A senior in a humanities course was found responsible for plagiarism and providing false information on a written assignment. In an administrative hearing, the student admitted to using ideas and phrases from an outside source and constructing a false bibliography. The student had two previous Honor Council violations, and the standard sanction for a third is expulsion. In consideration of the student’s unprecedented personal difficulties outside of school, the Honor Council recommended a mitigated sanction of an F in the course, a mark on their permanent record and a one-year suspension.
A sophomore in a social science course was found not responsible for plagiarism and unauthorized assistance on an extra credit essay. In the Honor Council investigation, the student explained that she had watched a video lecture for the essay with a classmate and then shared notes with them. The notes provided by both students corroborated this testimony and explained the similarities between their work. Sharing notes was permitted within the course policy, so the charge was dismissed.
A junior in a natural science course was found responsible for plagiarism and unauthorized assistance on a homework assignment. The instructor reported two students due to strong similarities in their work, but the students reported different accounts about the extent of their collaboration. In a full hearing, one of the students admitted to taking photos of her classmate’s work, using those photos for reference on her own work and providing those photos to another classmate. Due to different instances of unauthorized collaboration and the significant value of the assignment, the Honor Council recommended a more severe sanction of an F in the course and a four-year Honor Code probation for the student.
