Rules

Policy Statement

Learners are expected to be the sole authors of their work. Use of another's ideas must be accompanied by proper citation and reference. In addition, a learner may not submit the same or similar work for credit in more than one course. OneWorldCollege extends the concept of academic integrity to include issues of copyright and trademark violation. Learners must assume that collaboration in the completion of written assignments is prohibited unless explicitly permitted by the instructor. Learners must acknowledge any collaboration and its extent in all submitted course work.

OneWorldCollege faculty, learners, and university staff all share the responsibility to promptly report any suspected violation of academic honesty.

The disciplinary consequences of plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty include but are not limited to non-acceptance of work submitted (an opportunity to resubmit work may be given at the discretion of the faculty member or instructor), a failing grade on the assignment, a failing grade in the course, written warning, suspension, and dismissal from the university.

Rationale

OneWorldCollege considers academic honesty one of its highest values. Learners who receive credit for work that is not the product of their own effort are undermining their academic integrity and the academic integrity of other learners, their field of study, and the university.

Definitions

Academic Honesty
Academic honesty provides protection for intellectual property by giving proper credit for the work of other scholars and practitioners. OneWorldCollege considers any submission of work not created by the learner to be a violation of this policy. This includes but is not limited to submission of work in the name of another learner; intentional misuse of quantitative data; and failure to give proper credit of borrowed material by use of citation in any submitted courseroom assignments, whether in the form of a formal research paper, courseroom posting, PowerPoint presentation, or any other method used to meet course requirements.

Plagiarism
Plagiarism is presenting someone else's ideas or work as your own. Plagiarism includes not only copying verbatim, but also rephrasing the ideas of another without properly acknowledging the source. Learners must take great care, whether in a draft or final version of a paper or project, to distinguish their own ideas and language from information acquired from outside sources. Sources include published primary and secondary materials, electronic media, and information and opinions gained through other people.

Proper Form for References and Citations
The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) is helpful in assessing what must be referenced and how work must be cited. To avoid any instances that may be construed as plagiarism, the learner should consult this guide to identify the proper citation format.

Procedures

  1. Reporting Suspected Violation of Academic Dishonesty
    1. Anyone may report an alleged violation of academic honesty.
    2. The alleged violation should be reported verbally or in writing to the faculty member or university official responsible for the course or activity during which the alleged violation occurred.
    3. The individual receiving the report of the alleged violation will bring it to the  attention of the faculty member directly associated with the course or activity during which the alleged violation occurred, should the report be made to someone other than this faculty member.
  2. Initial Review Process
    Whenever possible, alleged violations of academic honesty should be resolved at the discretion of the faculty member directly associated with the course or activity during which the alleged violation occurred.
    1. The faculty member responsible for the course or activity during which the alleged violation occurred will review the circumstances surrounding the alleged violation and with the learner, will determine the appropriate action.
      1. The faculty member will contact the learner to notify him or her of the alleged violation.
      2. The learner will be given the opportunity to explain or refute the alleged incident.
      3. The faculty member will advise the learner of the next steps in the process.
    2. If deemed appropriate by the faculty member, a sanction such as requiring resubmission of the assignment, receiving a failing grade on the assignment in question, or receiving a failing grade for the entire course may be imposed.
    3. In the case of a faculty-imposed sanction, the faculty member will notify the learner in writing of the decision to impose a sanction and provide an associated rationale.
    4. The faculty member will forward a copy of the decision notification and any evidence of the violation to the appropriate school designee to be filed in the learner's official academic record.
    5. The learner has the right to appeal the faculty member's decision, as described in section III.
  3. Formal School-Level Appeal Process
    If the learner rejects the faculty member's decision, if a second instance of a suspected violation occurs, or if the initial instance is blatant enough to warrant a more severe sanction, the matter will be referred to an independent review panel.
    1. Upon receiving the learner's appeal request or notification of a second suspected violation, the panel designee will acknowledge receipt of the request or notification and inform all involved parties that a formal resolution process has been initiated.
    2. Within 10 calendar days of being sent notification that a formal resolution process has been initiated, all involved parties must submit information regarding the matter to the panel designee. This information must include:
      1. The individual(s) against whom the alleged violation is directed.
      2. A brief description of the alleged violation, including dates, times, and places.
      3. Any efforts to resolve the matter during the initial resolution process.
      4. The corrective action the faculty member or learner is seeking.
    3. Following referral of matter, the panel will convene to review the materials and issue a decision as soon as practicable.
      1. The panel will investigate all evidence supporting and/or refuting the alleged violation, the learner's complete academic record, any further issues surrounding the alleged violation, and the school's response.
      2. The panel will provide adequate opportunity to hear from all involved parties and for each party to state his or her respective case in writing. Upon request, either party will be provided the opportunity to appear before the panel, either in person or via telephone.
      3. Upon evaluation of the evidence and hearing from all involved parties, the panel will issue a decision and set forth a resolution to be implemented.
      4. In cases of policy violation, the panel will determine the appropriate sanction, which may include a written warning, a failing grade on the assignment or the course, suspension, or in cases of serious and/or repeated violations, dismissal from the university.
      5. The panel designee will report the panel's decision and associated sanction to all involved parties as soon as practicable. A record of the panel's decision and sanction will become part of the learner's official academic record.
      6. Both parties have the right to appeal the panel's decision, as described in section IV.
  4. Formal Appeal Process
    If either party chooses to appeal the panel's decision, he or she must submit a formal, written appeal request to the director of University Learner Affairs. The appeal request must be submitted via mail or email and within 10 calendar days of being sent notification of the panel's decision.
    1. Upon receiving the appeal request, the director of University Learner Affairs will acknowledge receipt of the request and inform all involved parties that a formal appeal process has been initiated.
    2. The director of University Learner Affairs will receive and review all prior evidence, records, evaluations, and faculty and panel decisions associated with the alleged violation.
    3. Following the review, the director of University Learner Affairs will issue a decision and report it to all involved parties as soon as practicable. The decision will either 1) uphold the findings of the panel, 2) reverse the findings of the panel, or 3) direct the panel to provide additional information, or 4) determine his or her own findings. In the event the director of University Learner Affairs requests additional
    4. The decision of the director of University Learner Affairs is final.
    5. A record of the final decision and all related materials will be become part of the learner's official academic record and upon request, will be made available to all OneWorldCollege boards and any appropriate regulatory bodies.
  5. Audit
    As part of the policy compliance program, this policy will be audited annually, and its findings will be reported to the University Leadership Team (ULT).

Policy Owner

Chief Academic Officer, Registrar’s Office, Director of University Learner Affairs

Related Documents

University policy 1.01.05 Approving Policy Exceptions
University policy 2.02.10 Separation from University
University policy 3.03.02 Publication of Dissertations
University policy 4.02.02 Learner Code of Conduct
University policy 4.02.03 Learner Grievance

Revision History

Drafted 01/01/2011 (borrowed from capella.edu)