Newspapers / The Guilfordian (Greensboro, N.C.) / Feb. 12, 1988, edition 1 / Page 2
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1 —— 1 Commentary Letters to the Editor HONOR CODE = Strengthen and Enforce A few semesters ago during exams, a friend, returning from her math final, informed me that one of her classmates had blatantly cheated while the professor was out of the room. Neither she nor I ever told anyone. Although I do not believe that I violated the honor code by not reporting my suspicions to the professor (my evidence was merely hearsay), I am ashamed that I did not convince my friend to notify her pro fessor. Moreover, I am ashamed that this inci dent, and many similar ones, have occured at Guilford College. I am not claiming that every student cheats, but that some students do not abide by the academic honor code; too often the student body simply ignores this dishonesty. I earnestly believe that students and professors alike should strive to strictly uphold Guilford's academic honor code. My experience has forc ed me to conclude that the honor code is neither GUILFORDIAN Editor-in-Chief Tracy Russ News Director Holly Fairbairn Features Editor Debbie Highsmith Sports Editor Fiona Clem Photo Editor Eric Buck Layout Editor Lisa Arrington Copy Editor. Michelle Godard Business Manager Burt Gordon STAFF Rebecca McCullam Noah Bartolucci Steve McEntee Dorothy Brown Megan Trend Peter Smith Ju)ie Margu | ies Beth Gatewood Anne Jonas -j-j m Moore Mia Kissil Tom Lalley Michael Sharp Eric Ziegler Michael Sloan Laura p eters Sabah Ahmad Jan Naugle David Upchurch Jay Underwood Eliza Blake ggth y a te Robert Jones Ralph Kirkpatrick Betsy Hatch Kim Honbarrier Lara Ramsey Leslie Anderson Faculty Advisor Jeff Jeske The Guilfordian is the student newspaper of Guilford College. Greensboro. N.C. Mailing information can be obtained through the Guilfordian office. Submitted articles are welcome. The editor(s) reserves the editorial license to Guilfordian staff. respected nor enforced as it should be. I've overheard a student in the cafeteria disclose test questions to students in a later class. I've also heard a student joke about mak ing up quotes and references. I've even talk ed to professors who are concerned about such laxi ty. Occasional suspicious behavior has occurred in some of my classes. And I am to blame as much as any other student because I have remained silent. These instances reveal the prevalence of student apathy toward the honor code. What specifically does the honor code say? The current "Student Hand book", on pages two and four, explains that the code is divided into the social honor code and the academic honor code. I am concerned here with the academic honor code: the honor pledge and stu dent responsibilities. The honor pledge states simply, "I have been honest and have not observed any dishonesty." Even though students are not asked to pledge all work, the faculty in theory, always assumes student compliance to the code." Students' respon sibilities include the following: "adherence to the ... code", "confronting other students about viola tions," "reporting viola tions," ''appearing at judicial hearings," and "responding truthfully to requests for information." Reporting the honor viola tion of a friend is difficult; however, one must put aside friendship and report all known viola tions. Guilford professors can help prevent students from not following the honor code only by repeatedly stressing in the classroom the code's im Maintenance Maintenance problems are everyone's favorite pet gripe at Guilford. We often forget that the pro blem of maintaining the Guilford campus and facilities is a two-sided coin. It isn't just a matter of things not getting fixed at a reasonable rate or trash that hasn't been cleaned up. It's one thing to have so meone take out the gar bage in neatly tied bags, but its another to ask them to pick up your broken bot tles and pizza crusts piece by piece from the floor. It's the same kind of thing with Maintenance: if we didn't break so many windows and write on the walls so much, maintenance could be do ing more important things, like making sure we have running water, electricity, and heat in the portance and everyone's responsibility to uphold it. Once students and facul ty emphasize the honor code, the system will be self-perpetuating. The dif ficulty lies in overcoming inertia, in motivating the community to actively work to strengthen the system. To accomplish this, a renewed commit ment and a concerted ef fort from the whole Guilford community students, professors, and administration will be essential. For three impor tant reasons we should all endeavor to strengthen our honor system. (1) A more effective honor code will foster an atmosphere of fairness and trust on campus that will benefit all. Once earn ed, this trust would lead to freedoms such as self scheduled exams. (2) Striving for this goal should help unite the col lege community. For a small college like Guilford, achieving stricter adherence to the code is definitely possible, and if we unite, our success will be inevitable. winter. It's a question of respect for our neighbors, for ourselves, and for our college. When we push the screens from the windows of our dorms, break the furniture, and leave litter in the hallways, we don't stop to think about the ef fects of our actions on the groundskeeping, maintenance, and housekeeping staff who have to look after those areas. Sure, they are paid to maintain a high level of cleanliness and function ing, but we're making their jobs impossible to finish. It's hard to keep up your morale in a job where the going only gets tougher. To those hard-working people who fix things around here, I say "keep up the good work." To the thoughtless, careless, irresponsible vandals who tear things up, I say "why don't you go home and tear things 2 (3) Most importantly, Guilford has a respon sibility to its students and to society to train and educated competent, honest students. A more effective honor code will ensure that Guilford's graduates possess these qualities. With everyone's support, we can do it. I believe that the Guilford community would make a good start toward strengthening the honor code if students reaffirm their vow to adhere to the code and if professors stress the im portance of the code. Students must recognize that not reporting any dishonesty observed and being dishonest are equal ly serious violations. Con sequently, professors and students alike must report any dishonesty that they observe. If we remain passive, the honor system will not work. At risk is the integrity of Guilford and its graduates. The choice is ours. by Julie Lewis up, so I won't have to pay for your crimes?" To tell you the truth, it makes me ashamed when I talk to the people who clean up after us. It's like cleaning up after a school full of three year olds. It only takes a few peo ple to ruin things for us all. When they break things, we have to pay for it: with fines, with increased school fees, and with living in such a dismal environ ment. It's about time the good people in this community took a stand against this senseless destruction. We can make this campus a better place. Remember next time you see someone messing things up: we pay, too. By the way, Maintenance is now pay ing $4.00 an hour for stu dent workers. They need help, not hindrance. Yours sincerely, A Concerned Student
The Guilfordian (Greensboro, N.C.)
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Feb. 12, 1988, edition 1
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