Academic Honesty and Integrity

(Policy 2.19)

The Mission of Blue Mountain College makes it clear that the College exists to contribute to the growth and development of human beings who understand their lives in terms of Christian responsibility and service. Precautions are taken to protect the honest student by making every effort to assure conditions of honesty for all course requirements, including examinations and outside assignments. This does not diminish in any way the students’ ultimate responsibility for observing the principles of academic integrity in all aspects of their conduct. In keeping with the high ideals reflected in its mission, Blue Mountain College expects its students to be scrupulously honest.

Cheating. Cheating on examinations shall include (but not be limited to): (a) taking answers from another student’s paper or allowing answers to be taken from one’s own paper during an examination or quiz; (b) the use of notes or any other aid not specifically allowed or approved by the instructor; (c) unauthorized access to an un-administered examination or quiz; (d) collaboration on take-home examinations unless specifically approved by the instructor.

Cheating on course assignments shall include (but not be limited to) the following activities: (a) receiving editorial assistance beyond that expressly allowed by the instructor; (b) collaborating with another person in the preparation of any assignment offered for credit when such collaboration is prohibited by the instructor; (c) submitting the same work for credit in more than one course, regardless of whether or not such submission occurs within the same term. An exception may be granted if the student receives written permission in advance from his instructor(s).

Plagiarism. Students shall not submit as their own work any term paper, research paper, or other academic assignment of original work that in any part is not in fact their own work. Knowingly using the ideas of another person and offering them as one’s own original ideas is prohibited by this policy to the same extent as knowingly using the words of another writer and offering them as one’s own original writing.

Numerous opportunities exist for inappropriate copying and use of copyrighted material from cyberspace including materials that extend into other media including audio, video, graphics files, etc. Therefore, the College expects the use of these materials in a way that is consistent with academic integrity in documenting sources and in obtaining permission to use such materials.

Plagiarism is a threat to academic integrity because of the expansion of the internet. Any time a student downloads content from electronic documents, there is a risk of plagiarism. Because of the importance of academic integrity, Blue Mountain College has subscribed to Turnitin. Instructors are encouraged to submit papers to the scrutiny of Turnitin in order to assist them in guaranteeing academic integrity.

Other Academic Misconduct. Other academic misconduct shall include (but not be limited to) the following activities:

Unauthorized access to and/or the alteration of school records, including, but not limited to, transcripts, grade books, class rolls, and grade reports. This prohibition extends to all such records of the College, including those stored and maintained electronically;
Submitting any assignment for credit which is based in part or in total on data which is either fabricated or manufactured;
Misrepresenting one’s self for the purpose of taking an examination for another student or allowing such misrepresentation to occur;
The forgery, alteration, and/or misuse of College documents, including student identification cards with intent to defraud, deceive, or mislead; and
Providing false or misleading information to avoid penalties for unexcused excessive absences in any class or to obtain permission to drop a course without penalty after the established drop date.

Appeals. Students accused of violating the College’s Academic Honesty and Integrity Policy may appeal. Students may withdraw their appeal at any time. The appeals process is outlined below.

Procedures for Faculty in Addressing Breaches of the Policy

Faculty will inform students of behavior appropriate for maintenance of the Blue Mountain College Honesty and Integrity Policy as it pertains to their particular courses and disciplines.
Any faculty member who suspects a violation of the Academic Honesty and Integrity Policy shall assume the responsibility for confronting the violator(s) immediately about the violation. The faculty member must notify the student in writing, including sufficient details to allow the student to respond in his/her own defense. The faculty member may choose from a grade of “0" for the assignment in question to an F in the course.
If the faculty member desires additional input from colleagues, he/she may ask the department chair to convene a committee to discuss the situation. If the incident involves students in courses from other department, the chair may convene a committee including members of other departments’ faculties. The committee may then determine the penalty.
If the academic dishonesty is of the most serious nature, the committee may refer the case to the Academic Dean’s Council. The Provost or Vice President may then determine the penalty.

Penalties for Breaches of the Academic Honesty and Integrity Policy

First Offense – The professor may choose from a “0” on the assignment to an F in the course. The offense is reported to the Department Chair and the Provost and Vice President.

Second Offense - The second offense in a single class, department, or in the College will result in an F in the course and additional action may be taken by the Provost up to a recommendation the student be dismissed from the College.

Third Offense – The third offense in a single class, department, or in the College will automatically receive an F in the course and be turned over to the Chair of the Department and Provost with a recommendation of dismissal from the College.

Academic Appeals Procedure

Students accused of violating the Blue Mountain College Academic Honesty and Integrity Policy (AHIP) or who claim the final grade that they received in a course was determined unfairly may appeal. Students may withdraw their appeal at any time.
1. Appeal of an Academic Honesty and Integrity Policy Violation: A written appeal must be initiated within six class days of the professor=s written accusation and must follow the procedure described under number 2 below.
2. Appeal of a Course Grade: A written notice of intent to appeal a final grade in a course must be sent by the student to the professor awarding the grade no later than 30 days from the end of the semester or summer term in which the grade was awarded. The grade appeal process then must be initiated no later than the first twelve class days of the following semester or summer term and follow the procedure described in number 2 below.
The appeal process must follow the procedure outlined below. At each step in the process, the decision-making body or person must respond within six class days.
1. The student must discuss the matter privately with the professor in an effort to resolve the problem.
2. If no satisfactory resolution is reached, the student should appeal in writing to the Provost and Vice President.
3. If the Provost determines that the appeal is not frivolous, she/he may attempt to resolve the problem herself or himself or may call a meeting of the Student Appeals Committee (SAP)*. This group will advise the Provost after determining the merits of the appeal.
4. If the appeal is denied, then there can be no further appeals. If the appeal is upheld, the Provost, with possible advice from the Student Appeals Committee, will appoint an ad hoc review committee from within the discipline in which the course is offered. This review committee will evaluate the student’s work and determine a grade that will be submitted to the Provost. This grade will be reported to the professor and to the registrar’s office in a timely fashion.
  If the professor against whom the appeal is upheld feels strongly that the newly determined grade is unjustified, he/she may appeal the decision of the ad hoc committee in writing to the Provost and Vice President, who will present the written appeal and brief the President of the College on the situation for his/her final resolution. After a decision is rendered by the President, there can be no further appeals.
The Student Appeals Committee is responsible for recommending, by majority decision, either to uphold or to deny the student’s appeal. The student and professor must present evidence in writing supporting their positions. In the case of a grade appeal, the professor must present the written grading procedure for the course under appeal.