Students are supportive of possible new XF grade but voice concerns they see with the grade being implemented.

Some students feel having the grade go on a students permanent transcript is a step toward correcting the problem but maybe not on the first offense.

Freshman nursing major Jessica Daniels said students who are caught cheating should have the new grade go on their permanent record.

Daniels said it is only fair for students who have been honest to be rewarded when looking for a job after graduation, and those who were not as honest should be set apart from students who have been honest.

“If a student wants to cheat, they will do it no matter what,” Daniels said.

“Students who are caught cheating or plagiarizing should have it on his or her permanent transcripts so people will know they cheated when they begin looking for a job after graduation.”

Junior broadcast major Michael Marraccini said the new grade seems to be a positive step for solving the problem of cheating and plagiarizing, but worries there are other issues with students being accused of cheating.

Marraccini said this new grade would boost Kent State’s attempt towards controlling the problem, but doesn’t expect it to change the way professors look at the situation.

“People who are found cheating will have lasting marks proving they cheated,” Marraccini said. “My concerns are for students who are accused of cheating when his or her intentions were completely harmless.”

Adam Bell, junior computer science major, said students will probably have trouble finding jobs when they graduate if the new grade is on their permanent transcripts.

Bell said the new grade may deter some students from cheating or plagiarizing, but should not go on their permanent records on a first offense.

“I believe students who are caught cheating or plagiarizing should be failed for the course on their first offense,” Bell said. “The grade should only be given to students on their second or third offense.”

While some students feel the new grade will make it harder for those who have been caught cheating or plagiarizing to find a job after graduation, some students feel that it is a necessary effort towards assessing a problem on campus.

Zachary Laux, freshman exploratory major, said he is unaware of how big the problem is on campus, but feels this will give the university a way of tracking how many students violate these rules.

Laux said the grade will be a positive step in efforts to deter students from cheating and will make it easier for professors to handle the problem.

“This seems like the first step in a positive effort to handle a problem the university and other students feel might be getting out of control,” Laux said. “By the grade going on a students permanent record, it punishes the cheater and rewards students who don’t cheat.”

Students and faculty will have to wait to see how this grade will affect the problem of cheating and plagiarizing on campus. The grade is being reviewed by the Faculty Senate and must go before the Education Policy Council before it can be implemented into the university’s catalog.

Contact Arts and Sciences reporter Ryan Knight at [email protected].