Academic Integrity

Every member of the Unity College community is responsible for upholding the principles of academic honesty. Personal ethics and academic community integrity should govern student action.

The Unity College Honor Code

The Unity College Honor Code requires that students be honest in all academic work. By joining the Unity College community, students express their willingness to accept the responsibilities and privileges of the academic community. Furthermore, students understand that their name on any assignment—written or otherwise—shall be regarded as assurance that the work is the result of their own thought and study, except where quotation marks, references, footnotes, or other means of attribution acknowledge the use of other sources. Acknowledgment of collaboration shall be made in the work submitted. In examinations, students shall respond entirely on the basis of their own capacity without any assistance, except that authorized by the instructor.

The Honor Board administers the Honor Code. Appointed annually, it comprises two full-time faculty members selected by the faculty, two students appointed by the Student Government, and a member of the college community appointed by the academic dean. Cases of dishonesty in academic matters are referred to the Honor Board, which exists to—

· investigate alleged violations of the Honor Code,

· arbitrate all instances of student academic dishonesty not settled to the student(s)’ or the faculty member’s satisfaction,

· determine if the Honor Code has been violated and to specify consequences, and

· maintain a record of alleged infractions and subsequent findings.

Students should conduct their academic activities so as to be above suspicion at all times. They should inform suspected violators of their awareness or discuss alleged incidents with an Honor Board member. If a student feels that he or she has been treated unfairly by a faculty member regarding academic integrity, that student may bring the matter to the Honor Board for resolution.

Faculty members will assume that students are adhering to the Honor Code and will conduct their classes and examinations accordingly. If a faculty member suspects a violation of the Honor Code, he or she shall first discuss the matter with the student(s). If the matter is not resolved to the satisfaction of both parties, either may call the facts to the Honor Board’s attention.

Similarly, if the proceedings of the Honor Board are unsatisfactory, either party may appeal to the Dean of the College.

Academic Dishonesty includes, but is not limited to—

Plagiarism

· quoting, summarizing, or paraphrasing any part or all of a source without acknowledging the source in the text of any written work;

· incorporating any information—data, statistics, examples, etc.— that is not common knowledge without attributing the source of that information;

· using another person’s opinions, reasoning, or arguments; and

· putting your name on an assignment someone else completed.

Cheating

· claiming credit for work not done independently (excluding college support services such as the LRC) without giving credit for aid received; and

· accepting any unauthorized aid or communication during examinations, and falsifying or deliberately misrepresenting data and/or submission of work.

Other Unacceptable Practice

· submitting an assignment for one class in another class without approval of both instructors.

Any student found to be responsible for violating the Unity College Honor Code may be suspended or dismissed from the college.