Academic Dishonesty Policy

(From the Barry University Faculty Handbook)

Cheating and Plagiarism: Definitions

Cheating is defined as the attempt, successful or not, to give or obtain aid and/or information by illicit means in meeting any academic requirements, including examinations. Cheating includes falsifying reports and documents. The use of unauthorized materials or technology, including the unauthorized use of Artificial Intelligence technology (AI), is considered cheating.

Plagiarism is defined as the use, without proper acknowledgement, of the ideas, phrases, sentences, or larger units of discourse from another source. Plagiarism includes the unauthorized use of text generated by AI, the unauthorized copying of program code written by another person or generated by AI, the unauthorized copying of software, and the violation of copyright laws.

An Incident of Cheating or Plagiarism

An incident upon which a faculty member may take action will be an event which the faculty member witnesses or has written evidence to support. A faculty member or a designated representative must observe this evidence directly and may not take action solely on the report of another party.

Procedures for Handling Cheating and Plagiarism

Any faculty member discovering a case of suspected cheating or plagiarism shall make a responsible effort to present the student with the evidence within five calendar days.

If the student can explain the incident to the satisfaction of the faculty member, no further action is warranted.

If the student denies cheating and the faculty member continues to believe cheating has occurred, the faculty member will send an Academic Dishonesty Form to the faculty member’s dean.

The dean will hold a hearing in which the faculty member will present the evidence against the student. The dean will decide who, in addition to the above, may be present at the hearing.
The dean will determine whether or not the evidence indicates that cheating/plagiarism has taken place.

If the student has admitted or has been found guilty of cheating or plagiarism, the following records will be kept:

The faculty member will send an Academic Dishonesty Form to the student’s dean and advisor. The dean will inform the student in writing that these forms have been sent.
The faculty member’s dean shall place on file the records of the incident to be kept in the Office of the Provost. This record shall be destroyed upon graduation or other forms of separation from the University if no further incidents of cheating or plagiarism occur.
If the records in the Office of the Provost indicate that the student has committed two offenses, both incidents become part of the student’s permanent academic record.

The faculty member shall decide how the student will be graded for the course in which cheating or plagiarism occurred. Typical penalties include:

The student may be required to resubmit the assignment or take a new examination.
The student may receive a failing grade on the assignment or examination in question.
The student may receive a failing grade for the course.

For a second or subsequent offense, the student shall be subject to suspension or dismissal from the University by the Provost.

The student may appeal any of the above decisions in writing to the Provost within thirty calendar days of the dean’s decision.

Responsibilities of the Faculty

Faculty should, at the beginning of each course and on the syllabus, explain plagiarism and cheating, and the penalties for such behavior, and refer students to University publications which state the policies. Faculty should do everything within reason to prevent cheating and plagiarism.

Responsibilities of Students

Students are responsible for knowing the policies regarding cheating and plagiarism and the penalties for such behavior. Failure of an individual faculty member to remind the student as to what constitutes cheating and plagiarism does not relieve the student of this responsibility.

Students must take care not to provide opportunities for others to cheat.

Students must inform the faculty member if cheating or plagiarism is taking place.