I. Standards of Academic Conduct

As an academic institution committed to the discovery and dissemination oftruth, William Paterson College expects that all members of the collegecommunity shall conduct themselves honestly and with professional demeanor inall academic activities.

WPUNJ has established standards of academic conduct because of its belief thatacademic honesty is a matter of individual and college responsibility and that,when standards of honesty are violated, each member of the community isharmed.

Members of the college community are expected to acknowledge their individualresponsibility to be familiar with and adhere to the Academic IntegrityPolicy.

II. Violations of Academic Integrity

Violations of the Academic Integrity Policy will include, but not be limited tothe following examples:

A. Cheating during examinations includes any attempt to (1) look atanother student’s examination with the intention of using another'sanswers for attempted personal benefit; (2)communicate in any manner,information concerning the content of the examination during the testing periodor after the examination to someone who has not yet taken the examination; (3)use any materials, such as notebooks, notes, textbooks or other sources, notspecifically designated by the professor of the course for student use duringthe examination period or (4) engage in any other activity for the purpose ofseeking aid not authorized by the professor.

B. Plagiarism is the copying from a book, article, notebook,video orother source material whether published or unpublished, without proper creditthrough the use of quotation marks, footnotes and other customary means ofidentifying sources, or passing off as one’s own, the ideas, words,writings, programs and experiments of another, whether or not such actions areintentional or unintentional. Plagiarism will also include submitting, withoutthe consent of the professor, an assignment already tendered for academiccredit in another course.

C. Collusion is working together in preparing separate courseassignments in ways not authorized by the instructor. Academic work producedthrough a cooperative (collaborative) effort of two or more students ispermissible only upon the explicit consent of the professor. The collaborationmust also be acknowledged in stating the authorship of the report.

D. Lying is knowingly furnishing false information, distorting data oromitting to provide all necessary, required information to the College’sadvisor, registrar, admissions counselor, professor etc., for any academicallyrelated purpose.

E. Other concerns which relate to the Academic Integrity Policyinclude such issues as computer security, stolen tests, falsified records aswell as vandalism of library materials. No list could possibly include all thepossible violations of academic integrity. These examples, should however, givea clearer idea of the intent and extent of application of this policy.

III. Faculty Responsibilities for Upholding the Academic IntegrityPolicy

A. Faculty are expected to be familiar with the academic integritypolicy. Each faculty member will inform students of the applicable proceduresand conditions early in each semester before the first examination orassignment is due.

B. Ordinarily, class tests and final exams should be proctored.Proctoring is defined as having a faculty member present in the room.Proctoring is the responsibility of the faculty member teaching the coursealthough where necessary, that responsibility may be shared with or delegatedto faculty colleagues or graduate assistants assigned to the course.

IV. Resolution of Academic Integrity Policy Violations

A. If a faculty member has sufficient reason to believe that aviolation may have occurred on any work submitted for a grade, he/she mustattempt to discuss this matter with the student within ten (10) working days ofthe incident.

B. After discussing this matter with the student, and if the studentaccepts the proposed penalty, the student waives his/her right to a hearing.

Depending on circumstances, as assessed by the faculty member who hasdiscussed the matter with the student, the penalty imposed could be:

1. Resubmission of the assignment

2. Failure of the assignment

3. Failure of the course

4. Forced withdrawal from the course with no credit received

5. Impose other appropriate penalties with the consent of the student

6. Recommendation to the president of suspension or expulsion from theCollege

7. With any of the above, the faculty member may have a written record of thesequence of events placed in the student’s permanent record with a copy tothe student.

C. If the student does not admit to a violation or disagrees with theproposed penalty he/she must:

1. Speak directly to the faculty member within ten (10) working days of beinginformed of a violation or of the proposed penalty. If, after repeatedattempts, the student is unable to reach the faculty member within ten (10)working days, the student must notify the department chairperson in writingwithin that ten (10) day period.

2. If, after discussion with the faculty member, the student is dissatisfiedwith the outcome, the student must contact the department chairpersonpresenting a dated, written and signed statement describing the specific basisfor the complaint. At this time, the student will also provide the facultymember with a copy of these written materials.

3. The department chairperson will try to resolve the issue by reaching asettlement which is agreed upon by both the student and the faculty member. Ifthe issue is not resolved at the chairperson’s level, the student willrequest that the chairperson convene the Department Executive Council (or otherappropriate department committee)—excluding the faculty memberinvolved—to hear the appeal. The faculty member will submit a written,dated and signed statement of the alleged violation to the council/committee.The student will submit a written, dated and signed statement describing thebasis of the complaint. The accuser will assume the burden of proof. When thefaculty member involved is the chairperson, then the student will request thatthe dean of the school convene the Department Executive Council (or otherappropriate department committee). The Department Executive Council/Committeewill submit its decision to the chairperson (or school dean, if the facultymember involved is the chairperson).

4. If not satisfied with the Department Executive Council’s (or otherappropriate department committee’s) decision, the student may ask the deanof that school to bring the matter to the School Council. The faculty memberwill submit a written, dated and signed statement of the alleged violation. Thestudent will submit a written, dated and signed statement describing the basisfor the complaint. The accuser will assume the burden of proof. The chairpersonof the department concerned will not take part in the final vote (though thewritten decision from the department chairperson will be part of the record).The School Council’s decision will constitute the College's finaldecision regarding the substantive nature of the case. Future appeals basedon violations of due process are permitted to the limit of the law.

5. Each step in the procedure must be initiated within 10 (ten) working days ofthe faculty, chairperson, department or school response. Dated, written andsigned statements are required at each step. Likewise, at each level, thefaculty member(s), chairperson, Department Executive Council (or otherappropriate department committee) or School Council must complete a review ofall pertinent written materials prior to rendering a decision, in writing,within ten (10) working days of receipt of complaint materials. In case thefaculty member has verifiably been unable to be contacted, or in otherinstances of extenuating circumstances affecting students or faculty, it isunderstood that the student’s right to appeal will not be jeopardized andthe time constraints will be extended. Due process must be followed at everystep of this procedure. No penalty will be changed by anyone other than thefaculty member who assigned it unless there is convincing evidence that thepenalty was inconsistent with professional standards of the discipline.

6. Each student who registers a complaint with a department chairperson must begiven a copy of this policy. A copy must be attached to the appeal and signedby the student to indicate that he/she has been given a copy of the procedure,read it and understands it before the appeal can proceed.

(SOURCE: Office of the Vice President of Academic Affairs.)

As published in the 1993-4 Student Handbook pp 28-30.