Academic Honesty Policy

Examples of academic dishonesty seem to be everywhere. College presidents, newspaper journalists, college professors, and renowned scientists have recently been accused of plagiarism or fraudulently claiming their work is their own or of outright fabrication of data.

This policy has been developed to help students understand what academic honesty is and to understand the penalties should a student choose to act dishonestly.

Students are expected to demonstrate honesty and integrity while in attendance at Boylan Catholic High School. Each student is expected to do his or her own work. This includes test taking, homework, class assignments and the original creation of essays, compositions, term papers and scientific research. All work submitted by students should be a true reflection of their effort and ability.

The following are considered cheating:

Claiming credit for work not the product of one’s own honest effort. Students should be prepared to share with the teacher the resources they used to generate their work (for example, written passages, essays, Google slides, projects, and the like).
Providing access to materials or information so that credit may be dishonestly claimed by others.
Sharing work with another student or assisting him/her to obtain another’s work unless permitted by the teacher.
Accessing electronic devices, such as cell phones or smart devices, during a test.
Opening additional tabs, windows, or chat features when taking a test on an electronic device.
Taking pictures or screenshots of questions on a test.
AI and Academic Integrity: See AI AUP on page 15 of the Student Handbook or listed below.

Any behavior, which can be defined as cheating, represents a violation of mutual trust and respect essential to education at Boylan High School. Students who cheat should expect to be confronted by their teacher and be subject to the following penalties:

Zero on the assignment or test.
Notification of parents.
Establishment of a cheating record in the student's file until graduation.

If a student is found to have cheated a second time, the student will be referred to the Assistant Principal. Consequences could include:

Drop from the class.
Loss of credit and an "F" appearing on the transcript.
No replacement course being allowed.

Let's make some things clear...

The underlying assumption in all schoolwork is each student does his or her own work.
The teacher is not required to tell the students each time that they are to work alone.
If teachers choose, they may give permission for students to work together, but this is the exception.

Boylan Catholic High School Handbook, 2026-2027, p.14-15.

Schoolwork

The rule is simple: Academic honesty requires that work submitted by the student be his or her own work. If other persons contribute to the work, they must be given credit for their contribution. If contributors are not cited, the student has cheated.

Students who quote or paraphrase from sources such as books, periodicals, the internet, interviews, other students, etc. must cite the source of the material. Failure to cite sources is called plagiarism.

Please note the other types of academic dishonesty as cited in the Boylan Student Handbook and reproduced in this document.

Tests, Quizzes

During or before tests or quizzes any attempt to discover answers from others or by using "cheat sheets", cell phones, smart devices, or any other means is cheating.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) Acceptable Use Policy

This Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) outlines the guidelines and rules for the appropriate and responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) by high school students at Boylan Catholic High School. As a Christ-Centered Community dedicated to the education of the whole person and committed to truth, service, and academic excellence, the use of AI must align with the school's mission and values. AI is a powerful tool that can offer numerous educational benefits and opportunities for personal growth. However, it must be used responsibly, ethically, and in harmony with our faith-based principles. By using AI technologies, students agree to abide by the rules and principles set forth in this policy.

AI is not a substitute for schoolwork that requires original thought. Students may not claim AI generated content as their own work. The use of AI to take tests, complete assignments, create multimedia projects, write papers, or complete schoolwork without permission of a teacher or administrator is strictly prohibited. The use of AI for these purposes constitutes cheating or plagiarism.

In certain situations, AI may be used as a learning tool or a study aid. Students who wish to use AI for legitimate educational purposes must have permission from a teacher or an administrator. To maintain academic integrity, students must disclose any use of AI generated material on assignments designated as AI-appropriate. As always, for those assignments, students must properly use attributions, including in-text citations, quotations, and references.

A student could include the following statement in assignments to indicate use of a Generative AI Tool: “The author(s) would like to acknowledge the use of [Generative AI Tool Name], a language model developed by [Generative AI Tool Provider], in the preparation of this assignment. The [Generative AI Tool Name] was used in the following way(s) in this assignment [e.g., brainstorming, grammatical correction, citation, which portion of the assignment].”

Any text that has been generated by an AI Tool must be cited in the same manner as other sources. Students may use AI as authorized in their Individualized Education Program (IEP).

Students may not use AI, including AI image or voice generator technology, to violate school rules or diocesan policies.

In order to ensure academic integrity, tests, assignments, projects, papers, and other schoolwork may be checked by AI content detectors and/or plagiarism recognition software.

Source: This introduction to this AUP for Boylan Catholic High School students was partially generated using AI (ChatGPT July 20, 2023). This policy includes the recommended AI policy created by The Illinois Principals Association and used with permission (July 28, 2023). The content was edited by the Boylan Catholic High School administration. Updated September 2025 to include Diocese of Rockford recommendations.