There are a lot of colleges in Massachusetts, and each one of them takes allegations of academic misconduct very seriously. If you have been accused of cheating, plagiarizing, or another academic foul, it can be tempting to rest assured that the misconduct hearing will prove your innocence. Unfortunately, academic misconduct hearings are notoriously prone to error, and this can put you in serious trouble.
Appealing the outcome of a misconduct hearing that went against you can be the best move to make in these situations. Academic appeal advisor Joseph D. Lento can guide you through the process.
Appealing an Academic Misconduct Case is Not Always Easy
An integral part of the academic misconduct process in Massachusetts is a student's right to appeal. Colleges in the state understand that mistakes are occasionally made during the hearing that should be corrected. Students who are convinced that the misconduct hearing got their case wrong can file an appeal to have their issue reheard by another panel.
However, colleges in Massachusetts also want to finalize as many misconduct cases as possible after one hearing.
To toe this fine line, most colleges erect procedural barriers that misconduct cases have to overcome in order to be heard on appeal. Some of these require significant evidentiary showings to illustrate why the case is deserving of another look. An academic appeal advisor can help students interested in appealing their case satisfy these requirements.
Why Appealing a Misconduct Case is Often Necessary
Unfortunately, appealing an academic misconduct case is often necessary to protect your future after the initial hearing decided that you did something you know you did not do.
One of the main reasons for erroneous conclusions at the initial hearing is the makeup of the hearing panel. Colleges in Massachusetts strain to make it seem as if the hearing panel has everyone's interests at heart – by impaneling faculty and staff members as well as other students, schools create the perception that the hearing will be fair and unbiased.
This is just a perception, though, because the result is an inexperienced panel that is prone to fall for weak arguments, tainted evidence, and emotional appeals that are designed to cover up faulty claims of academic misconduct. In many cases, the panel – carefully selected to make it seem like your interests will be protected, because you are guaranteed to have peers on the board hearing the case – does little to search for the truth and make an accurate decision that accounts for the facts.
Joseph D. Lento: An Academic Appeal Advisor for Massachusetts
Appealing an adverse outcome in an academic misconduct case is critical if you intend to graduate and enter the workforce on the right foot. An academic violation puts a blemish on your academic record, and this can be seen and frowned on by graduate schools and potential employers, so utilizing your rights to appeal a finding of responsibility in Massachusetts can be seen as an investment in your future.
By hiring academic appeal advisor and attorney Joseph D. Lento, you can make that investment even better. Contact him online or call his law office at (888) 535-3686.
- American International College
- Amherst College
- Anna Maria College
- Assumption College
- Babson College
- Bard College at Simon's Rock
- Bay Path College
- Bay State College
- Becker College
- Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology
- Bentley University
- Berklee College of Music
- Berkshire Community College
- Boston Architectural College
- Boston Baptist College
- Boston College
- Boston University
- Brandeis University
- Bridgewater State University
- Bristol Community College
- Bunker Hill Community College
- Cambridge College
- Cape Cod Community College
- Clark University
- College of Our Lady of the Elms
- College of the Holy Cross
- Curry College
- Dean College
- Eastern Nazarene College
- Emerson College
- Emmanuel College
- Endicott College
- Fisher College
- Fitchburg State University
- Framingham State University
- Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering
- Gordon College
- Greenfield Community College
- Hampshire College
- Harvard University
- Hellenic College Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology
- Holyoke Community College
- ITT Technical Institute Norwood
- ITT Technical Institute Wilmington
- Laboure College
- Lasell College
- Lawrence Memorial Hospital School of Nursing
- Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts
- Lesley University
- Longy School of Music
- Marian Court College
- Massachusetts Bay Community College
- Massachusetts College of Art and Design
- Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts
- Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Massachusetts Maritime Academy
- Massasoit Community College
- Merrimack College
- Middlesex Community College
- Montserrat College of Art
- Mount Holyoke College
- Mount Ida College
- Mount Wachusett Community College
- New England College of Business
- Newbury College Brookline
- Nichols College
- North Shore Community College
- Northeastern University
- Northern Essex Community College
- Pine Manor College
- Quincy College
- Quinsigamond Community College
- Regis College
- Roxbury Community College
- Saint John's Seminary
- Salem State University
- Sanford Brown College Boston
- School of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston
- Simmons College
- Smith College
- Springfield College
- Springfield Technical Community College
- Stonehill College
- Suffolk University
- The Boston Conservatory
- The New England Conservatory of Music
- The New England Institute of Art
- Tufts University
- University of Massachusetts - Amherst
- University of Massachusetts - Boston
- University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth
- University of Massachusetts - Lowell
- University of Phoenix - Boston Campus
- Urban College of Boston
- Wellesley College
- Wentworth Institute of Technology
- Western New England University
- Westfield State University
- Wheaton College
- Wheelock College
- Williams College
- Worcester Polytechnic Institute
- Worcester State University
- Zion Bible 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 Massachusetts 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 Massachusetts 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.
