Students accused of academic misconduct at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa have not only their academic records put in jeopardy but their careers post-college, as well. Luckily, attorney-advisors can help students and their families best address these types of accusations.

The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa's Academic Guidelines

Students should familiarize themselves with the General and Graduate Information Catalog issued by the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa during the 2001-2002 academic year for more information regarding the university's understanding of academic misconduct. This catalog details both cheating and plagiarism as adequate reasons to bring a student before the Dean of Students.

Cheating, under the eyes of the university, constitutes:

• Unauthorized collaboration between students on assignments, quizzes, and exams.
• The buying or selling of unauthorized academic materials.
• Using a book or other notes on exams without express permission.

Plagiarism, in a similar vein, constitutes both the misuse of another party's intellectual property, the failure to cite that property, or self-plagiarism on the part of the student. With that in mind, no student should present a previously-submitted assignment to another professor without the express permission of both the professor who initially assigned the project and the professor receiving the new assignment.

What to Expect from an Academic Misconduct Accusation

Parties at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa have 120 days after a proposed incident of misconduct occurs to report that incident to the Student Conduct Administrator. Should such an accusation come before the Administrator and be deemed worthy of investigation, both the accused and reporting parties can expect to engage in the following process:

Breaking Down an Investigation

The Student Conduct Administrator and an appropriate board can take an accusation into account, weighing whether or not they believe the incident in question to have taken place. In doing so, these parties will compare the presented behaviors against the Student Conduct Code and determine, in turn, both whether or not a violation occurred and what that violation may be.

Notification of an Accusation

Should the Administrator believe that a violation occurred, the accused will receive written notification of the violation and be invited to meet with the Administrator to discuss their best path forward. Students who ignore this summons may receive sanctions without a hearing.

Students and their families have the opportunity, at this stage, to reach out to an attorney-advisor for guidance through the accusation process.

Dismissals or the Application of Sanctions

In most cases, the Student Conduct Administrator will attend an academic misconduct hearing. This party will determine, after an investigation and conversations with all parties involved in an accusation, whether or not the charge placed against the student in question is valid or not.

Charges deemed frivolous will be dismissed, and no note of the incident will go on the accused student's permanent record. However, charges believed to be valid will result in a decision and appropriate sanctions as determined by the Student Conduct Administrator. The accused student will receive notification of these sanctions, and notes regarding them will be recorded on that student's disciplinary record.

Appealing Sanctions

Students do have the option to appeal the sanctions placed against them. They must do so within ten days of receiving a written decision regarding their case.

An appeal will only find its footing before the Student Conduct Administrator if:

• New information about the case has come to light.
• The student believes that procedural error impacted their sanction or the board's understanding of the case.
• Parties involved believe that the facts presented were insufficient or lacking as evidence of misconduct.

Consequences for Academic Misconduct at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

Depending on the severity of the accusation at hand, the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and an attending board may choose to bring any of the following sanctions against a party accused of academic misconduct:

• A written reprimand – should a student have a clean disciplinary record prior to this accusation, that student may receive a written reprimand noting that they have been accused of academic misconduct and that more severe sanctions may be placed against them should this behavior continue.
• Academic probation – students may be barred from certain activities around campus or have their work examined by specialized parties for a specified period of time after their accusation to ensure that they do not engage in these types of behaviors again.
• Loss of privileges – students may lose access to on-campus facilities for a set period of time.
• Restitution – students may be asked to provide a service or donation to make up for damages incurred to the university due to their behavior.
• No contact – students may be denied the right to get in contact with certain campus bodies.
• Campus community service – the student may be expected to perform a form of mandatory service around campus.
• Participation in campus programs – the accused student may be expected to attend anti-plagiarism courses or similar on-campus programs designed to curb academic misconduct.
• Suspension – the student may be suspended from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa for an extended period of time, after which the student will be able to resume their coursework.
• Expulsion – the student may be barred from the university. This expulsion will be marked on the student's permanent record.
• Degree revocation or admission – students who have not yet joined their peers on the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa campus may have their admission revoked if that student is believed to have engaged in academic misconduct at the high school level or when completing their college application. Students who have recently graduated may, similarly, have their degrees revoked if accused of academic misconduct in hindsight.

The Student Conduct Administrator or a similar party may also choose to craft individualized sanctions, should the accusation leveled against a party call for a more unique consequence.

Overcoming Academic Misconduct Accusations with an Attorney-Advisor

Students and families of students who have been accused of academic misconduct at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa can seek out professional advice before attending an academic misconduct hearing. Attorney Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm are highly skilled and experienced attorney-advisors who can guide the applicable parties through the investigation, hearing, and appeals process.

To schedule a case consultation, students and their families can call 888-535-3686 or fill out the Lento Law Firm's online contact link.