A Guide To...Academic Honesty and Academic Integrity

Academic Honesty means being honest and ethical about the way that you do academic work. This includes citing and acknowledging when you borrow from the work of others. As Holy Cross students, you are required to follow the College's Academic Honesty policy. 

Excerpt from the College policy: 

All education is a cooperative enterprise between faculty and students. This cooperation requires trust and mutual respect, which are only possible in an environment governed by the principles of academic honesty. As an institution devoted to teaching, learning, and intellectual inquiry, Holy Cross expects all members of the College community to abide by the highest standards of
academic integrity. Any violation of academic honesty undermines the student-faculty relationship, thereby wounding the whole community. The principal violations of academic honesty are plagiarism, cheating, and collusion.

It is the responsibility of students, independent of the faculty’s responsibility, to understand the proper methods of using and quoting from source materials (as explained in standard handbooks such as The Little Brown Handbook and the Harbrace College Handbook), and to take credit only for work they have completed through their own individual efforts within the guidelines established by the faculty.

Academic Honesty Policy

-accessed 4/1/2019 from https://www.holycross.edu/sites/default/files/Registrar/academic_integrity_policy.pdf

All education is a cooperative enterprise between faculty and students. This cooperation requires trust and mutual respect, which are only possible in an environment governed by the principles of academic honesty. As an institution devoted to teaching, learning, and intellectual inquiry, Holy Cross expects all members of the College community to abide by the highest standards of
academic integrity. Any violation of academic honesty undermines the student-faculty relationship, thereby wounding the whole community. The principal violations of academic honesty are plagiarism, cheating, and collusion.

Plagiarism is the act of taking the words, ideas, data, illustrative material, or statements of someone else, without full and proper acknowledgment, and presenting them as one’s own.

Cheating is the use of improper means or subterfuge to gain credit or advantage. Forms of cheating include the use, attempted use, or improper possession of unauthorized aids in any examination or other academic exercise submitted for evaluation; the fabrication or falsification of data; misrepresentation of academic or extracurricular credentials; and deceitful performance on placement examinations. It is also cheating to submit the same work for credit in more than one course, except as authorized in advance by the course instructors.
Collusion is assisting or attempting to assist another student in an act of academic dishonesty.

At the beginning of each course, the faculty should address the students on academic integrity and how it applies to the assignments for the course. The faculty should also make every effort, through vigilance and through the nature of the assignments, to discourage and prevent dishonesty in any form. It is the responsibility of students, independent of the faculty’s responsibility, to understand the proper methods of using and quoting from source materials (as explained in standard handbooks such as The Little Brown Handbook and the Harbrace College Handbook), and to take credit only for work they have completed through their own individual efforts within the guidelines established by the faculty.

The faculty member who observes or suspects academic dishonesty should first discuss the incident with the student. The very nature of the faculty-student relationship requires both that the faculty member treat the student fairly and that the student responds honestly to the faculty’s questions concerning the integrity of his or her work. If the faculty is convinced that the student is guilty of academic dishonesty, he or she shall impose an appropriate sanction in the form of a grade reduction or failing grade on the assignment in question and/or shall assign compensatory course work. The sanction may reflect the seriousness of the dishonesty and the faculty’s assessment of the student’s intent. In all instances where a faculty member does impose a grade penalty because of academic dishonesty, he or she must submit a written report to the Chair or Director of the department and the Class Dean. This written report must be submitted within a week of the faculty member’s determination that the policy on academic honesty has been violated. This report shall include a description of the assignment (and any related materials, such as guidelines, syllabus entries, written instructions, and the like that are relevant to the assignment), the evidence used to support the complaint, and a summary of the conversation between the student and the faculty member regarding the complaint. The Class Dean will then inform the student in writing that a charge of dishonesty has been made and of his or her right to have the charge reviewed. A copy of this letter will be sent to the student’s parents or guardians. The student will also receive a copy of the complaint and all supporting materials submitted by the professor. The student’s request for a formal review must be made in writing to the Class Dean within one week of the notification of the charge. The written statement must include a description of the student’s position concerning the charge by the faculty. A review panel consisting of a ClassDean, the Chair or Director of the department of the faculty member involved (or a senior member of the same department if the Chair or Director is the complainant), and an additional faculty member selected by the Chair or Director from the same department, shall convene within two weeks to investigate the charge and review the student’s statement, meeting separately with the student and the faculty member involved. The Chair or Director of the complainant’s department (or the alternate) shall chair the panel and communicate the panel’s decision to the student’s Class Dean. If the panel finds by majority vote that the charge of dishonesty is supported, the faculty member’s initial written report to the Class Dean shall be placed in the student’s file until graduation, at which time it shall be removed and destroyed unless a second offense occurs. If a majority of the panel finds that the charge of dishonesty is not supported, the faculty member’s initial complaint shall be destroyed, and the assignment in question shall be graded on its merits by the faculty member. The Class Dean shall inform the student promptly of the decision made. This information will be sent to the student’s parents or guardians. The Class Dean may extend all notification deadlines above for compelling reasons. He or she will notify all parties in writing of any extensions. Each instance of academic dishonesty reported to the Class Dean (provided that the charge of dishonesty is upheld following a possible review, as described above) shall result in an administrative penalty in addition to the penalty imposed by the faculty member.

For a first instance of academic dishonesty, the penalty shall be academic probation effective immediately and continuing for the next two consecutive semesters. For a second instance, the penalty shall be academic suspension for two consecutive semesters. For a third instance, the penalty shall be dismissal from the College. Dismissal from the College shall also be the penalty for any instance of academic dishonesty that occurs while a student is on probation because of a prior instance of dishonesty. Multiple charges of academic dishonesty filed at or about the same time shall result in a one-year suspension if the student is not and has not been on probation for a prior instance of dishonesty. Multiple charges of academic dishonesty filed at or about the same time shall result in a dismissal if the student has ever been on probation for a prior instance of dishonesty. Suspension and dismissal are effective at the conclusion of the semester in which the violation of the policy occurred. Students may appeal a suspension or dismissal for reasons of academic dishonesty to the Committee on Academic Standing, which may uphold the penalty, overturn it, or substitute a lesser penalty. A penalty of dismissal, if upheld by the Committee, may be appealed to the President of the College.