Academic Dishonesty Procedures

For a full list and description of disciplinary procedures, please refer to the Student Disciplinary Policies and Procedures manual.

1. Faculty members who discover evidence of academic dishonesty have the option of arranging to meet with the student suspected of the alleged infraction, or forwarding the case directly to the Vice President for Student Services. If the student acknowledges the act of academic dishonesty and the faculty member is satisfied that the incident can be effectively resolved with a grade sanction, the student(s) will either receive an F on the assignment cheated on or for the course. The incident must be reported to the University Hearing Officer in the Office of Student Services. The student will be placed on disciplinary probation, and a permanent notation will be placed on the student's transcript. If the student was not previously on academic probation, after a minimum of one year the student can apply for the opportunity to have the notation removed.

2. If the student denies the allegation of academic dishonesty, or if the faculty member believes a harsher sanction should be imposed, a written summary of the incident will be forwarded to the University Hearing Officer. The Hearing Officer will institute disciplinary proceedings in accordance with Section VII C.

3. Disciplinary proceedings shall be instituted by the University Hearing Officer by the issuance of notice of charges. The Hearing Officer will conduct an investigation of the charges and, based on the evidence, can either dismiss the case or impose a disciplinary sanction. If the incident occurs at a distanced learning site, the University Hearing Officer may travel to the site to conduct the hearing.

4. If the student does not agree with the decision of the Hearing Officer, an appeal should be filed to the Office of the Vice-President of Student Services within seven business days. The appeal must include specific grounds for the appeal, a list of witnesses the student intends to call, and must be personally signed by the student. Grounds for appeal are:
A) Claim that proper procedures were not followed.
B) Claim that the sanction imposed was overly harsh.
C) Claim the decision was clearly erroneous.
D) New evidence is available which could exonerate the student.

5. All appeals will be heard by the Student Conduct Committee, which consists of two faculty members, two students from the Honor Council or Student Senate, and a Chair from the faculty approved by the Vice President. The accused student may have an advisor present for the judicial process who does not speak on their behalf. If the student attends Old Dominion University through a distanced learning site, the hearing may take place by telephone or the student may travel to the main campus. The Student Conduct Committee may either uphold the findings of the Hearing Officer or may find that the student is not in violation. They may also recommend changing the original sanction.

6. All findings will be sent to the Vice-President for Student Services for review. The Vice-President will make the final ruling.