Academic Policies and Procedures

Mid-semester and winter session marks are delivered directly to students (during the freshman year, mid-semester marks are delivered to the freshman advisor). Final fall semester marks, when possible, and final spring semester marks are mailed. Copies of marks are sent to parents only if authorized by the student.

Transcripts of Record

Official transcripts of record should be ordered at the Office of the Registrar. Transcripts are released only when financial obligations to the college have been met. Federal law requires that release of such records be authorized personally by the student concerned, and no third party may legally have access to that record without the student’s written consent (by letter or fax (208) 459-5415, not email). This stipulation is stated on each transcript.

Unofficial transcripts may be obtained at the Registrar’s Office.

Repeating Courses

Upon notifying the registrar and with the permission of the instructor, a student who has earned a mark of D or F in a course may repeat the course for the purpose of improving the grade. Both marks are entered on the student’s permanent record, but only the second mark is used in calculating the grade-point average. Only one enrollment is used in computing the total number of credits. Such repeated courses count in the calculation of the student’s load for veterans’ benefits only if the original mark was F, or if a mark higher than D is required for graduation. If the repeated course is to be taken other than in residence at Albertson, permission must be granted by the Vice President for Academic Affairs in accordance with limitations on credit listed under Graduation Requirements.

Petitions

Individuals or groups of students always have the privilege of petition. Academic petitions should be addressed to the Vice President for Academic Affairs. Other petitions should be directed to the appropriate administration officer.

Grades

The following chart indicates the meaning of the marks assigned and the number of quality points given per credit for each mark. Students who fail to register or enroll officially are not assigned a mark or given credit for a course.

Marks used in the grade point average calculation:

Excellent	Good	Satisfactory	Poor	Failure
A 4.00	B+ 3.30	C+ 2.30	C- 1.70	F 0
A- 3.70	B 3.00	C 2.00	D+ 1.30
	B- 2.70		D 1.00	WF* 0
			D- 0.70	*Withdrew failing

Marks not used in the grade point average calculation:

S	Satisfactory	The only passing mark assigned in varsity athletics and theatre activity courses.
P	Passing	The only passing mark assigned in courses designated as workshops and in certain other courses. May be elected by students in some instances under the Pass-Fail option.
U	Unsatisfactory	The failing mark in courses for which the passing mark is P.
W	Withdrawal	Clear withdrawal. No credit given.
I	Incomplete	This mark indicates partially completed work of passing quality (see incomplete policy).

Grade-Point Average

The grade-point average (GPA) is obtained by dividing the total number of quality points earned by the total number of credits attempted except those credits granted for Advanced Placement Examination, credits marked P, S, U, W and I, and other credits awarded which do not carry quality points. Credits of F and WF are used in the calculation.

Dean's List

To receive Dean’s List recognition, a student must complete at least nine or more graded credits (excluding marks of P and S) in a given semester and achieve a GPA of 3.75 or higher for that semester. Dean’s List recognition is given only for the fall and spring semesters.

Academic Honors

One may graduate cum laude, magna cum laude or summa cum laude upon attaining a grade-point average of 3.5, 3.75 or 3.85 respectively in each of the following categories: the total undergraduate record, the total record at the college, the major field of study and the courses taken therein at the college.

GRADE MEDIATION POLICY: If a student believes a course grade was improperly or unfairly assigned, the college has a grade mediation procedure to help resolve the matter. The evaluation of a student’s academic performance is the sole responsibility of the person appointed to teach or supervise the course. A student who questions the validity of a faculty member’s final evaluation of his or her academic work should confer with that faculty member within the first six weeks of the next full academic term (i. e., Discussion of fall or winter grades must be begun within the first six weeks of spring term, and spring grades within the first six weeks of fall term). If the matter cannot be resolved between the faculty member and the student, the student is encouraged to seek the appropriate department or division chair or academic advisor to act as a mediator between the student and faculty member. However, the faculty member assigned to teach the course retains the final responsibility for assigning the course grade. After the final outcome, if the student and/or person acting as mediator feels that the faculty member in question has been unprofessional in resolving the matter, a letter by either or both persons should be given to the Vice President for Academic Affairs to be put in the file of the faculty member and considered by the Faculty Evaluation Committee as part of the regular evaluation process.

If the student writes a letter to the Vice President for Academic Affairs to be put in the file of the faculty member, a copy of the letter will be given by the Vice President for Academic Affairs, to the faculty member, and to the person who served as the mediator, so that they may be informed of the comments. Either or both the faculty member and the person who served as mediator may write (a) letter(s) for the file, as well.

The person who served as mediator will prepare a brief summary of the interaction with the student, and its outcome, and will give a copy of the summary to the student, the faculty member, and the Vice President for Academic Affairs. He or she will also retain a file copy. The file copy and the Vice President’s summary will be retained through the subsequent evaluation period of the faculty member, in case it would need to be referred to for any reason.

If the faculty member whose grade is questioned is no longer employed by the college or is otherwise unavailable because of sabbatical leave or some other reason:

the student meets with the department chair of the faculty member’s department (or, if the faculty member involved is the department chair, then the student meets with the division chair)
the department chair (above) and the student’s academic advisor help the student prepare a petition for review by a special committee appointed by the Vice President for Academic Affairs in consultation with Academic Council, the committee to consist of one member from the faculty member’s department or a closely aligned discipline, one faculty member from the division, and one faculty member from outside the division
this special committee will review all available material and speak with people who may have insight into the situation, and will come to some resolution which may include—but is not limited to—changing the grade(s) in question to Pass
the timelines for beginning the grade mediation procedure are the same whether or not the faculty member continues at the college
the decision of the special committee is final

ACADEMIC DISHONESTY AND MISCONDUCT

Albertson College maintains that academic honesty and integrity are important values in the educational process and that violations in this area should be dealt with in an appropriate and effective manner.

VIOLATIONS: Academic Dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating on exams or assignments, plagiarism, ghost writing, interference, buying or using a term paper-exam-project that was not composed by the student turning it in, use of crib notes or information stored in a computer during an exam, taking an exam for another student, collaboration on take-home exams where it has been forbidden, or furnishing false or misleading information on any official college form or the college website.

PLAGIARISM: Plagiarism is the presentation of someone else’s product, words, ideas, or data as one’s own work. When a student submits work for credit that includes the product, words, ideas, or data of others, the source must be acknowledged by the use of complete, accurate, and specific references, such as footnotes. By placing one’s name on work submitted for credit, the student certifies the originality of all work not otherwise identified by appropriate acknowledgments.

A student will be charged with plagiarism if there is not an acknowledgment of indebtedness. Acknowledgment must be made whenever:

one quotes another person’s actual words or replicates part of another’s product;
one uses another person’s ideas, opinions, work, data, or theories, even if they are completely paraphrased in one’s own words;
one borrows facts, statistics, or other illustrative materials – unless the information is common knowledge (already published in at least three other sources without citation).

PENALTIES: The burden of proof of student academic dishonesty or misconduct lies with the professor; the imposition of penalties is also the responsibility of the professor. Professors have the discretion to require that the student repeat the assignment or exam, or may give a failing grade for the assignment, exam or course, or may otherwise deal with the academic dishonesty in a manner he or she determines to be appropriate. Before determining an appropriate disposition of the situation the faculty member is encouraged to consult with the Vice President for Academic Affairs to see if there are other instances of academic dishonesty by the student on file in the Vice President’s records.

A brief report of the incident and penalty imposed will be filed with the professor’s department chair and the student’s advisor. A copy will also be placed in a special file in the Vice President’s office, separate from the student’s academic file.

In any instance the student has the right to appeal the professor’s accusation and penalty, first to the department chair, then to the division chair, and then to the Vice President for Academic Affairs.

In the case of repeated or more serious violations of academic honesty, the professor or department chair may recommend to the Dean of Students and the Vice President for Academic Affairs that the student either be placed on academic probation, or be suspended or expelled from the college. The Vice President for Academic Affairs and the Dean of Students will hear and determine the charges and the course of action. They may consult with the Admission and Academic Standing Committee if they wish, before determining a course of action.

Academic Standing

Students are placed on academic probation at the end of any fall or spring semester in which their cumulative grade point average falls below 2.00. Students remain on probation until their cumulative grade point average reaches the minimum 2.00 standard.

Any student on probation who does not earn a minimum 2.00 semester grade point average in either a Fall or Spring semester will be dismissed from the college. Any student who has been dismissed may petition the Admission and Academic Standing Committee for readmission. All petitions must include:

Substantiation of any extraordinary circumstances
An academic plan approved by the student’s advisor.

Students who have been dismissed may be considered for readmission upon presentation of evidence of ability to do satisfactory college work. Normally, the Admission Committee expects at least 12 semester credits completed elsewhere, with no grade below a C. Students who have been dismissed may not enroll in any classes at Albertson College unless they have the permission of the Admission and Academic Standing Committee. Such permission will be granted only in exceptional cases.

Academic Reprieve

Students who have completed two consecutive full-time semesters or sessions at Albertson with a grade-point average of at least 2.00 in each period may once and only once, after consultation with and approval from their advisor, the Vice President for Academic Affairs, and the registrar, eliminate one entire previous semester’s, session’s, or quarter’s work from the computation of credits and grade points in their academic record. The eliminated work may have been attempted at any college or university. Nothing will be erased from the record, but the work in question will be bracketed to indicate that it is not being counted. None of the work undertaken in the session which the student chooses to eliminate may be counted toward any requirement for graduation. Students may repeat the eliminated courses only if they have not subsequently taken and passed courses to which the eliminated courses are prerequisites.

Incomplete Marks

The mark of I, or Incomplete, may be assigned only when the student has completed most of the work of the course with a D or better and when the instructor judges the student’s inability to carry the course to completion on time to be due to legitimate causes beyond the student’s reasonable control. The Incomplete is always accompanied by a tentative mark, recorded on an official form, indicating the quality of the work completed and a description of the work to be completed.

An Incomplete must be removed from a student’s record no later than the end of the next semester (fall or spring) in which the student is enrolled or it becomes an F. By petition and with the permission of the instructor concerned, the Vice President for Academic Affairs may extend the time in cases of hardship.

Pass-Fail Option

At any time before the Monday of the ninth week of instruction (fall and spring semesters) or the Monday of the fourth week of instruction (winter session), a student may elect to take a course on a Pass-Fail basis by filing a form with the registrar. The choice is, as of the limiting dates noted, irrevocable.

Limitations:

No more than one course per semester may be taken Pass-Fail.
No more than 18 credits of P may be counted toward graduation. (This does not apply to courses where P is the only mark given and the student has no option.)
Courses to be counted toward a major, minor or concentration may not be taken Pass-Fail.
Courses used to fulfill a General Graduation Requirement may not be taken Pass-Fail.

Note: Since the mark of P indicates any assigned grade of D- or above, students should be aware that some postgraduate institutions may discount grade-point averages.

In some programs, such as study abroad, only Pass-Fail marks may be recorded. These courses, in which students have no option for letter grades, may be exempt from the limitations listed above. Students must request a waiver of limitation with the Foreign Study Committee at the time they file the application for overseas study with the committee. The student must also file an academic petition for the waiver.