Academic Integrity Policy

Strayer University holds its students and employees to high standards of academic excellence and views academic integrity as the essential foundation of that excellence.  The following policy defines the Honor Code as well as acts of academic misconduct that Strayer University considers to be in violation of the Honor Code.  The policy further provides procedures for reporting acts of academic misconduct that are more severe than minor errors/omissions, as well as the consequences that may follow the commission of such acts and the appeal process.

I. The Honor Code

Strayer University expects all students to abide by the Honor Code, starting from the day they are enrolled at the University.  The Honor Code reads as follows:

I promise to conduct myself with integrity in the submission of all academic work to the University and will not give or receive unauthorized assistance for the completion of assignments, research, papers, examinations, or other work.  I understand that violation of the Academic Integrity Policy will lead to disciplinary action against me, up to and including suspension or expulsion from the University.  I understand that all students play a role in preserving the academic integrity of the University and have an obligation to report violations of the Academic Integrity Policy committed by other students. 

II. Acts of Academic Misconduct

1. The University has determined the following acts of academic misconduct to be in violation of the Honor Code; these acts include but are not limited to:
   1. Cheating;
   2. Plagiarism (which includes copying words or ideas from one or more sources without giving them credit and/or copying the words or ideas from one or more sources that comprise the majority of your work, whether credit is given to those sources or not);
   3. Fabricating data or citations;
   4. Copying and pasting discussion posts or other work without proper citation;
   5. Failure to place direct quotes within quotation marks along with the proper in-text citations and references documenting the source of the quote;
   6. Providing incorrect information about the source of a quotation;
   7. Unacceptable paraphrasing, which includes, but is not limited to, failure to use in-text citations and/or references when properly paraphrasing, or borrowing too closely, too much, and/or too often from an external source (with or without giving credit to the original author).  For example, replacing a few words in a sentence with synonyms, while keeping the same or similar sentence structure as the original work. When a student paraphrases correctly (using their own words and sentence structures as well as proper citations), this act demonstrates that they understand what they have read and how the source's ideas support their assignment;
   8. Stealing examinations;
   9. Using instructor editions of textbooks without authorization;
   10. Having another student or non-student perform some or all of a project, take some or all of an exam, take an entire course or submit any work assigned in a course as though he or she were the student; or, as a student, performing or offering to perform some or all of a project, take some or all of an exam, or take an entire course or submit any work assigned in a course for another student;
   11. Facilitating another student's act of academic misconduct, (i.e., posting Strayer University assignments, discussion posts, exam questions, and/or answers, etc. on an external site);
   12. Soliciting work from a student or non-student. 
   13. Using technology or other means to disseminate exam questions and/or answers;
   14. Tampering with the academic work of another student; 
   15. Resubmitting work completed in another course (with the following exceptions: compiling previous coursework into a Capstone course, if approved by the Capstone instructor in advance; resubmitting work into a course that the student is retaking, provided that the original work submitted in the same previous course was not in violation of the Academic Integrity policy), or resubmitting work completed at another university; and 
   16. Submitting another student's (or non-student's) work found or solicited on the Internet (or elsewhere) in response to any assigned university course prompt (including, but not limited to, discussions, assignments, assessments, and presentations).  This act is a violation regardless of whether the work is submitted verbatim or reworded slightly, and regardless of whether credit is given to the source. 
2. The University reserves the right to review any work (draft or otherwise) or exam submitted by a student during his or her entire academic career at Strayer for the purposes of this policy.

III. Procedures for Reporting Academic Integrity Violations

A. The Office of Student Affairs receives, investigates, and tracks all incidents of intellectual dishonesty.

1. Any member of the University community may report known or suspected violations of the University's Academic Integrity Policy.  Instructors and other Strayer employees must report known or suspected violations of the University Academic Integrity Policy.
2. An individual may initiate a report by emailing the details to the Office of Student Affairs at academicintegrity@strayer.edu .  Any report of a known or suspected violation of the Academic Integrity Policy must meet the following criteria.
   1. The report must clearly identify all individuals suspected of being involved by full name and student identification number;
   2. The report must clearly explain the nature of the violation;
   3. The report must clearly identify the course and course section in which the violation took place and instructor of that course; and
   4. The report must include all supporting documentation that the person initiating the report possesses.

B. An instructor or other employee who fails to report a known or suspected violation of this policy will face corrective action in accordance with the Strayer University Employee Handbook, including possible termination of employment.

IV. Consequences of Academic Integrity Violations

1. Violations of the Academic Integrity Policy will be evaluated based on several factors (with no one factor determining the consequences), including the following:
   1. Whether the student is a first-time offender or a repeat offender;
   2. The severity or egregiousness of the violation;
   3. Whether the student acknowledges the failure when presented with overwhelming evidence;
   4. Whether the failure occurs early or late in the student's academic program;
   5. Whether the failure involves minor assignment or major endeavor toward a degree, such as the Capstone paper; and
   6. Whether the failure has a major impact on the learning environment at the University.
   7. Whether the student engaged in remediation if directed by faculty and/or staff.
2. Consequences for academic integrity violations may include one or more of the following: Code of Conduct Warning letter (level I or II); pre-warning letter, remediation letter/activities; reduced grade on an assignment, discussion or other coursework; reduced final course grade; suspension from or ineligibility for the Honors Program and Accelerate courses; ineligibility for an honors certificate; administrative course failure (F**), noted on the student's permanent record; suspension for a designated period of time; expulsion, and revocation of a degree awarded at Strayer University.
3. Honors Implications:
   1. Upon a student receiving a sanction from the Office of Student Affairs for an academic integrity violation, the student will be suspended from the Honors program.  Students suspended from the Honors program may appeal to be reinstated and should follow the process outlined in the "Appeals" section of this policy.
   2. Upon a student receiving a subsequent sanction from the Office of Student Affairs for a subsequent academic integrity violation, the student is no longer eligible for the Honors program for the remainder of the academic journey at Strayer.
   3. If a student is suspended from the University for a non-academic integrity violation of the Code of Student Conduct, without any prior academic integrity violations, the student is no longer eligible for the Honors program unless an appeal hearing for the violation is granted and the University then reverses the disciplinary suspension.  If a student is suspended from the University for a non-academic integrity violation of the Code of Student Conduct, but with one or more prior academic integrity violations, whether the student has the opportunity to appeal for reinstatement of their eligibility for the Honors program will follow the paths above relative to the number of academic integrity sanctions issued. 
   4. In addition, if a sanctioned academic integrity violation occurs in an Honors course, the student will not receive an Honors transcript designation for that course; however, 
   5. If a student of the Jack Welch Management Institute receives a sanction for an academic integrity violation deemed a Tier II violation, the student will no longer be eligible for a Welch Scholar or Graduate Distinction designation.
4. If a Strayer students fails to meet the standards established in this Academic Integrity policy, and they are an employee of Strayer University, it's parent company, or its affiliates, then said employee will also face corrective action up to and including possible termination of employment.

V. Administration of Consequences

A. Violations

1. Upon reasonable determination that a student violated the Academic Integrity policy, the instructor will take following actions:
   1. The instructor will provide a detailed explanation to the student in writing regarding the offense.
   2. The instructor will assign a zero grade on the assignment with an opportunity to resubmit it once for up to half credit (50%) up to 15 days after receipt of the zero grade with the instructors explanation. Re-submissions of final course assignments will not be accepted after the last day of class unless otherwise specified by the instructor. 
      Note: Corrective resubmissions may be accepted at the instructor's discretion in exceptional circumstances.
   3. The instructor will report the violation to the Office of Student Affairs via email at academicintegrity@strayer.edu , following the procedures detailed in section III of this policy.
   4. The Assistant Vice Provost, Student Affairs may determine in some instances that a student should receive an academic integrity administrative failure (F**) without need of instructor referral.
2. Academic integrity violations are considered conduct violations, as noted in the Code of Student Conduct in the Student Handbook, and are treated as such by the University.  The Office of Student Affairs and/or the Assistant Vice Provost, Student Affairs will review the reported violation in the context of the student's full prior disciplinary history, and will take additional disciplinary action as appropriate per the Disciplinary Procedures described in the Code of Student Conduct.  This action may include but is not limited to, the student receiving a Code of Student Conduct Warning Letter (Level I or II), suspension, expulsion, or degree revocation.  If the Office of Student Affairs determines that a violation has not been reported/graded in accordance with this policy, the Office of Student Affairs will work with faculty and/or appropriate academic leadership accordingly to ensure compliance with this policy.
3. Sanctions issued by the Office of Student Affairs for academic integrity violations are separate and distinct from instructor grading actions.

1. Student Records: Course failure, suspension, expulsion, or degree revocation will be permanently noted on the student's transcript along with an indication that the action was taken because of an academic integrity violation. 
2. Financial Responsibility: Consistent with Strayer policy on institutional charges and refunds, the student shall remain financially responsible for all tuition charges and other fees incurred during the quarter of enrollment wherein the violation occurred.

VI. Appeals

1. Students shall have ten (10) business days to appeal after being notified by the Assistant Vice Provost, Student Affairs that they have been expelled or suspended; have received an administrative failure in one or more courses; or have had a degree revoked for an academic integrity violation.  Provided that the appeal is received timely by the Assistant Vice Provost, Student Affairs in writing, the student's appeal will be forwarded on to the University Provost (or designee) for consideration of an appeal hearing.  If the University Provost (or designee) determines that the appeal letter contains sufficient evidence to warrant an appeal hearing, a disciplinary hearing, chaired by University Provost (or designee) and Chief Academic Office (or designee), will be scheduled.  If the University Provost (or designee) determines that sufficient grounds have not been established to warrant an appeal hearing, this decision of the Assistant Vice Provost, Student Affairs is the University's final response.  Details about the appeal process may be found in the Disciplinary Procedures in the Code of Student Conduct Policy.  The student will be informed in writing about the Disciplinary Committee's decision within ten (10) business days after the date of his or her appeal hearing. The decision of the Disciplinary Committee is the University's final response.

   1. Students desiring to appeal grades in general that do not fall under this policy should follow the normal grade appeal procedures outlined in the Academic Grievance Procedures section of the Student Handbook.  A student may not appeal a written warning or grade reduction associated with a written warning other than in the context of a final grade dispute.
   2. The University is not required to hear or respond to appeals related to other forms of disciplinary action taken (including, but not limited to, Code of Student Conduct Warning letters at Levels I or II).
   3. The student is advised that in all circumstances, the Disciplinary Committee and the University reserve the right to sever the relationship or to terminate the enrollment of any student from the University for any appropriate reason at any time without notice, a hearing, an explanation, or any other process.
   4. The student is advised that every favorable inference will be given to the Disciplinary Committee and the University in the interpretation and application of the Academic Integrity Policy.
2. Students understand that the Academic Integrity Policy may at times be revised, and in all such instances students agree to remain apprised of developments and abide by the most recent version of the Academic Integrity Policy.
3. In order to preserve the integrity of Strayer's grading and to ensure that the grades reflected on a student's transcript are accurate, the University will not honor any requests for the official or unofficial transcripts of a student until the conclusion of the Assistant Vice Provost, Student Affairs' review and/or the Disciplinary Committee's proceedings.  Should a student appeal any of the consequences herein, transcripts will not be released until the final conclusion of the appeals process.  If the final disposition involves a change to a final grade, transcripts will be released after a reasonable period of time to adjust the student's grade accordingly.
4. The University will strive to schedule appeal hearings before the start of the next academic quarter, but this may not be possible in all cases.  Students who have been suspended or expelled will not be permitted to enroll until and if a decision is made by the Disciplinary Committee to overturn a suspension or expulsion.
5. Students who are suspended from the Honors program due to their first sanctioned academic integrity violation may appeal to the Honors program leadership to have their eligibility reinstated.  Students who have been suspended from the University for a non-academic integrity violation of the Code of Student Conduct may not be reinstated in the Honors Program unless an appeal hearing for the non-academic integrity violation is granted and the University then reverses the disciplinary suspension.

   1. To be eligible for reinstatement of Honors program eligibility, a student must meet all of the following requirements:

      1. Possess a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5 at the time of the appeal;

      2. Have completed two additional quarters at Strayer after the quarter in which the University's academic integrity sanction was issued; and

      3. Have not received any additional academic integrity sanctions since the initial violation occurred.

       

   2. To appeal for reinstatement of Honors program eligibility, eligible students should submit the Honors reinstatement appeal form to the Honors program leadership.

   3. The decision of the Honors program leadership will be final.

   4. Reinstatement of eligibility applies only for future eligibility to participate in the Honors program.  Reinstatement of eligibility does not reinstate the honors transcript designation for an honors course in which an academic integrity violation occurred nor does it change any consequences or records of the academic integrity violations. To appeal the violation itself, students should follow the appeal process noted above.