Academic Integrity

As members of the CU Denver academic community; faculty, staff, and students accept the responsibility to maintain the highest standards of intellectual honesty and ethical conduct in all forms of academic work.

What is Academic Integrity and why is it important?

Academic Integrity is defined by the International Center for Academic Integrity (ICAI) as “a commitment to six fundamental values: honesty, trust, fairness, respect, responsibility, and courage.” (ICAI, 2021 p. 4)

By adopting these fundamental values CU Denver’s scholarly community will thrive. Here are some examples of ways to demonstrate each value (Adapted from ICAI, 2021):

International Center for Academic Integrity [ICAI]. (2021). The Fundamental Values of Academic Integrity. (3rd ed.)

Handling Academic Misconduct

The CU Denver Academic Integrity Committee (AIC) is charged with promoting and enforcing the CU Denver Academic Integrity Policy. The AIC is composed of faculty, students, and staff as well as a non-voting member from the Office of Student Conduct & Community Standards who coordinates the committee. There are two Canvas Classes designed to inform faculty and students regarding Academic Misconduct at CU Denver:

To disseminate a consistent message and support college-wide integrity standards, CU Denver suggests that all faculty utilize a portion of their course syllabi to inform students of ethical behavior and the Academic Integrity Policy.

While most student violations center on cheating or plagiarism, the CU Denver Academic Integrity Policy is more comprehensive and includes the following categories:

Types of Academic Misconduct

Academic Misconduct is defined as

a student's use of unauthorized assistance in attempt to deceive an instructor or other person who is assigned to evaluate the student's work in meeting course and degree requirements, or
actions that interfere with the ability of the instructor to fairly judge the work of the student or other students.

Academic misconduct includes any of the following behaviors:

Plagiarism is the use of another person’s distinctive ideas or words without acknowledgment. The incorporation of another person’s work into one’s own requires appropriate identification, regardless of the means of appropriation. Plagiarism includes but is not limited to the following, when the source is not disclosed:

Word-for-word copying of another person’s ideas or words;
The mosaic (the interspersing of one’s own words here and there while, in essence, copying another’s work);
The paraphrase (the rewriting of another’s work, yet still using their fundamental idea or theory);
Fabrication of references (inventing or counterfeiting sources);
Submission of another’s work as one’s own; or
Neglecting quotation marks on material that is otherwise acknowledged.

Cheating involves the possession, communication, or use of information, materials, notes, study aids, or other devices not authorized by the instructor in an academic exercise, or communication with another person during such exercise for the purpose of obtaining or providing unauthorized information or materials. "Authorization" is legitimate only if given by the faculty member responsible for the evaluation of the student's work. Examples of cheating include but are not limited to:

Copying from another’s work or receiving unauthorized assistance from another person during an academic exercise or in the submission of academic assignments;
Using an electronic device when not permitted;
Collaborating with another student during an academic exercise without the prior consent of the instructor.

The misuse of academic material includes, but is not limited to, the following:

Stealing or destroying library or reference materials or computer programs;
Stealing or destroying another student’s notes or materials, or having such materials in one’s possession without the owner’s permission;
Receiving assistance in locating or using sources of information in an assignment when such assistance has not been authorized by the instructor;
Possessing or using prior examinations or answer keys, unless authorized by the instructor;
Altering, forging, copying and pasting, or falsifying academic materials;
Selling or purchasing prior examinations, digital media, quantitative formulae, papers, or assignments.

Academic Misconduct Incidents

Faculty are encouraged to try to handle alleged academic misconduct cases at the faculty level. Many cases of academic misconduct involve miscommunications, absence of clear policies on syllabus or assignments, or cultural differences, all of which are best handled at the classroom level.

Procedure for Dealing with Academic Misconduct

All proceedings concerned with academic misconduct against a student are confidential to the extent permitted by applicable laws.

A faculty member, student, or staff may bring charges of academic misconduct against a student.
Any individual other than the instructor who has information/evidence suggesting that another student is guilty of academic misconduct should complete the General Academic Misconduct Allegations Form. The Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards will then forward this information to the instructor. The instructor will proceed with the resolution described below.

An individual who has evidence suggesting that a student committed academic misconduct is asked to complete an allegation form online (https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?UnivofColoradoDenver&layout_id=7). This form will initiate the Academic Misconduct process as defined by the CU Denver Academic Integrity Policy.
The instructor will need to identify a time for a meeting with the student to discuss the incident.
A letter to the student will be sent to the student requesting they meet with the instructor.
1. The student is not required to meet with the instructor; however, the instructor will then be responsible to make a decision without the student's participating.
The faculty/student meeting is best held in the faculty member’s office and should take place between three and five days (excluding weekends and holidays) after the student is provided notice of the alleged academic misconduct. The instructor is welcome to include someone from their department, like the Chair or their supervisor. The student may be interested in including a support person or advisor.
After meeting with the student, determine the student’s responsibility for the behavior using the preponderance of the information standard (more likely than not). A student would be considered "Responsible", if the student is accountable for the behavior or "Not Responsible", if the student is not accountable for the behavior.
1. If the faculty determines the student to be not responsible, they need to inform The Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards (SCCS) of the finding. The matter is considered closed and would not negatively reflect on the student's academic record.
2. If the faculty determines the student to be responsible, they must assign sanctions (academic, educational, advocacy, and/or disciplinary) to the student.
Sanctions may be described in the syllabus for the class, but are up to the instructor to determine. Sanctions may include:
1. Academic sanctions: receiving partial credit, receiving a zero on the assignment, receiving a point or grade reduction, or failing the class.
2. Educational Sanctions: request the student to learn about resources on campus, complete Academic Integrity Canvas Course, review the Academic Integrity Policy.
3. Advocacy Sanctions: recommend the student meet with the Office of Disability, Resources, and Services, Office of Case Management, or the Learning Resource Center for support.
4. Disciplinary Sanctions: these sanctions typically exceed the instructor's ability to implement but they can be upheld by the department or the AIC. These may be academic probation, program removal, suspension, or expulsion.

Typically, concerns of academic misconduct are resolved through the process described above; however there are instances when the concern is resolved through the Academic Integrity Committee Hearing process. Please visit this page to learn more about the AIC.