The university code of student conduct and policies relating to all Gardner-Webb students can be found in the Undergraduate Student Handbook Community Standards and Policies.
The Undergraduate Policy on Academic Honesty reflects Gardner-Webb’s commitment to academic excellence and integrity. It sets forth academic principles and practices that students are expected to understand and abide by. The Policy provides a framework for faculty to investigate potential academic misconduct, including plagiarism and cheating on assignments and exams. Students found responsible for violations of the Policy may be subject to a range of sanctions, including grade reduction, course failure, suspension, and expulsion for repeat offenses. Policies related to academic honesty and procedures for handling cases of academic dishonesty are detailed in Online Undergraduate Program section of the Academic Catalog.
The code of academic integrity, including student responsibilities, faculty responsibilities, procedures for handling alleged violation of the code, and applicable penalties can be found in detail in the GWU Online area of the Academic Catalog. Infractions of the code of academic integrity include, but are not limited to, the following:
Cheating - Intentionally using or attempting to use unapproved materials, information notes, or other devices including unauthorized communication during an academic exercise. Fabrication and falsification - Intentional and unauthorized alteration or manufacturing of any information in an academic exercise. Fabrication is a matter of inventing information for academic purposes, whereas falsification is a matter of altering information. Multiple Submission - The submission of substantial portions of the same academic work (including oral reports) for credit more than once without authorization. Plagiarism - Intentionally or knowingly presenting the work of another as one’s own (i.e. without the proper acknowledgement of the source). The sole exception to the requirement of acknowledging sources is when the ideas, information, etc., are common knowledge. Abuse of Academic Materials - Intentionally or knowingly destroying, stealing, or making inaccessible library and other academic resource material. Complicity in Academic Dishonesty - Intentionally helping or attempting to help another to commit any act of academic dishonesty. Plagiarism, copyright, and fair use are concepts and guidelines that impact your academic and creative life. The Plagiarism, Copyright and Fair Use Guide developed by the Gardner-Webb library will cover the basics of each concept, how they work together, and how they impact your work.
Artificial Intelligence – Students are responsible for ensuring that any artificial intelligence (AI) tools they use comply with the academic honesty policy and for not generating work that is plagiarized or otherwise violates the policy. These tools include but are not limited to: ChatGPT, iA Writer, MidJourney, DALL-E, etc. It is the student’s responsibility to consult the instructor for policies regarding the use of AI tools in class. If faculty provide authorization to use AI tools, students must properly cite any AI-generated material used in their work. Any unauthorized use of AI tools, such as an AI Generator, to produce assignments will be considered plagiarism. If AI-generated work is found to be in violation of the academic honesty policy, the student will be held responsible, regardless of whether they intended to plagiarize or not.
