College Academic Policy: Course Syllabus
Policy Owner: Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost
Drafted: 10-02-2013
Issued:
Effective: (The proposed effective date of Fall 2014 is contingent upon the successful implementation of
the Colleges new learning management system)
Revised:
Purpose
Fort Lewis College will ensure that students have easy access to course syllabi and those syllabi contain
information relevant to student success in the course. Students need a consistent level of basic information
about the content, requirements and expectations for each course in which they are enrolled. For the
purposes of this policy, a syllabus is a document that informs students about course requirements,
expectations and information students need to know in order to successfully complete the work of the
course.
The Higher Learning Commission’s assumed practice states that instructors communicate course
requirements to students through syllabi. In addition the Higher Learning Commission’s Credit Hour
Policies, developed to enforce the U.S. Department of Education’s requirement related to credit hour
definition, necessitates that a syllabus be available for review for each course taught.
Policy Statement
Instructors of record are required to develop a course syllabus for each offering of a course and
communicate the syllabus to students. A current copy of each course syllabus must be made available to
students in the College’s learning management system by the first scheduled day of the class.
A. Syllabus Requirements
The elements listed in this section of the policy are required.
1. Course Information
a. Course Title
b. Course Prefix and Number (example – BIO 101)
c. Number of Credit Hours received for the course
d. Course Section and CRN
e. Semester (designate dates if partial semester)
f. Class Location(s)
g. Class Meeting Days and Times
h. Course Delivery Format (This is the Schedule Type listed in the Course Schedule. For
example: Traditional classroom lecture, Internship/Coop, Hybrid, etc.)
2. Instructor Information
a. Instructor Name
b. Office Location
c. Contact Information (email and/or phone number)
d. Office Hours
3. Course description as stated in the current Catalog of Courses, prerequisites and/or co-requisites
(if applicable)
4. Student Course Learning Objectives
5. Program Learning Outcomes and/or External Accreditation Standards (if applicable – see
department chair or equivalent )
6. GT Pathways Competencies (if applicable)
7. Course Requirements & Grading Policies
Best practices of Fort Lewis College Faculty include listing: Assessment types (e.g. quizzes,
exams, journals, observations, performances, etc.); if class participation and/or attendance are
factored in, explain how these are evaluated, weighting of assessments, grading scale to be used
8. Course Resources
a. Required Text (bibliographic information of printed texts/books, include ISBN numbers
for all books)
b. Required software, equipment (if applicable)
c. Suggested readings (if applicable)
d. Course packs (if applicable)
e. Laboratories, studios, and learning centers available for the course (if applicable)
9. Course and Academic Program Policies, as appropriate (e.g. attendance, travel, field experiences,
engagement, make-up work, extra credit, etc.)
10. Course expectations (Specify what students are expected to do in order to successfully complete
the course.)
11. “Tentative” Course Schedule/Outline with major assessment dates
12. Fort Lewis College’s statement on Academic Dishonesty by Students
13. Fort Lewis College’s statement on Disability Support Services
*Items in red denote federal compliance issues that are required by the HLC. The syllabus
requirements are a minimum and faculty can include additional information. Faculty are not
required to use a uniform syllabus template. The template below is only an example.
APPENDIX A
EXAMPLE FORT LEWIS COLLEGE COURSE SYLLABUS
Course Title, Prefix, Number, Section and CRN:
Credit Hours:
Semester: (designate dates if partial semester)
Course Location(s):
Course Meeting Days & Times:
Course Format: (lecture, internship, hybrid,
blended, lab)
Instructor Name:
Office Location:
Office Hours:
Phone:
Email:
Course Description & Prerequisites/Co-requisites (if applicable):
Student Course Learning Objectives




LO1
LO2
LO3
LO4…
Program Learning Outcomes/External Accreditation Standards (if applicable)
Assessments and Grading Scale
(Description of course requirements, e.g., exams, quizzes, projects, papers AND the proportion each
counts toward the final grade. If class participation and/or attendance are factored in, explain how
these are evaluated.)
Example:
Course Requirements:
Homework Assignments (15)
Research Paper (1)
Presentations (1)
Exams (3 including Final)
Weight/Value:
25%
30%
20%
25%
Grading Scale by %
A 94-100
A- 90-93
C+
C-
77-79
70-72
B+ 87-89
B 83-86
B- 80-82
C 73-76
Course Resources
D+ 67-69
D 63-66
D- 60-62
F
0-59
Required Text(s): (Bibliographic information of printed texts/books, include ISBN numbers for
all books)
Additional Materials: (e.g. calculators, technology, specialized materials or equipment, and
computer software)
Course Policies
Course Expectations
Tentative Course Schedule and Topic Outline
*Schedule subject to change
Week
Week 1
M - 9/2/2013
W - 9/4/2013
Topic & Assignment Schedule
 Topic (place holder)
 Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
 Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 2
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 3
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 4
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 5
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 6
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 7
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Due
Week 8
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 9
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 10
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 11
M–
W-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 12
MW-



Topic #34 (place holder)
Resource/Reading #35 (place holder)
Activity/Assignment #36 (place holder)
Week 13
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 14
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 15
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Week 16
MW-



Topic (place holder)
Resource/Reading Assignment (place holder)
Activity/Assignment (place holder)
Academic Integrity: http://www.fortlewis.edu/Portals/12/Docs/PART-III-Academic-Dishonesty.pdf
Disability Services: Fort Lewis College is committed to providing all students a liberal arts education
through a personalized learning environment. If you think you have or you do have a documented
disability which will need reasonable academic accommodations, please call the Director of Disability
Services, 280 Noble Hall, 970-247-7459, for an appointment as soon as possible.
Resources
HLC Federal Compliance Program http://www.ncahlc.org/Information-for-Institutions/federalcompliance-program.html
HLC Assumed Practices within the Criteria for Accreditation Worksheet A
https://content.springcm.com/content/DownloadDocuments.ashx?aid=5968&Selection=Document%2C
d726b714-000c-e211-bb63-0025b3af184e%3B
Characteristics of Excellence in Higher Education Eligibility Requirements and Standards for
Reaccreditation http://www.msche.org/publications/CHX06060320124919.pdf
Office of University Accreditation, University at Buffalo. Designing Course Syllabi
http://www.provost.buffalo.edu/Accreditation-and-Assessment/Syllabus_Guidelines_MSCHE.pdf
Office of the Provost Wayne State University. Course Learning Outcomes and Syllabus Guidelines
http://provost.wayne.edu/news.php?id=12179
Higher Learning Commission. Monitoring Report Shepherd University. (January 2, 2013)
http://www.shepherd.edu/accreditation/monitoring-report.pdf
Cornell University Center for Teaching Excellence. Writing a Syllabus.
http://www.cte.cornell.edu/teaching-ideas/designing-your-course/writing-a-syllabus.html