Academic Integrity and Student Conduct Policies
Academic Integrity
Cheating, plagiarism, and assisting others in acts of academic dishonesty are serious matters. Any student who participates in these actions will be subject to disciplinary measures, which may include grade reduction, automatic course failure, and/or expulsion from the class. Additionally, all cases of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Students; this report will become part of a student’s permanent record. Repeated violations of this academic integrity policy may result in suspension or expulsion from the university.
One common form of academic dishonesty is plagiarism, which involves using others’ ideas and words without acknowledging the source of that information. To avoid plagiarism, be sure to provide full bibliographic reference information any time you:
- Use another individual’s ideas, theories, or opinions
- Use facts, statistics, or visuals that are not common knowledge
- Include direct quotations of another person’s written or verbal words
- Paraphrase another person’s written or verbal words
Course Grading, Extensions, and Incompletes
Religious Studies instructors only give assignment extensions and incomplete final grades to students who have experienced extenuating circumstances(such as serious prolonged illness or family emergencies). In general, most students do not perform better with more time since the material is no longer fresh in their minds and other academic demands continue accumulating. However, if you truly experience extenuating circumstances, you must contact your instructor before your coursework is due and provide documentation of your situation. For those who receive an Incomplete grade, all course work must be completed within one year or whatever time period the instructor specifies.
On occasion, students will request a grade change after the semester is completed. If an inaccurate grade was assigned due to instructor error, then the instructor will make the appropriate grade change. However, if a student did not complete the course requirements by the designated due dates and did not get the instructor’s approval for an extension or an “Incomplete” grade, then the student will receive and F for the missing work. After final grades are posted, students are not permitted to do additional work to raise his or her grade.
If a student receives a grade that he or she deems unfair, the student has the right to address this in the following steps. First, students must discuss their performance with the instructor. Second, if the student-‐instructor meeting fails to resolve the dispute, the student may appeal to the Director or Religious Studies. After reviewing the assignment instructions and the student’s work, the Director will decide to confirm the given grade, raise the grade, OR lower it. Third, if the student is still dissatisfied, he or she can file a grievance with the Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, who may convene a committee to hear the dispute. Students should be aware that the burden of proof is on them to demonstrate that the grade was unreasonable.
