The Dean\u2019s Office in AS&E has received a range of comments and questions on the recently announced S\/F policy for Spring 2020. Under this policy, all courses transitioned to the satisfactory\/fail (S\/F) grading option as of March 23, with students allowed to select a letter grade (A-E) option for any\/all of their courses through submitting a formal request. The Dean\u2019s Office continues to believe that this is the best approach to assist students and instructors in navigating the transition to online courses and the broader situation with COVID-19.<\/p>\n
It is with this intent that the Dean\u2019s Office has made the decision to extend the deadline for students to select the letter grade option to April 10.<\/strong> This decision is in response to the concerns expressed by some students, faculty and staff that students would need some additional time to adjust to the online version of courses. The Dean\u2019s Office will continue to monitor how students and instructors are adapting to their new circumstances moving forward.<\/p>\n In addition, as Deans of the College and of Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs, we can\u2019t emphasize enough the importance of instructors and students pulling together to achieve the original learning outcomes of the courses to the greatest degree possible. The response to the COVID-19 outbreak has disrupted the semester and we know that the new S\/F policy may create some additional challenges. However, we firmly believe in the dedication of our instructors and the resiliency of our students. We strongly encourage all instructors to design exams, papers and other assessments in ways consonant with the current online learning environment and that ensure student learning regardless of the grading basis (S\/F, letter grade) of the student. On their side, students should commit to achieving course goals to the highest degree possible in their current environment and actively reach out for assistance from instructors, advisors and other support staff when necessary.<\/p>\n Finally, we want to clarify a few important points regarding the new policy.<\/strong> The Dean\u2019s Office will soon post a FAQ to answer some common questions on the S\/F for Spring 2020, but these points bear special note.<\/p>\n As always, we appreciate your dedication and willingness to adapt to the evolving situation with COVID-19. We continue to feel confident that we can ensure the success of our students and the achievement of our educational goals in these challenging times. The AS&E Dean\u2019s Office will continue to support these efforts as we move forward with the semester.<\/p>\n Jeff Runner Nick Vamivakas <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" To all faculty, staff and undergraduate and graduate students in AS&E: Update on S\/F Policy for Spring 2020 The Dean\u2019s Office in AS&E has received a range of comments and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[106],"tags":[826],"class_list":["post-16972","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-updates","tag-mar-2020"],"yoast_head":"\n\n
\nDean of the College<\/p>\n
\nDean of Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs<\/p>\n