The Role of Academic Integrity within the Academic Community

Academic integrity is a fundamental value upon which colleges and universities are built. Students, faculty and staff are expected to contribute candid opinions, reviews, and assessments of research and other academic exercises that are vital to sustaining the discussion and exchange of ideas. This conversation stimulates intellectual growth and development among the community and its members. For learning and scholarship to thrive, academic communities cannot tolerate acts of academic dishonesty, such as cheating, misrepresentation, or plagiarism.

According to the Center for Academic Integrity, there are five fundamental values that characterize an academic community of integrity:

• Honesty. The quest for truth and knowledge requires intellectual and personal honesty in learning, teaching, research and service.
• Trust. Academic institutions must foster a climate of mutual trust in order to stimulate the free exchange of ideas.
• Fairness. All interactions among students, faculty, and administrators should be grounded in clear standards, practices, and procedures.
• Respect. Learning is acknowledged as a participatory process, and a wide range of opinions and ideas is respected.
• Responsibility. A thriving community demands personal accountability on the part of all members and depends upon action in the face of wrongdoing.

Acts of academic dishonesty compromise these core values and undermine the process by which knowledge is created, shared, and evaluated. Repeated offenses cast suspicion on the integrity of individuals and damage the reputation of the larger academic community.

Test Your Knowledge: Academic Integrity Quiz

Academic Honesty Policy and Procedures

View the college's policy on academic integrity: Academic Honesty Policy and Procedures, which applies to undergraduate and graduate students.