PREAMBLE
The Virginia Tech Honor Code embodies a spirit of mutual trust and intellectual honesty
that is central to the very nature of the university, and represents the highest possible
expression of shared values among the members of the university community.
The fundamental beliefs underlying and reflected in the Honor Code are (1) that trust in
a person is a positive force in making that person worthy of trust, (2) that every student
has the right to live in an academic environment that is free from the injustices caused
by any form of intellectual dishonesty, and (3) that the honesty and integrity of all members of the university community contribute to its quest for truth.
The functions of the Honor System are to communicate the meaning and importance of
intellectual honesty to all students of the University; to articulate and support the interest
of the community in maintaining the highest standards of conduct in academic affairs;
and to identify, sanction, and educate those who fail to live up to the stated expectations
of the university community with regard to these standards.
The Honor Code is the University policy which defines the expected standards of conduct in academic affairs. The Honor System is the University body charged with disseminating information about the Honor Code to the university community and with enforcement of the Honor Code. The student body at Virginia Tech will not tolerate any
violation of the Honor Code.
ARTICLE I: HONOR CODE
The Honor Code is the University policy which expressly forbids the following academic
violations:
1. Cheating -- Cheating includes the actual giving or receiving of any unauthorized
aid or assistance or the actual giving or receiving of any unfair advantage on any
form of academic work, or attempts thereof.
2. Plagiarism -- Plagiarism includes the copying of the language, structure, programming, computer code, ideas, and/or thoughts of another and passing off the
same as one's own original work, or attempts thereof.
3. Falsification -- Falsification includes the statement of any untruth, either verbally
or in writing, with respect to any circumstances relevant to one's academic work, or
attempts thereof. Such acts include, but are not limited to, the forgery of official signatures; tampering with official records; fraudulently adding, deleting, or manipulating information on academic work, or fraudulently changing an examination or other
academic work after the testing period or due date of the assignment.
ARTICLE II: THE HONOR PLEDGE
Section 1. The Virginia Tech Honor Pledge is: "I have neither given nor received unauthorized assistance on this assignment."
Section 2. All students, upon admission to this University, have pledged to abide by
the Honor Code. The Honor Code applies to all assignments and examinations.
Section 3. A student who has doubts about whether or how the Honor Pledge applies
to a particular assignment or examination is responsible for obtaining specific guidelines
from the instructor before submitting the work for evaluation.
ARTICLE III: CLASSIFICATION OF OFFENSES AND SANCTIONS
Section 1. The Honor System classifies offenses into one of six categories (Class I, II,
III, IV, V, and VI) depending upon the severity of the offense and the circumstances of
its occurrence:
1. Cases involving cheating, plagiarism, and falsification are Class II Offenses
2. Those involving work for hire, purchased work, tampering with records, and unauthorized possession of academic material are Class IV offenses.
3. When a student is on Honor System probation, all second offenses are Class VI
offenses.
4. Offenses other than those already classified as Class VI may be elevated one
class for each of the following:
◦ endangering another student or faculty member,
◦ threatening personal harm to another student or a faculty member,
◦ recruiting another student to violate the Honor Code,
◦ premeditation,
◦ unauthorized entry in the commission of a violation, and/or
◦ ambiguous or extenuating circumstances.
5. Offenses may be reduced one class for each of the following:
◦ first-term student, or
◦ ambiguous or extenuating circumstances.
Section 2. Each classification carries several sanctions, one or more of which may be
imposed on individuals convicted of violating the Honor Code.
The sanctions associated with each class of offense are as follows:
Class I
Honor System probation and education, recommended zero grade on the assignment or
on any grade affected by the offense, 25 hours of university service.
Class II
Honor System probation and education, recommended double-weighted zero grade on
the assignment or on any grade affected by the offense, 50 hours of university service.
Class III
Honor System probation and education, recommended double-weighted zero grade on
the assignment or on any grade affected by the offense, 75 hours of university service.
Class IV
Honor System probation and education, recommended double-weighted zero grade on
the assignment or on any grade affected by the offense, one term suspension (excluding summer) by Honor System Review Board action.
Class V
Honor System probation and education, F* grade in the course (F by Honor System Review Board action), either one or two terms of suspension (excluding summer).
Class VI
F* grade in the course (F by Honor System Review Board action), permanent dismissal
from the university.
ARTICLE IV: RIGHTS OF THE ACCUSED
A person accused of violating the Honor Code shall be accorded the following rights:
1. to be considered innocent until proven guilty,
2. to be advised and/or represented by any member of the university community who
is chosen by the student and agrees to serve,
3. to seek counsel with his or her representative, and expect all such conversations to
be held in confidence,
4. to speak on his or her own behalf,
5. to refrain from speaking for or against himself,
6. to receive written notice of all charges of Honor System violations,
7. to receive, at least 48 hours prior to the Judicial Panel, a copy of all evidence in the
case in the possession of the Honor System,
8. to question any witnesses who testify at the Judicial Panel,
9. to be present for the presentation of all evidence to the Judicial Panel,
10. to have the Judicial Panel decision based solely on the evidence presented at Judicial Panel hearing,
11. to receive a written notification of the decision of the Judicial Panel with respect to
verdict, and
12. to appeal the verdict of the Judicial Panel before the Honor System Review Board
as specified in the Constitution.
ARTICLE V: RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF THE ACCUSER
Section 1. A person bringing charges of an Honor Code violation against another shall
be accorded the following rights:
1. to decline to discuss the case with the accused outside of the Judicial Panel or outside the Honor System process,
2. to receive, at least 48 hours prior to the Judicial Panel, a copy of all the evidence in
the case in the possession of the Honor System, and
3. to be advised and/or represented by any member of the university community who
agrees to serve.
Section 2. A person bringing charges of an Honor Code violation against another shall
accept the following obligations:
1. to cooperate with Honor System personnel,
2. to appear at the Judicial Panel, and
3. to maintain confidentiality in all matters pertaining to the case.
Section 3. A person with knowledge of an honor violation or a person who is requested
to provide information about an honor violation shall accept the following obligations:
1. to cooperate with Honor System personnel, and
2. to maintain confidentiality in all matters pertaining to the case.
ARTICLE VI: JUDICIAL PANEL HEARING
Part A: Notification
Section 1. Reported violations of the Honor Code will be assigned to Associate Justices.
Section 2. The accused student will be notified by first-class mail that he or she has
been accused of an Honor Code violation. At this time, the accused will be assigned a
faculty counselor.
Section 3. The Honor System will receive evidence from all parties to the case. The assigned Justice will make available a copy of all evidence to accused and accuser at
least 48 hours prior to the Judicial Panel.
Part B: Judicial Panel
Section 1. Hearing. Cases will be heard by a Judicial Panel comprised as follows:
1. an Associate Justice serving as chairperson without voting privileges,
2. four student panel members, with voting privileges, and
3. one faculty panel member, with voting privileges.
Section 2. Functions. The functions of each Judicial Panel include:
1. to receive evidence,
2. to receive information from the accused, his or her representative(s) or witnesses,
the accuser, and any other witnesses or parties to the case,
3. If the evidence is equally balanced, or if the evidence for innocence outweighs that
for guilt, then the Associate Justice shall instruct the panel members to vote "not
guilty". If the evidence for guilt outweighs that for innocence, then the Associate
Justice shall instruct the panel members to vote "guilty".
4. to obtain a verdict, and where a verdict of "guilty" has not been obtained, to terminate proceedings,
5. to base a verdict on evidence present at the Judicial Panel hearing,
6. to classify each offense for which a verdict of guilty has been obtained,
7. to recommend to the Honor System Review Board sanctions for each such offense, and
8. to conduct the hearing as administrative hearing and not as an adversarial hearing.
Section 3. Deliberations.
1. If the accused pleads guilty, the Judicial Panel will accept the "guilty" plea as the
verdict. The panel will continue the hearing to solicit information to assist in classification of the offense, to determine if others were involved in the offense, and to review other information as to how the offense came about. The Judicial Panel will
then make recommendations as to class and sanction as outlined below.
2. If the panel is deadlocked or fails to appropriately address issues, the Associate
Justice may declare a mistrial and reset a panel hearing with a new panel and hearing de novo.
3. If the evidence is equally balanced, or if the evidence for innocence outweighs that
for guilt, then the Associate Justice shall instruct the panel members to vote "not
guilty". If the evidence for guilt outweighs that for innocence, then the Associate
Justice shall instruct the panel members to vote "guilty".
4. At the conclusion of the deliberations of the Judicial Panel the Associate Justice
will poll the members of the panel on the question: "Is the student guilty or not
guilty?" A determination of guilt will require four supporting votes. If fewer than four
votes for guilty are obtained, the panel shall be deemed to have found the student
not guilty. Where a verdict of "guilty" has been obtained, the Judicial Panel will assign a classification to the offense in question and will recommend sanctions from
among those available within the aforesaid classification. The classification of the
offense and recommendation of sanctions will be by majority vote of those present
and voting, with all votes recorded and submitted to the Honor System Review
Board. Where a verdict of "guilty" is entered, the accused student and the faculty
reporter will be informed of the verdict and the student advised of his or her right of
appeal. Where a verdict of "not guilty" is entered, the decision of the Judicial Panel
will be reported to the faculty reporter who initiated the complaint of an Honor Code
violation and to the accused student. Reporting of the verdict is based on the Family Education Rights Privacy Act.
Section 4. Appeals.
1. Persons found guilty of an Honor Code violation by a Judicial Panel have the right
to appeal the panel's verdict and to appear before the Review Board at the time
their appeal is under review. All cases are subject to appeal only on the following
grounds:
◦ of new evidence,
◦ violation of student's rights, and/or
◦ arbitrary and capricious treatment by the Honor System.
2. No appeal of classification of offenses or recommended sanctions is provided within this constitution.
3. No appeal may be brought later than thirty (30) class days (excluding summer) after the Judicial Panel heard the case.
Section 5. Waiver of Judicial Panel Hearing. If the accused pleads guilty, the accused
may waive a Judicial Panel hearing with the approval of the Faculty Advisor and the
Chief Justice. Upon investigation of the facts of the case, the Faculty Advisor and the
Chief Justice will recommend classification and sanctions to the Review Board.
ARTICLE VII: HONOR SYSTEM REVIEW BOARD
Section 1. Membership. The Honor System Review Board shall be comprised as follows:
• Chair of the Review Board
• the Chief Justice,
• the Associate Chief Justice,
• the Associate Justices, and
• Review Board Faculty members
Section 2. Voting. Board action shall consist of a vote by four student and three faculty
members. Student and faculty voters will be assigned voting privileges in random order
by the Chief Justice in advance of each case. The Associate Justice, Associate Chief
Justice, or Chief Justice who chaired the Judicial Panel will present the case to the Review Board and shall not vote on that case.
1. All decisions of the Honor System Review Board not otherwise delineated in this
Constitution will be by a simple majority vote of those present and voting. An abstention is not counted as a vote.
2.
A recommendation of sanction incorporating a grade of F*, suspension, or permanent dismissal from the University may be forwarded from the Honor System Review Board only with a supporting vote of at least two-thirds of all members present
and voting. An abstention is not counted as a vote.
Section 3. Duties. The duties of the Honor System Review Board will include:
1. to review decisions of the Judicial Panels and to consider appeals, where such review and consideration do not constitute a rehearing of any case,
2. where appropriate, to return cases for rehearing or reinvestigation, or to overturn
verdicts of guilt,
3. to forward to the Provost recommendations of verdict and sentence,
4. to maintain consistency among recommended sentences,
5. in the selection of the Chief Justice:
◦ to receive applications from those who wish to serve in the capacity of
Chief Justice,
◦ to review these applications and interview all applicants,
◦ to recommend to the President of the university from among these applicants a
nominee for the position of Chief Justice,
6. to appoint the Associate Chief Justice, with the approval of his or her college Dean,
7. to appoint the Associate Justices, with the approval of their college Deans,
8. to coordinate and participate in the education of students and faculty about the
Honor Code, and
9. to coordinate and assist in the education and training of Honor System personnel
in the operation, function, and responsibilities of their respective offices.
ARTICLE VIII: FINAL REVIEW PROCEDURE
The recommendations of the Honor System Review Board are forwarded to the office of
the Provost for final action. No penalty recommended by the Honor System will be imposed or announced until approved by that office. Where the Provost does not concur
with the recommendations of the Review Board regarding verdict or sanction, he or she
may return a case to the Honor System for rehearing or reconsideration. In such instances, the Provost or his or her designee will participate without vote in deliberations
of the Honor System Review Board. In exceptional cases, where a verdict or sanction
recommended by the Honor System Review Board is changed by the Provost, the
Provost shall advise the Honor System Review Board in writing of the nature of any
such changes and the reasons therefore. Once a sentence has been imposed, a faculty
reporter will be advised of the verdict or where the sentence entails recommended
grades that can only be assigned by a faculty member, that faculty member will be informed by the Honor System of the classification assigned to the offense, the sanction
that has been imposed, and the rationale therefore. The convicted student will be informed of the sanction that has been imposed and of all terms and conditions for its
completion.
ARTICLE IX: HONOR SYSTEM PERSONNEL
Section 1. Faculty Advisor. The Faculty Advisor shall be a member of the instructional
faculty (as defined in the Appendix) appointed by the President of the university upon
recommendation from the Provost. The duties of the Faculty Advisor include:
1. to serve as liaison to the Provost's office,
2. to chair the Honor System Review Board,
3. to serve as liaison to faculty, and
4. to advise student members of the Honor System.
Section 2. Chief Justice. The Chief Justice shall be a student appointed by the President of the university upon a recommendation from the Honor System Review Board.
This student must hold at least second term sophomore standing at the time of appointment, and should have served at least one academic year in the Honor System.
The duties of the Chief Justice include those duties delegated to all Associate Justices,
and, in addition:
1. to serve on the Honor System Review Board,
2. to keep the Office of Student Organizations apprised of all changes in officers
and/or the Faculty Advisor,
3. to serve as the Honor System representative on the Commission on Undergraduate Studies, and
4. to assign to Associate Justices responsibilities such as, but not limited to, preparation of the budget for the Student Budget Board and serving on relevant committees.
Section 3. Joint Duties. Joint duties of the Faculty Advisor and Chief Justice include:
1. to coordinate all activities of the Honor System,
2. to assure justice and fairness in the system,
3. to orient entering students and new faculty to the values and obligations of the
Honor Code,
4. to instruct and train Honor System participants in the operations, functions, and responsibilities of their respective positions,
5. to administer the operation of the Honor System, including during the summer sessions, and
6. to dismiss cases deemed to be without merit prior to judicial panel.
Section 4. Associate Chief Justice. The Associate Chief Justice shall be appointed by
the Honor System Review Board. The Associate Chief Justice should have at least one
semester of service in the Honor System. The duties of the Associate Chief Justice include those duties delegated to all Associate Justices, and, in addition:
1. to assist the Faculty Advisor and Chief Justice in the coordination of all Honor System activities,
2. to serve on the Honor System Review Board,
3. to serve as liaison between the Chief Justice and the Associate Justices so as to
foster efficiency and consistency, and
4.
to assume the duties of the Chief Justice in the event that he or she is unable to
fulfill the obligations of office upon recommendation of the Review Board and approval of the President.
Section 5. Associate Justice. The Associate Justices shall be appointed by the Honor
System Review Board with the approval of the Dean of the college in which the student
is enrolled. Appointees should have at least one term of service in the Honor System at
the time of appointment. Duties of the Associate Justices include:
1. to select, with other honor system personnel, the Judicial Panel members for cases,
2. to convene and conduct judicial panels as administrative hearing and not as an
adversarial hearing,
3. to serve, without voting privileges, on Judicial Panels,
4. to present cases to the Honor System Review Board,
5. to serve on the Honor System Review Board, and
6. to assist in the training and orientation of Honor System personnel.
Section 6. Judicial Panel members.
1. Student Panel members. The Honor System shall maintain a list of undergraduate
students who have volunteered to serve as panel members. To be eligible, students must have completed one semester at Virginia Tech, not been convicted of
an Honor System violation, and be in good standing both academically and with the
Office of Judicial Affairs.
2. Faculty Panel members. The Honor System shall maintain a list of eligible instructional faculty whose names have been submitted by the Dean of each college.
Section 7. Faculty counselors. The Honor System shall maintain a list of eligible instructional faculty whose names have been submitted by the Dean of each college. The
counselor shall explain honor system polices and procedures to the accused. The
counselor may attend the Judicial Panel and the Honor System Review Board with the
mutual concurrence of the counselor and accused. The counselor need not serve as an
advocate for the accused. The accused may also consult honor system personnel for
information on how the Honor System functions.
Section 8. Faculty Review Board members.
1. Five faculty Review Board members will be appointed as follows: two administrative, instructional, or library faculty members who will be appointed to three year
terms by the President of the University and three instructional or library faculty
members recommended by the Faculty Senate who will be appointed by the President of the University to staggered three-year terms.
2.
The President of the University will appoint the Faculty Advisor from among the
faculty members appointed to the Review Board.
Section 9. Professional staff. In conjunction with the Provost, professional staff may
be appointed to assist in the operation of the Undergraduate Honor System.
Section 10. Case Coordinator. The Chief Justice may appoint a Case Coordinator to
assist in the investigation of cases.
Section 11. Term Limits. No faculty member or administrator shall serve on the Review Board more than two consecutive three-year terms.
Section 12. Removal for Cause. Honor System personnel appointed by the Review
Board may be removed for cause by a vote of at least two-thirds of the Review Board
members present and voting. In the case of the Chief Justice, in addition to a vote of at
least two-thirds of the Review Board members present and voting, removal requires the
concurrence of the President of the university. Except for the Chief Justice, Honor System personnel removed for cause may appeal their removal to the Provost. Removal
for cause includes failure to maintain membership eligibility, conviction of an Honor
Code violation, conduct unbecoming a member of the Honor System, and failure to
faithfully discharge the duties of the appointed office.
ARTICLE X: GENERAL
Section 1. Reporting of Violations. It is the duty of all members of the academic community to report alleged violations promptly. Reports must be submitted in writing to the
Honor System. Forms provided for that purpose are available at the Honor System office, the Honor System website, and at the offices of all deans and departments.
Section 2. Time Limits. The Honor System will not commence proceedings on any
alleged violation if thirty class days (excluding summer) have elapsed from the date of
discovery to the date of reporting. Exceptions to this policy may be granted for cause at
the discretion of the Chief Justice and the Faculty Advisor, such cause including, but not
limited to, unavoidable delays in reporting or loss of case related materials in transit.
Section 3. Confidentiality. All investigations, hearings, reviews, and other associated
activities undertaken by the Honor System shall conform to the university's "Statement
on Confidentiality of Student Records."
Section 4. Substitution of Personnel. The Faculty Advisor and Chief Justice or a designee is authorized, when circumstances dictate, to appoint substitutes for any Honor
System personnel in any case before the Honor System.
ARTICLE XI: AMENDMENTS
Proposed amendments to the constitution of the Honor System shall be submitted to the
Honor System Review Board, which, with the approval of two-thirds of the Board, shall
forward the proposed amendments for approval to the Commission on Undergraduate
Studies and Policies, University Council, and the Board of Visitors. Any substantive
changes in the proposed amendments as they proceed shall be resubmitted to the
Honor System Review Board for approval.
APPENDIX 1: DEFINITIONS
1. Work for hire. Giving or receiving compensation in exchange for the preparation of
work submitted.
2. Purchased work. Turning in, as one’s own assignment, work which was obtained
in return for monetary or other compensation.
3. Tampering with records. Tampering with records includes, but is not limited to, the
fraudulent alteration of such official university records as grade reports, transcripts,
and computerized student records, or attempts thereof.
4. University service. This consists of assigned work in service to the university
community. The Provost will assign the student to a university administrator who
will in turn monitor the student's performance and verify to the Provost that the
sanction has been fulfilled. No monetary remuneration will be permitted for the
work associated with the sanction. Failure to complete the university service at the
time prescribed by the Provost will result in one-term suspension (excluding summer).
5. Endangerment. The probability that an innocent student is exposed to academic
harm or injury as the result of another Honor Code violation or the probability that a
faculty or staff member's career advancement might be adversely affected by an
Honor Code violation.
6. Premeditation. Preparation to do an act before it is carried out.
7. Unauthorized entry. Entering any faculty or staff residence, work place, office or
administrative and academic files and records (whether file cabinets or computers)
or any other student's personal property (whether residence, notebooks, or computer files) without permission or authority. It need not be proven that permission or
authority was required, only that there was reason to believe that permission or authority was required.
8. Education. Upon completing final review of a case forwarded from the Honor System Review Board, the Provost shall meet with a convicted student and:
◦ Explain to the student the Honor System's purpose, the types of Honor System
violations, sanctions imposed by the Honor System, and any other information
deemed necessary by the Provost,
◦ Obtain the accused's signature on a statement acknowledging the receipt and
understanding of this information.
9.
Honor Pledge. The Honor Pledge is to be written out on all graded assignments in
each class at the University, and is to be signed by the student. The Honor Pledge
represents both an expression of the student's support of the Honor Code and an
unambiguous acknowledgment that the student has, on the assignment in question,
abided by the obligations that the Honor Code entails.
10. Probation. Honor System probation begins seven calendar days after the office of
the Provost concurs with the decision of the Honor System Review Board and the
notice of conviction has been mailed to the student convicted of an honor violation.
Probation lasts until completion of undergraduate education and the awarding of
the baccalaureate degree(s). Conviction of a second offense while on probation
results in permanent expulsion.
11. Instructional faculty. Instructional faculty are faculty members eligible for election
to the Faculty Senate as defined in the Faculty Senate constitution.