Harpur Hearing Board Procedures
Introduction
A first minor (Category I) violation of the Student Academic Honesty Code may be handled by the instructor by requesting that the student sign an Admission of Dishonesty Form describing the violation and specifying the penalty. By signing it, the student admits to the dishonesty and accepts the penalty. In some cases, the student may not be eligible to sign an Admission of Dishonesty Form for an academic honesty offense, either because they have violated the academic honesty code in a previous instance or because of the severity of the charge. The student may also decline to sign the Admission of Dishonesty form. In cases where the student is not eligible to sign an Admission of Dishonesty Form, declines to sign it, or revokes their signature within 30 calendar days, the charge is adjudicated as a Category II, allowing the student to present their case to the Honesty Board or Honesty Administrator.
Academic honesty charges for Category II cases may be submitted by instructors, staff, or students to the Academic Honesty Committee Secretary (honesty@binghamton.edu) and must go to a hearing. The College defines the following as Category II cases:
- A second or subsequent violation of the Academic Honesty Code;
- An Admission of Dishonesty form is not signed;
- A first violation deemed serious enough by the instructor to warrant a hearing; and
- A first violation not eligible to be treated as a Category I due to the nature of the violation.1
1 Fabrication and misrepresentation, forgery, sabotage, and bribery are always adjudicated as Category II violations.
The Chair facilitates a hearing upon receipt of written charges and supporting evidence submitted by the instructor or person bringing the charge for the following violations: fabrication and misrepresentation, forgery, sabotage, bribery, plagiarism, cheating, and/or other offenses. Cases may also be brought to the committee by students who believe they have been unjustly accused of academic dishonesty, or by students who believe they have witnessed instances of academic dishonesty and who wish to bring this to the attention of the Academic Honesty Committee.
An offense may proceed through the Administrative Hearing process if the charge is plagiarism, cheating, multiple submission, or unauthorized collaboration and is not deemed by the Chair to be so severe that it must go to a Board Hearing. A case may proceed through the Administrative process if one of the following is true:
- The evidence is largely physical (e.g., the student’s paper with the accompanying sources alleged to have been plagiarized; emails; a forged document; the student’s exam and the exam answer key); and/or
- The student admits to the violation.
The Chair will determine which process a case is subject to, except in cases involving fabrication and misrepresentation, forgery, sabotage, or bribery, which must go through the Hearing Board.
The Associate Dean who oversees Academic Honesty makes the final ruling on all cases.
Hearing Board Hearings
A Hearing Board consists of four Harpur College faculty members and two Harpur College students. At least two faculty members and one student representative must be present for a hearing to proceed. The Honesty Committee and each Honesty Board also require the presence of the Honesty Board Chair and Secretary to convene. The Honesty Board Chair and Secretary are selected by the Associate Dean. The Chair may vote only to make or break a tie. The Secretary serves as a non-voting member.
The Hearing Boards are overseen by the Harpur College Academic Honesty Committee. In most cases, the Chair of the Academic Honesty Committee conducts Board Hearings.
Prior to the hearing, the Committee Chair will gather information from the faculty member or individual(s) bringing the charge, and any others related to the case, to determine if the charge has merit and/or if the case can be handled through the administrative hearing process. The Chair will notify the student of the charge in writing in advance of the hearing. The instructor’s documentation will be shared with the student as well as the Hearing Board, and the student will be given an opportunity to provide a written statement to be shared in advance with all parties. The student’s statement must be received by all participants in the hearing no fewer than three business days before the hearing.
Hearing boards are closed. The student accused, the individual(s) bringing the charge, and the committee are generally present. The student charged may opt to have a Binghamton University student, faculty, or staff member attend the hearing in an advisory capacity; advisors may only speak to the student charged and may not address the board.
Notification to the Student and Actions Prior to the Proceedings
The Chair or the Chair’s designee informs the student in writing that they are being charged with academic dishonesty. This notification is sent in sufficient time and with sufficient information to allow the student adequate time to prepare for the hearing. The notification includes the case information and evidence and the date, time, and location of the hearing, as well as a copy of these procedures. In the event that the student does not attend, the hearing may proceed if it may be reasonably assumed they received timely notification of the hearing.
The student has the right to request that all persons involved in the case be present at the hearing; the Chair will choose whether or not to approve requests based on the individual’s or individuals’
pertinence to the case. Requested participants may also decline to appear. The student has the right to question witnesses present at the hearing.
The student may challenge the impartiality of Hearing Board members and Hearing Board members may recuse themselves from cases where they determine they cannot render an impartial decision. The Chair will consider whether there are adequate grounds for either challenging the Board Members’ impartiality or recusing oneself from the case and consult with the relevant parties.
Hearings may be held remotely if circumstances merit. Individual participants may also attend remotely if necessary. Such hearings are likewise closed, and are not to be recorded or shared. The format selected shall be at the discretion of the Chair, who will take into consideration the circumstances of the parties and the particulars of the case.
Proceedings of the Hearing Board
Before the discussion begins, the Chair asks all participants in the hearing if they have received all the relevant case information and the information on honesty policies, and whether they have any questions regarding the hearing procedure.
The hearing consists of three parts. During the first two parts of the proceedings, the Secretary shall keep a record with sufficient particularity to allow for review by the student and the Associate Dean. This record will be shared with the student charged upon final disposition of the case.
- The person bringing the case to the attention of the Board may discuss the circumstances and the evidence. This presentation may be supplemented by any person involved in discovering the alleged academic dishonesty. The student charged may make a statement following the presentation of the charges.
- The Board asks questions or seeks clarification from both parties. The person(s) bringing the case and the charged student may also question each other and exchange comments.
- The student charged will have an opportunity to make a final statement. All participants, with the exception of the Hearing Board, are then excused from the hearing.
- The Board continues to review the statements made during the first two parts of the hearing and discuss the evidence of the case, and recommends a finding and, if necessary, a penalty. In order to allow a candid discussion, and because its conclusions are strictly advisory in nature, this portion of the hearing is not recorded by the Secretary. Any prior violation(s) of the Academic Honesty Code will be revealed to the Board only after it is determined that a violation has taken place, but preceding the determination of an appropriate penalty. The Board’s recommendation is based on a majority vote of those present, taking into account the preponderance of evidence in the case, including the documents contained in the case file and any additional information discovered during the Hearing. Board members who do not concur with the majority vote may submit a minority opinion, which becomes a part of the case file. The Board’s recommendation, along with the record of the open section of the hearing and the case file, is sent to the Associate Dean.
Recommendations
The Hearing Board may recommend the following findings and penalties to the Associate Dean:
- There is not sufficient evidence to determine that the student has violated the Student Academic Honesty Code; no penalty is assigned.
- The student has violated the Student Academic Honesty Code and is placed on honesty probation. The Hearing Board may recommend that a notation be placed on the student’s transcript regarding the honesty violation, and the notation’s length, not to exceed two years. Transcript notation is applied at the time the student is notified of the decision. After that period, the student must notify the university for removal of the transcript notation; instructions will be included in the letter with the final disposition of the case.
- The student has violated the Student Academic Honesty Code and may be suspended and denied course registration for a specified period of time, not to exceed two semesters, dependent on the seriousness of the violation. Graduating students who are suspended will have their degree conferral delayed for a specified period. Students will be permitted to finish any courses they are registered for at the time they receive their decision letter. Suspensions extend through the end of the main (Fall or Spring) semesters, and students who are suspended may not register for classes during any intervening period, such as Winter or Summer Session. A notation will be placed on the student’s transcript regarding the honesty violation; the Hearing Board will recommend the notation’s length, not to exceed two years. Transcript notation is applied at the time the student is notified of the decision. After that period, the student must notify the university for removal of the transcript notation; instructions will be included in the letter with the final disposition of the case.
- The student has violated the Student Academic Honesty Code and may be expelled and have no opportunity to return to Binghamton. Students will be permitted to finish any courses they are registered for at the time they receive their decision letter. Expulsions are noted on the student’s transcript as soon as the decision is made. The student must contact the University for removal of the transcript notation two years after the date of the decision letter.
- Additional actions may be imposed based on the circumstances in the case and the severity of the infraction.
Disposition of the Case
The Associate Dean reviews the case materials and the Hearing Board's recommendation to ensure their alignment with institutional norms and policies. After consideration of the case file and the Board's recommendation, the Associate Dean makes a final adjudication on whether it can be determined that the Student Academic Honesty Code was violated and, if so, any assigned penalties.
Within six weeks of the hearing, the Associate Dean sends a letter announcing the disposition of the case to the student, the person(s) who brought the charge, and the Chair of the Honesty Committee.
In the event that a violation is determined to have occurred, the student is notified that a record of honesty violations is kept on file, and that further violations of the Student Academic Honesty Code may result in a more severe penalty. The student is also informed that this information will be released to other institutions should the student submit a written authorization for release of disciplinary information to law schools, medical schools, state bar committees, other professional licensing entities, etc. If the penalty includes transcript notation, the student will be provided with the earliest date by which they may request to have the notation removed. Records are kept in a confidential file for six years following the student’s absence from the University whether as a graduate or not. Expulsion records are kept indefinitely.
The student may appeal the Associate Dean’s decision and any penalty by submitting a written appeal and any supporting documentation to the Dean of Harpur College within 14 calendar days of the distribution of the letter of disposition. Appeals are submitted to honesty@binghamton.edu, and forwarded with the case file to the Dean of Harpur College for review.