Academic Integrity Procedure

Kirkwood students are responsible for authenticating all work in a course. This includes but is not limited to quizzes, exams, presentations, papers, journals, and projects. If asked, the student must be able to produce proof establishing that the work they submit is original and created by the student. For this reason, it is recommended that students engage in a verifiable working process on assignments and conduct themselves during class in a manner that does not lead to the suspicion of academic dishonesty.

Students should keep copies of all drafts of original work, make photocopies of research materials, write summaries of research materials, retain Writing Center receipts, keep logs or journals of work on assignments and papers, and save drafts or versions of assignments under individual file names on personal computer or cloud storage devices.

All writing that is taken from secondary sources (including those on the Internet) must have proper attribution and citation as outlined in course requirements and syllabus.

If the instructor suspects academic dishonesty and asks the student to authenticate their work, the inability to authenticate the work is grounds for opening an investigation of academic dishonesty. In the event that an instructor or administrator communicates to the student a suspicion of academic dishonesty, the burden of proof rests on the student to establish that they were responsible for the creation of his or her own work.

In addition to requiring that students authenticate their work, Kirkwood faculty or their designees may employ various other means of ascertaining authenticity – such as engaging in Internet searches, creating quizzes based on student work, or requiring students to explain their work or process orally.

This procedure applies to all credit and noncredit coursework taken at Kirkwood Community College.

Academic dishonesty may include but is not limited to:

  1. Plagiarism and Fabrication
    1. Copying information verbatim from a source without providing proper credit or source attribution.
    2. Paraphrasing a significant portion of another individual’s work without fundamentally changing the main idea and failing to provide proper credit.
    3. Presenting as your own work something that you had no part in creating (this would include obtaining papers or other academic materials by purchasing, borrowing or downloading them from a third party or website).
    4. Creating false data or modifying existing data as part of an assignment or project without the express knowledge and consent of the instructor. This includes false graphs, charts and bibliographic citations.
  2. Misrepresentation
    1. Allowing another individual to represent their self as the student to complete a quiz, test or other assessment.
    2. Allowing one’s own name to be part of a project or group assignment for which the individual played no role or had no significant contribution.
    3. Submitting as original work an assignment from a previous course or class unless such prior submission is noted and the original work has been substantially modified or enhanced. Without these changes, the student is guilty of self-plagiarism.
  3. Cheating and Facilitation
    1. Copying from another student’s work during a class on a graded or assessed activity.
    2. Knowingly allowing other students to view or access one’s work during a test or quiz. During in-class assessment, students should ensure that their work is not visible to others and should avoid the appearance of viewing another student’s quiz, exam or other unique work.
    3. Using unauthorized notes (written or electronic) during a quiz or exam. This includes but is not limited to unauthorized notes or formulae on calculators or other devices that are allowed.
    4. Accessing the Internet or other electronic sources during an in-class assessment without the express knowledge and consent of the instructor.
    5. Communicating with another student (either by sending or receiving information) in a way that shares information and answers on graded activities without the express knowledge and consent of the instructor.
    6. Copying, photographing or in any way duplicating part or all of a quiz or test without the permission of the instructor.
  4. Impeding Fair and Equal Access to the Education and Research Process
    1. Hiding, removing or in any way restricting access to information and materials that other students may be required to access in the course of completing an assignment or project. This includes creating passwords or other electronic barriers to access on public or shared websites.

Sanctions

The sanctions for confirmed violation of the Academic Integrity Procedure are as follows:

First Offense

The instructor will communicate with the student about the suspected violation of the Academic Integrity Procedure. The instructor will have the authority to issue a failing grade on the paper, exam or assignment for which cheating or plagiarism was established. A first offense of academic dishonesty will be treated as a warning and an opportunity for educating students about Kirkwood's Academic Integrity Procedure. The student’s name will be entered into the database of Student Academic Integrity Violations for a first offense of student academic misconduct and the student will be required to complete online Academic Integrity Education.

Second Offense

The instructor will communicate with the student about the suspected violation of the Academic Integrity Procedure. The instructor will have the authority to issue a failing grade on the paper, exam or assignment for which cheating or plagiarism was established. In addition, the instructor will have the authority to issue a failing grade for the course. The student’s name will be entered into the database of Student Academic Integrity Violations for a second offense of student academic misconduct and the student will be required to complete online Academic Integrity Education and meet with the appropriate department administrator.

Third Offense and Subsequent Offenses

The instructor will communicate with the student about the suspected violation of the Academic Integrity Procedure. The instructor will have the authority to issue a failing grade on the paper, exam or assignment for which cheating or plagiarism was established. In addition, the instructor will have the authority to issue a failing grade for the course. The student’s name will be entered into the database of Student Academic Integrity Violations for a third or subsequent offense of student academic misconduct. The student will be suspended for one semester from Kirkwood Community College. The student must meet with the Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs prior to being readmitted to the college.

Appeal

Students may appeal the finding of violation of the Academic Integrity Procedure using the Academic Integrity Appeals Procedure.

Academic Integrity Appeal Procedure

  • Appeal of a determination/finding of academic dishonesty can be submitted using this Academic Integrity Appeal Form. 
  • Students have five working days from being notified of an instance of academic dishonesty to submit an appeal.
  • The appeal should contain a brief, clear and concise description of what occurred and state specifically why the activities or behavior of the student should not be determined academic dishonesty. Students may also provide additional information why the Committee should grant the appeal. Supporting documentation is allowed and may be included with the appeal.

Academic Integrity Hearing Procedure

An Ad Hoc Appeal Committee will convene to consider the appeal within ten (10) business days of the receipt of the student appeal. The chairperson will contact all parties involved in the appeal and provide an opportunity to attend the appeal hearing. The Ad Hoc Appeal Committee may render a decision based entirely on the written appeal material. It is the intention of the committee to reach a decision concerning appeals within two (2) business days following the conclusion of the appeal hearing. The chairperson of the committee will notify all parties involved of the committee’s decision using a letter to the student’s Kirkwood email address within ten (10) business days following the appeal hearing. The decision of the committee is final and cannot be appealed within the College.

Faculty Rights

Any faculty member directly involved with any student appeal will be notified of the appeal upon receipt of such by the committee chairperson. The chairperson will also notify the faculty of the date, time and place of the appeal hearing and request that the faculty member attend the hearing or provide written information responsive to the appeal. The involved faculty person or designee has the right to appear before the Committee, personally present information and answer questions pertinent to the appeal.

Student Rights

The student will be notified by the chairperson of the date, time and place of the appeal hearing and request that the student attend the hearing. The student has the right to appear before the committee, and personally present information and answer questions pertinent to the appeal. The student has the right, during the hearing, to be assisted by an advisor they chose, at their own expense. The student is responsible for presenting their own information, and therefore, advisors are not permitted to speak or to participate directly in any part of the hearing. The participants should select as an advisor whose schedule allows attendance at the scheduled date and time for the hearing because delays will not normally be allowed due to the scheduling conflicts of an advisor.