Academic Integrity Policy

Statement of Purpose

Loras College strives to nurture active learners, reflective thinkers, ethical decision-makers and responsible contributors. Consistent with this mission, Loras students are expected to uphold the core values of academic integrity: honesty, trust, fairness, respect, responsibility, and courage. The institution will hold students accountable for acts of academic misconduct.

Creating Academic Integrity Within the Learning Environment

1. Students have the responsibility to:
   • Read and understand the Academic Integrity Policy as stated in the Loras College Bulletin and on course syllabi.
   • Utilize available resources on the Loras College Campus to comply with the Academic Integrity Policy.
   • Be proactive in reaching out to faculty or support services staff to address questions and seek clarifications regarding academic integrity.
   • Respond within three (3) business days to requests from faculty to meet regarding concerns about academic integrity.
2. Course instructors have the responsibility to:
   • Reference the Loras College Academic Integrity Policy and include any course specific policies in their course syllabus.
   • Direct students to available academic support services (e.g. The Writing Center or Library) to avoid academic integrity violations.
   • Maintain academic integrity in their courses.
   • Request a meeting with any student suspected of engaging in academic misconduct and inform the student if an Academic Misconduct Report will be filed.
   • Report violations of the Academic Integrity Policy to the Associate Provost.
   • Contact the Associate Provost if in doubt about a situation.

Violations of Academic Integrity

The following list outlines examples of policy violations. The list is not designed to be all-inclusive, but reflects examples of types of academic misconduct included under this policy.

1. Cheating
   • Intentionally acquiring privileged information pertaining to content or means of testing prior to an exam
   • Using any means to share, exchange or retrieve privileged test questions or answers
2. Group Collusion or Unauthorized Collaboration
   • Rewriting large portions (a paragraph or more) of another student’s work is dishonest when the intention was for the student to only offer feedback and suggestions on the work
   • Presenting work as solely one’s own when in fact it is the result of an unauthorized joint effort
3. Duplicate submission of work
   • Turning in any work from a previous or concurrent course, whether that work was completed at Loras College, another college or high school, without the prior permission of the course instructor to whom the work is being submitted
4. Fabrication, Falsification, Distortion of Information
   • Creating false data, research, or sources for use in any work
   • Altering data or only using a certain biased portion of data to prove a certain claim when the entire scope of the research proves a different claim
   • Falsely documenting hours completed for an internship, clinical or field experience
   • Providing false information on career documents such as resumes, letters or transcripts
5. Facilitating Academic Misconduct
   • Not reporting a violation of the Academic Integrity Policy to the course instructor or other appropriate individual
   • Helping another student commit an act of academic misconduct
6. Fraudulent Alteration of Academic Materials and Forgery
   • Altering, falsifying or intentionally providing any misleading information on any college documents
   • Forging a course instructor or advisor signature
7. Plagiarism
   • Using another person’s exact words in any work without properly designating the quote or citing the source
   • Summarizing/paraphrasing another person’s thoughts or ideas in any work without properly citing the source
   • Taking any digital media product that was created by another person and using it in any work without properly citing the source
   • Copying another person’s computer program without the owner’s permission and without properly citing the source
   • Purchasing or borrowing a paper and submitting it as one’s own
8. Theft, Abuse, Destruction of Academic Property
   • Not returning academic materials to the library or course instructor that loaned them
   • Vandalizing academic property
9. Unauthorized Use of Information Technologies
   • Using a laptop, cell phone, calculator or any other device to access information without permission or to copy privileged test questions or answers from an exam. ** Please also read Loras College’s Technology Resource Policies and Procedures from the Loras Student Handbook.**
10. Unfair Advantage
    • Seeking an extension on any work by use of a falsified excuseAccepting and using a paragraph or more of text rewritten by another individual is misconduct when the intention was for the student to only receive feedback and suggestions on the work.

Artificial Intelligence Tools

Unauthorized use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools for any assignment or course activity is considered a violation of the Academic Integrity Policy. This includes any format in which work may be produced including text, images, video, sound, or other output forms. Use of AI tools without consent of the course instructor may fall within several different categories of academic misconduct including, but not limited to:

• Plagiarism - using direct quotations, paraphrasing/summarizing language, or including images generated by an AI tool, either in part or in full, without citing the source.
• Fabrication, Falsification, Distortion of Information - inclusion of false data and/or made-up experiences created by an AI tool.
• Cheating - using an AI tool to look up answers on an exam.

Absent specific approval from the course instructor, any use of AI tools to outline, write, create, or edit assignments or course activities shall be considered analogous to receiving assistance from another person or unauthorized source.

Consequences for Violations

Consequences for academic misconduct are determined based upon the severity and number of previous offenses. Course level sanctions are at the primary discretion of the instructor. Institutional-level sanctions, including suspension and expulsion, are at the discretion of the Admissions and Academic Standards Committee and the Academic Dean. In addition, to assure student understanding of the core principles of academic integrity, students found to have engaged in academic misconduct complete an Academic Integrity Tutorial.

1. First Offenses
   All students found to have committed a violation of the Academic Integrity Policy must complete the on-line Academic Integrity Tutorial. A registration hold may be placed upon the student’s record until the tutorial is complete. In addition, based on the severity of the offense, the course instructor may assign one or more of following course-level sanctions:
   1. Substitute or revised assignment for a reduced grade
   2. Grade of zero or “F” for the assignment, exam, or activity
   3. Required meeting with the School Dean/Associate Dean
   4. Grade of “F” for the course
2. Second (or higher) Offenses
   Typically, the consequence for second (or higher) offenses is a grade of “F” for the course. Based on the severity and number of previous offenses, course instructors may individually initiate any of the following course-level disciplinary actions:
   • Grade of zero or “F” for the assignment
   • Grade of “F” for the course

The Academic Standards Committee has the right to review all instances of academic misconduct and assign additional institutional sanctions.  Review of second (and higher) offenses is automatic. First offenses may be reviewed by the Admissions and Academic Standards Committee at the request of the course instructor or discretion of the Associate Provost for serious and/or severe offenses.

Student Right of Appeal

A student may appeal a course instructor’s finding that the student engaged in academic misconduct, but may not contest the instructor assigned sanction for the offense. A student wishing to challenge a finding of academic misconduct must do so within three (3) business days of notification of the finding. The procedure for appeal of a finding of academic misconduct is as follows:

1. The student must submit a letter of appeal along with any relevant documentation to the appropriate School Dean/Associate Dean within three (3) business days following notification of the finding of academic misconduct.
2. The School Dean/Associate Dean will contact the course instructor for documentation of the alleged violation.
3. The School Dean/Associate Dean submits all documentation and a recommendation regarding the appeal to the Associate Provost.
4. The Associate Provost will bring the appeal and documentation to the Admissions and Academic Standards Committee for a decision.
5. The Associate Provost will notify the student, his/her advisor, the course instructor, and the School Dean/Associate Dean in writing of the Committee’s decision in regard to the appeal.

A student who wishes to appeal the decision of the Admission and Academic Standards Committee should submit a petition for review directly to the Provost (office.academicdean@loras.edu) within three (3) business days of notification of the decision of the Admissions and Academic Standards Committee. The decision of the Academic Dean is final.

Records of Academic Misconduct

Academic misconduct files are considered educational records and are maintained by the Office of Academic Affairs in accordance with FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act).

Findings of academic misconduct do not appear on a student’s transcript or become a part of the student’s permanent academic record unless the student is suspended or expelled as a result of the infraction. However, reports of academic misconduct are shared with the student’s academic advisor and may be shared with other school officials with a legitimate educational interest. This may include, but is not limited to, review of records for scholarship or leadership position eligibility and confirmation of repeat violations.

Academic misconduct reports are destroyed when one of the following has occurred:

• The student graduates
• Seven (7) years have passed since the date of the report

The Associate Provost shall keep a database of academic misconduct reports and report statistics concerning violations of the Academic Integrity Policy to the Academic Council annually. This report will not contain names of students or instructors involved in the incidents.