Learning Community Rights and Responsibilities
This section briefly outlines policies that maintain the integrity of the learning community. More complete policies and related procedures are published in the Student Handbook.
Academic Integrity
Students are expected to maintain integrity in all academic work. They will not attempt to get grades by any means other than honest academic effort. All work must be completed by individual students except for group projects. It is not permissible to hand in the same work for different courses without the express permission and agreement of the instructors involved.
Plagiarism is the appropriation of another's work and passing off as one's own the product of the mind and language of another. The student will not plagiarize or copy the work of any other person, and will properly acknowledge the use of any outside resources.
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Alcohol and Drugs
The unlawful use, manufacture, distribution, dispensation, sale, or possession of any illegal drug is prohibited in all areas of Cambridge College at all times. In accordance with the Drug Free Schools and Communities Act Amendments of 1989, Cambridge College prohibits the unlawful use and possession of drugs and alcohol on its property or as part of any of its activities.
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Complaints and Appeals
Resolution of complaints or grievances usually begins with an informal discussion with the person or office immediately concerned. Your academic advisor, program director, or the Director of Student Services can suggest the appropriate channel for resolving particular complaints, and may assist with the resolution. To resolve any disagreement or to appeal a College decision, follow the steps outlined below. Please make every effort to resolve an issue at one level before proceeding to the next. This process is an internal means to resolve differences, not a legal forum.
To resolve financial and other administrative matters:
Step 1 - Student meets with Academic Advisor or Director of Student Services
Step 2 - Student meets with administrative officer immediately concerned.
Step 3 - Student meets with Academic Advisor and administrative officer immediately concerned.
Step 4 - The administrative or financial officer's supervisor meets with all concerned, and makes a final decision.
Step 5 - The decision may be appealed to the Vice President for Finance and Administration.
To appeal academic decisions:
Step 1 - Student meets with Academic Advisor
Step 2 - Student meets with faculty or academic staff immediately concerned.
Step 3 - Student meets with Academic Advisor and faculty or academic staff immediately concerned.
Step 4 - The Program Director meets with all concerned, gathers facts, and seeks resolution.
Step 5 - If no adequate resolution has been achieved, the Dean for Academic Affairs meets with all concerned, mediates the dialogue, and makes a final decision.
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Disenrollment
The College may disenroll a student for certain academic, financial, and administrative reasons. Disenrollment may be appealed. When all requirements have been met, reinstatement may be possible.
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Harassment and Sexual Harassment
All members of the College community have the right to be free from harassment by any other member. There is no room for conduct that subjects a person to offensive or unsafe treatment, and any implicit or explicit sexual conduct that diminishes, offends, or abuses another member of the College community will not be tolerated.
Sexual harassment, harassment based on race, color, religion, gender, and national origin, and any other kind of harassment are unacceptable and strictly prohibited at Cambridge College, as well as being violations of federal and state law.
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Hazing
Hazing is a crime under Massachusetts law. Therefore, Cambridge College forbids hazing and any related activities. Any student or student group violating this policy will be subject to immediate disciplinary action, including disenrollment.
Nondiscrimination
Cambridge College is an equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation, or age in admission to, access to, or treatment in the educational programs which it conducts, nor in its practices, procedures and activities.
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Religious Observance
Students who, because of religious observance, are unable to attend classes or participate in a class or work requirement, have the right to make up the missed classes and work. They must inform the instructor of the days they expect to be absent, and arrange make-up work.
Security
Each member of the College community has the right to be free from acts and threats of violence. All members of the community are expected and required to comply with all city, state, and federal laws.
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Smoking
Cambridge College is a smoke-free institution. All indoor smoking is prohibited, including bathrooms and stairwells.
Student Government
Students participate in College governance through the Student Advisory Board. Open meetings are held monthly to discuss concerns such as ways to improve College-wide services, programs, and policies. The Student Advisory Board includes a representative from each seminar group, any students interested, and a member of the College administration. Meeting dates are posted on the student information monitor. Students may also contact the Director of Student Services for more information.
Two student members of the Student Advisory Board represent the student body on the Academic Affairs Committee of the Board of Trustees.
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Student Records
The College does not permit the release of personally identifiable information in student records without the written consent of the student, except as specifically allowed by FERPA statute or regulation.
The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974, as amended, assures students the right to inspect and review all College records, files, and data directly related to themselves with certain exceptions such as financial records of the student's parents, confidential recommendations which were received before Jan. 1, 1975, or records to which students have waived their right of access. Official records and data related to a student are incorporated into his/her folder kept in the Registrar's Office.
FERPA requires colleges to respect the privacy of education records and provides them the right to make public at their discretion and without prior authorization from individual students, the following personally identifiable information which is considered directory information: current student name, class year, home address and telephone number, date and place of birth, dates of attendance at Cambridge College, occupation, program status/major, degrees, honors, and awards received, high school and any college previously attended. Students may limit the release of the above information by filing a special form with the Registrar's Office each year.
If students take exception to anything in their folders on the grounds that it is inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise inappropriate, they have the right to challenge its inclusion and seek to have it corrected or deleted. A written request must be submitted to the Registrar for a joint meeting with the Dean for Academic Affairs, the Registrar, and any other appropriate person to discuss the matter.
If the College fails to comply with FERPA requirements, written complaints may be submitted to the Family Policy and Regulations Office, Department of Education, Washington, DC, 20202.
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Academic Credit and Time Management
A semester hour of credit is a quantification of student learning, representing the amount of time a typical student is expected to devote to learning the course material.
In traditional classroom settings, the expectation for undergraduates is generally two hours of outside work for every hour spent in class. For graduate students, less time is typically spent in class and more time is committed to outside studygenerally three hours for every hour spent in class.
Including both class time and study time, a semester hour of credit for the average student entails approximately forty hours of time devoted to active learning. A three-credit course therefore involves approximately 120 hours of commitment during the term.
At Cambridge College, course structures often vary considerably from this traditional norm, but the learning expectations are always comparable. The amount of time in class varies both with the nature of the course and its level (undergraduate or graduate) and some students progress through the course material at faster rates than others. Some courses demand intensive interactions over shorter periods of time than a term. Some entail extensive residencies, like the summer sessions at the National Institute of Teaching Excellence (NITE) program. Others build directly on a student's professional experience, perhaps foreshortening the time required to master new insights and competencies. Still other courses require an extensive internship or practicum.
It is important to be aware of these differences in planning your time, but as a guideline for the average, total amount of learning commitment that may be expected in a course, it is useful to keep in mind the average of forty hours per credit.
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