Faculty Senate President’s Report to Assembly
Genie Babb
November 2009
President’s Retreat
The President’s Retreat for the Faculty Alliance (3 faculty members from each MAU) was held
on October 19th in Fairbanks. President Hamilton spoke at length, and lively discussions of
various issues ensued.
Board of Regents
The next BoR meeting will be held on the UAA campus, which provides us with the rare
opportunity to give public testimony. (BoR policy states that in order to testify, one must be
present in person.) The meeting is scheduled for November 30th and December 1st. More
information will be forthcoming as the time nears.
Change in Grade Policies
John Allred, Registrar, reported at the Faculty Senate Meeting on several changes in how grades
will be handled. Below are the items Registrar Allred discussed:
INCOMPLETE GRADE
An incomplete grade (I) is assigned only at the discretion of the instructor. It is used to indicate
that a student has made satisfactory progress in the majority of the work in a course, but for
unavoidable absences or other conditions beyond the control of the student, has not been able to
complete the course. Students assigned an incomplete grade are not entitled to complete the
remaining coursework within the classroom/lab, to any additional instruction; nor may they
participate in the class/lab during a future semester without re-registering, paying tuition, and
retaking the course.
An Incomplete Grade Contract form between the student and the faculty member stipulating the
assignment(s) required to finish the course and the timeframe for submission is required and
should be filed with the department or dean’s office when an Incomplete grade is assigned.
Coursework must be completed by the date specified in the contract, not to exceed one year.
Upon completion of the required course work, the faculty member must submit a Change of
Grade form to the Office of the Registrar. If coursework is not completed by the contract deadline
and the faculty member does not submit a Change of Grade form at that time, the Incomplete will
become a permanent grade. The student has until the last day of class of the first full semester
following the end of the contract to resolve any grading discrepancies.
NO BASIS GRADE (NB)
A No Basis (NB) grade may be used when the student has not attended or if there is insufficient
student progress and/or attendance for evaluation to occur. No credit is awarded, nor is NB
calculated in the GPA. This is a permanent grade and may not be used to substitute for the
incomplete grade. It cannot be removed later by completing outstanding work. A course receiving
a NB grade will not be evaluated as a retaken course for academic record purposes. Faculty must
submit a last date of attendance in conjunction with this grade.
GRADUATION WITH HONORS
To be eligible to graduate with honors, associate’s and baccalaureate degree-seeking students
must first earn a cumulative GPA of 3.50 or higher in all college work attempted at UAA. A
transfer student who is earning an associate’s degree must complete a minimum of 15 resident
credits with academic letter grades to be eligible to graduate with honors.
A transfer student who is earning a baccalaureate degree must complete a minimum of 30
resident credits with academic letter grades to be eligible to graduate with honors. All transfer
students must have a cumulative GPA of 3.50 or higher in all college work attempted both at UAA
and at all other accredited institutions attended and for all courses used to fulfill the degree
program in order to graduate with honors.
At UAA, graduation with honors represents the students’ entire academic history. All grades and
credits earned will be included in determining eligibility to graduate with honors (Ds, Fs, retaken
courses, courses lost in academic bankruptcy, etc). In addition, a student transferring coursework
and grades from an international institution must have a minimum of 70% of their coursework
submitted with letter grades to be eligible to graduate with honors.
Honors are awarded to associate’s and baccalaureate degree students with cumulative GPAs as
follows:
Cum Laude 3.50 to 3.79
Magna Cum Laude 3.80 to 3.99
Summa Cum Laude 4.00
Concerns about Timing of Fire Drills
Vice Chancellor Bill Spindle and Officer Dave Pittman addressed concerns about the timing of
Fall fire drills during the fourth week of the semester when many instructors give tests. They
explained some of the difficulties in scheduling and promised to work more closely with faculty
to find a better time. The second week was mentioned, but in the Fall Semester, it’s a short week
due to Labor Day. Fire drills are not held in the Spring Semester because it is too cold.