GENERAL CLASSROOM POLICIES

The policies that govern teaching, advisement, and other faculty activities are detailed in the Undergraduate Bulletin and the College's Policies and Procedures. The selected policies below address questions and issues that commonly arise during the course of the semester.

Syllabus

The College Senate adopted the following syllabus policy effective Fall 2008:

"Each faculty member is required to prepare for each course an outline (or syllabus) subject to reasonable changes as circumstances demand, which will contain the following information and will be made available (as either a paper copy or an electronic version) to the students during the first week of the semester:

1. an outline of the sequence of the course and the topics to be covered in the course;
2. a reading list, texts, and/or materials required;
3. grading procedures;
4. test dates including date and time of the final examination [see "Master Schedule" and "Final Exam Sessions" below];
5. schedules for assignments, experiments, and projects;
6. descriptions and due dates of papers the student will write for the course.

Students who request a paper copy of the syllabus will be provided with one by the instructor.

Copies of the course outline shall also be placed in department files." See also Academic Affairs, Section XII of Policies and Procedures.

Attendance

Students are expected to attend all classes. Furthermore, the College recognizes that students hold primary and ultimate responsibility for their academic performance and accomplishment. Students are expected to recognize the importance of regular class attendance and to complete satisfactorily all requirements of all courses in which they are registered.

Student attendance in classes on religious holidays is governed by New York State Education Law, and students who do not attend classes on certain days because of religious beliefs should refer to the policy below.

Religious Holidays

Section 224-a of the Education Law (of New York State) reads as follows:

Students unable because of religious beliefs to attend classes on certain days.

1. No person shall be expelled from or be refused admission as a student to an institution of higher education for the reason that he or she is unable, because of his or her religious belief, to attend classes or to participate in any examination, study, or work requirements on a particular day or days.

2. Any student in an institution of higher education who is unable, because of his or her religious beliefs, to attend classes on a particular day or days shall, because of such absence on the particular day or days, be excused from any examination or any study or work requirements.

3. It shall be the responsibility of the faculty and of the administrative officials of each institution of higher education to make available to each student who is absent from school, because of his or her religious beliefs, an equivalent opportunity to make up any examination, study or work requirements which he or she may have missed because of such absence on any particular day or days. No fees of any kind shall be charged by the institution for making available to the said student such equivalent opportunity.

4. If classes, examinations, study or work requirements are held on Friday after four o'clock post meridian or on Saturday, similar or makeup classes, examinations, study, or work requirements shall be made available on other days, where it is possible and practicable to do so. No special fees shall be charged to the student for these classes, examinations, study, or work requirements held on other days.

5. In effectuating the provisions of this section, it shall be the duty of the faculty and of the administrative officials of each institution of higher education to exercise the fullest measure of good faith. No adverse or prejudicial effects shall result to any student because of his or her availing himself or herself of the provisions of this section.

6. Any student, who is aggrieved by the alleged failure of any faculty or administrative officials to comply in good faith with the provisions of this section, shall be entitled to maintain an action or proceeding in the supreme court of the county in which such institution of higher education is located for the enforcement of his or her rights under this section.

6a. A copy of this section shall be published by each institution of higher education in the catalog of such institution containing the listing of available courses.

7. As used in this section, the term "institution of higher education" shall mean schools under the control of the board of trustees of the State University of New York or of the board of higher education of the city of New York or any community college.

Final Exam Week Sessions

Each class has a time period scheduled during the final examination week which "counts" as part of our official total class instructional time. Every class must meet during the final examination time assigned to it on the Final Examination page of the Master Schedule. A faculty member may choose to a) devote the entirety of the period to an exam, b) devote part of the period to an exam and the remainder of the period to instructional activity, or c) devote the entire period to instructional activity. A request to cancel, revise, or significantly abbreviate the final exam week class session must be made in writing and approved in advance by the Dean of the College. (Please do not assume that approval will be granted automatically.) See also Academic Affairs, Section XIX of Policies and Procedures.

Posting of Grades

Faculty who post grades may identify students only by their Geneseo ID numbers. Students are encouraged to use KnightWeb to learn their final course grades.

Holding Papers from Previous Semesters

Faculty must maintain all unreturned graded papers, tests, reports, and other materials used in the computation of a student's final course grade through the sixth Friday of the semester following the term in which the final course grade was issued. If a student apeals a course grade the faculty member must retain all relevant unreturned papers, tests, reports, etc. for that student until the appeal process is complete.