Academic integrity is an essential component for success and growth in any

academic community. The word integrity is defined on Dictionary.com as adherence

to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty. To the Center
for Academic Integrity (CAI), integrity is defined as a commitment, even in the face of
adversity, to six fundamental values: honesty, trust, fairness, respect, responsibility, and
courage. From these values flow principles of behavior that enable academic
communities to translate ideals to action. (academicintegrity.org). Promoting integrity
in any organization can have a positive impact on the attitudes and behaviors of its
members.
Providing set guidelines for academic integrity will set the basis for an ideal
academic community. The six values can be tied into any aspect of a learning institute.
Thomas Jefferson once said, Honesty is the first chapter in the Book of wisdom. Let it
be our endeavor to merit the character of a just nation. Honesty is the first fundamental
value required for integrity. When people of a community are honest, they will
eventually be able to create mutual trust in their relationships.
Fairness is another important part of achieving an environment of academic
integrity. The handbook states that An academic community of integrity establishes
clear standards, practices, and procedures and expects fairness in the interactions of
students, faculty, and administrators (academicintegrity.org). Respect is another value
to be committed to. Showing respect to one another in an organization is not only
common courtesy, but it is crucial. Responsibility is another commitment of academic
integrity. It is necessary for students and staff to not only be responsible for the code,
but it is important for students and teachers to be responsible in their day to day

activities. Courage is important when it comes to owning up to the things you do.
When a person commits to living by these five values, they will live a life of integrity and
create an environment of integrity in their organization.
Having set standards of academic integrity is important in any institution. An
academic community of integrity recognizes the participatory nature of the learning
process and honors and respects a wide range of opinions and ideas
(academicintegrity.org).
How strongly Gannon values their policy is conspicuous in the first two sentences
of the policy in the student handbook. It reads, Gannon University considers the
maintenance of academic integrity of utmost importance and stresses that students are
responsible for thoroughly understanding this code. Absolute integrity is expected of
every Gannon student in all academic undertakings. The school requires all students
to read and understand the code. The ending of it reads, Each student will receive the
Code of Academic Integrity publication of Gannon University during Freshman
Orientation or entrance into the University. Upon review of the publication, the students
will be invited to sign a pledge to uphold the Academic Integrity of their work and the
work of their peers. The majority of the policy strictly stresses receiving, reading,
understanding, and adhering to the code. The importance Gannon places on the
adherence to this policy shows how much of a priority it really is for them. They
distribute it to every student and invite them to sign a pledge to uphold the academic
integrity of their work.
Not only is the Academic Integrity Policy important to Gannon, but it is important
in any college or university. The ability of the university to achieve its purposes

depends upon the quality and integrity of the academic work that its faculty, staff, and
students perform. Having set standards of policies and procedures is essential for the
success and cooperation of members in any academic institution. When students and
faculty adhere to the basic guidelines in the student handbook, it will create a positive
environment for everyone in the organization.
Strict enforcement of the policy will ensure that each student is aware of what is
expected of them. When students and faculty become familiar with the policy, they are
better able to recognize and understand the responsibilities required of them. These
responsibilities will prepare students for the real world. It is important for student to
carry their habit of integrity into their future careers.
Developing good student-teacher relationships are essential for student success,
and adherence to the policy will help do this. The policy requires absolute integrity in
every student. This means that every student-teacher relationship will be supported
with complete trust and respect when they follow the code.
Living by the policy will create good habits and that students can apply to future
endeavors. Having absolute integrity is not only important in the classroom, but in the
real world as well. Integrity in an educational system translates directly into the
workplace. Students will develop good morals and healthy working habits in their future
careers.
Having a code of integrity for students and faculty is beneficial for higher
education and society as a whole. When an honorable academic environment is
created, students and staff will be able to reach their highest potential. The policy
creates a path for student success and a brighter future. Gannon Universitys mission

statement states, Our faculty and staff prepare students to be global citizens through
programs grounded in the liberal arts and sciences and professional specializations.
With the help of this policy and Gannons programs, the university hopes to turn their
students into responsible citizens.
Academic freedom can flourish only in a community of scholars which
recognizes that intellectual integrity, with its accompanying rights and responsibilities,
lies at the heart of its mission. Observing basic honesty in ones work, words, ideas, and
actions is a principle to which all members of the community are required to subscribe
(RIGHTS, RULES, RESPONSIBILITIES PRINCETON UNIVERSITY 1995).
The purpose of Gannons Academic Integrity policy is much more than
preventing students from cheating. The Center for Academic Integritys research
shows that campus norms and practices, such as effective honor codes, can make a
significant difference in student behaviors, attitudes, and beliefs
(academicintegrity.org). This policy in place will promote absolute integrity in the
university, its students, and society as a whole.
Requiring high standards for integrity will provide unity and cooperation in
students and faculty members. The call to promote academic integrity places
responsibility upon everyone in the educational community to balance high standards
with compassion and concern (academicintegrity.org). If every member of an
organization agrees to perform a certain way, their attitudes and behaviors will be
synchronized. This can create a strong organizational culture for the university and a
healthy working environment for students and staff.

I have learned in my classes that an organization is said to have a strong culture

when all of its members agree about how things are supposed to happen. When
everyone in a university agrees to following the Universitys guidelines and procedures,
they are creating a unified structure. The attitudes and behaviors of each member will
be understood and similar. This will make for a productive and efficient learning
institution and allow the school to reach its goals.
Enforced academic integrity policies in universities can benefit society as a
whole. Integrity can become part of ones moral character. Possessing this quality will
help guide peoples attitudes and behaviors throughout life. When honesty is required
of students, it can become habitual. Students who graduate from universities with these
codes will take what they learned in school and apply it to the real world.
Gannons Academic Integrity Policy says, Absolute integrity is expected of every
Gannon student in all academic undertakings; the student must in no way misrepresent
his/her work, fraudulently or unfairly advance his/her academic status, or be a party to
another student's failure to maintain integrity. The maintenance of an atmosphere of
academic honor and the fulfillment of the previsions of this code are the responsibilities
of the students and faculty of Gannon University.
The handbooks specifies several forms of academic dishonesty that are not
permitted in the classroom. A thorough explanation with specific examples is provided
for each one. If every student read through the document as they are required, there
would be no confusion about what is expected from them. Academic dishonesty is not
hard to avoid. It is important to be aware of what actions are considered to be in
violation of the policy and the severe penalties of performing them.

Plagiarism is a term familiar term to anyone who has ever been assigned a
paper. It is defined in the student handbook as the inclusion of someone else's words,
ideas or data as one's own work. Not only does plagiarism show a lack of integrity, but
it is against the law. School papers and assignments are not the only situations in
which people get in trouble for plagiarizing. It is taken much more seriously in the real
world. Students are taught at a young age the importance of citing sources properly to
avoid the potential consequences.
Fabrication is defined in the student handbook as the use of invented
information or the falsification of research or other findings with the intent to deceive.
Different forms of fabrication might include turning in work done by another person,
citing faulty sources, or providing made up information.
Academic Misconduct is another form of dishonesty that is in violation of the
policy. It is defined as the tampering with grades, or taking part in obtaining or
distributing any part of a test not administered.
Cheating is defined as an act of deception by which a student misrepresents
that he/she has mastered information on an academic exercise that he/she has not
mastered. Most dishonest behaviors that occur in the classroom can be classified as
cheating. Examples might include copying another students tests or assignments,
assisting others in copying tests or assignments, use of unauthorized materials during a
test, or working on tests with other students.
Stealing is a federal offence and is punishable by law in most countries
because it is unethical to take something that does not belong to you without another
persons approval. Cheating in the academic context is not much different. It is the act of

taking someones valuable thoughts, ideas, answers, intellectual property, and hard
work without their consent in order to advance. ~ Marina Shoughary
(academicintegrity.org).
Cheating is wrong. There is endless reasoning behind why students choose to
not to cheat, but it is important to be aware of the potential outcomes that come with
failing to adhere to the code. A blog post by Ralph Heibutzki on GlobalPost.com put
students' reasons for cheating in five different categories. These categories were
ambiguous attitudes, competitive pressures, institutional apathy, lack of understanding,
and self interest (Buchmann). Cheating will result in negative consequences in any
given scenario. It is important to know the impact cheating has on students, their peers,
and the university as a whole. I believe Gannon does not want students to cheat on
tests because of the negative effects it has on students and the educational system.
Many of the common ways students show a lack of integrity in the classroom would fall
under the category of cheating.
About 75 percent of college students admit to cheating, suggesting that probably
even more than three quarters of college students have done something against the
rules to improve their gradesAccording to the Boston Globe, the number of students
who admit to cheating has remained constant since it was first measured in 1963. As
our culture changes, college campuses become more competitive and internet gives
cheating new forms, it seems surprising that the percentage of students cheating would
remain the same. (Buchmann). Cheating is something commonly seen, but it is not at
all acceptable. Most students dont realize the serious effects and consequences that
come with cheating. There has been a lot of attempt to reduce cheating, but statistics

do not show that they have been effective. Every student should be educated on how
detrimental cheating really can be to your life.
Cheating can hurt not only you, but also the people around you. While
academic dishonesty may not be the gravest moral problem facing our youth, it is
certainly the most ubiquitous. Practiced habitually, cheating becomes, for moral
character, a kind of death by a thousand tiny cuts. (ethicsed.org). Cheating can be
detrimental to your academic success, the success of your peers, your moral character,
and your future.
Educators use exams and assignments as learning assessment tools for
students. If a student cheats when doing assignments and taking exams, those
documents are no longer an accurate assessment of that students knowledge of the
material. Not only is the assessment no longer valid, but the educator is completely
unaware about it. Students are assessed to ensure teachers they are meeting their
teaching objectives. If every student fails a test, the educator can recognize that there
is an issue preventing their students from succeeding. If students decide to cheat to
receive a better score on that same exam, no problem would be initially recognized.
Cheating can negatively impact the students character. Going through school
with the habit of lying and cheating in school will lead to bad habits later in life.
Cheating can become habitual, and living a life lacking integrity will not get you
anywhere. Students who cheat will live their life trying to do as little as they can to get
by. They will not be trusted or respected by their peers, their teachers, or even their
future employers and coworkers.

When a student makes the decision to cheat, they are taking a risk of getting
caught. Being caught guilty of cheating will ruin relationships between students and
teachers by ruining any built trust. Punishments for violations of this code can vary
depending on the severity of the situation. Some penalties are subject to decision by
faculty members, but some may be severe enough to require review and approve from
the Academic Dean.
The handbook talks about how teachers can follow two different procedures for
punishment. The informal procedure allows the instructor to impose a sanction without
approval from the Dean. These punishments might include receiving no credit for the
assignment involved or failure of the course. If the professor believes that the student
should be subject to more serious consequences, they can recommend that to the Dean
that they feel the student deserves to be suspended or expelled from the university.
A formal procedure is broken down in four steps. The first step is notifying the
student that a violation was suspected and asking them to discuss the matter with the
professor. If the student is cleared of suspicion, they will not be punished. The second
step says that students are permitted to make an appeal to the Dean if they do not
agree with the professors decisions. Once the appeal is processed, a hearing is
scheduled with the Dean, the instructor, and the student. The student is permitted to
provide evidence to defend themselves. If the Dean still finds the student guilty of the
violation, they have the power to add additional punishments along with the instructors
punishment. Finally, a student can make a final appeal to the Provost about the
fairness and appropriateness of those punishments.

Cheating can ruin your college career. The procedures for punishment are not
the only consequences of cheating. When you do not do your school work or take your
tests honestly, you are not learning all of the information that you are being taught. In
the end, cheating in school will only hurt yourself. Many students pick up this habit, and
it is not good. People who are known to be cheaters will lose the trust and respect of
others.
In order to prevent these consequences, students can only do one thing. For
cheating to be reduced, instead of seeing cheating as something that can't be done,
they must come to recognize that it should not be done. Removing the desire to cheat is
the least immediately practical but most assured way of encouraging academic integrity
(Buchmann). The only way for students to prevent the outcomes of cheating is to
simply not cheat.
The word integrity is defined on Dictionary.com as adherence to moral and
ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty. Having standards for
integrity in a learning institution will create unity among all of its members. Developing
an organization of unity will create a foundation for reaching goals and objectives. With
Gannons academic policy of integrity in place, the school, its students, and its faculty
will benefit in endless ways.

Works Cited:
Gannon University Student Handbook: Volume IV
Academicintegrity.org
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/uloop/cheating-in-college-where_b_4826136.html