Academic integrity entails being truthful to oneself and to the larger Design Studies Institute community, being original in thought and expression, and attributing honest ideas and words taken from other sources. Originality of thought and expression is fundamental to academic discourse, as is honesty in giving credit to other thinkers when using their ideas and words.
The academic integrity principle, broadly stated, means students have done or have prepared the work or research in or out of class that bears their names and that they have given proper acknowledgement for the use of materials and sources. The policy on academic integrity has been developed to provide guidelines to determine what conduct violates the academic integrity principle and procedures for dealing with conduct alleged to be in violation of the academic integrity principle. These procedures guarantee due process to all members involved in cases of alleged violation of academic integrity and protects the rights of faculty and students involved in such cases. A matter concerning violation of academic integrity is to be considered separate and apart from instances of student misbehavior.
The following are given as examples of violations of academic integrity. Since a violation takes place whenever anyone undermines the academic integrity of the Design Studies Institute or attempts to take unfair advantage of others, this list is not and cannot be exhaustive. Academic integrity is not simply a matter of conforming to certain rules; it must be understood in terms of broader academic purposes of education at the Design Studies Institute.
- Cheating – Attempting to use or using unauthorized material or information as study aids in any academic exercise. Visually or verbally receiving or giving information during tests.
- Counterfeit work – Includes work submitted as one’s own that was created, researched, or produced, in whole or in part, by someone else. Turning in a report of another’s research, submitting a paper researched or written by someone else, having someone else take a test, and submitting joint projects as solely one’s own, are all forms of counterfeit work and are unacceptable.
- Falsification of academic records - Knowingly and improperly changing grades on transcripts, grade sheets, electronic data sheets, related documents, academic reports, tests and projects is an act violating academic integrity.
- Falsification of data or creation of false data- Falsification or fabrication of data in research or experimental procedures is considered an act of violation of academic integrity.
- Plagiarism – Includes presenting as one’s work the work of someone else without properly acknowledging the source (in work, for example, for specific class assignments or for submissions to campus publications). Plagiarism is theft: using the words and ideas of another person as if they were one’s own. Exact copying should be enclosed in quotation marks and be appropriately documented in footnotes or endnotes that indicate the source of the quotation. Paraphrasing, when the basic sentence structure, phraseology, and unique language remain the same, is also plagiarism. When in doubt about these matters, it is the student’s responsibility to seek guidance from the instructor of the course prior to submitting material for course credit.
- Theft – Communicating all or any part of tests or answer sheets, specifically prepared for a given course and as yet not used or publicly released by the instructor of a course, and theft of completed tests constitute violations of academic integrity.
- Unauthorized reuse of work – Submitting the same work to more than one class without consent of the instructors involved constitutes a violation of academic integrity.
The procedural policy on academic integrity distinguishes between an informal and formal inquiry into incidents concerning violations of academic integrity. Each stage of the academic integrity process, informal and formal, is to be conducted in strict confidentiality. A member of the faculty who discovers in a student’s work or conduct what they judge to be an act of academic dishonesty will deal with the matter as follows:
- Informal Inquiry: A faculty member suspecting a student of a violation of academic integrity may attempt to deal with the situation in an informal manner. This informal manner would involve discussing the situation with the student suspected of the violation and informing the student of the penalty sought to be imposed by the faculty member. If the student does not challenge the penalty, the matter is resolved. If this is not successful, the matter will proceed to a formal inquiry. A faculty member may also decide that the matter is serious enough to bypass the informal inquiry and to proceed directly to a formal inquiry.
- Formal Inquiry: If resolution is not achievable through the informal means, a formal inquiry is to be pursued. The faculty member and/or the student reports the matter by email to report@dsi.edu.ai. The formal inquiry is overseen by a Committee on Academic Integrity composed of the Dean and one (1) member of the Faculty Council, and one (1) student representative. The Committee will invite the faculty member and student concerned to submit a statement in writing detailing the incident and any evidence pertinent to the matter. The Committee may or may not interview the involved student and/or faculty member; the Committee reserves the right to seek additional information from other pertinent sources. The Committee will consider the statement and the evidence submitted by both the faculty member and the student and will base its decision and any possible penalty on that evidence. The decision of the Committee on Academic Integrity shall be final and binding on both the faculty member and the student. Records of student violations of academic integrity confirmed by the Committee will be maintained as part of the student record.
The Committee on Academic Integrity may select from among the penalties:
- A grade of "Fail" on the paper, examination, project, or assignment.
- Reduction of final course grade.
- A grade of "Fail" for the course.
- Disciplinary dismissal from the Institute for at least one term following the term in which the offense has occurred.
- Immediate disciplinary dismissal from the Institute for not longer than the remainder of the current and the following term.
- Permanent disciplinary dismissal from the Institute.
Students may not withdraw their registration from the course involved once a formal inquiry has been made. A formal inquiry must be initiated by the end of the term following the term in which the incident occurs.
