Academic Honesty: Atlantic Cape expects unwavering integrity in work submitted from students. Acts of cheating or plagiarism will not be tolerated. Students are expected to cite all individuals and/or artificial intelligence (AI) tools that contributed to the completion of a project or paper; to cite the specific source of all information, ideas and quotations not original to the author; to honestly follow procedures established by instructors for examinations, laboratory experiments, reports and projects; to honestly abide by instructor policies on the scope of use (no use, limited use, or full use) for AI tools or content for any and all course work. All computer software is the property of Atlantic Cape and is bought under license from the manufacturer. Students may not make copies of software for personal use without the authorization of the ITS Helpdesk Manager.
It should be noted that persons facilitating plagiarism or cheating by another student are equally culpable and such persons may also be subject to penalties similar to those stipulated below. Examples of such facilitation include, but are not limited to, the following:
- A student gives a copy of a past assignment, such as a term paper, to a second student with the understanding that the second student may use the assignment as his/her own work.
- A student observes or has other first-hand knowledge of cheating or plagiarism and fails to report same to the instructor.
All students are reminded that they have an ethical responsibility to guard the academic process against corruption by such acts of dishonesty. In addition to the above, students must follow all course-specific or instructor-specific procedures established for examinations, laboratory experiments, studio work, reports and projects.
The following penalties apply in cases of cheating or plagiarism:
1) The instructor may assign a grade of “F” or a zero for an assignment. OR
The instructor may assign a grade of “F” for the course in cases of repeated dishonesty or in such cases where the assignment in question is so central to the evaluation process that failure in the assignment would preclude any reasonable possibility of the student passing the course.
2) All confirmed breaches of academic honesty will become part of the student’s permanent academic record. Two such offenses will constitute grounds for Academic Dismissal. Said dismissal will be for a duration of no less than two years. After two years, the student may apply for readmission, but this may be attempted only once. Upon readmission, any further act of dishonesty will result in permanent dismissal.
If the student is not in agreement with the action taken by the faculty member, the student is encouraged to meet and discuss the issue with the faculty as the first step. If the student is not satisfied with the outcome, the student requests a meeting with the Department Chair or Academic Dean, or Testing Director.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY - APPEALS PROCESS
If the matter is not resolved between the student and faculty member or at the Department Chair, Director, or Academic Dean level, the student will contact the Senior Director of the Center for Student Success to file an appeal. The appeal process will be explained to the student and a student advocate will be assigned, if requested.
The Academic Standards, Policies, and Procedures Committee will be the appeal board for students who wish to appeal the action of a faculty member, Department Chair or Academic Dean, or Testing Director. The committee must have a quorum in order to hear the charge.
The following procedure will be followed in order to provide the student with due process:
- The faculty member, Department Chair, Director, or Academic Dean, or Testing Director will be notified of the appeal and will prepare a written statement of charges to be submitted to the Director of the Center of Student Success, who will prepare and present the case to the Academic Standards, Policies and Procedures Committee.
- A hearing date will be selected that is mutually agreeable to all parties. The student will receive written notification of the violation and hearing date by registered mail or delivered in person and by email at least ten days before the date of the hearing. The hearing will take place on the scheduled date as long as the Committee has a quorum to hear the case.
- The charges, all affidavits, and all exhibits which the College intends to submit will be made available to the person making the allegation and the charged student for inspection.
- The student may bring counsel to the hearing in a consultative role only. Also, the student can be assigned a student advocate from the counseling center to accompany them. The advocate can help the student prepare for the hearing and accompany the student to the hearing in a consultative role.
- The student will have the opportunity to present his/her own version of the facts, by personal statement as well as by affidavits and witnesses.
- The student will have the right to hear evidence against him/her and to question adverse witnesses personally.
- The Academic Standards, Policies, and Procedures Committee will make a determination of the facts of each case solely on the basis of the evidence presented at the hearing. The chairperson of the committee will prepare a written statement of the committee's findings of fact and a recommendation to the Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs for action.
The Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs receives recommendation and makes the appropriate decision regarding disciplinary action or dismissal of charges and the decision is final.