Policies on Syllabus

Peirce Institution-Wide Learning Outcomes

• Communicate clearly and effectively both orally and in writing.
• Solve problems using critical, analytical and quantitative skills.
• Demonstrate up-to-date knowledge, skills and methods in one's discipline.
• Demonstrate information literacy.
• Use information technology proficiently and responsibly.
• Identify and respond to ethical issues in the workplace and the community.

Disability Accommodations

In its commitment to ensuring that no otherwise qualified student with a disability is subjected to unlawful discrimination in the context of his/her educational experience, Peirce College makes certain that students with disabilities are provided equal access to educational and career development programs and/or student activities. Consequently, the College will make, on behalf of qualified students with learning and physical disabilities of which the College is aware, reasonable accommodations that do not impose undue hardships on the College. If a student believes he/she requires a reasonable accommodation or has a question regarding educational services, activities, programs or facilities that are accessible to or usable by students with disabilities, please contact the Facilitator, Perkins Grant & Student Disability Services Coordinator in the Mary W. Walker Center for Academic Excellence, 2nd Floor Alumni Hall (215-670-9251). All information associated with a disclosure of this nature is confidential, and the College will communicate this information to others only on a need-to-know basis.

Academic Honesty

Peirce College's reputation as an institution of higher learning is characterized by the high academic standards it has established for its students. The College expects the students to display personal integrity as they approach their assignments and to complete these assignments in the spirit of academic honesty.

The College considers acts of academic dishonesty to be serious violations of its Code of Student Conduct and Responsibility and will take action against students for violations of this policy (as well as against former students where the College learns of a violation after the student has graduated or ceases to be enrolled).

Any conduct or activity by a student which earns or improves a grade or receives any form of credit by fraudulent or dishonest means is considered an act of academic dishonesty and a violation. In addition, engaging in any conduct including the following examples in which a reasonable person in the same or similar circumstances would recognize as academic dishonesty is considered a violation.

Examples of acts of academic dishonesty that are violations of the Code of Student Conduct and Responsibility include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Artificial Intelligence
• Using any form of artificial intelligence to alter, create, or solve any academic work including but not limited to research, papers, quizzes, tests, assignments and discussion posts.
• Third Party Tutoring/Paper Writing Services
  • Using a third party tutoring service or any type of service, which provides answers or solutions for any assignment, quiz, or examination, in any course, without prior permission of the instructor of the course for which the work is being submitted.
  • Using a third party paper writing service to write or rewrite a paper.
• Contract Cheating
  • Using a third party to obtain academic work including but not limited to research, papers, quizzes, tests, and discussion posts.
  • Sharing your past assignments with a third party, can lead to others using your work to contract cheat which makes you a party to contract cheating.
• Acquiring Information:
  • Obtaining research or answers related to any assigned work or examination from any source not authorized by the professor. Students must be the owner of all of their coursework.
  • Working with another person or persons on any assignment or examination when not specifically permitted by the professor. Although studying together is allowable, students must maintain the integrity of their coursework. Students must seek permission from the instructor before working together on any coursework.
  • Viewing the work of other students during any examination.
  • Using, buying, selling, stealing, soliciting, copying, or possessing, in whole or part, the contents of any examination without prior written permission from the professor.
  • Submitting or presenting as one's own work any research paper or other writing assignments prepared by others.
• Providing Information:
  • Supplying answers or research information for any assigned work or examination (on behalf of yourself or another individual) when not specifically authorized by the professor to do so.
  • Informing any person or persons of the contents of any examination prior to the time the examination is given.
• Plagiarism:
  • Incorporating the work or idea of another person into one's own work without formally and properly acknowledging, documenting and citing the source of that work or idea.
  • Attempting to receive credit for work performed by another person, including papers obtained in whole or part from individuals or other sources.
  • Copying or improperly utilizing copyrighted computer programs or data files belonging to someone else.
  • Copying another person's paper/work in whole or in part and handing it in as your own.
  • Paying for and/or downloading from the Internet, all or any portion of a paper, presentation, graphics, or multi-media files and submitting them as your own.
  • Copying words, graphics, or statistics directly from sources of information, such as web pages, magazine/newspaper articles, or books without and properly acknowledging, documenting and citing the sources.
  • Paraphrasing information (i.e., changing a few words) from sources, such as web pages, magazine/newspaper articles, or books without formally documenting the sources.
• Reuse of Prior Materials:
  • Submitting substantially the same work to satisfy requirements for one course that has been submitted to satisfy requirements for another course, without prior permission of the instructor of the course for which the work is being submitted.
• Conspiracy:
  • Agreeing or participating with one or more persons to commit any act of academic dishonesty.
• Fabrication of information:
  • Falsifying the results obtained from a research or laboratory experiment.
  • Presenting results of research or laboratory experiments without the research or laboratory experiments having been performed.
  • Substituting for another student to take an examination or to do any academic work or assignment for which academic credit will be received.
  • Changing answers or grades after academic work has been returned to the student and claiming professor error.
  • Submitting work for credit or taking an examination and employing a technique specifically prohibited by the professor in that course, even if such technique would be acceptable in other courses.
• Abuse of resource materials:
  • Mutilating, destroying, concealing, stealing, or altering any materials provided to assist students in the completion of academic work, including library books, journals, computer files, microfilm and microfiche files, online resources, materials placed on reserve by the instructor, or any such materials as the instructor may provide or assign.
  • Copying any data files or copyrighted computer program(s) for one's own personal use or the use of others.
  • Copying without permission of the owner, or mutilating or destroying any copyrighted media, printed or electronic (for example, film, video, music, graphics, books, articles, papers, dissertations, art, photography, or manuscript)
• Peer-to-Peer File Sharing
  • Peer-to-peer file sharing is prohibited. This applies to College owned computers as well as personally owned computers that are using the College’s network. Under the Acceptable Use Policy, the College’s network connections may not be used to violate copyright laws.

Netiquette

• A respectful and professional tone is used in all forms of communication.
• All communication must show respect and sensitivity to peers' gender, cultural and linguistic background, sexual orientation, political and religious beliefs.
• Written communication, both formal and informal, is conveyed as though you are talking to a person. Popular abbreviations and graphics (e.g. emojis, gifs, text abbreviations) should not be used in an academic setting.
• Video interactions reflect a respectful tone in verbal communication and body language.
• Spelling, punctuation, and grammar are correct.
• Do not type in all capitals; it may be perceived as shouting.
• When sending emails, be sure to address the recipient and to identify yourself.
• Do not use vulgar language. Avoid using flaming language - be insightful, not incite-ful.

Attendance and Participation Policy:

Student participation is an essential part of the instructional process. Students are expected to contribute to the learning environment of their courses and to fulfill their academic responsibilities through active participation in the learning process. Regular and punctual class attendance is required of all students in all courses. Attendance and participation policy is tracked on a weekly basis. Students should check each course syllabus to determine the specific participation standards for each course. Students who do not meet the attendance and participation standards may receive a lower grade and/or lose financial aid funding. Students are reminded that final grades are determined by performance of course requirements, including attendance and participation.

It is the student’s responsibility to contact the instructor when the student anticipates being absent or late for class. If the student arrives after the class has begun, it is the student’s responsibility to inform the instructor for the purpose of confirming attendance. The student is responsible for making up missed assignments when permitted by the instructor.

Solely logging into an online course does not demonstrate academic attendance and/or participation. “Attendance” in online courses, or a week in a course where the student opts to attend online, is determined by the student’s participation in the course. Participation in online courses may include the following academic activities: initiating contact with a faculty member to ask a course related question, submitting an assignment, taking an exam, contributing to threaded discussions, or participating in a chat.

Given the learning environment of online courses, even in situations where a student is not “absent” in the traditional sense, it is the student’s responsibility to contact the professor regarding situations that may prevent the student from fully participating as required. Students who stop participating and/or attending courses may be considered unofficially withdrawn and, therefore subject to the Return to Title IV Calculation (R2T4).

Faculty Response Time

Under normal operating conditions, Peirce students can expect instructors to view and respond to email messages within 24 hours, Monday through Friday. In addition, students can expect instructors to respond to voice mail messages within the same timeframe, within 24 hours, Monday through Friday. From time to time, normal operating conditions may be affected by weather, technology-related interruptions or some other unforeseen circumstance.

Instructors who are temporarily unable to read and respond to email messages within the prescribed timeframe will notify their students from within their Canvas course website, and when applicable, by modifying their Peirce College voice mail message.

Students are encouraged to communicate with instructors and classmates through the Canvas course website. Please make sure to carefully read and follow specific directions posted by instructors in the course syllabus.

Peirce College Grading Policy:

Grades are calculated and submitted by the instructor within 72 hours of the last day of the term. Final grades are based on the performance of class requirements as stated in the course syllabus and/or modified during the course by the instructor. Grades submitted become part of the College's permanent student records. Failed courses in major subjects must be repeated at Peirce College. A major subject is a course that is required by the student's degree program. Courses in which grades of F, D-, D, D+, or C- are earned may be repeated no more than once. In the case of repeated courses, the original grade earned will remain on the transcript, although it will not be computed in the grade point average. Courses for which a grade of "C" or better has been earned may not be repeated for the purpose of improving grades. A student who wishes to contest a grade must do so within 30 calendar days of receipt of the grade. See the Academic Grievance Policy for procedures for contesting a grade. Students are allowed seven (7) calendar days from the start date of a course to drop the course and receive 100% tuition reimbursement. If a course is dropped after the seventh day, full tuition is charged for the course. The student is responsible for initiating the drop process with his/her Academic Advisor. (See Drop/Add Policy.)

Students may add a course only during the first seven (7) calendar days after the course has started. A course cannot be added after the seventh day. Full tuition will be charged for a class that is added under these circumstances. The student is responsible for initiating the add process with his/her Program Advisor. Students are also responsible for contacting the professor and obtaining new textbooks or any missed work for their newly added course. (See Drop/Add Policy.) It is the student's responsibility to withdraw from a course. Instructors do not have the authority to enter a grade of W. If a student voluntarily withdraws by the withdrawal deadline as stated on the academic calendar by completing the necessary paperwork, a grade of W will appear on the final grade sheet. If a student fails to attend a course for which the student is registered and the student fails to properly withdraw, the student will receive an F for the course and be charged for the course. (See the Withdrawal from Class Policy.)

Incomplete grades are assigned due to illness, emergency, or extenuating circumstances. The student must make a written request for an Incomplete to the instructor 24 hours before the last class session. The student has 14 calendar days from the date of the last class session to resolve the Incomplete. After 14 calendar days have elapsed since the date of the last class session, the Incomplete will automatically convert to an F. Incomplete grades are approved at the sole discretion of the College and should not be considered the norm.

Class Cancellation

If a class (or classes) in a face-to-face course is canceled, then an additional structured instructional activity (or activities) is required to comply with the credit hour equivalency standards of Peirce College and the Pennsylvania Department of Education. These additional activities will be assigned by the instructor when and if a cancellation occurs.