Honesty, Cheating, Plagiarism, and Forgery

Academic dishonesty is inconsistent with scholarship and the pursuit of knowledge and Christian character. Thus, Indiana Wesleyan University expects students to be honest in all academic work.

Coursework

Students are expected to exhibit honesty in the classroom, in homework and on quizzes and tests. Each instructor should define what constitutes honest work in a specific course. Any deviation from ordinary standards, such as the permitted use of notes for an examination or an "open book" test, should be stated clearly by the instructor.

Cheating is defined as the use or attempted use of unauthorized materials or receiving unauthorized assistance or communication during any academic exercise. Examples of cheating include:

Submitting work for academic evaluation that is not the student's own.
Copying answers from another student during an examination.
Using prepared notes or materials during an examination.
Permitting another student to copy one's work.
Plagiarism.
Falsification.
Other misrepresentations of academic achievement submitted for evaluation or a grade.
The submission of papers or other work that one has submitted in a previous class or classes without appropriate citation and/or permission of the instructor.

Plagiarism is defined as "the false assumption of authorship; the wrongful act of taking the product of another person's mind and presenting it as one's own" (A. Lindey, 2006, Plagiarism and Originality). The Prentice Hall Reference Guide (2006) indicates, "To plagiarize is to include someone else's writing, information, or idea in a paper and fail to acknowledge what you took by indicating whose work it is" (p. 292). In other words, it is not giving credit where credit is due. Plagiarism is both a moral and ethical offense and sometimes a legal one.

Examples of plagiarism include:

Copying another person's actual words without the use of quotation marks, source citation, or footnotes.
Presenting another person's ideas or theories in your own words without citing the source.
Failing to acknowledge contribution and collaboration from others.
Using information that is not common knowledge without citing the source.
Submitting downloaded papers or parts of papers, "cutting and pasting," or paraphrasing or copying information from Internet sources without proper acknowledgment of a source.

Sanctions

It is the responsibility of each student to be aware of policies regulating academic conduct including definitions of academic dishonesty, the possible sanctions, and the appeals process.

Any undergraduate student apprehended and charged with cheating, including plagiarism, during his or her college matriculation, shall receive the following discipline:

First incident of cheating: no credit (i.e., no points given) in paper, assignment, or exam.
Second incident of cheating: failure in the course involved.
Third incident of cheating: dismissal from the university.

In addition to the above, a graduate student is expected to understand clearly the nature of cheating and is subject to dismissal from the university for any egregious act of academic dishonesty or cheating, without the need to follow the steps listed above. Incidents of cheating and/or plagiarism will be investigated and judged by the appropriate academic leader.

Because the matter of cheating cumulatively leads to dismissal, faculty are required to report each case to the appropriate university administrators who in turn reports the case to the academic leader of the specific college/school. Unquestionable evidence must be in hand before any action will be taken to confront and accuse a student of cheating.

A student who is not satisfied with the disciplinary action may follow the grievance and appeal policies of the appropriate academic unit.

Falsification of Academic Records or University Documents: Falsification of academic records or documents includes but is not limited to altering any documents affecting academic records; forging signatures; or falsifying information of an official document such as a grade report, ID card, financial receipt, or any other official university letter or communication. This includes information downloaded (printed) from student information available via Web (online) services.

Unauthorized Access to Computerized Academic or Administrative Records or Systems: Unauthorized access to computerized academic or administrative records or systems means viewing or altering the university's computer records without authorization; copying or modifying the university's computer programs or systems without authorization; releasing or dispensing information gained through unauthorized access; or interfering with the use or availability of computer systems information.

Students who are found to have falsified university documents or participated in unauthorized access to computerized academic or administrative records or systems are subject to dismissal from the university for a single incident. The university may consider legal action for any individual found to have participated in these actions.

Grievance and Appeal Policy (Non-academic)

A student may seek recourse from any university nonacademic program or employment-related dispute, alleged discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, color, sex, disability, or age, including alleged violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Educational Amendments Acts of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, or other state or federal legislation through the following procedures:

A. Informal Procedure

The student should seek informal resolution with the individual department concerned before initiating a written complaint.
If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved, the student may request a hearing with the dean for mentoring and accountability, the assistant vice president for Student Development or the associate dean of Adult and Professional Studies.
If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved at this level, the student may request a hearing with the vice president for Student Development or the vice president for Adult and Professional Studies.
If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved at this level, the student may submit a written grievance form.

B. Formal Procedure

The informal resolution may be ended at any time and the complainant may begin the formal procedure by submitting a written grievance within 30 days of the event or action. Grievances must include the demographic information regarding the complainant, the clear facts of the case, the disposition or resolution achieved thus far and the requested resolution by the complainant. Additional information or clarification may be requested before a hearing is scheduled. NOTE: Appeals that are based solely on the severity of a sanction that upon investigation are within the parameters of the available sanctions for an event or action are not considered grounds for appeal.
A hearing will be held with the dean for mentoring and accountability, the assistant vice president for Student Development or the associate dean of Adult and Professional Studies, ordinarily within 15 working days from the filing of the written grievance.
If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved with the respective assistant vice president, the student may then request, within 15 working days, a hearing with the vice president for Student Development or the vice president for Adult and Professional Studies. This hearing will ordinarily be held within 15 working days following the request.
If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved with the respective vice president, the student may then request, within 15 working days, a hearing with the Student Development Council, which will make recommendations back to the vice president within 15 working days.
If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved with the Student Development Council and the vice president, the student may then request, within 15 working days, a hearing with the president of the university. This final hearing with the president will ordinarily take place within 15 working days. This is the final appeal.

Each stated time frame will be the ordinary process. More time may be necessary in the event of a lengthy investigation, hearing, illness, or other unforeseen circumstances.

The complainant will be notified of results at each step of the grievance process. All grievances, with all papers, recommendations, and decisions related to federal or state regulations, will be reported to the vice president for Academic Affairs in whose office all files will be kept.

Because grievance and appeal processes are private university administrative hearings, legal counsel or representation is inappropriate.

Grievance and Appeal Policy (Academic)

A student who has a grievance related to a course grade or an academic policy decision, including those believed to be discriminatory based on race, national origin, color, sex, disability, or age, should follow these procedures for resolution.

Students must begin with the awareness that the university follows generally accepted college and university practice in the development of academic policies, the operation of classrooms, and use of grading techniques. These differ widely from professor to professor and from college to college. Indiana Wesleyan University allows its instructors independence in following generally accepted practices.

Protest of Grade

If the student feels that an instructor has not followed fair practice nor followed his or her own published grading policy, the following procedures should be followed:

A. Protest of a Grade - Informal Procedure

The student should contact the professor for a full explanation of the grade given and the basis for making the grade.
If there is no resolution of the problem, the student may request a review with the division chairperson (or the dean of the college if the complaint involves the chairperson).
The chairperson or the dean will notify the faculty member of the grievance and its nature and seek to mediate the dispute through the following steps:
1. Informal discussion of the facts of the case seeking resolution within 15 working days.
2. If the faculty member's stated policy for calculating the grade has not been followed, the chairperson or dean will insist that it be followed.
3. If the dispute is about a grade on a specific paper or an examination, the chairperson or dean will request that the professor reevaluate the paper or the examination to examine the grade given.
4. If the student is not satisfied with this informal process, the formal procedure may be initiated.

B. Protest of Grade - Formal Procedure

The informal resolution may be ended at any time and the complainant may begin the formal procedure by submitting a written grievance form within 30 days of receiving the grade. Grievance forms are available in the office of the dean of the college.
The chairperson or the dean within 15 working days will request a second reading of the specific paper or examination by two faculty members with knowledge in the academic discipline. They will submit their evaluations to the chairperson or dean within 15 working days. That person will make a judgment, within 15 working days, as to whether the grade has been definitely mis-evaluated by more than one full grade. If so, the grade may then be changed by the academic administration. The decision of the academic dean will be final in all grade disputes.

Protest of Policy

If a student believes that the university has not followed published policies regarding academic decisions or has been discriminated against based on race, national origin, color, sex, disability, or age, including Title VI, Title IX, and Section 504, the student may follow the following procedures:

A. Informal Procedure

The student should contact the person who has made the decision for a full explanation of the university policy, or the federal or state policy, and how the policy was followed. If the university policy has been followed, that should resolve the complaint.
If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved, the student may request a hearing with the division chairperson.
If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved with the division chairperson or dean, the student may request a hearing with the vice president for Academic Affairs, the vice president for Adult and Professional Studies, Dean of the School of Nursing or the Dean of the Seminary.
If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved with the academic leader informally, the formal procedure may be initiated.

B. Formal Procedure

The informal resolution may be ended at any time and the complainant may begin the formal procedure by submitting a written grievance form within 30 days of the policy decision. Grievance forms are available in the office of the vice president for Academic Affairs.
The student may then make a request within 15 working days for a hearing with the vice president for Academic Affairs or the vice president for Adult and Professional Studies to review the formal grievance.
If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved with the vice president, the student may then request within 15 working days a hearing with the Academic Affairs Council of the university.

The decision of the Academic Affairs Council will be made within 15 working days of such a request and will be final in all academic policy disputes.

Because grievance and appeal processes are private university administrative hearings, legal counsel or representation is inappropriate.