Gwynedd Mercy University AY2020-2021 Graduate Academic Catalog
Appeal Process A student may appeal a faculty member ’ s report of a violation of the Academic Integrity Policy . A student may not appeal sanctions decisions or sanctions imposed by the Vice President for Academic Affairs .
To appeal a report of a violation of the Academic Integrity Policy : Within 7 calendar days of being made aware of the report of violation by the faculty member , the student will send a written appeal , outlining why he or she believes the report is incorrect , to the Dean of the School in which the course if offered . Note : if the faculty member reporting the violation is also the Dean of the School offering the course , the student should send the appeal to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs who will then assign the appeal to another Dean .
The Dean hearing the appeal is responsible for the following actions :
• Review the report of violation and the student appeal
• At his or her discretion , meet individually with the parties involved
• If the Dean finds the report of violation correct , the records and sanctions stand . If the Dean finds that the report of violation is incorrect , the report will be removed from the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs ’ files and the sanction removed .
• Written notice of the outcome of the appeal is to be sent to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs ’ office , the student and the faculty member originating the report of violation of the Academic Integrity Policy within ten ( 10 ) calendar days of the Dean receiving the student appeal . If the student wishes to appeal further , a written appeal , outlining why the finding is incorrect is to be sent to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs within seven ( 7 ) calendar days of the notice from the Dean regarding the initial appeal . The Provost and Vice President will then uphold or overturn the report of violation . If the finding is upheld , the records will be retained . If the report is overturned , all records regarding the incident will be removed from the student ’ s records . Written notice of the outcome of the appeal is to be sent to the Dean of the school offering the course , the student and the faculty member originating the report of violation of the Academic Integrity Policy within ten ( 10 ) days of receiving the appeal .
The decision of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs is final and may not be appealed .
Alternative Instructional Equivalencies ( AIE )
Academic Credit Hours--General Information
While Gwynedd Mercy University is committed to an outcome-based approach to curriculum and assessment in accordance with its accreditation by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools and other discipline based national accrediting associations , it also complies with and endorses the requirements of the Pennsylvania Department of Education on what constitutes a semester credit hour of instruction ( 22 PA . Code Chapter 31-21-31.22 ). The standard states that “ a semester hour represents a unit of curricular material that can normally be taught in a minimum of 14 hours of classroom instruction , plus outside preparation or the equivalent as determined by the faculty .” The institution also supports the federal regulations for credit hours as specified in the Higher Education Opportunity Act as : “ One hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two hours of out of class student work each week for approximately fifteen weeks for one semester or trimester hour of credit ,
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