Academic Honesty Policy and Procedure

This policy applies across all Decker College of Nursing and Health Sciences (DCNHS) divisions. It includes all Decker College courses, including those cross-listed with other programs/schools that have a Decker College faculty member as the primary instructor.

Violations of the University’s Academic Honesty Code

View Binghamton University's Academic Honesty Code in the University Bulletin (select Academic Policies and Procedures for All Students, then select Student Academic Honesty Code).

Violations of this code vary in severity, and, thus, the appropriate punishments vary. Some violations (Category I) may be handled by the instructor and student(s) involved. However, violations requiring more severe penalties (Category II) are appropriately dealt with by the Academic Honesty Committee of the school or college.

The Decker College of Nursing and Health Sciences (DCNHS) Academic Honesty Committee is not a legal or judicial body, but an administrative one. The committee hears and deliberates on cases involving academic dishonesty, but renders no binding verdicts, judgments or decisions. After evaluating a case, the committee sends nonbinding recommendations to the dean's designee as to the action the dean's designee might choose to take. (Appointed by the dean of Decker College of Nursing and Health Sciences, the dean's designee is a tenured faculty member who is responsible for coordinating the DCNHS Academic Honesty and Grievances policies.) The final disposition of a case is not within the jurisdiction or power of the committee. The dean's designee sends the recommended actions to the dean.

Initiating the Process

When a DCNHS faculty member suspects that an academic dishonesty incident has occurred, that faculty member will first contact the DCNHS dean's designee to assist with determining whether a dishonesty incident has occurred, navigating the academic honesty process and determining if the involved student has a prior academic honesty violation.

For the latter, the dean’s designee contacts the University Provost's Office to access Binghamton University's Academic Dishonesty Database. If there is no prior violation, DCNHS will utilize the category designation in Binghamton University's Academic Honesty Code, which is presented in the University Bulletin. Students who have a record of prior academic dishonesty will automatically be charged with a Category II violation, thus, the dean's designee must first make that determination.

Category I Violations

Per the University Bulletin:

If an instructor discovers one of these violations, the instructor should first communicate with the student regarding the nature of the charge and the evidence on which the instructor has relied in reaching the conclusion that a violation has occurred. The student should be given the opportunity to respond. If the instructor remains convinced by the preponderance of evidence that a violation has occurred, the instructor may check to see if there is a record of a previous violation by the student. Students who are accused of a second Category I offense will be treated as being charged with a Category II offense and referred to the committee of the school in which the offense occurred. If there is no previous violation, the faculty member should impose the appropriate penalty. The instructor should then fill in a Report of Academic Dishonesty form describing the violation that occurred and the evidence supporting that finding. The form will also explain to the student the procedures whereby the student may appeal the decision. The student will be asked to read and sign the form and will be provided with a copy. If a case involves multiple students, the student acknowledges, by signing the form, that they may be asked to appear at a hearing as a witness. If the student chooses not to sign the form, the case goes to a hearing before the committee of the school in which the offense occurred. The instructor will then forward the Report of Academic Dishonesty form along with the supporting evidence to the chair of the appropriate committee, who will send a copy to the Provost's Office, where it will be kept on file. Records of Report of Academic Dishonesty forms should be retained until the student's graduation, or for six years following the semester or term of the violation in the case of a student who departs from the University without graduating.

If the dishonesty is determined to be Category I, the instructor will complete a Report of Academic Dishonesty form describing the violation that occurred and the evidence supporting that finding. The student will then be asked to read and sign the form and will be provided with a copy. If the student chooses to sign the form, the instructor imposes the appropriate sanction. The instructor will then forward the Category I Report of Academic Dishonesty form to the dean's designee, who will then forward it to the Dean's Office and send a copy to the Provost's Office, where it will be kept on file. If the student chooses not to sign the form, the case goes to a hearing before the DCNHS Academic Honesty Committee; the instructor will submit a detailed written charge with supporting evidence within five business days to the dean's designee, who will initiate the hearing process.

Category II Violations

Per the University Bulletin:

If an instructor discovers a Category II violation, the instructor should first communicate with the student regarding the nature of the charge and the evidence on which the instructor has relied in reaching the conclusion that a violation has occurred. If the instructor remains convinced that a Category II violation has occurred, he or she should submit a detailed written charge with supporting evidence to the honesty committee of the school in which the offense occurred. The student will be notified of the charge and the date of the hearing and will receive a copy of the committee procedures. The instructor should assign an Incomplete grade for the student's work, pending the outcome of the hearing. If, after the hearing, the committee concludes that the charges were unproven, the faculty member should re-evaluate the student's work in light of that finding. In determination of any penalty for Category II violations, committees will consider all relevant factors, including the nature of the violation and any previous violations that may have been committed by the student. The chair of the appropriate committee will report any guilty findings to the Provost's Office, where they will be kept on file. Records of hearing cases should be retained for six years following the semester or term in which the hearing is held. If a hearing case is appealed, the six years would begin after the semester or term in which the appeal decision is made.

If an instructor determines that a student has committed a Category II violation, the instructor will submit a signed, detailed written charge with supporting evidence to dean's designee who will initiate the hearing process. This will be submitted within five business days.

The Hearing Process

An Academic Honesty Committee hearing will be held for students who do not sign the Category I form and for students who commit Category II violations.

  1. Hearing Committee Membership: The dean's designee will convene the committee, which will consist of three faculty members, preferably one from each school within DCNHS and at least one of whom must be voting faculty, as well as two enrolled DCNHS student members. The committee will elect a chair from amongst its membership by a simple majority vote of the committee members.
  2. Quorum: A committee quorum will consist of three or more committee members with the requirement that at least one of these be a student and two be faculty members. Any member of the committee who brings a charge is automatically disqualified from that hearing, and that member is automatically recused, as is any member who may hold bias against either party in the honesty charge. Should a committee member refuse to recuse, the other members of the committee will decide, by written ballot, whether that member is disqualified from that hearing. Recused members will be replaced with a comparable (student for student, faculty for faculty) committee member.
  3. Initiation of Action: Upon receipt of a signed charge against a student, the committee chair will convene the committee within 10 business days. Students who believe that they have been unjustly accused of academic dishonesty or that they have been unjustly penalized for alleged academic dishonesty, by a faculty member, may request that the case be heard by the committee within 30 calendar days of signing a Report of Academic Dishonesty form as directed in the Binghamton University policy for Category I violations. All such requests will be granted, and all hearings will be handled as in the sections below.
  4. Notification of Student: The committee chair or the chair's designee will notify the student or students of the charges under consideration. This notification will be in writing and is part of the committee record. This notification informs the student of the following, with sufficient particularity and within five business days to ensure the opportunity to prepare for the hearing.
    1. The specific charges filed against the student.
    2. The time and place to appear before the committee for a hearing.
    3. The right to have one person of the student's own choosing to appear in an advisory, nonparticipating, capacity.
    4. The right to be present during any portion of the meeting when evidence is presented.
    5. The right to request that every person involved in the case be present either in person or via electronic method at the hearing.
    6. The right to timely challenge the impartiality of any member of the committee in accordance with section B above.
    7. The right to question witnesses indirectly through the committee chair.
    8. The right, after receiving the dean's decision, to appeal the decision as per the DCNHS Academic Honesty and Grievance Appeals Policy.
  5. Format of the Hearing: The hearing will consist of at three parts:
    1. The initial presentation of evidence by each party and questioning of each party by committee members. If a teaching assistant was involved in discovering the alleged academic dishonesty, both faculty member and teaching assistant must be present, and both are subject to questioning by the committee. The student and faculty may direct questions to the committee, but not to each other.
    2. Discussion of the committee members with the involved parties, if appropriate.
    3. The assessment of the evidence by the committee and the formulation of its recommendation to the dean's designee.

The student and the student's advisor have the right to attend part one and part two of the committee meeting. If the student does not appear for the hearing, the case may be heard in absentia, but only after the committee has made reasonable efforts to encourage the student to attend. Disruptive behavior by any party may result in removal from the proceedings after appropriate warnings by the chair of the committee. No one other than committee members will be present during part three and no new evidence may be introduced at that time.

As soon as the student appears before the committee, the committee chair will review the student's rights and privileges as per Section D above and acquaint the student with the purpose of the meeting, namely, to assess the evidence in the light of the full context in which the alleged dishonesty occurred in order to render a fair and equitable recommendation.

Recommendations of the Committee

The recommendation of the committee will take place in part three of the meeting. The decision will be based on an open vote by all members of the committee in attendance. The recommendation will be based on a vote of the majority of the members present. Those members of the committee who do not concur with the majority vote have the right to add a minority report to the recommendations.

The committee can recommend to the dean's designee any one or more of the following:

  1. A finding that no dishonestly occurred and no action be taken against the student or students involved.
  2. A letter of reprimand be sent to the student.
  3. The student be placed on disciplinary probation.
  4. Denial of registration for a specified period of time (suspension).
  5. Expulsion with no opportunity to return to Decker College of Nursing and Health Sciences.
  6. Transcript notation.
  7. Revocation of degree or honors.

The dean's designee reviews the committee's recommendation and then submits the dean's designee's report to the dean. The dean's designee has the option to agree, agree partially, disagree or disagree partially with the committee's recommendation. The committee, affected parties, and the Provost's Office will be notified in writing of the dean's disposition. For all cases heard by the committee, except those resulting in expulsion, records will be kept in the dean's confidential files for a duration in compliance with SUNY and NYS regulations. For cases resulting in expulsion, a record will be kept permanently.

Appeals Process

Students who wish to appeal the dean's disposition may file an appeal in accordance with the Decker College Academic Honesty and Grievance Appeals Policy.

The policy above was initially accepted by the Decker School of Nursing in April 2006 and was reviewed and re-accepted by Decker College of Nursing and Health Sciences in March 2021.