Newhouse students plan two days of activities to raise academic integrity awareness

Newhouse students plan two days of activities to raise academic integrity awarenessFebruary 21, 2005Edward Byrnesedbyrnes@syr.edu

In an effort to promote academic integrity (AI) awareness among their peers, a group of S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications students will be holding an event Wednesday and Thursday, Feb. 23-24 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. in the lobby of Newhouse I. The event, hosted by the Bateman Competition team, will offer students the opportunity to test their AI knowledge. It is part of the group’s participation in the 2005 Bateman Competition, sponsored by the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) and is the highlight of the PRSSA’s month-long “Are You Being Cheated On?” campaign, designed to educate public communications students and increase their awareness about the effects and consequences of academic cheating and plagiarism.

The Bateman Competition team aims to increase awareness of the Newhouse school’s policy on academic integrity and the consequences of academic dishonesty, as well as influence the enforcement of academic policy in the classroom. At the Newhouse event, students can take an online quiz created by Indiana University, where they will be asked to examine examples of plagiarism and identify infractions. Students who answer all the questions correctly will receive a $3 gift certificate to Starbucks.

“After spending four years here at Newhouse, I assumed I knew everything there was to know about citing information correctly,” says Erin Lawless, a senior public relations student. “After taking the online test, I realized I still had some things to learn.”

Academic integrity remains an important topic of discussion at institutions of higher education across the nation; and many colleges and universities, including SU, are addressing the issue. Vice Chancellor and Provost Deborah A. Freund convened a committee last year dedicated to assessing the state of academic integrity on campus. The Vice Chancellor and Provost’s Committee on Academic Integrity (VPCAI) administered a campus-wide survey to students and faculty last fall, the results of which are still being processed. The VPCAI plans to use this week’s event as a pilot program for future academic integrity awareness events.

“It is imperative that students continue to hold themselves to high academic standards,” says PRSSA President and SU senior Laura Kelly. “At a time when the integrity and morals of both the media and different businesses are being called into question, ethics are a really important issue to address. We all need to begin practicing ethics now to prepare ourselves for the challenges we may face in our future careers.”