Announcement to Faculty and Staff
The following communication was sent to all Kean USA faculty and staff on October 18, 2024 via Workvivo:
Updated Kean University Academic Integrity Policy
The Office of the Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs is pleased to announce the updated Kean University Academic Integrity Policy. As supported by the University Senate and approved by the Kean University Board of Trustees, the updated Academic Integrity Policy is effective immediately and is included in all Fall 2024 syllabi via Simple Syllabus.
Information specific to Wenzhou-Kean University faculty and students will be sent separately.
The following are the updates included in the policy:
Artificial Intelligence Expectations — Overarching guidelines for AI use applicable to all courses are provided in the policy. To support this policy update, the Center for Teaching and Learning developed resources and Colleges and departments will host discussions to assist faculty in developing AI and GenAI expectations to be included in their Winter and Spring 2025 syllabi. Faculty AI expectations must align with College and department expectations and may vary from course to course. Students are required to adhere to the specific requirements outlined in each syllabus.
More information is available in the Hub for Faculty Professional Development in Canvas. See the Academic Integrity and AI module for resources and workshops to support faculty in developing these expectations.
Academic Resources — The Nancy Thompson Learning Commons has substantially invested in student success by significantly expanding the number of College Reading and Learning Association (CRLA) certified writing tutors. These highly trained tutors are dedicated to helping students enhance their writing skills, ensuring they excel academically and uphold the highest standards of academic integrity. By providing personalized guidance and support, these tutors play a crucial role in empowering students to produce original, well-crafted work, thus reducing the risk of unintentional plagiarism or other integrity issues. Faculty members are encouraged to proactively refer students to tutoring via Navigate and/or to the NTLC’s resources and workshops.
The resource libraries for both students and faculty will continue to grow and the University community is encouraged to suggest or request resources for students and faculty via the Academic Integrity website.
Graduate and Doctoral Student Expectations — Discipline-specific standards and codes of ethics also govern the ethical expectations of some students, particularly those pursuing graduate or professional degrees, and often supersede the University’s academic integrity expectations. As such, faculty members have discretion in classifying academic integrity violations in graduate and doctoral courses accordingly.
Reporting Process — Paper Academic Integrity Violation Report forms have been replaced by the Maxient database and a linked reporting form on the Academic Integrity website that will alert the student, director/department chair, dean and Provost’s office via Kean email once submitted by the reporting faculty member.
Deadline Update — With the removal of communication via regular and certified mail, the deadline for appeal to the University Appeals Board (UAB) has been revised from 30 days to 10 days.
Definition of “Advisors” — The UAB hearing process has been updated to combine parents/guardians/attorneys into one category as “advisors.”
Withdrawal — Students have a right to withdraw from a course in accordance with University policy, however, academic integrity violations will be pursued and resolved regardless of a student’s continued enrollment.
Academic Records — If a student is engaged in an academic integrity violation review, the determination becomes a Student Conduct record. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974 and the Higher Education Amendments of 1998 delineate the rights of students to be informed of the existence of this information, to have access to it, and the conditions under which information about students may be disclosed to others.
The Provost extends his appreciation to the faculty, staff and students who contributed to this work — especially the Academic Integrity Subcommittee, the University Senate’s Academic Standards and Policies Committee, and the Faculty Facing Technology Advisement Group.
This updated Academic Integrity policy will contribute to Kean University’s commitment to nurturing the growth of intellectual reasoning, academic and professional values, individual ethics and social responsibility among all campus community members.