Faculty Resources - Common Myths About Reporting Incidents of Dishonesty

By reporting an incident, I will ruin the student’s academic career.

The student is responsible for her/his own behaviors and subsequent ramifications. By reporting the student, you are providing them with an opportunity to take responsibility for those actions. One minor instance of cheating or plagiarism will not ruin their future at Truman, but it will allow the student an opportunity to learn from their poor decision and about their personal ethics.

A report of dishonesty will mark up the student’s Permanent Record and their future grad school will immediately know.

The "permanent record" fear is ungrounded in some respects. A student’s conduct information is considered part of an educational file and therefore protected by FERPA. There are severe restrictions on who has access to that file. Students will know when they give permission for another university or potential employer to have access to this file through a Dean’s Certification. Generally speaking, some law school programs and a few other universities require this permission as a part of the application. The federal government also investigates a student’s conduct record with the student’s permission as part of the security clearance procedure for federal employment.  Information about the University’s policy on FERPA is available at fedinfo.truman.edu/ferpa.asp. Questions regarding FERPA should be referred to the Registrar’s Office or University General Council.

The student’s academic transcript will reflect the instance of dishonesty.

At Truman, we do not make any notations on a student’s academic transcript when they are found responsible for cheating.

Nothing will happen anyway if I report it.

By not reporting a student you are guaranteeing that there would be no response by the University. As our procedure stands, students will receive a letter informing them that they were reported for cheating. If multiple incidents of cheating have allegedly occurred, they will be subject to a conduct hearing where there is a possibility of conduct sanctions.

I just don’t have the time to report or reporting the incident is a long and involved process.

The Academic Dishonesty Report form, which can be found in each division office, is a half of a sheet of paper and should not take long to fill out.

I will have to prove to a board or something that the student cheated.

If the student has allegedly cheated in multiple classes, there may be a Conduct Hearing. You may be invited to share the information you have collected in the case. The University Conduct Officer/Board would make the determination if a student is responsible for violating the Student Conduct Code.

Reporting incidents of dishonesty is not a part of my job.

Reporting students may not have been in the position description that you read when you applied to work here, but it is an expectation. The General Catalog (2003-2005, p. 39) states “It is the responsibility of faculty members
1.  to inspire in their students an appreciation of and a desire for honesty in academic work;
2.  to discourage dishonesty and to protect the honest student; and
3.  to take appropriate action in instances of dishonesty.”

If you have any questions regarding reporting academic misconduct please contact Dr. David Hoffman, Assistant Dean of Student Affairs/Citizenship and Community Standards and University Conduct Officer or your Division Head. 

Adapted from Academic Integrity Newsletter September/October 2001, conduct.truman.edu