Axe ’Em, Jacks!
Faculty members should follow these four steps toward resolution of an alleged academic integrity violation.
View a printable resolution flowchart (PDF).
Reminders before you begin
- Academic sanctions, as defined in Article III of the Code of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity, can only be applied after the formal outcome letter has been sent by the Dean of Students Office.
- Faculty resolutions can only utilize academic sanctions as defined in Article III of the Code of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity.
- Faculty members must comply with all notice requirements as outlined in Article VI of the Code of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity.
- A student's eligibility for faculty resolution must be verified before a faculty member may proceed with adjudicating a case via faculty resolution.
Checklist for faculty
- If the faculty member chooses to do so, they may inform the student of a suspected violation. The faculty member should take care not to begin the adjudication process until eligibility has been determined.
- The faculty member should submit an Academic Integrity Case Initiation Form.
- If the student is eligible for faculty resolution, the Dean of Students Office will send the faculty member an Academic Integrity Faculty Resolution Form. The faculty member then schedules a meeting with the student. Per Article VI(a), a period of two days is required before meeting with the student.
- The faculty member should meet with the student and both should complete the Academic Integrity Faculty Resolution Form.
- The faculty member should email the completed Academic Integrity Faculty Resolution Form to sco@sfasu.edu or hand deliver it to the Dean of Students Office in the Rusk Building. Do not send the form and evidence through campus mail.
Step One: Start the process
When an alleged violation of Article IV of the Code of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity is suspected, faculty members should first submit the Academic Integrity Case Initiation Form. This form will start the case creation process. A helpful resource may be our Sanctioning Guidelines for Academic Integrity Violation webpage.
Faculty members are also encouraged to speak to the student in question to notify them of the suspicion of an academic integrity violation. Within two business days of receiving the initiation form, the Dean of Students Office will verify if the student is eligible for a faculty resolution so that the case may proceed through the resolution process. If the student is eligible for a faculty resolution, proceed with completing the Academic Integrity Faculty Resolution Form.
Students with prior academic integrity history are not eligible for a faculty resolution and thus will proceed directly to a formal hearing.
Step Two: Investigation and evidence
Once eligibility for a faculty resolution has been verified, the faculty member's investigation and review of the evidence should occur.
This investigation and review are entirely dependent upon the circumstances of the alleged charge and behavior(s). For example, it could include reviewing a Turnitin report or collecting written statements from witnesses who observed the behavior.
Once this is complete, contact the student to schedule a meeting with them. Per Article VI(a), this meeting must be at least two business days after first contacting the student.
Step Three: Faculty resolution
If the student is eligible for a faculty resolution, the Dean of Students Office will send the Academic Integrity Faculty Resolution Form to the faculty member.
Per Article VI(d), faculty resolutions are completed in one of three ways:
- Full acceptance: The student accepts both the finding(s) and the sanction(s) and waives their right to an appeal and a formal hearing.
- Partial acceptance: The student accepts the finding but disputes the sanction. Their right to a formal hearing is waived, but the right to appeal is preserved.
- Student declines the full faculty resolution: If this happens, the case is referred to the Dean of Students Office for resolution with a formal hearing officer.
With each resolution option, the faculty member should complete the Academic Integrity Faculty Resolution Form, with the signatures of both the student and the faculty member, and email it, along with all the evidence if not already submitted, to sco@sfasu.edu. Faculty members may also hand deliver the form and any evidence to the Dean of Students Office in the Rusk Building's third floor lobby. Do not send the form and evidence through campus mail.
Step Four: Outcome letter sent
The Dean of Students Office will send an official outcome letter to the student and copy the faculty member.
If the student fully accepted the faculty resolution, the case is complete.
If the student partially accepted, the student maintained their appeal right, but this appeal must be submitted within 14 days of the delivery of the outcome letter.
If the student declined the faculty resolution, the case will be scheduled with a formal hearing officer.