs (VPAA).
2. The VPAA shall send the student a written formal notice of the third offense.
3. The student shall receive a grade of “F” for the course in which the third offense occurs.

Fourth Reported Offense –

1. The instructor shall inform the student of the violation and report the offense to the Vice President of Academic Affairs (VPAA).
2. The VPAA shall send the student a written formal notice of immediate suspension from the College for the remainder of the semester and shall receive a grade of “F” for the course in which the third offense occurs. Grades in other courses shall be calculated based on current work completed at the time of the suspension. No makeup work shall be allowed.

With any sanction, the student has the right to follow the grievance procedure if he/she disagrees with the decision of the instructor or administrator.

 

Change Log	Governance Unit: Academic Affairs Council
Date	Description of Change
9.26.24	Initial Adoption