Syllabus Addition: Statements for Religious Accommodation, Disability Accommodation, and Academic Honesty
On Religious Accommodation: IU policy and federal law require that instructors provide reasonable accommodations for students who want to observe their religious holidays at times when academic requirements conflict with those observations. Faculty are strongly encouraged to include the following notice in their syllabi. You may copy verbatim and paste the paragraph below into your syllabus.
ACCOMMODATIONS FOR RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCES STATEMENT: If any student will require academic accommodations for a religious observance, please provide me with a written request to consider a reasonable modification for that observance by the end of the second week of the course. Contact me after class, during my office hours, or by individual appointment to discuss the issue. If after discussion we reach no consensus, either party or both should seek the advice of the Department Chair or the Dean, and if no consensus is reached, then the advice of the Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs (“VCAA”). Either the instructor or the student may appeal the VCAA’s decision to the Office of Affirmative Action within ten business days of the determination.
On Disability Services: Faculty members are strongly encouraged to include a statement in their syllabi announcing the availability of accommodations for students with disabilities and explaining how these accommodations may be requested. This will ensure that students with disabilities know about their options. It will also ensure that the process includes input from the professional staff of the Office of Disabled Student Services. The Director can assist the student and the faculty members in identifying the situations where accommodations are necessary and what modifications are appropriate. You may copy verbatim and paste the paragraph below into your syllabus.
DISABILITIES STATEMENT: If you have a disability and need assistance, special arrangements can be made to accommodate most needs. Contact the Director of Disabled Student Services (Administration Building, room 149, telephone number 520-4832), as soon as possible to work out the details. Once the Director has provided you with a letter attesting to your needs for modification, bring the letter to me. For more information, please visit the web site for Office of Disabled Student Services http://www.iusb.edu/~sbdss/
On Academic Honesty: Faculty members have the responsibility to foster the intellectual honesty of the students. Should the faculty member detect signs of plagiarism or cheating, it is his or her duty to investigate thoroughly, to take appropriate action with respect to the grades of the students, and to report the matter to the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs. For detailed information concerning the procedure to be followed in the case of cheating or plagiarism, the student's right of appeal, and the penalties to be assessed, see the Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct at http://www.dsa.indiana.edu/Code/. You may copy verbatim and paste the paragraph below into your syllabus
ACADEMIC HONESTY STATEMENT: It is the responsibility of the student to know of the prohibited actions such as cheating, fabrication, plagiarism, academic, and personal misconduct, and thus, to avoid them. All students are held to the standards outlined in the code. Please reference the entire code for a complete listing (www.dsa.indiana.edu/Code/). Any violation may result in serious academic penalty, ranging from receiving a warning, to failing the assignment, to failing the course, to expulsion from the University.
