All colleges in Tennessee have their own procedure for hearing and deciding allegations of academic misconduct. They all, however, include a misconduct hearing of some sort. Students who expect their innocence to come out during this hearing, though, are frequently disappointed by the hearing panel's inexperience. Appealing an adverse outcome is an unfortunately common necessity.
Joseph D. Lento is an academic appeal advisor who can help college students in Tennessee who have lost at the misconduct hearing, but who know they are innocent of the charges they are facing.
Why Misconduct Hearings are Unreliable
Determining whether an allegation of cheating or plagiarizing is true or not is not an easy decision to make. There will likely be evidence that suggests it happened, as well as evidence that indicates it did not happen. Weighing the evidence and coming to the correct conclusion is often very difficult.
Unfortunately, many colleges in Tennessee seem to think that anybody can do it, based on how they impanel hearing judges. Instead of making sure that these judges have experience or formal training, most colleges pull judges from the staff, administration, faculty, and even the student body. The apparent justification for this is to give the hearing panel the appearance of fairness because accused students can rest assured that their interests are protected. This is just an appearance, though, and the dangers of an inexperienced panel of judges hearing a case are very real: They are much more prone to falling for weak or tainted evidence or accepting an emotional argument over one grounded in facts.
Utilizing Your Right to Appeal Is Essential
Luckily, most colleges in Tennessee recognize the fact that their hearing panels are not going to be perfect, and provide a mechanism for appealing the outcome. However, those same schools often try to keep as many cases final after only the initial hearing by forcing appeals to satisfy procedural requirements in order to be reheard. Some of the most common hurdles to overcome involve proving that the first hearing was somehow deficient or biased, or that the investigation violated an accused student's rights.
In some cases, satisfying these procedural requirements is not easy. In many others, the act of overcoming them can drastically weaken your appeal by forcing you to re-characterize the substance of your claim. With the help of Joseph D. Lento, though, aggrieved students can advance their case to the appellate stage without hurting its chances of success.
Tennessee's Academic Appeal Advisor, Joseph D. Lento
If you have been accused of violating your college's code of academic integrity by forging documents, cheating on a test, or plagiarizing someone else's ideas on a graded assignment, the threat to your professional future is very real. An adverse outcome at the initial misconduct hearing can feel like a setback that is impossible to overcome, but that is not the case. Joseph D. Lento, an attorney and academic appeal advisor, can help you put together an appeal that ensures you get a fair shake in Tennessee. Contact him online or call his law office at (888) 535-3686.
- American Baptist College
- Aquinas College
- Argosy University Nashville
- Austin Peay State University
- Baptist Memorial College of Health Sciences
- Belmont University
- Bethel University
- Bryan College
- Carson Newman College
- Chattanooga College Medical Dental and Technical Careers
- Chattanooga State Community College
- Christian Brothers University
- Cleveland State Community College
- Columbia State Community College
- Cumberland University
- Daymar Institute Clarksville
- Daymar Institute Murfreesboro
- Daymar Institute Nashville
- DeVry University Tennessee
- Dyersburg State Community College
- East Tennessee State University
- Fisk University
- Fortis Institute
- Fortis Institute Nashville
- Fountainhead College of Technology
- Free Will Baptist Bible College
- Freed Hardeman University
- Hiwassee College
- International Academy of Design and Technology Nashville
- ITT Technical Institute Chattanooga
- ITT Technical Institute Cordova
- ITT Technical Institute Johnson City
- ITT Technical Institute Knoxville
- ITT Technical Institute Nashville
- Jackson State Community College
- John A Gupton College
- Johnson University
- King College
- Lane College
- Le Moyne Owen College
- Lee University
- Lincoln Memorial University
- Lipscomb University
- L'Ecole Culinaire
- Martin Methodist College
- Maryville College
- Memphis College of Art
- Middle Tennessee State University
- Miller Motte Technical College Chattanooga
- Miller Motte Technical College Clarksville
- Miller Motte Technical College Madison
- Milligan College
- Motlow State Community College
- Nashville State Community College
- National College of Business and Technology Nashville
- Northeast State Community College
- Nossi College of Art
- O'More College of Design
- Pellissippi State Community College
- Remington College Memphis Campus
- Remington College Nashville Campus
- Rhodes College
- Roane State Community College
- Sewanee The University of the South
- South College
- Southern Adventist University
- Southwest Tennessee Community College
- Tennessee State University
- Tennessee Technological University
- Tennessee Temple University
- Tennessee Wesleyan College
- The Art Institute of Tennessee Nashville
- The University of Tennessee
- The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
- The University of Tennessee Martin
- Trevecca Nazarene University
- Tusculum College
- Union University
- University of Memphis
- University of Phoenix Chattanooga Campus
- University of Phoenix Knoxville
- University of Phoenix Memphis Campus
- University of Phoenix Nashville Campus
- Vanderbilt University
- Vatterott Career College Memphis Appling Farms
- Vatterott Career College Memphis Dividend Drive
- Victory University
- Virginia College School of Business and Health
- Visible Music College
- Volunteer State Community College
- Walters State Community College
- Watkins College of Art Design & Film
- William Moore College of Technology
- Williamson Christian College
Regrettably, an academic misconduct finding of responsibility can derail an accused student's academic and professional goals and some students and parents do not recognize this concern until it may be too late. If a student is found responsible for academic misconduct charges, in addition to the short-term consequences such academic and disciplinary sanctions, there will be long-term consequences. Internships, graduate school opportunities, and employment opportunities can all be adversely impacted by a finding of responsibility.
For these reasons and more, it is critical to properly address such concerns as early as possible in the disciplinary process. There are times, however, that it necessary to appeal an adverse outcome, and Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm have unparalleled experience passionately fighting for the futures of his clients at universities and colleges in Tennessee and throughout the nation. He does not settle for the easiest outcome, and instead prioritizes his clients' needs and well-being. Joseph Lento is a licensed attorney in New Jersey and New York, is admitted as an attorney pro hac vice in state and federal court if needed when representing clients nationwide, and serves as an academic misconduct advisor to students facing disciplinary cases in Tennessee and throughout the nation. Make certain your or your student's interests are protected at all stages of the academic misconduct disciplinary process, including the appeal stage - Contact National Academic Misconduct Advisor Joseph D. Lento today at 888-535-3686.
