POLICY FOR APPEAL OF CHARGE OF ACADEMIC DISHONESTY
The procedure outlined below is to be used when a student contests a faculty member’s
allegation of academic dishonesty. The student may only contest the allegation of
academic dishonesty and not the penalty assessed by the instructor if the allegation is
upheld.
ACADEMIC DISHONESTY
Academic Dishonesty is a form of misconduct and includes the following: cheating,
fabrication, fraud, facilitating academic dishonesty and plagiarism.
Cheating: any attempt to gain an unfair advantage over one’s fellow students.
Fabrication: any attempt to present information that is not true when the author knows
the information presented is false.
Fraud: any attempt to deceive an instructor or administrative officer of the university.
Facilitating Academic Dishonesty: any attempt to assist an act of academic dishonesty
by another individual.
Plagiarism: any attempt to knowingly or deliberately pass off other’s work as your own.
ACADEMIC VIOLATIONS GUIDELINES
It is the responsibility of the individual faculty member to include on the course syllabus
a statement on academic dishonesty that includes the penalty for engaging in this
activity. The complete approved format for course syllabi may be found at:
http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/academicadmin/syllabus.doc
It is also the responsibility of the individual faculty member to identify instances of
academic dishonesty and recommend penalties to the department chair and/or dean in
keeping with the severity of the violation and the policy listed on the syllabus.
If it is determined that the violation is minor, the faculty member may decide that the
only necessary action is a conference with the student and/or verbal chastisement.
Should it be determined that the violation merits a more severe penalty than verbal
chastisement, the faculty member may decide that one of the following progressive
penalties is appropriate:
1. Assign the student extra course work.
2. Require the assignment or examination to be repeated.
3. Reduce the grade on the assignment or examination.
4. Award a zero grade on the assignment or examination.
5. Reduce course grade by one letter grade
6. Award a failing grade in the course.
If the academic dishonesty occurs prior to the last withdrawal date of the semester, the
faculty member may require the student to remain enrolled in the course.
Before taking action on a penalty, the faculty member must notify the department chair
and/or dean of the incident and contact the Associate Provost for Academic
Administration for any record of previous academic dishonesty. The severity of the
penalty may depend on the nature of the infraction, the degree to which the academic
project involved affects the course grade, and the past record of academic dishonesty of
the student.
If the student has a past record of academic dishonesty, the minimum penalty shall be a
failing grade in the academic project connected with the violation. In addition, the
faculty member may, through appropriate departmental channels, recommend actions
more severe than those listed above such as suspension, and/or dismissal from the
university. Any request of this nature will be coordinated with the Office of Student Life.
WRITTEN DOCUMENTATION OF THE PENALTY IMPOSED AT ANY LEVEL
MUST BE FORWARDED TO THE ASSOCIATE PROVOST FOR ACADEMIC
ADMINISTRATION
Definitions:
“Meeting” is defined by the presence of all parties to the appeal either physically in one
location or via electronic means.
“Designated Administrator” refers to the individual in charge of carrying out the specific
step of the process. Generally this will be an assistant/associate dean, department chair or
director. Terminology varies among the academic units.
“Appellant” is the individual bringing the appeal to the College-level Committee or the
ASC Sub-committee. In most cases this will be the student, but it could be a faculty
member if the decision in Steps 2 or 3 was in favor of the student.
“Statement of Denial” is a written record of the specific reasons why the student is
contesting the charge of academic dishonesty.
“Statement of Evidence” is a written statement by the faculty of the actions of the student
which constitute academic dishonesty.
Procedures for Appeal of Charge of Academic Dishonesty
Step 1:
Upon being notified by an instructor that he/she is being is being charged with academic
dishonesty, a student has two options. The student may accept the allegation and the
penalty the professor assesses for the infraction or the student may contest the allegation
of academic dishonesty. The student may not contest the penalty assessed by the
professor. If the student contests the allegation of academic dishonesty, the student must
notify the professor in writing within two weeks of the initial notification of the charge of
the intent to contest the allegation. Upon receiving notice from the student that the
academic dishonesty charge is being appealed, the instructor must (within two working
days) send a copy of the documentation supporting the charge of academic dishonesty to
the unit chair and college Dean.
Step 2:
Following receipt of the written communication from the student, a student, instructor
and designated administrator meeting must be held. The instructor is responsible for
setting up this meeting which must be held within one week of the receipt of the written
notification of appeal unless the designated administrator is unavailable. The student
may bring a silent observer to this meeting provided the instructor and designated
administrator are notified no less than two working days prior to the meeting.
At the meeting the student must present to the designated administrator a written
“Statement of Denial” refuting the charges of academic dishonesty. At the conclusion of
this meeting the designated administrator and faculty member will conference without the
student and then announce to the student their decision. In addition a letter shall be sent
by the designated administrator to the student and the faculty member documenting the
meeting and confirming the decision that was made. This letter constitutes the official
minutes of the meeting and shall include a copy of the student’s “Statement of Denial.”
The designated administrator may affirm or dismiss the charge of academic dishonesty.
The designated administrator may not change the penalty assessed by the professor
without the professor’s acceptance of this change.
If the instructor of the course is a department chair or the administrator of the academic
unit, Step 2 of the process is conducted by a Dean-designated administrator within the
College.
If this meeting does not produce satisfaction, the student or faculty member has two
weeks to notify, in writing, the Dean of the College of the intent to proceed to Step 3.
This request must be in writing. If the appeal is initiated by the student it must be
accompanied by the “Statement of Denial” presented to the Designated Administrator in
Step 2. If the appeal is initiated by the faculty member, it must be accompanied by a
“Statement of Evidence” to be prepared by the faculty member.
Step 3:
Upon receiving a request from the student or faculty member, the college Dean or
designee will appoint and convene, within two weeks of receiving the appeal from the
student, an ad hoc committee composed of the persons listed below to hear the appeal.
The student and/or the instructor may present additional written statements supporting
his/her position up to one week prior to the Committee meeting. Requests for
information by either the student or instructor must be made to the Committee chair. If
the request is a violation of confidentiality, the Committee chair must deny the request.
If the Committee chair considers a request to be a potential violation of confidentiality,
he/she should contact the Associate Provost for Academic Administration (APAA) for
final resolution of the request. No material may be presented less than five working days
prior to the meeting of the ad hoc committee. No new material may be presented at the
Committee meeting.
All materials submitted by the student and instructor must be given to the individual
designated as the Chair of the ad hoc committee. Committee members, student and
instructor must receive all materials no later than two working days prior to the meeting.
The minutes of the Student/Instructor/Designated Administrator meeting will be
forwarded to the Chair of the ad hoc committee. During the Committee meeting, the
student and faculty member will be given full opportunity to present their positions.
The dean's ad hoc committee shall consist of:
a. Dean of the college, or designee, who chairs the committee. This individual must be
different from the individual who served as the designated administrator in step 2;
b. Two faculty members from the department in which the course being appealed is
offered. If two faculty members from the department cannot be found, faculty from other
academic units in the college/school may be appointed;
c. Two faculty members from an academic unit outside the department in which the
course being appealed is offered. These faculty members may come from the same
college/school as the department in which the course is being appealed or they may come
from a different college/school;
d. The ASNAU senator, or designee, that is the representative of that college/school. If
this individual is not available, the Chair of this Committee may appoint another student
to fulfill this role.
e. The Associate Provost for Academic Administration (or designee) in an advisory
capacity.
Process to be followed by the ad hoc Committee:
It is required that all parties to the academic dishonesty appeal be present in person or via
electronic means during the fact finding phase of the meeting. The student and/or
instructor may bring a silent observer to this Committee hearing provided the chair of the
committee is notified no less than two working days prior to the meeting.
Format for College-level Allegation of Academic Dishonesty Appeal Hearing:
The fact finding phase of the meeting should generally last between 30 and 45 minutes.
The chair shall vote only in the event of a tie. Minutes of the meeting shall be taken by
someone other than the person chairing the meeting and shall be prepared in summary
form. These minutes are kept in the office of the Dean; a copy is forwarded to the
representative from the Provost’s Office. The student and instructor will be sent copies of
the minutes and may propose corrections to the minutes before they are released to any
party outside of the Committee.
It is recommended that the fact finding portion of the meeting in which the student and
instructor present their information be taped. No taping of the Committee’s deliberations
is allowed. The tape will be retained in the Office of the Dean and disposed of according
to Arizona Statutes on Records Retention. The Chair of the ad hoc Committee will send
a letter to the student and instructor indicating the decision of the committee, and the
rationale behind this decision.
Step 4:
Should either the student or the instructor believe violations of due process occurred at
any step of the appeal, the matter may be appealed in writing to the Office of the
Provost. The only grounds for appeal to the Provost’s Office are violations of the due
process contained with this policy. The appeal must contain a description of the
processes which were not followed.
The Provost will forward the appeal to the Associate Provost for Academic
Administration who will send it to the Chair of the Academic Standards Committee
(ASC) who shall be responsible for calling a meeting of a subcommittee of the ASC
composed of at least six individuals. Both the student and instructor must be notified in
writing of the hearing at this level and the procedures to be followed.
At a meeting specifically scheduled to consider only the appeal, the ASC sub-committee
will conduct a review of the appeal process in question. The ASC sub-committee may
invite the appellant and other relevant individuals to the hearing if it decides the
individuals’ presence is required to provide the information necessary for the sub-
committee to make an informed decision.
Format for ASC Sub-committee Academic Dishonesty Appeal Hearing
When no outside parties are present
Charge to Committee by Chair of Sub-committee
Review of the “Statement of Denial” submitted by the student
Review of College Committee Minutes
Committee Discussion, Deliberations and Vote
Format for ASC Sub-committee Academic Dishonesty Appeal Hearing
When One or more Invited Individuals are Present
Charge to Committee by Chair of Sub-committee
Review of “Statement of Denial” submitted by the student
Review of College Committee Minutes
Presentation of Information by Student
Presentation of Information by Professor
Questions from Committee Members
Response to Professor presentation by Student
Response to Student presentation by Professor
Questions from Committee Members
Committee Discussion, Deliberations and Vote
The decision reached by the ASC Sub-committee will be communicated to the Student,
the Professor and the college Dean.
The decision reached by the ASC Sub-committee shall become a matter of University
record in the Office of the Associate Provost for Academic Administration. This decision
shall be final and end any further campus involvement. There is no appeal beyond this
level.
Approved:
Academic Standards Committee April 28, 2006
Liz Grobsmith, Provost June 19, 2006
© 2009 Arizona Board of Regents.
Northern Arizona University, South San Francisco Street, Flagstaff, Arizona 86011
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