The Honor Concept and Honor Treatise are parts of the United States Naval Academy's Honor Program. Similar to the Cadet Honor Codes of the

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and

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, the Concept formalizes the requirement for midshipmen to demonstrate integrity while refusing to lie, cheat or steal.''Honor Concept'', USNA Brigade Honor Program website The Treatise adopts the use of first-person point of view, becoming a personal call to obey the letter and spirit of the Concept amongst midshipmen of the brigade.''Honor Treatise'', USNA Brigade Honor Program website The

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and

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utilize a similar Honor Concept to impart the same call to integrity for its corps of cadets.''Honor Concept'', USCGA website, Cadet Life section Unlike the other service academies' honor codes, the Honor Concept allows a midshipman to confront someone committing an honor violation without formally reporting it. At the other academies, failure to formally report an honor violation is construed as tolerating it, which is itself a violation of the code. Penalties for violating the Honor Concept can be severe, up to and including expulsion from the Academy.

History

The principles of the Honor Concept are as old as the Academy itself, revolving around the principle that an officer's word is his bond. However, examination of the past academy honor practices by 1953 USNA class president

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discovered "no uniform policy for dealing with midshipmen who had violated their class's conception of honor."Gelfand, ''Sea change at Annapolis'', p. 191 While admitting to ''irreverence'' as an "inescapable trait of midshipmen," brigade leaders like Perot,

William P. Lawrence William Porter "Bill" Lawrence (January 13, 1930 – December 2, 2005) was a decorated United States Navy vice admiral and Naval Aviator who served as Superintendent of the United States Naval Academy from 1978 to 1981. Lawrence was a noted pil ...

and James Sagerholm worked with Brigade Captain Charles Dobony and academy superintendent Harry W. Hill to create the Honor Concept.Gelfand, p. 192

Notes

References

* * * * {{USNA Honor concept Honor concept Honour Codes of conduct United States Merchant Marine Academy