From the Student Handbook
• In Article IIA, it states that students:
“have the responsibility to know such policies and guidelines of the University.”
“shall conduct themselves in such a way as to recognize the legitimate rights of
others and to promote the welfare of the University Community.”
- In Article IIB, it states that students:
“have the right to be governed by justifiable regulations.”“are responsible for classroom behavior, which is conducive to the
teaching/learning process for all concerned.”“have the right to be informed of the content and objectives of a course, the
methods and types of evaluations, and the relative importance of each test,
paper, etc., comprising the total evaluation.”“are responsible for meeting the requirements of a course of study according to
the standards of performance established by the instructor.”“have a responsibility for honest and ethical conduct in all academic and non-
academic matters.”
- In Article IIIA, the section on academic misconduct, describes the following types of academic dishonesty which are related to plagiarism:
“Submitting as one’s own, in fulfillment of academic requirements, any theme, report, term paper, essay, or other written work; any speech or oral presentation; any painting, drawing, sculpture, musical composition or performance, or other aesthetic work; any computer program; any scientific experiment, laboratory work, project, protocol, or the results thereof; etc., prepared totally or in part by another.”
“Selling, giving, or otherwise supplying to another student for use in fulfilling
academic requirements any work described above.”“Plagiarism, defined as the use of any other person’s work (such work need not
be copyrighted) and the unacknowledged incorporation of that work in one’s
own work offered in fulfillment of academic requirements.”
- In Article IIIEE, it states that assisting misconduct is:
“Procuring, inducing, or causing another person to commit an act of misconduct prohibited by this Code, or assisting another person in the commission of such act.”
Faculty Responsibilities
- Faculty members share the responsibility in maintaining academic integrity at UAH.
- If a faculty member simply ignores the fact that a student has plagiarized, he or she is in a sense, taking part in academic dishonesty.
- Indeed, reporting a student who has plagiarized can be a long, painful process for faculty and students, but ignoring plagiarism is devaluing the process of education and the principles and goals of the UAH community.
Procedure for Filing a Complaint
- The Vice President for Student Affairs has general jurisdiction and authority over all matters concerning student misconduct.
- If a student has any questions, he or she would be advised to contact the Vice President for Students Affairs.
- The Vice President appoints a Judicial Officer, who deals with the filing and initial processing of a student misconduct complaint.
- The University Judicial Board (UJB), comprised of undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty members, graduate faculty members, staff members, and the Deans, has jurisdiction over all cases of student misconduct.
- The Student Code of Conduct states: “A complaint charging a student or an organization with misconduct may be filed by any University person having knowledge of the pertinent facts based on personal observation or other reliable information” (99). I
- If a faculty member wants to file a complaint with the Judicial Officer, he or she must have sufficient evidence that a student has plagiarized.
- The faculty member must fill out and sign a form describing the complaint to submit to the Judicial Officer, which describes that type of misconduct charged and the facts upon which the misconduct case is based.
- The complaint of plagiarism then goes to the UJB, where the Preliminary Action Officer (PAO) attempts to settle the charges through mediation.
- If the charges are not settled through mediation, the PAO determines if the case warrants a full hearing, based on whether or not there is reasonable suspicion, meaning that “upon preliminary inquiry, an apparent state of facts is found to exist as would incline a prudent person to suspect or believe, though there may be some doubt, that the Respondent may have committed the misconduct charged” (101).
- If there is no reasonable suspicion, the PAO goes through the dismissal process, meaning if he or she does not believe the student plagiarized, the student will be free to go.
- If reasonable suspicion does exist, the PAO meets with the student, or Respondent, for a conference, in which the Respondent can admit to the misconduct charged in a signed statement, to which the Judicial Officer can determine what sanction will take place.
- On the other hand, the Respondent can deny misconduct, and the case will be referred to the UJB for a full hearing.
Pre-hearing Procedure
- The Judicial Officer first informs the Respondent and Complainant of the guidelines for the hearing process, selecting the hearing panel, and helping the Respondent obtain an Advisor.
- The student has the right to choose an advisor, who may be present at the hearing to assist and/or represent the student.
- The Respondent may also choose to have an attorney, but the attorney will only be present as a non-participant.
- The Presiding Officer then receives the disclosure of witnesses and evidence from the Complainant and Respondent and conducts a pre-hearing meeting with the hearing panel, Complainant and the Proponent, Respondent, and the Advisor.
Hearing Procedure
- At the hearing, the Presiding Officer ensures that the hearing is fair and timely.
- The hearing can either be closed or open and the Presiding Officer determines what evidence shall be accepted.
- The Respondent may testify by presenting witnesses, documents, or other evidence.
- The Respondent may also remain silent, and the Complainant, along with the Proponent, can present the case against the Respondent.
- The Respondent also has the right to present information throughout the hearing, rebut the Complainant, to ask for the help of his or her Advisor, to question all witnesses, and to examine all evidence presented to the hearing panel.
- Both parties will have the chance to make a closing statement.
- Then the hearing panel deliberates and determines by majority whether or not the Respondent is guilty of misconduct.
- If the Respondent is found guilty, the hearing panel determines what sanction the Respondent will receive, whether it is a warning, work reparation, disciplinary suspension, disciplinary probation, expulsion, or several other options.
- The Respondent has 5 days after the hearing panel report has been filed to file an appeal to the Vice President of Student Affairs. Grounds for appeal include a procedural error in the hearing process, unsupported evidence, or newly discovered evidence. The Vice President for Student Affairs can then reopen the case for the UJB, dismiss the case, or affirm the original hearing report.
Alternatives to a Hearing
- The faculty member does have the choice to deal with a student who has plagiarized by applying an academic penalty within the confines of the course.
- The faculty member must first conduct a conference with the student, in which the faculty member describes his or her suspicions and the student has a chance to explain the situation.
- If the faculty member determines that the student has plagiarized, he or she can impose a sanction, such as requiring the student to revise the assignment, or awarding a failing grade for the assignment.
- The student can go through the grievance process if he or she finds the sanction to be unfair.
- The faculty member must give a written notice of the conference and sanction to the Vice President of Student Affairs, which will be placed in the student’s disciplinary record.
*For more details on the judicial process, refer to the UAH Student Handbook, 2002-2004.
