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Part IV of the ECU Faculty Manual
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To get to the Faculty Manual
1. Go to ECU Home and click on “Faculty & Staff.”
2. Scroll down to the “Policies” section and click on
the last link in the list.
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Explanation of the importance of academic
integrity
List of definitions and examples of academic
integrity violations
The procedures to be followed
The structure of the Academic Integrity
Board
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Plagiarism
Copying the language, structure, ideas, and/or thoughts of
another and adopting the same as one’s own original work.
Some examples of plagiarism (note that this is not an exhaustive
list): Submitting a paper that has been purchased or
downloaded from an essay-writing service; directly quoting,
word for word, from any source, including online sources,
without indicating that the material comes directly from that
source; omitting a citation to a source when paraphrasing or
summarizing another's work; submitting a paper written by
another person as one’s own work.
 Put a clear statement in your syllabus about the
consequences—including the specific penalties you
will impose—for academic integrity violations.
Penalties for plagiarism are severe—if I become aware of any intentional
attempt to plagiarize (e.g. knowingly submitting someone else’s work
as your own, downloading a paper from the internet, etc.), you will be
given an “F” for the course and a report will be filed with the Office of
Student Rights and Responsibilities…. If you are caught cheating or
plagiarizing a second time, in this course or in any other course while
you are at ECU, you can be suspended or even expelled from the
university.
Faculty member notifies student in writing of
suspected violation and requests a meeting
1.
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2.
Must have “evidence of dispatch”—includes ECU email.
Must be sent within 7 days of when the suspected
violation comes to the attention of the faculty member
Student responds to notification
 Must contact the faculty member and schedule a meeting
within 7 calendar days
 Faculty member can proceed with penalty if no response
3.
Initial meeting occurs
 Should be held within 18 calendar days of the time that the
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suspected violation has come to the attention of the faculty
member
The Chair of the department should be notified of the meeting.
Both the faculty member and the student may have a nonparticipating observer* present. You should let the student
know of this option.
The faculty member explains the reasons for his or her suspicion
of an academic integrity violation.
The student is given the opportunity to respond and explain any
circumstances that he or she believes the faculty member needs
to consider.
After the meeting, the faculty member
determines outcomes of the initial meeting
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No violation found—Faculty notifies student and
the process ends
Violation found—Faculty imposes academic
penalty by filling out and submitting, within 10
calendar days, an “Academic Integrity Violation
Form” to OSRR. OSRR notifies student and
pursues further action if prior records exist.
“In some instances, a faculty member may deem it best
to approach a potential matter involving academic
dishonesty as a learning opportunity. In such cases, a
faculty member may require that a student complete
additional work in order to better understand the
severe nature of academic dishonesty and to learn
ways of avoiding future infractions. If at any point,
however, the faculty member determines that a grade
reduction or other substantial academic penalty is
merited in the case, either as a result of the initial
infraction or as a result of a student not sufficiently
completing the additional work agreed to, she or he
must follow the process outlined…”
In severe cases, an instructor can impose a penalty in which the
student fails the course and receives a grade of “XF” indicating
that failure was the result of an academic integrity violation.
 The “XF” designation must remain on the student’s transcript for
at least one year and will be removed only if the student has
completed an academic integrity training module and obtained
approval of the Director of OSRR.
 Courses in which a student receives a grade of “XF” are not eligible
for grade replacement and will be factored into the student’s GPA,
even if the “X” is removed and the course is retaken.
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Conditions for student appeal
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The student believes that the faculty member has not
sufficiently supported his or her decision based on the
materials discussed during the initial meeting
-orThe student believes that the penalty is not appropriate
for the violation and/or is in conflict with course policies
as stated in the syllabus. Note that if specific penalties
are indicated in the course syllabus, it is expected that
students who have violated the academic integrity policy
will be held to those penalties.
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A student may appeal a faculty member’s
imposition of a penalty even if the faculty
member has not properly followed the steps
outlined above.
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The student completes appeal form, which is reviewed by
3-member panel in OSSR to ensure merit.
If the panel sees grounds for appeal, the case goes to an
Academic Integrity Appeal Board for a hearing.
An Academic Integrity Appeal Board is formed from
members of the larger University Committee on Academic
Integrity (UCAI). This is a new body composed of 16 faculty
and 16 students.
 For detailed procedures about the hearings, see the full policy in Part
IV of the Faculty Manual or contact OSRR.