SARSEF

Every child. Thinking critically. Solving problems.

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SARSEF

Every child. Thinking critically. Solving problems.

  • Rules

    • Scientific integrity

    Adapted from Society for Science’s Scientific Integrity Policies

    SARSEF expects all students, teachers, adult sponsors, and others involved in the SARSEF Regional Science and Engineering Fair to hold themselves to the highest ethical standards. Scientific integrity is vital to the reliability and credibility of science.

    Code of Conduct

    SARSEF expects all Fair participants to act in a positive and ethical manner, treating each person (participant, staff, volunteer, or leader) fairly and respectfully. This includes but not limited to disclosing conflicts of interest related to the competition as well as abiding by SARSEF’s harassment policy.

    code of conduct

    Participant expectations

    Participating in SARSEF programs, including the SARSEF regional Science and Engineering Fair, carries with it moral and ethical responsibilities for each person involved. SARSEF expects students to act with honor and integrity when conducting research and interacting with others at the Fair. Violating scientific integrity policies or codes of conduct are grounds for disqualification or removal from the competition.

    • Fraud and misconduct are prohibited at all levels of research and competition.
    • Students must accurately represent their project information by school (or homeschool), grade, research timeframe, and all students researchers who worked on the project.
    • Students follow the rules of SRC and IRB to gain approval for applicable projects.
    • Students may not fabricate data or images, plagiarize, or present someone else’s work as their own.
    • Students must cite sources and distinguish their work from the work of others.
    • Students must respect confidentiality and intellectual property.
    • If AI or GenAI tools are utilized, students must be thoughtful and ethical with their usage to support and not replace student creativity and work.
    SARSEF AI use policy

    Grievance policy

    SARSEF aims for each participant to experience an encouraging and uplifting science fair. As such, SARSEF takes matters of scientific integrity and code of conduct seriously as it undermines our mission and values. We have provided a form to report instances of suspected violation of our scientific integrity policies or code of conduct. SARSEF will review any grievances and determine the best course forward to resolve any issues. This review is not a guarantee of any decision reversal or punitive action. This process is intended to foster communication and is not intended for anonymous reports.

    grievance form