On May 26, 2026, SDU University hosted the Annual Forum of the Academic Integrity League (AIL) titled “Building Trust in Higher Education,” dedicated to the 8th anniversary of the organization. The event was moderated by Andrey Bogdanchikov, Vice-Rector for Strategic Development and Digitalization at SDU University.

The Academic Integrity League (Akademiialyq Adaldyq Ligasy) is a leading association of higher education institutions in Kazakhstan, committed to fostering transparency, fairness, ethics, and mutual trust within the national higher education system.

During the panel session, leading experts and university executives delivered insightful presentations addressing current digital and institutional challenges in higher education.

Participants were presented with the results of the League’s post-monitoring analytics, key directions for the further development of its ecosystem, as well as the outcomes of the project office’s work on developing quality assurance and academic integrity standards for schools and colleges.

In addition, experts discussed pressing issues related to maintaining academic integrity in the era of rapidly evolving artificial intelligence, the use of digital university analytics tools to prevent academic misconduct, graduate responsibility, the development of sustainable institutional culture, and the importance of academic ethics in medical education.

The forum program also included an official award ceremony honoring the League’s experts, followed by a campus tour of SDU University.

The second half of the day was dedicated to the official General Assembly meeting of the League. A total of 12 applications were reviewed, including presentations from six universities seeking membership in the League. In accordance with internal regulations, the remaining six applications were postponed until the next meeting.

During the meeting, the official Guidelines for the Use of Artificial Intelligence within the Academic Integrity League were also formally approved.

One of the key outcomes of the meeting was the election of the Chair of the League’s General Assembly for the 2026–2027 academic year. Two leading Kazakhstani universities — the International Information Technology University (IITU) and M. Kozybayev North Kazakhstan University (Kozybayev University) — competed for this position.

Following the voting results, Kozybayev University was elected as the new Chair of the Academic Integrity League by majority vote.

The SDU University community sincerely congratulates Kozybayev University on this honorable and responsible appointment. We are confident that the new Chair’s institutional expertise and commitment to academic values will provide strong momentum for further strengthening academic integrity standards across Kazakhstan’s higher education system.