GRADES

All courses with a prefix of EDU, ELE and PE and those designated with an asterisk (*) must have a grade of “C” or better. The School of Education does not grant + or – grades.

GRADE APPEAL/ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT APPEAL PROCESS
It is up to each instructor to determine the criteria by which students will be graded. Grading can be a subjective process in which knowledge of class material and the quality of work are both factored into the grade. To facilitate the success of all students it is appropriate that they be clearly informed about the number of graded assignments and the weight attached to each assignment. If more specific criteria for grades can be explained, it is appropriate that such explanations are included in the syllabus or other course materials. It is also appropriate for students to be informed if class attendance and participation will be calculated in the final grade. Faculty may provide work for extra credit but are under no obligation to do so. 

Since Jacksonville University students are expected to adhere to the highest standard of academic honesty, grades for courses may also be affected by academic misconduct. To underscore the importance of truth, honesty and accountability, students and instructors should adhere to the following standard: I do not lie, cheat, or steal nor do I condone the actions of those who do.

Academic misconduct is defined as follows:

Any form of cheating, including concealed notes during exams, copying or allowing others to copy from an exam, students substituting for one another in exams, submission of another person's work for evaluation, preparing work for another person's submission, unauthorized collaboration on an assignment, submission of the same or substantially similar work for two courses without the permission of the professors. Plagiarism is a form of Academic Misconduct that involves taking words, ideas or any other material from a source, either verbatim or in paraphrase, with acknowledging the original author through proper citation(s). Cutting and pasting from any source including the Internet, as well as purchasing papers, are forms of plagiarism. (Warshauer, M. 2002.)*

*Matthew Warshauer, History Department, Central Connecticut State University, Academic Misconduct/Plagiarism Questionnaire; http://www.history.ccsu.edu/


Such conduct may be subject to disciplinary action including:

  • Penalizing a student's grade on the assignment or examination in question
  • Assigning a failing course grade 
  • Dismissal from the University (in cases of especially egregious or repeated offenses).

The faculty regards all incidents of academic misconduct as major offenses which merit disciplinary action. Faculty members will handle each case of academic misconduct in accordance with their own course policy. In the spirit of academic freedom, no further action is required from the instructor following the action taken in response to the incident of academic misconduct if the student agrees to the penalty. However, it is strongly recommended that faculty members report all incidents of academic misconduct to the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, with notification to the division chairs and appropriate college dean, in order to identify students who commit additional future incidents of academic misconduct. In addition, the instructor may recommend to the appropriate Division Chair, or College Dean if the department or academic unit in which the course is taught is not part of a division, further sanctions against the student deemed appropriate for the level of academic misconduct. These sanctions may include academic probation, suspension or expulsion.  If the sanctions recommended by the instructor are not approved, the instructor may appeal the decision of the Chair/Dean to the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs. If there is still disagreement, the instructor may refer the decision of the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs back to the Chair/Dean of the academic unit from which the appeal originated. The Chair/Dean shall then form a five-person appeal committee along the same guidelines used for the formation of a committee to hear a student appeal (see below).

Standard Procedure for Appeals of Grades and Sanctions - It is understood that students may have questions about their grades. Most can easily be answered through consultation with the instructor. In the event that a student feels he/she has been treated unfairly, in that an instructor has deviated from his/her prescribed formula for grading in an arbitrary or punitive manner, the student may appeal the grade.  

The following timetable and grade appeal process shall be used whenever the student disagrees with a grade assigned, for academic misconduct or any other reason.

  • Appeals cannot normally be made unless a student has first discussed his/her concerns with the instructor. This conference should take place with three business days of the student being notified of the grade assigned, unless unforeseen and extenuating circumstances beyond the student's control warrant an extension. The student must be able to document such extenuating circumstances if requested by the instructor. If the grade assigned was for an assignment due the last week of the semester or on a final examination, the student and instructor must meet to confer no later than three business days after the beginning of the following semester.
  • If the concerns remain unresolved after the conference with the instructor, the student must inform the instructor in writing with two business days of the conference that he/she is dissatisfied with the results of the conference. The student may then appeal the instructor's decision to the appropriate Division Chair, or the College Dean if the department or academic unit in which the course is taught is not part of a division. In the case that the grade in question was assigned by an adjunct member of the faculty, the appeal must also be made directly to the appropriate Division Chair or College Dean. An appeal must be formally submitted in writing, clearly stating and documenting the evidence for unfair, arbitrary or unwarranted treatment and must be submitted with ten business days of the student's written notification to the instructor that the issue remains unresolved. The Division Chair/College Dean shall confer with both the student and the concerned faculty member (or adjunct, if available) together with five business days of receiving the written appeal. The concerned faculty member (or adjunct, if he/she so desires) may at this time submit a formal written response to the student's appeal.
  • If the student's concern is still unresolved after the conference with the Chair/Dean and faculty member, or if the instructor (or adjunct, if available) disagrees with the decision of the Chair/Dean, the Chair/Dean shall within five business days form a committee of five faculty members, four from within the Division/College to review the work in question and one from the Committee on Academic Standards, who comes from outside the Division/College, to insure that both the student and faculty member are fairly treated. Within ten business days the committee must review the case and issue its final recommendation. The committee may either recommend the grade remain unchanged from the instructor's decision or recommend the grade be changed to a value the committee deems appropriate for the case. If the case involves academic misconduct, the committee at that time may also recommend probation or suspension of the student, or dismissal from the University based upon compelling evidence of serious academic misconduct. In cases where the committee rules that the student should receive a penalty resulting in a grade of "F" or a course, the student may not withdraw or be withdrawn from the course at any time.
  • The committee's recommendation then must be issued into the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, the Division Chair/College Dean, the instructor and the student in writing along with an explanation of the rationale for the recommendation. it is the responsibility of the Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs to see that the recommendation is carried out. If a semester/term ends without the process reaching a final resolution, the process should continue at the beginning of the next semester at the point that was reached at the conclusion of the previous semester. In this case, the grade assigned for the course will be recorded as "NG" (no grade) on the student's official transcript, without prejudice, until the case is resolved.
  • If the Division or College does not follow the procedures outline above then the student or instructor may appeal directly to the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs. This appeal must be in writing and must clearly demonstrate how the procedures contained in this Grade Appeal Process were violated. The Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs is to determine whether proper procedures have been followed. In the event that they have not been followed, any recommendation or decision may be declared null and void and sent back to the Division or College for reexamination. The final disposition of the case must be reported to both the instructor and the student prior to the issuance of the grade.​