Chapter III: Faculty Responsibilities
3.100 INSTRUCTIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES
3.110 Teaching Load
Full-time faculty normally teach the equivalent of twelve instructional hours (usually three four-credit classes) each semester. The Academic Dean may make certain exceptions for those faculty who have heavy administrative responsibilities. See "Joint Faculty/Administrative Positions" (2.120). Attention will be paid to the total student load of the instructor involved, with an annual minimum load of 90 FTE students in six classes (360 credit-hours) as the institutional expectation. Normally, instructors will have a student load of 45-75 FTE students per semester and 90-150 per year.
Normally, a class exceeds ten students in order to justify a part-time faculty addition. When classes for full-time faculty within the department do not enroll at least ten students and the full-time faculty members' enrollment for the semester is fewer than forty five, it is expected, whenever possible, that such full-time department members will assume responsibility for courses previously projected for part-time faculty.
A class (other than 260, 290, 460, 470 or 490 offerings) enrolling fewer than ten students will be canceled unless it is specifically approved by the Academic Dean. Forty students is the maximum for one course, unless otherwise agreed upon by the teacher, the departmental chairperson, and the Academic Dean. Normally, no faculty member will teach an overload.
As a part of their regular course-load, all members of the full-time faculty must be available to teach in the First-Year Experience program and evening classes for the Center for Continuing Education.
Full-time faculty members are given teaching credit for instructing independent projects and internships. Guidelines for credit are as follows:
1. Credit toward a course-load reduction is awarded for each student supervised in internship/independent study if the instructor teaches at least 45 students during the semester the internship is supervised. Records for credit are maintained in the Registrar's Office.
2. For every 18 students supervised in internship/ independent study, full-time faculty are entitled to a one-course reduction in their teaching load in some future semester.
3. Internship/independent study credit is awarded on courses numbered 260, 270, 290, 460, 470, 480, 481, 490, and Theatre Studies practicum.
4. Credit for internship/independent study supervision is allowed only if the internship or independent study is completed.
5. The maximum yearly accumulation of faculty internship/independent study credits is 8.
6. Faculty must consult with their department about the timing of their course reduction and must notify the Academic Dean in writing of their intention to take a course reduction. Faculty could be asked to postpone their course reduction if the course reduction is inconsistent with departmental or College needs.
3.115 Concurrent Employment
Faculty employment at Guilford College is considered full time (August 15 - May 15) unless otherwise explicitly provided in salary arrangements. Concurrent regular employment may be undertaken by full-time faculty only with the prior written approval of the department chairperson and the Academic Dean. This regulation is not intended to discourage such activities as research, consulting, or public address. It seeks rather to ensure that College responsibilities are fulfilled and to safeguard the primary obligations of Guilford College to its students.
3.120 Summer School
Guilford College operates its own summer school. There are three sessions: two five-week and one ten-week. In assigning faculty for summer school teaching, the Director gives preference to full-time Guilford faculty, part-time Guilford faculty, and outside instructors respectively. Every effort is made to design a curriculum which meets student needs and to distribute summer teaching opportunities broadly and fairly throughout the faculty. Normally, the summer school load for any faculty member will be restricted to no more than two four-credit courses per summer. Salary is contingent upon an enrollment of three students (excluding auditors) and increased per student on a scale approved by the Dean for Continuing Education and Director of Summer School. Independent study and Internships are compensated on a per credit hour basis.
3.130 Text Selection and Library Reserve
Professors select their own textbooks. Required texts are to be ordered through the College Bookstore on forms provided by the Bookstore. In order for textbooks to be available for class use when needed, faculty members shall observe deadlines for orders set by the Bookstore: books should be ordered before the mid-semester break of the previous semester.
Books and photocopies of articles may be placed on library reserve. Each faculty member may place a total of ten items on reserve for each course taught by him or her during the semester. Reserve forms, available at the circulation desk, need to be filled out for each book (personal copy or library book) or article placed on reserve. The library staff requires one week for processing each reserve item. Books from other libraries cannot be put on reserve. The library staff recommends that faculty members keep a copy of any article or other reproducible item in case of damage or theft. All articles and books are removed from the reserve shelves at the end of the semester and stored, unless otherwise instructed or picked up by the instructor.
3.140 Course Syllabi
Professors shall prepare a syllabus for each course taught, including 250 and 450 courses, study abroad seminars, and courses offered for credit during summer school. A primary purpose of the course syllabus is to provide the student with exact information about what is expected in the course. Syllabi shall include a description of the course, an explanation of course objectives and general procedures, required and suggested readings, examination and paper requirements, all major assignments, the course attendance policy, and the instructor's grading policies.
For courses not specifically described in the catalog (such as 250 and 450 courses), a description similar to those appearing in the catalog shall be prepared, with a copy of the description filed with the Registrar. All new 250 and 450 courses require approval by the department prior to scheduling the course and filing the description with the Registrar. Curriculum Committee approval must be secured if the course is to count as part of the required liberal arts degree requirements.
Each student must receive a copy of the syllabus. Copies shall also be deposited in the office of the Academic Dean for accreditation purposes.
3.150 Class Hours and Class Attendance
Faculty members shall consider carefully and responsibly the needs of their disciplines and of their students in determining how many hours per week their classes should meet in order to fulfill the objectives of the course. According to the Curriculum Committee, credit units are assigned to courses on the ratio of one credit unit per semester for each three hours of consistent effort per week expected from the typical student. The amount of time the student spends in the classroom as compared to the amount spent in outside study may vary from course to course, according to the needs of the material and the style of work the instructor or department deems most desirable. This flexibility in the number of class meetings will be maintained as long as classroom space is available. The standard course in the curriculum is a four-credit-course, assuming twelve hours study per week, including class, by the typical student.
[Approved by the corporate faculty on September 6, 2006]
Guilford bases course credit hours on student effort outside, as well as inside, the classroom. This policy stems from the College’s Quaker heritage that encourages students to be active partners with faculty in the learning process. One of Guilford College’s five academic principles, “student-centered learning,” means that Guilford expects faculty members to “serve less as lecturers and more as tutors, resource persons, and critics.” As a result, the College considers student interaction with faculty, other students, community members, and organizations outside the classroom as vital to the learning experience. In addition to standard reading, research projects, and papers, Guilford faculty members who teach courses that yield four credit hours and meet the standard 2.5 hours per week in classroom time are expected to include in their courses active learning activities which may include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Conferences and workshops
- Experiential and serving learning incorporated into courses (such as Project SERVE which Guilford inaugurated in the 2005-2006 academic year under the auspices of the College’s Initiative on Faith and Practice)
- Fieldwork and field trips
- Foreign language conversation tables
- Group work or cooperative work
- Journaling
- On-line discussion groups
- Related labs
- Required attendance at lectures, performances, and film showings
- Research projects that require substantial work outside of class
- Sketch groups in the visual arts
All syllabi should contain the number and types of such projects or assignments and should describe how they will be evaluated. The Educational Policy Committee will periodically review syllabi and recommend to department chairs adjustments in course content to assure adequate active learning experiences when appropriate. In addition, courses will be reviewed to assure adequate content as part of the regular program reviews conducted on a rotating basis for all academic programs.
Attendance and interaction during class are integral to the education provided at Guilford, and College policy fundamentally emphasizes individual instructors' rights to set limits on the number of absences allowed in a given course. In further support of individual instructors, however, the College grants the Associate Dean for Academic Advising and Retention the right, following a consultation with the faculty member of record, to withdraw a student administratively from any course in which he or she has reached the number of absences listed below. Faculty are encouraged to inform students ahead of time if they are approaching the limits indicated below, but since class attendance is absolutely the responsibility of the student, faculty are not required to do so. In no way should these limits be interpreted by students as maximum allowable absences. Instead they represent the point at which College policy authorizes administrative withdrawal; a student with this number of absences will have missed twenty percent of a given course, and fairness to other students dictates the administrative withdrawal.
Courses meeting once per week, full semester: three absences
Courses meeting twice per week, full semester: six absences
Courses meeting three times per week, full semester: nine absences
Courses meeting four or five times per week, full semester: twelve absences
Courses meeting once per week, Fast Track: two absences
Courses meeting twice per week, Fast Track: four absences
Summer school courses, five-week session: four absences
Summer school courses, ten-week session: four absences
If this withdrawal occurs prior to the published last day to withdraw with a W grade, the student will be awarded a grade of W. If this withdrawal occurs after that day, the faculty member will award the student either a WP (withdrawn passing) or WF (withdrawn failing) grade, the former of which has no effect on the cumulative grade point average but the latter of which is figured into the cumulative grade point average as a zero. No tuition refunds will be granted for administrative withdrawals other than those allowable under policies published in the College catalogue.
Teachers and/or academic departments are free to set their own more stringent attendance policies for their classes. Students on academic probation are permitted no unexcused absences. When students are absent from class for as long as a week, faculty members shall inquire into the reason and notify the Associate Dean for Academic Advising, the Director of the First Year Program, or the Director of Retention in the Campus Life Office, who will determine whether the student is in need of counseling.
3.151 Vacation Breaks
Teachers shall not adjust class schedules or course requirements to accommodate students' travel plans that conflict with scheduled tests, exams, classes, labs or assignments. Teachers shall not modify class meeting times the week prior to vacation without permission of the department chairperson.
3.152 Bad Weather Procedures
Classes can be canceled for the entire institution only by the President or Academic Dean. When such a suspension of activity occurs, either for all classes, or just for night classes, the main switchboard, the office of the Center for Continuing Education, and local radio and television stations will be notified. Faculty will also be notified by voice mail. Only very rarely will daytime classes be canceled because of bad weather.
Individual instructors can cancel their classes if they reasonably believe they are unable to come to campus safely. In such cases, the faculty answering service (Correspondence Center--ext. 2274) shall be notified (not the central switchboard) and individual faculty should put a message on their voice mail. It will normally be necessary to make arrangements to make up work missed on such occasions later in the term.
When students or others call to inquire about specific class cancellation status, calls should be directed to the faculty answering service -- ext. 2274. For general information call the main switchboard -- 316-2000.
If commuting students reasonably believe that safety considerations prevent attendance at classes which are not canceled during bad weather, they should refrain from undue risk and will receive an "excused absence." Whenever possible, students should leave a message on voice mail for the relevant faculty person. These procedures regarding bad weather days should be announced to the students at the beginning of the semester by the faculty member.
No departments, administrative or academic, shall undertake departmental cancellations. All decisions regarding early termination of the work day for staff will come only from the Academic Dean or the President's Office in order to ensure fairness and institution-wide coordination.
3.160 Responsibility for Making Up Missed Classes
Intellectual development is the central concern of a liberal arts college. Extracurricular activities offer a wide variety of opportunities for enrichment of undergraduate experience, but established academic priorities must be maintained. Guilford College students must attend all classes and meetings, which are part of their course work, according to the class attendance policy. Those representing the College in departmentally or institutionally sponsored extracurricular activities which cause them to miss classes, labs, or meetings should, with the approval of the professor, make up that work, including examinations. In cases where make-up work is impossible because of the nature of the instructional experience, students must assume personal responsibility for choosing between their academic obligation and the extracurricular activity. At no time will students be excused from curricular responsibilities such as classes, labs, field trips or meetings to participate in extracurricular practices, rehearsals, or meetings, but must arrange with coaches and/or sponsors to make up missed work.
3.170 Office Hours and Advising
Since a primary value of Guilford College is personal contact between faculty and students, professors are responsible for keeping office hours at times when students are free from class and laboratory commitments and able to arrange conferences. Normally, full-time faculty shall be available to talk with students a minimum of five hours per week. These times shall be clearly posted and staggered throughout the week on at least three different days. All faculty shall be responsible for advising students, including first-year, transfer, and CCE students.
Faculty members shall fully familiarize themselves with the College's academic requirements for graduation, as well as provisions and deadlines for student withdrawal from classes or from the College so that they may advise students in these areas. Faculty are required to attend faculty advising workshops in order to maintain and improve their advising skills.
Faculty members shall assist the Registrar's Office during pre-registration and registration, instructions to be provided by the Registrar.
See also "Effective Academic Advising" (2.443).
3.180 Final Examinations and Final Grades
3.180 Special Academic Events Period, Reading Day, Final Examinations, and Course Grades
(Revision approved by the faculty, March 2008)
The Registrar sets the final examination schedule and this schedule may not be changed. Under exceptional circumstances, however, final examinations for individual students may be adjusted at the sole discretion of the course instructor. The college calendar will include, at the end of each (fall and spring) semester, one Special Academic Events Period (SAEP) and one Reading Day (RD). During SAEP, special academic events may be scheduled between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. The normal class schedule will be observed after 5 p.m. Special academic events include those academic events that could not otherwise be scheduled during regular class time (e.g., recitals including students from different class sections, combined meetings of related classes that meet at different times, or extended meeting to view student presentations or watch a film). For an event to be scheduled during SAEP, the instructor must (a) receive approval from her/his department chair prior to the beginning of the semester; (b) receive approval from her/his division chair, via her/his department chair, prior to the beginning of the semester; and (c) include in the course syllabus a complete description of the event including the start and end times and the responsibilities of the student. In the event of a schedule conflict with another course-required special academic event, the student must, within one calendar week of the receipt of the conflicting course syllabi, initiate a discussion with the relevant instructors to find a suitable solution to the scheduling conflict. A student may schedule her/his own thesis defense to occur during SAEP. No other events may be scheduled on SAEP and no assignments other than those required by a special academic event may be due on SAEP.
RD will immediately follow SAEP. RD is allotted for student preparation for final examinations and papers. Except for Fast Track II and Intensive classes, no day or evening classes may be scheduled on RD, no events may be scheduled on RD, and no assignments may be scheduled or due on RD. Instructors may offer optional review sessions on RD and instructors are expected to hold their regular office hours on RD. A student may schedule her/his own thesis defense to occur on RD. The days following RD are to be used for students to prepare for and take final exams and / or complete remaining course work. A student's final work, such as a final exam or research paper, may not be due before the time that course final exam is scheduled to end as listed on the Registrar’s final exam schedule. In addition, no course assignments may be due between the end of the last scheduled class before SAEP and the time that course final exam is scheduled to end as listed on the Registrar’s final exam schedule. Students have the right to review all written work prepared by themselves. If papers, including examination papers, are not returned to the students, instructors must keep these papers on file by for one calendar year. Students have the right to review their papers at any time within this time period.
Final grades must be carefully calculated and reported to the Registrar within forty-eight (48) hours after the final examination. Once posted, final grades cannot be changed unless a faculty member discovers a computation or clerical error and the Associate Dean for Academic Advising and Retention grants approval for such a change, or an official grade appeal results in an approved change. No grades for graduating seniors may be changed after transcripts are sealed prior to graduation.
Normally, a student's performance in a course is measured by a letter grade: A, B, C, D or F. Plus (+) and minus (-) additions to letter grades may be assigned and will be shown on the student's permanent record and used in the calculation of GPA. The grade for auditing is AU. The possible grades for credit / no credit classes are CR and NC, respectively. The grade of A represents exceptional achievement and is awarded for original insight, sound reasoning and the ability to evaluate the scope of the materials studied. The grade of B is granted for superior work and reflects interpretive skill on the part of the student and a clear understanding of the meaning and interrelatedness of the course materials. A grade of C is given for average work and indicates thorough familiarity with the basic facts and concepts considered in the course, even though underlying principles may not have been grasped. Although D is labeled a passing grade, it reflects a lack of fundamental knowledge of the subject. The grade of F is assigned for failing work.
[Paragraph updated by Clerk’s Committee 11/20/2006]
Faculty shall use provisional (“X”) grades only when a student is unavoidably prevented from completing the work in a given course. Unavoidable circumstances are defined as cases of extended personal illness, death or serious illness in the family, significant accident, or other grave circumstances beyond a student's control. Students must request approval for a provisional grade from her/his instructor as soon as possible and, for unavoidable circumstances that occur before the Friday before the last week of classes, no later than this date. If the instructor approves this request, the instructor must complete and submit the college on-line provisional grade request form. The generated e-mail will notify the student’s primary advisor of this request and submit the provisional grade request directly to the Registrar’s office. However, beginning students (those with less than 32 Guilford College credits) and students on academic probation must also obtain the approval of the Associate Academic Dean for Advising and Retention. The Registrar’s office will be responsible for forwarding requests that require such approval to the Associate Academic Dean for Advising and Retention. Instructors must calculate provisional grades under the assumption that the student will complete no additional work (i.e., by awarding zeros on all outstanding assignments). Provisional grades may only be replaced with a better mark upon the student’s completion of the work. Because provisional grades may only consist of two characters (XB, XC, XD, and XF) and may not be lowered, faculty must be careful to award the student the appropriate provisional grade. For example, if a student had otherwise earned a provisional grade of C-, a faculty member would be required to instead award a provisional grade of XD, the next lowest possible provisional grade. It is the responsibility of the faculty member awarding the provisional grade to evaluate promptly additional work completed by the student and to replace the provisional mark with a permanent grade by the deadline set by the instructor that is no later than interim of the next regular semester. Provisional grades become permanent grades after this deadline. Graduating seniors may not receive a provisional grade.
Students may withdraw from a course with a grade of W up through the published last day to withdraw from a course with a W grade. After that, the regular grade shall be given unless (a) the Dean for Campus Life authorizes a medical withdrawal (which would result in a grade of W), (b) the student is eligible for a grade of WP or WF as described below, (c) the student never attended the course (which would result in a grade of WN, see section 3.150), or (d) the Associate Dean for Academic Advising and Retention or Dean of Students authorizes an administrative withdrawal for some extraordinary reason. A grade of WP, which does not affect a student's grade point average, shall be used only to indicate withdrawal while passing when a student (a) withdraws completely from the College or (b) is administratively withdrawn for poor attendance (see section 3.150). A grade of WF, which affects a student's grade point average as if it were an F, may be used to indicate withdrawal while failing when a student (a) voluntarily withdraws or is administratively withdrawn completely from the College, (b) is administratively withdrawn for poor attendance (see section 3.150), or (c) voluntarily withdraws or is administratively withdrawn from a class after the published last day to withdraw with a W grade and before the end of classes for that semester. The grade of WN, which does not affect a student's grade point average, is given when a student registers for a course but neither attends nor withdraws (see section 3.150).
Certain programs, seminars, and workshops offered at the Center for Continuing Education do not carry academic credit. However, when such projects are sponsored and approved by the Dean for Continuing Education in conjunction with the appropriate department, one Continuing Education Unit (CEU) is granted for each ten hours of satisfactory participation. All CEUs are recorded on CEU forms permanently maintained in the Registrar's Office. CEUs are not convertible to academic credit at any time.
3.190 Grade Appeals Procedure
[Updated March 2008, changes approved in faculty meeting 3/19/08]
Grade appeals may not be made simply because a student wants a better grade or because of a disagreement over a subjective evaluation of submitted work. In addition, once posted, grades may not be lowered.
Grounds for grade appeals are:
- Clerical error by the instructor (e.g., misplacing an assignment that had been submitted properly by the student, mistyping a grade in a spreadsheet, or “clicking” on the wrong grade in BannerWeb);
- Computational error by the instructor (e.g., combining individual grades incorrectly); and
- Deviation from the grading scheme provided in the syllabus so significant as to affect a student’s grade (e.g., assigning a different weight to an assignment than stated in the syllabus so as to change the final grade).
The following procedures are followed by the Academic Dean’s Office in cases of student protests of final course grades.
1. In all cases, the appeal of a final course grade must first be made to the instructor within 10 business days* after the official due date for final grades at the close of any given grading period. In the event that the instructor is unavailable, the student must, within the 10 business day period, initiate contact with the department chair or Associate Academic Dean (e.g., by sending an e-mail message) and, in this correspondence, describe her/his attempt to reach the instructor and state her/his intent to appeal a particular final course grade.
Either the student or the professor may contact the Conflict Resolution Resource Center to request assistance in their communication, or each may invite one individual from within the Guilford Community to attend the discussion. If the student and/or the professor are uncomfortable with meeting face-to-face, even with the assistance of others, it is possible to have this discussion in writing.
Note: Because transcripts are sealed and may not be changed for any reason after a student graduates, graduating seniors have only until 5 pm two days before the graduation date to appeal final regular, intensive, fast track II, and Saturday course grades and have them corrected.
* A “business day” is a weekday that the college is open for business regardless of whether classes are in session.
2. If the student remains unsatisfied, she or he must then discuss the situation with the chairperson of the academic department involved, unless the instructor is the department chair. If the instructor is the department chair, the student must instead discuss the situation with the chair of the division in which this course was taught. For the grade appeal procedure, for First Year Experience and Adult Transition courses, the department chairs are the First year Experience Coordinator and the Adult Transitions Coordinator, respectively. The student shall bring all relevant materials and information to this meeting, including papers, tests, syllabi, etc. The student must contact the department chair, or the division chair if instructor is the department chair, within 5 business days of having finished discussing the matter with the instructor.
3. If still unresolved, the case may be appealed to the Office of the Academic Dean, where the Associate Academic Dean will continue to try to achieve an appropriate resolution. The student must contact the Associate Academic Dean within 5 business days of having discussed the matter with the department chair and present to the Associate Academic Dean a complete, written account of the facts and an argument that explains the justification for a grade change.
4. If the student wishes to appeal the decision made by the Associate Academic Dean, he or she must submit this appeal in writing to the Academic Dean within 5 business days of the date of the Associate Academic Dean’s decision. This appeal must include a discussion of the grounds upon which the Associate Academic Dean’s decision should be reviewed; such grounds could include the discovery of additional information or a procedural irregularity so substantial as to have compromised the student’s right to a fair hearing. The Academic Dean will review the matter and make a determination whether or not the appeal warrants calling together a special hearing board. If the Academic Dean decides there are no grounds on which to proceed further with the appeal, the decision of the Associate Academic Dean will be considered final. If the Academic Dean decides otherwise, a special hearing board will be constituted.
5. At the discretion of the Academic Dean, a special hearing board will be instituted, composed of Guilford faculty and professional staff. The student and the instructor will each be asked to submit a list of requested faculty the Academic Dean might appoint to such a committee. Utilizing each list, the Academic Dean will appoint a group, drawing one individual from the student list, one from that of the instructor, and nominating a third. Both the student and the instructor will have the opportunity to reject up to three proposed members of the projected hearing board, until a group of three individuals satisfactory to the Academic Dean, the faculty member, and the student have been chosen and have agreed to serve.
6. The hearing board may meet with the student, the instructor, and anyone else appropriate and examine all relevant documentation. It will then make a final recommendation to the Academic Dean.
7. After receiving the recommendation of the hearing board, the Academic Dean will make the final decision regarding the student’s grade.
3.191 Provisions for Students with Disabilities
Guilford College recognizes the special needs and opportunities provided by college students with physical and/or learning disabilities. When a student requests, with appropriate support, an individualized learning plan, the College will attempt to develop an individualized learning plan for such students through the Office of the Academic Dean. The plan will utilize, where called for, such adjustments of the normal instructional process as untimed exams, oral reports and examinations, etc. The Academic Skills Center will act as a coordination and referral resource for these students. Normal non-discriminatory admissions standards and processes will govern the entrance of these, as of all, students to Guilford. As is the case with all students, the usual and full graduation requirements apply.
3.200 INSTRUCTIONAL TRAVEL
As part of the instructional program, faculty members may plan departmental field trips or may be asked to accompany students on off-campus seminars. In such cases, faculty expenses are reimbursed. Normally, however, the expenses of only one faculty member will be covered for either a field trip or an off-campus seminar unless the student enrollment exceeds twenty.
Off-campus seminars and departmental field trips are charged to either institutional or departmental budgets. The process by which faculty seek reimbursement utilizes the same form used for reimbursement of expenses for travel to professional meetings, and receipts for expenses must be attached. Eligible for reimbursement are out-of-pocket faculty expenses for meals, lodging, and travel. In the case of travel, it is assumed that faculty will accompany the students rather than use more expensive transportation. On a field trip or an off-campus seminar, the supervising faculty member shall make every reasonable effort to maintain the safety and well-being of students.
3.300 ACADEMIC REGULATIONS
In addition to the following regulations (3.310-3.340), additional academic information, policies, and regulations are to be found in the most recent editions of the Guilford College Student Handbook, the Advisers' Handbook, and the Guilford College Catalog.
3.310 Academic Honor Code
[Updated June 1, 2007, changes approved by the Clerk and the Associate Academic Dean]
To foster responsibility, the College operates under an honor system. Faculty members and students shall insist upon high standards of honesty and integrity in their classes. Faculty members shall call the Honor Code to the attention of their students, and may require that the Honor Pledge, "I have been honest and have not observed any dishonesty," be written on all academic work and may refuse to extend credit for work on which it does not appear. . Academic honesty and integrity represent central elements of the liberal arts education at Guilford College. As scholars pursuing knowledge and truth, informed by the Quaker testimony on integrity, we seek a community where each member acts responsibly and honorably in all activities and at all times.
Acts of dishonesty represent a serious offense at Guilford College. Specific academic violations for which there are penalties include:
3.311 Plagiarism
Guilford College defines plagiarism broadly as presenting the interpretations, wording, images, or original conceptions of others as one's own without appropriate acknowledgement. Individual faculty members determine what constitutes "appropriate acknowledgement" within the context of their courses, either by specifically stating requirements or by acknowledging the standard practice within a given discipline. The charge of plagiarism applies to any and all academic work, whether done inside or outside of the classroom and whether submitted as a rough draft or a final product.
[Updated June 1, 2007, changes approved by the Clerk and the Associate Academic Dean]
3.312 Unauthorized Collaboration
Students may not combine efforts on any and all academic work, done inside or outside the classroom, submitted to an instructor as a rough draft or a final product, unless specifically permitted by the instructor. Although instructors should clearly define the limits of collaboration allowed, the absence of any instructions indicates that collaboration is not permitted. When uncertain, the student should seek clarification from the instructor.
In cases of unauthorized collaboration, any student giving aid is as responsible as the recipient, unless the former is unaware that she/he has provided aid. A student who seeks unauthorized aid is responsible for participating in unauthorized collaboration whether the aid was given or received. The charge of unauthorized collaboration applies to any and all academic work, whether done inside or outside of the classroom and whether submitted as a rough draft or a final product.
3.313 Unauthorized Use of Materials
[Updated June 1, 2007, changes approved by the Clerk and the Associate Academic Dean]
It is the student's responsibility to ascertain what materials may be used in any and all academic work whether done inside or outside of the classroom and whether submitted as a rough draft or a final product. The submission for credit of the same written work in more than one course is not permitted without the prior permission of both instructors.
3.314 Procedures for Dealing with Violations of the Academic Honor Code
[Name changed for 3.314 approved by Academic Deans office, October 6, 2006; section updated August 18, 2005]
1. When a Guilford College faculty member, student, or staff member observes or learns of a violation of the honor code as defined in the Student Handbook, he or she shall report this observation or discovery to the person responsible for the activity or assignment where the alleged violation has supposedly occurred; e.g., the instructor of a course. This person will be referred to below as the “instructor” even when the alleged violation is not associated with a course.
2. The instructor shall, by College e-mail or otherwise, endeavor to contact the student who allegedly violated the honor code to ascertain whether the student admits or does not admit responsibility for an honor code violation. At any time during the initial meeting or discussion between the student and an instructor or administrator, the student may request that the meeting be suspended for up to one week so that he or she may invite another Guilford College student or employee to this meeting to serve as his or her advocate for any or all subsequent meetings. The instructor or administrator may invite a Guilford College employee to any or all meetings. If the alleged violation occurs in a course and the instructor becomes aware of an alleged honor code violation after the last day of classes for that semester, after making an effort to reach the student by telephone or e-mail, the instructor may proceed without conducting an initial meeting or discussion with the student, if the student fails to respond within two days before grades for the class and/or for that particular student are due.
3. If the instructor considers the alleged violation to be an academic honor code violation, the instructor must report and describe the incident in full to the Associate Academic Dean, regardless of whether the student admits responsibility.
4. If the student admits responsibility for an academic honor code violation, the Associate Academic Dean shall take the steps outlined in paragraph 6 below.
5. If the student does not admit responsibility for an academic honor code violation, the Associate Academic Dean shall conduct an investigation to obtain the necessary information from the instructor, the student, and others to determine whether the student has committed an academic honor code violation. If the Associate Academic Dean concludes that he or she has a conflict or should otherwise remove himself or herself from the matter, the Associate Academic Dean shall transfer the matter to the Academic Dean, who shall, in turn, appoint a hearing panel to proceed as described in paragraph 7(c) below. If the Associate Academic Dean does transfer the matter to the Academic Dean, or if the Associate Academic Dean concludes after investigating that no violation occurred, he or she shall notify both the student and the instructor in writing by College e-mail or campus mail.
6. If the Associate Academic Dean concludes that an Honor Code violation has occurred, either because the student has admitted to responsibility or because the Associate Academic Dean has so concluded after investigation, the following steps apply:
a. The Associate Academic Dean shall check the student’s record for any prior violations of the honor code.
b. If the student has no record of a previous honor code violation, the Associate Academic Dean will consult with the instructor and ordinarily impose one of the three standard sanctions (see Standard Sanctions section below), or a more serious sanction if one is stipulated in the course syllabus.
c. If the student does have a record of one or more honor code violations, the Associate Academic Dean must impose at least the standard sanction based on the number of prior violations (see Standard Sanctions section below).
d. In all cases, the Associate Academic Dean enters an honor code violation in the student’s academic record.
e. The Associate Academic Dean reports this outcome in writing, by College e-mail or campus mail, to both the student and the instructor.
7. The student may appeal a decision by the Associate Academic Dean that finds him or her to have committed an honor code violation. If the student chooses to appeal the decision, he or she has ten (10) business days from the delivery date of this decision to submit such an appeal, in writing, to the Academic Dean:
a. On the basis of the Associate Academic Dean’s written decision and the student’s written appeal, the Academic Dean will decide, in his or her sole discretion, whether the appeal has sufficient merit to proceed to a hearing panel. Typically, sufficient merit to proceed to a hearing panel would require new, relevant information obtained after the decision by the Associate Academic Dean or some procedural error so substantial that it interfered with the student’s right to a fair decision.
b. If the Academic Dean, in his or her sole discretion, does not conclude that the appeal has sufficient merit to proceed to a hearing, then the case is closed and the decision of the Associate Academic Dean will remain in effect and will be followed.
c. If the Academic Dean, in his or her sole discretion, concludes that the appeal has sufficient merit to proceed to a hearing, or if the Academic Dean has assumed responsibility for the case due to the Associate Academic Dean’s stepping aside under paragraph 5 above, then the Academic Dean shall convene a hearing panel of three faculty (appointed pursuant to faculty governance procedure) and three students (appointed pursuant to student governance procedure). This panel shall investigate the case and collect evidence, including any statements, to determine whether the student is responsible for an academic honor code violation. Once it has made its determination, the panel shall report its conclusion to the Academic Dean I writing. A copy of this report shall be available to the student and the instructor upon request.
d. The Academic Dean shall make the final determination, after considering the Associate Academic Dean’s report (if any), the transcript from and evidence presented in the panel’s hearing, and the panel’s final report. Because the decision of the Academic Dean is final, no appeal may follow his or her decision.
e. If the Academic Dean finds the student responsible for an academic honor code violation, the Academic Dean shall affirm the decision of the Associate Academic Dean or, in cases where the Associate Academic Dean has stepped aside, shall impose a sanction under the procedure outlined in paragraph 6 above.
f. The Academic Dean shall inform the student in writing of his or her decision, by College e-mail or campus mail, and send a copy of this notice to the instructor, chair of the hearing panel, and Associate Academic Dean, who will update the student’s record to reflect this decision and sanction.
g. If the Academic Dean finds the student not responsible, he or she will inform the student in writing and send a copy of this letter to the instructor, chair of the hearing panel, and the Associate Academic Dean, who will update the student’s record by deleting from it all references to this alleged violation.
8. As an exception to the foregoing rules, certain instances of plagiarism may be addressed under their own procedures, as follows:
a. Specifically, in a case of plagiarism where an instructor concludes (a) that the violation was due to the student’s genuine incomplete understanding of standard acknowledgment practice or of what constitutes plagiarism and (b) that the student has accepted an appropriate level of responsibility for the plagiarism based on the circumstances involved, the instructor may choose to report, but is not required to report, to the Associate Academic Dean that an honor code caution is appropriate.
b. Upon receiving such a report, the Associate Academic Dean, in consultation with the instructor, shall conclude whether to issue an honor code caution.
c. The Associate Academic Dean shall maintain an updated list of such cautions, including a description of the type of each incident. Entries in this list will not be considered part of a student’s permanent academic record. However, if a student is alleged to have committed a violation of the honor code that is the same as or similar to a previously reported academic honor code caution, this subsequent offense will be treated as an academic honor code violation with no possibility of resulting in a caution. The Associate Academic Dean will determine whether an alleged violation will be considered the same as or similar to one that previously resulted in a caution. The Associate Academic Dean’s determination will be final and may not be appealed.
d. In cases of plagiarism, the instructor should offer to work with the student to address the relevant honor code issues in an educational fashion, and will grade the student’s work as the instructor considers appropriate and as is consistent with the course syllabus.
Instances of plagiarism that the instructor concludes are not the result of the student’s genuine incomplete understanding of standard acknowledgment practice or of what constitutes plagiarism, or instances of plagiarism for which the student does not accept an appropriate level of responsibility based on the circumstances involved, shall be handled as all other alleged violations of the honor code, and the provisions of paragraphs 1-7 above shall control.
Standard Sanctions
[Updated June 1, 2007, changes approved by the Clerk and the Clerk’s Committee]
First offense: F or zero on the assignment
Second offense: F in the course, if any, or, if not, a comparable sanction (as determined by the Associate Academic Dean)
Third offense: F in the course and Suspension or Dismissal from Guilford College
NOTE: Instructors may direct specific, even if more severe, penalties for academic honor code violations in any particular course that he or she is teaching or activity / assignment for which they are responsible. Such penalties should be specified in the course syllabus or in some other written form of communication from the instructor to the students in that course or activity.
3.320 Probation, Suspension, and Dismissal
[Updated by Clerk’s Committee, February 20, 2006]
Academic Probation. A Guilford College student will be placed on academic probation if her/his cumulative grade-point average is below the level of 2.00 required for graduation.
A student's eligibility to continue at Guilford College is contingent upon earning at least a C (2.00) average during each term that she/he is on academic probation. Earning a C average during a given term may not remove a student from academic probation, but it will assure eligibility to continue at Guilford. Failure to meet these conditions of academic probation will result in suspension or dismissal from the College by the Academic Dean's Office.
Academic Suspension or Dismissal. If while on academic probation a student records a semester grade point average between 1.75 and 1.99, inclusively, the student will be academically suspended by the Academic Dean's Office. If while on academic probation a student records a semester average below 1.75, the student will be academically dismissed from Guilford by the Academic Dean's Office.
After any semester, if a student's term and cumulative grade-point averages are both a 1.00 or less, the student will be dismissed from the College by the Academic Dean's Office without a probationary period.
3.330 Falsification of Information
Guilford College strictly forbids falsification of information on College forms and records. Such misconduct may result in termination of employment.
3.340 Respect for Persons
(See Policy on Harassment and Intimidation in 2.800)
3.400 OTHER FACULTY RESPONSIBILITIES
3.410 Attendance at Faculty Meetings
Regular attendance at faculty meetings is considered a major responsibility of all faculty.
3.420 Committee Service
Faculty members shall serve on committees and attend committee meetings regularly. Normally, each faculty member sits on two standing committees annually, one of which may be replaced by service as departmental chair. The Nominating Committee makes every effort to distribute the workload of committee assignments evenly. New faculty normally do not serve on committees the first year. (See "Nominating Committee" 1.423.)
3.430 External Community Service
The College encourages its faculty to engage in community activities according to their own preferences, but faculty members should consult with departmental chairpersons and the Academic Dean before accepting unusually demanding outside activities. In speaking publicly, faculty members should always make it known when they speak for themselves rather than for the College.
No expenses are to be charged to the College for the typing and duplication of materials (1) announcing community meetings not sponsored by a department or official organization within the College; (2) encouraging the adoption of views of partisan political or public policy; or (3) promoting community concerns that do not directly and substantively enhance the operation of the College. Individuals may create and distribute such materials at their own expense. The distributor should identify himself or herself on distributed materials. These regulations do not apply to meetings or materials related to the content of College courses, or to officially sanctioned College functions or events.
3.440 New Student Orientation
Faculty shall assist in the welcoming of new students and parents during orientation. All faculty are expected to attend the opening convocation. Those with first-year or transfer advisees shall be available to meet with them during the orientation program.
3.450 Commencement
Members of the faculty shall participate in spring commencement exercises. In exceptional cases, a faculty member who cannot participate shall notify the Academic Dean's office. In the commencement procession, retired faculty will march first and retiring faculty second; the remainder of the faculty follow in no designated order. Faculty shall provide their own caps, gowns, and hoods to wear in the academic procession or pay a rental charge if such items are ordered for them by the College. The rental fee is to be paid either in advance, when the cap and gown are picked up, or through authorization of a payroll deduction to be made in the May 31 salary payment. Some faculty members believe that traditional academic cap and gown are inconsistent with the Quaker belief in simple dress. Such individuals are excused from appearing thus garbed, but should dress with a dignity befitting the public and formal nature of the graduation ceremonies.
3.460 Departmental Guidelines for First-Year Experience
First-Year Seminars, offered in the fall semester of each year, are generally taught by full-time faculty who have been at Guilford a minimum of two years. The teaching load shall be spread proportionately across all departments. For instance, two-person departments shall teach a minimum of one First-Year Seminar every two years, three-person departments shall teach a minimum of two First-Year Seminars every three years, and four-person departments shall teach a minimum of one First-Year Seminar every year. The Academic Dean may release departments which are temporarily understaffed from this program.
3.470 Division Chairs
[Approved by departmental chairs, the section revised by the Academic Dean’s Office, August 2006]
The Chairs of the six academic divisions -- Arts, Business and Policy, Humanities, Interdisciplinary Studies, Natural Sciences and Mathematics, and Social Sciences - advise the Academic Dean (AD) on matters related to the quality of the academic program and its delivery to students. The Division Chairs promote cooperation within and across divisions, serve as liaisons between disciplinary Department Chairs/IDS program coordinators and the AD, and advise and assist the AD in the execution of academic policy and the improvement of faculty morale.
Academic Division Chairs specifically do the following:
(1) Oversee curriculum management by working with Department Chairs to ensure that the schedule meets the needs of students in the general education program, individual majors, and interdisciplinary programs. To assist in the management of the curriculum, Division Chairs work in concert with the AD and the Dean for Continuing Education, who approve the final class schedule.
(2) Coordinate searches for new tenure track faculty by approving all search requests submitted to the Clerk's Committee by Department Chairs and Interdisciplinary Studies Program Coordinators, helping the search committee choose the top six to ten candidates whose names are forwarded to the AD, advising the AD as to which candidates to invite to campus on an interview, participating in the interview process, and advising the AD as to the best candidate to recommend for each position.
(3) Coordinate and approve annual capital and operational budget requests submitted by Department Chairs to the AD.
(4) Conduct the orientation of new Department Chairs and interdisciplinary program coordinators.
(5) Advise the AD about requests for temporary full time faculty positions, help interview candidates for these positions, and oversee the evaluation of temporary full time faculty members.
The division chairs occasionally undertake additional responsibilities as delegated by the Academic Dean
3.480 Academic Department Chairs
The successful accomplishment of College goals depends heavily upon the leadership, administration, and management of the academic department by the chair. The department chair is of critical importance to the mission and program of the department and the institution. Academic department chairs serve on only one College standing committee in order to allow them sufficient time to fulfill their responsibilities as chair.
The department chair has five major responsibilities: (1) effective curriculum development and administration; (2) effective leadership in professional and personnel relations, with and among faculty and staff; (3) effective recruiting of new faculty; (4) orienting and mentoring new and part-time faculty; and (5) supervision of departmental budget.
Specifically, the chair provides leadership in curricular planning, fosters interdisciplinary and experimental curricular offerings and programs, arranges for the procurement and maintenance of instructional equipment, coordinates the purchase of library materials and teaching materials, tracks enrollments and enrollment trends, oversees the scheduling and staffing of course offerings, coordinates advising and registration, and directs assessment planning and implementation.
In addition, the chair oversees the recruitment of new full- and part-time faculty (see 2.200), orients new faculty to the services and policies of the department and the College, reviews the performance of "temporary part-time" faculty members, (See "Part-time Faculty Status" 2.221 for schedule of review.) nominates departmental colleagues for promotion, fosters the development of the team concept of responsibility to the goals of the department and college, prepares and oversees the departmental budget in consultation with department members, attends or sends a representative to all meetings pertinent to the department, prepares the department's annual report, and supervises the department's assessment program.
The department chair also has specific responsibilities to students. She or he disseminates information about department programs, employment, graduate school and other related information to students; hires and supervises the students employed by the department; hears student complaints about department faculty and programs; and evaluates student petitions for special arrangements.
In carrying out these responsibilities, the chair convenes and leads regular departmental meetings. Academic departments use the Quaker process of seeking the sense of the meeting in conducting their business. Other members of the department equitably share responsibility for the implementation of departmental duties. The Academic Dean will conduct an orientation meeting for new departmental chairs in the fall semester, and chairs will occasionally be asked to meet with the Dean to discuss matters of academic administration.
The Academic Dean, in consultation with all members of the department involved, appoints academic department chairs. The normal term of service is three years. Chairs may serve more than one three-year term in a row, but the expectation is that the chair is a rotating responsibility. In cases of leaves, departmental personnel shifts, and similar situations, the normal pattern may be modified.
3.490 Response-Time Guideline
All College employees shall try to respond to inquiries from students, parents, and other off-campus constituencies, and each other, on the same day or at least within twenty-four (24) hours.