Academic dishonesty and misconduct violate the essential mission of an academic institution and will not be tolerated at Russell Sage College in any of its forms. Academic dishonesty and misconduct include cheating; failing to obtain Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval before beginning any research; plagiarism; multiple submissions; complicity in academic dishonesty/misconduct; abuse of materials; or alteration of records. Following are several definitions and examples of academic dishonesty:
Academic Fraud = The alteration of documentation relating to the grading process (e.g., changing exam solutions to negotiate for a higher grade or tampering with an instructor’s grade book).
Collaboration = Deliberate facilitation of academic dishonesty in any form (e.g., allowing another student to observe an exam paper or recycle one’s old term paper).
Copying = Obtaining information pertaining to an exam question by deliberately observing the paper of another student.
Cribbing = Use or attempt to use prohibited materials, information, or study aids in an academic exercise. The mere presence of a prohibited item will be construed as a breach of academic honesty.
Fabrication = Unauthorized falsification or invention of any information in an academic exercise (e.g., use of a purchased term paper or falsifying lab records).
Plagiarism = Representing the work or words of another as one’s own through deliberate omission of acknowledgment or reference.
Sabotage = Destruction of another student’s work related to an academic exercise (e.g., destroying a model, lab experiment, computer program, or term paper developed by another student).
Substitution = Using a proxy, or acting as a proxy, in any academic exercise.
A faculty member may take any of the following disciplinary actions when a student engages in an act of academic misconduct:
- a written reprimand
- A zero or “F” on the assignment(s) involved
- An “F” in the class involved
- Revocation or a change of grade
Sanctions beyond those listed here, including suspensions or dismissal in serious cases, may be issued by the Institution only, not by an individual faculty member.