Integrity Policy

Students of Oklahoma City Community College are expected to meet the highest ethical
standards in their academic pursuits. Faculty and staff share in this responsibility
with students to maintain academic integrity. Any form of academic dishonesty is subject
to disciplinary action by the college as outlined in the OCCC Academic Integrity Policy No. 4016. The absence of academic integrity is described as cheating, generally defined as
the deception about one’s work to others. Such acts may include but are not limited
to the following:

• Submitting another’s work as one’s own or allowing another to submit one’s work as
  though it were his or hers;
• Several people completing an assignment and turning in multiple copies all represented
  either implicitly or explicitly as individual work;
• Failing to contribute an equal share in group assignments or projects while claiming
  equal credit for the work;
• Using a textbook, notes, or technology tools during an examination without permission
  of the faculty member;
• Receiving or giving unauthorized help on assignment or examinations;
• Stealing a problem solution or assessment answers from a professor, a student or other
  sources;
• Tampering with experimental data to obtain “desired” results, or creating results
  for experiments not done;
• Creating results for observations or interviews that were not done;
• Obtaining an unfair advantage by gaining or providing access to examination materials
  prior to the time authorized by the faculty member;
• Tampering with or destroying the work of others;
• Submitting substantial portions of the same academic work for credit or honors more
  than once without permission of the faculty member;
• Lying about these or other academic matters;
• Falsifying college records, forms or other document;
• Accessing computer systems or files without authorization;
• Plagiarizing (Plagiarism is generally defined as the use in one’s writing of specific
  words, phrases, and/or ideas of another without giving proper credit). Any person
  with a good faith suspicion that a violation of academic integrity had occurred shall
  report the suspected misconduct to the appropriate faculty member or immediate supervisor
  in whose area the suspected misconduct occurred. Should a faculty member determine
  that a student violation of academic integrity has occurred; the following actions
  shall be taken:
  • The faculty member may record a reduced grade no lower than zero for the assignment,
    require the student to redo the assignment and/or assign additional work, assign a
    failing grade in the class, or recommend other appropriate action.
  • The faculty member shall present in writing (electronic documents are not acceptable)
    a description of the specific occurrence, any supporting documentation, and the action
    taken to the appropriate Dean within ten (10) working days of the determination that
    a violation has occurred.
  • The Dean shall review and forward all supporting documentation and his/her recommendations
    to the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs within three (3) working days.
  • The Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs shall send the student a certified
    letter within three (3) working days of receipt of the documentation that verifies
    that a report of the incident and the faculty member’s actions is on file in the office
    of the Associate vice President for Academic Affairs, and notifies the student of
    the student’s right to appeal the determination that misconduct has occurred.
  • Should a student disagree with the determination of the faculty member, the student
    may file an appeal in accordance with the Student Appeal of a Grade procedure within
    five (5) working days of the receipt of the certified letter (Student Appeal of a
    Grade No. 4030). •The Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs may file an official
    complaint of a Student Conduct Code violation.
  • The Student Conduct Code is published each year in the OCCC Student Handbook.