Honor Code and Academic Integrity
Faculty members have a number of different roles to play in supporting Middlebury’s Honor Code.
These include teaching students appropriate citation practices for the many different fields reflected in our curriculum; helping them to understand and embrace the value of intellectual integrity and the language of scholarship; clarifying for students their expectations in their own classes; apprising students of important resources for citation styles and practices; and holding students accountable for violations.
Expectations
The College takes the Honor Code seriously. Before students enter Middlebury College, they are required to sign a document stating that they have read the code and understand it, and they are given a multi-step orientation to the Honor Code upon their arrival. Middlebury believes that student adherence to the Honor Code is a shared responsibility: it is the responsibility of the faculty to provide clear instructions in their syllabi on preferred citation practices and on their expectations for each assignment regarding independent or collaborative work, and access to sources; it is the responsibility of the students to seek clarification from their professors if they are unclear on any of these elements.
Students are expected to sign the honor pledge—“I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid on this assignment”—on all written work submitted.
Examinations
You should also be aware that any exams that you give must be unproctored. After passing out the exam and answering questions about it, you should leave the room. However, the Dean of the Faculty may grant an instructor permission to proctor an examination in his or her course when the instructor has communicated to the dean of the College that she or he has a concern that students will cheat in examinations in the course. Authorization will apply to the remainder of the semester.
Plagiarism
We strongly advise faculty to discuss the issue of plagiarism in all classes that involve writing papers, so that students are familiar with your expectations regarding their use of secondary sources, if any, and the way in which sources are appropriately documented in your field. As noted above, you should also be clear about what level of collaboration among students, if any, is desired or acceptable in their completion of homework assignments. Please remind students that duplicate use of written work is also a violation of the Honor Code.
Middlebury Handbook
The Academic Honesty section of the Middlebury Handbook spells out the particulars of the Honor Code. If you have any questions about the Honor Code that your departmental colleagues cannot answer, please contact Dean of Students, Joe Russell at joer@middlebury.edu.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are some recommended best practices for helping students to understand academic integrity?
Students respond positively when professors take time to discuss not only the logistics of their assignments in relation to the honor code, but broader issues of academic integrity in the context of their field and of their class. Although some professors do this at the beginning of the semester, others reinforce this theme by finding ways to integrate it throughout the class.
It is helpful to include in your syllabus specific instructions on what kind of assistance is and is not permitted. Issues to consider include sharing group-generated data; proof-reading by native speakers in language courses; parental collaboration; use of tutors, etc. It is additionally helpful to include in your syllabus a clear policy on late assignment submissions.
How do I make a distinction between a few sloppy citations and a case of plagiarism requiring a report?
There is no formula or guideline for making this distinction. In cases where you find yourself in this kind of gray area, it’s helpful to contact the Community Standards office. Together you can review the situation and a member of the office will be able to provide some broader institutional context for how cases like this have been handled in the past.
What happens if I think I have a case of cheating or plagiarism?
Contact the Dean of Students, Joe Russell at joer@middlebury.edu or 802-443-3417. You’ll talk through your situation and determine if there is enough evidence to move forward. When moving forward, the professor notifies the student that because of concerns about a possible Honor Code violation, they have referred the case to the Dean of Students. The professor then provides the Dean of Students with a statement describing the cause for concern, as well as any supporting documents, such as original source materials and syllabi.
Do all reports of Honor Code violations result in a hearing?
No. When students accept responsibility for violating the Honor Code at the outset, it is possible to resolve the case through the Deans Disposition option, through which the community standards officer assigns a sanction. This is done in close consultation with the professor, as sanctions usually include failure of the assignment or failure of the class, as well as a reprimand or short-term suspension of some kind.
When students contest the charges, or when there are multiple students involved, the case is generally referred to the Judicial Board, which includes students, faculty, and staff.