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High Point University > Student Conduct > University Honor Code

Preamble

We, the students of High Point University, believe that honesty and integrity are essential to student development, whether personal, social, or academic. Therefore, we assert that:

Every student is honor-bound to refrain from conduct which is unbecoming of a High Point University student and which brings discredit to the student and/or to the University;

Every student is honor-bound to abstain from cheating;
Every student is honor-bound to abstain from collusion;
Every student is honor-bound to abstain from plagiarism;
Every student is honor-bound to confront a violation of the University Honor Code;
Every student is honor-bound to report a violation of the University Honor Code.

Interpretation of the Honor Code

History. The High Point University Honor Code originated within the Senate of the Student Government Association. It  was then adopted by students in a general referendum, by the faculty on April 17, 1997, by the Administrative Council and by the Board of Trustees.

Authority. Although the High Point University Honor Code cannot exist without the involvement of faculty and staff, the Honor Code was created by students and shall be maintained and enforced by the Judicial Board of the Student Government Association out of the Office of Student Life.

Pledge. When a student accepts an offer of admission from High Point University, they in turn are agreeing to abide by the University Honor Code. Therefore, professors may ask students to sign the following oath: On my honor, I have abided by the High Point University Honor Code at the beginning of semesters on the Syllabus or for tests, projects or any other assignments.

Definitions

For purposes of interpreting the University Honor Code, the following definitions shall apply:

Cheating. Cheating includes, but is not limited to:

  • the use of unauthorized information during testing or examination; the submission, in whole or in part, of the ideas or work of another as ones own;
  • completing academic work for another student who later submits said work, in whole or in part, as her/his own;
  • submission of the same or similar work in two or more classes without the approval of the instructor(s) involved.

Collusion. Collusion includes, but is not limited to:

  • agreements or conspiracies entered into for fraudulent or illegal purposes;
  • discussing or otherwise describing the content of a test or examination with a student who will take a similar examination in the same course at a later period;
  • forgery for purposes of deception.

Property violations. Property violations include, but are not limited to:

  • misappropriation (see High Point University Code of Conduct);
  • the misappropriation of patents, copyrights, trademarks, or computer software;
  • securing information from the Internet or similar sources without paying the required fees or royalties, where prescribed;
  • the destruction or corruption of information technologies intended for common use;
  • the misappropriation of library resources intended for common use;forgery for purposes of theft.

Plagiarism. Plagiarism violations include, but is not limited to:

  • plagiarism involves quoting or paraphrasing without proper acknowledgment;
  • submission of work without appropriate documentation or quotation marks:
  • part or all of written or spoken statements derived from sources, such as books, the Internet, magazines, pamphlets, speeches, or oral statements;
  • part or all of written or spoken statements derived from files maintained by individuals, groups or campus organizations;
  • the sequence of ideas, arrangement of material, or pattern of thought of someone else, even though you express such processes in your own words.

Acknowledgment. Proper acknowledgment includes identifying the author and source of a quoted or paraphrased passage and indicating clearly ( by the appropriate use/omission of quotation marks or indention’s) whether the passage is being quoted or paraphrased.

Responsibility of the Community

Because a University cannot perform its proper function in the absence of academic integrity and social responsibility and because you are a member of this University community, you are expected:

  • to demonstrate academic integrity personally;
  • to confront violations of the University Honor Code;
  • to notify instructors when you believe that violations have occurred, regardless of whether or not you choose to identify the suspected offenders or yourself.

Academic Integrity. By practicing the following guidelines, you can help assure that you will not be suspected of academic dishonesty:

  • where material is quoted, use quotation marks if the quotation involves fewer than four or fewer lines; indent, using double spacing, passages, which are longer than four lines;
  • where material is paraphrased, be sure the wording is distinctly different from the original source because you will have plagiarized if you use any word order and/or grammatical structure original with the author of the source, except where material is indented or placed in quotation marks;
  • where material is paraphrased, quoted, or otherwise appropriated for academic use, acknowledge the author and source;
  • do not take dictionaries, notes, or textbooks into the classroom during a major test without the consent/direction of the instructor;
  • be sure that notes and texts are closed and out of sight during quizzes;
  • do not communicate with other students during a test or quiz;
  • do not discuss the content of a test or examination with a student who is scheduled to take a similar test or examination in a different section of the same course.

Confrontation. Although the University Honor Code does not prescribe the method of confrontation, although such confrontation may be either direct or indirect, and although civility is expected in all situations, you are expected to confront in some manner persons suspected of violating the University Honor Code. You may:

  • talk directly with the person you suspect of violating the University Honor Code, advising her/him that (s)he is incriminating her/himself and explaining the moral and legal consequences of violating the University Honor Code;
  • ask another member of the University community to talk with the person you suspect of violating the University Honor Code, advising her/him that (s)he is incriminating her/himself, and explaining the moral and legal consequences of violating of the University Honor Code;
  • report a violation to the instructor, to the vice president for academic affairs, to the dean of students, or to the attorney general of the student government association.

Notification. Although the University Honor Code does not require to identify persons suspected of violating the code, it does require students to advise their instructor when they have reason to believe that violations have occurred. Faculty will be  more able to reduce violations if they are aware that violations may be occurring.

Right to Report. Although the University Honor Code does not require students to report persons who violate the code, members of the University community are encouraged to report suspected violators directly to the instructor or by reporting it to the Student Conduct Department to the Office of Student Life. Any member of the High Point University community, including members of the faculty, the staff, or student body, may request an investigation if (s)he has reason to believe that another individual is in violation of the University Honor Code. If the case is related to a particular class, the instructor of that class shall investigate the case and shall initiate charges and sanctions, if appropriate.  If the case is not related to a particular course (e.g., appropriation, forgery, property violations), the Dean of Students, or his designee, shall investigate the case and shall initiate charges and sanctions, if appropriate.

Special Notices

Academic Forgiveness. In the event that a student repeats a course at High Point University which (s)he previously failed for violations of the University Honor Code, both the “F” and the repeat grade will be computed in the grade-point average, with the result that the normal repeat policy does not apply.

Appeals. Disciplinary sanctions imposed by the instructor, by the dean of students, or by the University Honor Court may be appealed by following the appellate procedures described on page 119 of A Guide to Campus Life.

Records. When sanctions are imposed by the instructor, by the dean of students, or by the University Honor Court for violations of the University Honor Code, From OSL 101 (Honor Code Incident Report) should be filed in the Office of Student Life. A copy of the form should be sent to the student and to the instructor in cases where the instructor has referred the student to the University Honor Court. Policies for the retention and disposal of records are describe on pages 5-6 of A Guide to Campus Life.

Refunds. In the event that a student is excluded from the University, the regular refund policy described in the Undergraduate Bulletin or the Guide to Campus Life shall apply. In the event that a student is excluded from selected courses, programs or facilities for violations of the University Honor Code, monies due, of payable will not be refunded in whole or part.