Coastal Alabama Community College expects all members of its academic community to perform according to the highest ethical and professional principles.
Academic grievances include, but are not limited to, such conduct as academic dishonesty, grade disputes, unfair grading, and instructor disputes.
Steps for addressing an academic grievance:
- The student is to discuss the grievance with his/her instructor. Students should attempt to resolve grievances prior to start of final exams in the semester for which the grievance has occurred. The instructor is to respond to the student with a decision regarding the grievance within 5 business days.
- If the student does not agree with the resolution, the student may submit the grievance and results of the instructor’s resolution to the appropriate Division Chair using the Grievance Appeal Form. Division Chair contact information is listed in the course syllabus. The Division Chair is to respond to the Grievance Appeal within 5 business days.
- If the student is not satisfied with the response of the Division Chair, the student may forward the appeal to the appropriate Instructional Officer within 5 business days from receipt of the Division Chair decision. The Instructional Officer will respond to the student within 5 business days. The Instructional Officer’s decision is final.
Academic dishonesty includes but is not limited to:
- Cheating– The use or attempted use of unauthorized materials, information, study aids, the answers of others, or computer related information;
- Plagiarism– Claiming as one’s own the ideas, words, data, computer programs, creative compositions, artwork, etc., done by someone else. Examples include improper citation of referenced works, use of commercially available scholarly papers, failure to cite sources, or copying another’s ideas;
- Fabrication– Presenting as genuine, falsified data, citations, or quotations;
- Abetting– Helping another student commit an act of academic dishonesty. Examples include allowing a fellow student to copy quiz/examination answers or use one’s work as his/her own;
- Misrepresentation– Falsification, alteration, or misstatement of the contents of documents, academic works, or other materials related to academic matters, including works substantially done for one class as work done for another without receiving prior approval from the instructor.
Disciplinary actions for academic dishonesty range from:
- a grade of “F” or a “0” for the respective assignment or test;
- an “F” (failure) for the respective course;
- resubmission of an assignment or retaking a test;
- a reprimand in writing with clear consequences for subsequent incidents;
- impose other similar sanctions designed to preserve academic integrity.
The student must be given written notice by the course instructor addressing the academic misconduct before disciplinary action can be applied. The student is to be given the opportunity to prove he/she did not perform the act of academic dishonesty prior to imposing disciplinary sanctions.
If the instructor feels the College’s Code of Conduct has been breached, the misconduct may be referred to the Student Conduct Administrator for disciplinary review. Only the Student Conduct Administrator may suspend or expel a student.