Honor System

The Honor System was established at Lawrence in 1962 and reflects a central value of Lawrence: academic integrity. The system promotes a trusting and open environment by fostering honest behavior.  Unlike honor systems run by administrators or panels of faculty members, Lawrence’s system is overseen by an Honor Council composed entirely of students. The Faculty entrusts the students to act on behalf of the Lawrence academic community.

This web page provides information about the the Lawrence Honor System. If you have questions, please email the Honor Council at honorcouncil@lawrence.edu.

No Lawrence student will unfairly advance their own academic performance or in any way limit or impede the academic pursuits of other students of the Lawrence community.

Students who matriculate at Lawrence sign the Honor Pledge and reaffirm the Honor Code on all submitted work by writing "I hereby reaffirm the Lawrence University Honor Code" or "IHRTLUHC" followed by a signature.

The Honor Code is a great privilege and responsibility. The Faculty trusts that students will do honest academic work, and this trust brings privileges such as unproctored or take-home exams. In support of these privileges, all Lawrence faculty and students bear the responsibility for reporting potential Honor Code violations, such as suspected cheating or plagiarism, to the Honor Council.

The Honor Council is a group of ten Lawrence students who work on behalf of the entire Lawrence community to uphold the Honor Code and to encourage fair and honest academic work. The council functions as an educational resource, informing students and faculty of the implications of the Honor Code and the situations that fall under the council's jurisdiction. As the need arises, the council also functions as a judicial body, convening hearings in response to alleged violations of the Honor Code.

Members of the Lawrence community should feel free to contact any member of the Honor Council. If they talk to a council member about a possible Honor Code violation, they are under no obligation to pursue additional action.

2018-19 Honor Council members

Chairs: Willa Dworschak and Hailey Edwards
Members: Sara Cooper, Maren Dahl, Clancy Loebl, Isabella Melendez, Thuy Nguyen, Louric Rankine, Catherine Roe, Miranda Salazar, Minh Le Vu
Advisor: Celia Barnes
Email: honorcouncil@lawrence.edu

Outcomes

2 Written warnings
4 Received a zero on the assignment(s)
1 Received a zero on the assignment(s) and assignment to meet with a tutor
57 Received a zero on the assignment(s) and a one-letter reduction in the course 25 22 10
4 Received a zero on the assignment(s) and a one letter grade reduction in the course plus a suspension
11 Received a zero on the assignment(s) and a two-letter grade reduction in the course
4 Received a zero on the assignment(s) and a two-letter grade reduction in the course plus a suspension
1 Received a zero on the assignment(s) and a one-letter grade reduction in the course plus a recommendation of separation from the university
6 found not in violation