I and my 4 TAs turned over 6 cases of plagiarism just before Spring Break. We documented these cases thoroughly, pulling information from Turnitin.com and assorted Google searches, highlighting the plagiarized passages. It was a thick folder of incontrovertible evidence.
When I returned to my office yesterday, a note under my door told me that all of the cases had been reviewed by the Dean's office, and all of the students had "apologized" and had given a variety of "explanations" for the "errors."I was told by my Dean to lower each student's grade by one letter grade and carry on.
I wouldn't do it. I got that motherfucker on the phone faster than you can say "tenured full professor." I told him I wouldn't take the students back, and that was it. I am not a hothead, and have no history of incivility, but I got the sense that the Dean was surprised.
I felt good all night.
This morning I got a call from a junior faculty member asking me for grades for 6 students. The Dean has moved all 6 of the cheating students out of my class and forced them into the class of one of my colleagues.
Those students have been given a free pass by the Dean, by the college. They are - I can assure you - laughing it up. They cheated. They got caught. And the college looked the other way, made it as convenient as possible for them to get into another course. I even bet the Dean's secretary filled out the drop/add forms. I am sick at heart.
This is academic reality. This is about the last thing I can stomach.
