The Honor Committee released an email to the University community May 21 detailing each honor investigation and sanction between Dec. 17 and May 17, in which cheating remained the most frequently reported honor code violation. The email also contained a celebratory message from Genny Freed, Committee chair and rising fourth-year College student, reflecting on the spring semester and the Committee’s adjudicated cases.
“This past semester, the Honor Committee has worked to fine-tune our case procedures and expand our outreach across Grounds,” Freed wrote. “We are excited to continue improving our case processing efficiency and ensuring that the Honor Committee is a meaningful and trusted resource for students and faculty.”
Freed released a summary of each of the Committee’s adjudicated cases filed and explained what the Honor process entails, as well as the Committee’s procedures during different investigations.
According to Committee bylaws, in the case of an IR, a student admits to an alleged offense, such as lying, cheating or stealing, makes amends with any affected parties and recommits themselves to the University’s Community of Trust. A Conscientious Retraction must be filed before a report is received by the Committee and allows a student to admit to an honor offense before it comes under suspicion. A CR can be used as a fully exonerating defense if the report is filed properly.
In her email to the University community, Freed wrote that the Committee has 17 cases currently undergoing the IR process, seven cases under investigation, four cases proceeding to an IR panel for sanction and two cases undergoing an appeal.
Freed provided brief descriptions of all cases processed and closed throughout the term and outlined what each honor code violation entailed. In an email statement to The Cavalier Daily, Freed wrote that cheating remained to be the most frequently reported offense, similar to previous terms.
Freed also noted that since the Committee transitioned to a multi-sanction system in July 2023, reports have increased each Committee term. The Committee received 101 reports during the 2025-26 academic year — which occurred while Class of 2026 alumnus Thomas Ackleson served his year-long term as Committee chair. Ackleson’s term ended April 6 as Freed took over as the new Committee chair for the 2026-27 academic year.
Under the current multi-sanction system, an accused student may receive a variety of penalties tailored to their specific circumstances, rather than the previous single-sanctioned system that only considered expulsion as a sanction.
Among the 33 IR and CR cases summarized, 19 involved students from the College of Arts and Sciences, making it the school with the highest number of offenses. Following the College, five cases involved students from the School of Architecture, five from the School of Engineering and Applied Science, two from the McIntire School of Commerce, one from the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy and one from the School of Education and Human Development.
The adjudicated cases included sanctions requiring students to participate in a seven-week Honor Restorative Ethics Seminar, write apologetic letters to professors or students involved, complete volunteer service and participate in an XYZ case study. XYZ case studies allow an accused student to be given a voice during the restorative sanctioning process and reflect on their experiences before rejoining the University’s Community of Trust.
When asked whether there was an increase in reports during a particular semester in the academic year, Freed wrote to The Cavalier Daily that the Committee typically receives an increase in reports during the end of the spring semester, followed by a decrease in the summer. This is because most students are not taking classes and are not physically on Grounds during the summer, according to Freed.
The Committee will convene over the summer Sunday, June 28 and July 26 at 7 p.m. on Zoom. Public access to the Zoom link must be requested from Freed.
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