Appeal Hearing Guidelines

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The Academic Integrity Appeal Hearing Guidelines provide information on the appeal hearing process for students, faculty, staff, and administrators. The appeal process is the final possible step in the academic integrity process to ensure fairness, consistency, and due process in addressing academic misconduct while fostering an educational environment rooted in honesty and integrity.

General Information on the Appeal Process

The academic integrity appeal ensures due process requirements are met. The appeal is the final opportunity to determine whether the charge of academic misconduct and the resulting penalty stand or whether the matter is returned to the faculty member to assign a grade based on the work completed. All appeals are heard by a quorum as established in the academic integrity policy. During the appeal process, the Academic Integrity Director will ensure that all parties involved have been notified and have access to relevant documents. The Academic Integrity Director and other relevant parties also monitor the appeal process to ensure the appropriate procedures are followed.

Students have the right to due process and a fair appeal process. A student may file an academic integrity appeal in two different situations:

1. The student accepts the responsibility for the academic integrity violation but not the sanction.
2. The student denies responsibility for the violation.

The student must initiate the appeal procedure within five working days of the facilitation meeting. The appeal procedure is only initiated when the student submits the Appeal Initiation Form, which will be provided to the student following the facilitation meeting. If the appeal form is not submitted within five working days, the case will be closed, and no further appeal may be initiated on the reported incident.

Appeal Hearing Steps

1. Before the appeal hearing, all parties to an appeal have a right to review the written material submitted to the Academic Integrity Director concerning the appeal.
2. Prior to the hearing, the Academic Integrity Director must also check to see if the student had a prior violation and inform the Academic Integrity Council if so.
3. The Academic Integrity Director will coordinate an appeal hearing date and time with the Academic Integrity Council, the student, and the faculty. Additional attendees may include witnesses who may speak or present evidence if they have direct information pertaining to the specific Academic Integrity Policy violation or involvement with said report of violation as reported. Character witnesses are not permitted and will be dismissed by the Council.
4. For the appeal hearing to proceed, the Academic Integrity Council must have a quorum in attendance of the hearing. The quorum is defined as met if both of the following thresholds are met: 
   1. A minimum of three colleges are represented through facilitators in addition to one student facilitator must be present and vote 
   2. At least five voting members must be present.  
5. During the hearing, the student and faculty member will each speak to the violation and the appeal of the responsibility and/or sanction for the reported violation. Additional witnesses, as defined in #3, may also speak to the case. Then, the Academic Integrity Councilors will ask questions to clarify the components of the case.
6. The faculty, student, and any witnesses will be dismissed. The Academic Integrity Council will deliberate and determine a final decision based on a majority vote of the quorum.
7. The Academic Integrity Director will email official memos with the Academic Integrity Council’s decision to all parties involved. In cases involving graduate students, honors students, or athletes, those respective offices will be notified by an official letter from the Academic Integrity Director of the appeal results only upon the completion of the appeal and following the posting of the notification of the appeal to the student and faculty member involved.
8. The Academic Integrity Council’s decision will address if an academic integrity violation occurred and/or if the sanction assigned was appropriate for the violation.
   1. If the Council determines that the sanction was inappropriately assigned for the violation, the Council is authorized to change the sanction to one it deems more appropriate or require the faculty member to reassess the student's academic work.
   2. The instructor of record must meet the Academic Integrity Director's deadline for action (reassessment, grade change, etc.), or the case will be referred to the faculty member's school director, and the dean and Office of the Provost will be notified.
9. The determination of the Academic Integrity Council is final and may only be appealed to the Office of the Provost on procedural grounds. The decision may not be appealed on substantive grounds.

Appeal Notes

1. The appeal process described in the Student Academic Integrity Policy applies to grades or penalties given for academic misconduct. Students wishing to appeal a grade unrelated to academic misconduct should use the grade appeal procedures described in the Grade Review Policy. A Grade Review may not be used to overturn an XF grade
2. If an academic integrity case is in the appeal stage at the time that final grades are due, the instructor will input an incomplete (I) grade at the time of grade submission until the case is finalized.
3. The student can appeal the sanction while the course is still in progress and should not need to wait until the final course grade is posted.
4. Students notified of a potential violation of the Academic Integrity Policy are not eligible to withdraw from a class until the student has completed the facilitation process and/or the appeals process. Instructors and the Office of the Registrar must deny any request for withdrawal.
5. Students should not be disallowed from continuing to attend or participate in any class solely because of alleged academic misconduct before they have an opportunity to appeal.
6. Students who appeal an instructor's decision may continue registering for and attending classes until the appeal process is completed.
7. If a student decides to withdraw from the University entirely, the student will still receive an XF for the course for which the academic integrity violation occurred while receiving W grades for all other courses.
8. Graduate students wishing to appeal a sanction for academic misconduct, including dismissal based on academic misconduct, should first file an appeal with the Academic Integrity Council. A subsequent appeal for dismissal from the graduate school should be based upon the resolution of the academic integrity appeal.
9. If the student or faculty member does not respond to the academic integrity officer's inquiries about the appeal meeting, the meeting can still occur if at least one party is represented. An absence must not impede the progress of a hearing, and submitted evidence can still be reviewed without one party.
10. If the student or faculty member is more than 10 minutes late to the scheduled appeal hearing, the appeal will proceed in absentia of that party.
11. Although the Academic Integrity Council's decisions must be based on a full and fair hearing of the preponderance of evidence, Council hearings are not courts of law and do not necessarily follow standard courtroom procedures.
12. Students seeking to appeal an academic integrity violation sanction are encouraged to discuss an allegation with parents, guardians, legal counsel, or any appropriate University community member.
13. If a student has advisors or legal counsel, they may also be present at the hearing, and students may consult with them, but they may not speak on the student's behalf or verbally participate in any enforcement proceedings.