Neilson LSHP 4311 Syllabus (Spring 2012)
Name: Becky Neilson, PHR
Office Number: 107 Business Building
Office Telephone Number: (817) 272-3649
Email Address: rneilson@uta.edu
Website: http://wweb.uta.edu/management/Rebecca/home.htm
Mailing Address: 701 S. West Street, Suite 107, PO Box 19376, Arlington, TX 76019
Office Hours: Thursdays, 11:00 to 12:00 PM or by appointment.
Course Number, Section Number, and Course Title: LSHP 4311- Section 001 Leader as
Communicator
Time and Place of Class Meetings: COBA Bldg, Room 251, Tuesday and Thursday, 9:30 10:50 AM. Schedule changes will be announced ahead of time in class.
Description of Course Content: Designed to help students strengthen written and oral
communication skills to advance in their careers. Assignments include writing short papers on
assigned topics. Students give short presentations to the class, participate in discussions of the
presentations, and presenters answer questions. Students will participate in teams using case
studies with leadership implications and present the best solutions on how to handle the
situations.
Student Learning Outcomes:
 Students will discuss case studies and apply knowledge gained during class to justify
their viewpoints.
 Students will practice team building through use of case studies.
 Students will demonstrate competency in oral and written communication through
presentation of clear and concise information.
 Students will be able to apply knowledge gained in class to current or future employment
situations and make value judgments.
 Students will understand the values and practices associated with the ethical and legal
responsibilities of managing organizations.
Required Textbooks and Other Course Materials: Strunk and White, The Elements of Style,
Fourth Edition, Needham Heights, Massachusetts: Longman Publishers and Shriberg and
Shriberg, Practicing Leadership Principles and Applications, Fourth Edition, Hoboken, NJ: John
Wiley and Sons. You will need to bring paper to class for in-class assignments and writing
assignments.
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Descriptions of major assignments and examinations with due dates:
Participation and Attendance: Attendance is required. If you miss more than 3 classes you will
be dropped a letter grade. If you miss 6 or more classes you will be dropped two letter grades.
You are responsible for the material whether you are in class or not. Your participation in class
will count towards your final grade. Please read the assignments before class. Prior knowledge
of the topic will greatly enhance your ability to participate. I am interested in your personal
experiences and/or opinions related to the subjects we discuss. Reading business journals or
the daily newspaper can help you in adding current and contemporary examples to classroom
discussions. You will be receiving a complimentary copy of Bloomberg Businessweek
magazine. We will use this in our discussions. If you do not complete your MLQ requirement
timely and accurately, you will lose participation points. I will assign a subjective score given to
you based upon your interaction during the class.
Assignments: Any assignments that are required must be turned in on time. Papers are due at
the beginning of class. If you turn in a late assignment, the highest grade you can attain is a B.
Should you miss a guest speaker presentation, you may opt to have one of your classmates
record the session for you so you can comply with the written requirement. You will lose a letter
grade from your paper whenever you are absent for one of our visitors. There are no
exceptions to this. I will deduct points for misspelled words, grammar errors, and for improperly
explaining concepts in the body of your assignments. Use of spell check does not guarantee
that you have used the correct word. If I find 3 errors, I will return the paper to you and you will
need to correct it and ensure there are no more errors in the remaining portion of your paper.
The highest grade you can then attain is a B. Make sure that you use spell check on your
PowerPoint presentations. Do not use slang. If you are using material from any other source,
you must attribute it the author(s). At a minimum, if you copy information and fail to attribute or
cite it to the author, 50% of the total points possible for the assignment may be deducted.
Footnotes are the appropriate way to cite information. A separate page is needed for your
citation information. If you abbreviate, explain what the abbreviation means. Any assignment
turned in must have a cover sheet with your name, the class title and the date. The cover sheet
is not included in the total page count. All assignments will be typed, double spaced, 12 point
Arial font with one inch margins. Pages will be numbered at the bottom. Do not make pen and
ink corrections on the paper you submit to me.
Written Assignments: All papers due except the Leader paper will be between 2 full pages to 3
pages in length. Additional instructions on requirements are under Assignments.
Short Presentations: Each student will be required to give two short presentations of no more
than 4 minutes on the assigned topic. You will receive a graded evaluation from me and
comments from your peers. You must dress in professional business attire for your
presentations. I will not assign dates for these individual presentations. Each student must be
prepared to present on any of the short presentation days. Presentations must be between 3:30
minutes and 4:30 minutes.
Leader Presentation and Paper: Each student will give a leader presentation and write a
leadership paper. These two requirements are your analysis of the leader. I do not want a
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biography of his/her life. You may choose from the leaders listed on my website or another
leader that I approve in advance. Each leader will be approved by me and there will be no
duplicate topics. Choose your leader early if you are set on a particular one. Provide the name
of your leader and desired date of presentation to me no later than the 14th of February 2012.
Topic selection and presentation dates will be based upon a first come first serve basis. The
paper will be 5 full pages to 6 pages in length. Papers that are short or exceed or the required
length will have points deducted from the overall score. Presentations will be on the 17th April –
3rd of May. You must dress in professional business attire for your presentation. Length of each
presentation will be between 9 to 11 minutes. Your paper is due on the same day you give your
presentation. Use of PowerPoint is required. The PowerPoint presentation and paper are to be
turned into me before you go to the front of the classroom to begin your presentation. Errors on
the PowerPoint will be deducted from your presentation grade. A minimum of 5
references/sources must used to develop the presentation. If you use a website as a reference,
each main page counts as one reference, regardless of the number of lower level WebPages
used. Wikipedia is not a credible source. The textbook may be used as a source once you
have met your minimum 5 references. Each individual must be prepared to talk with or without
the electronic equipment. You will be graded on meeting the time requirement, content of
presentation, your transitions between ideas and knowledge of subject. Presentation and paper
rubrics will be used in grading.
Case Studies: There will be some designated days for case studies. As time allows, we will
also have case studies incorporated on some other days in class. These will not be announced
ahead of time.
Business Week: March 26th- 30th is Business Week for the College of Business. Goolsby
students will be asked to participate in events conducted during this week. One of these events
will be conducted on the evening of March 28th and your attendance is required. You will have
an assignment based on the evening’s events. Please leave your schedule open that week to
participate in as many events as possible.
Grading Policy:
If you feel it necessary to challenge a specific grade, you must use the established Grievance
Procedure. The Grievance Procedure requires you to present your case in writing with the
following information: student name, your chosen answer and the basis to support your
alternative answer.
The following is a list of the items that will be graded during the course.
Grade Composition:
Leader Presentation
Leader Paper
Movie Project
Short Written Assignments
Short Presentations
Case Studies
Class participation points
Total Class Points
90 points
85 points
25 points
20 points per assignment (X4)
20 points per assignment (X2)
5 points per case study (as time allows)
60 points
385+points
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The grade scale is:
A = points (90%)
B = points (80%)
C = points (70%)
D = points (60%)
F = and below
Attendance Policy: Attendance is required.
Participation in class is required.
Drop Policy: Please refer to the University drop policy as listed in the current catalog.
Americans With Disabilities Act: [The University of Texas at Arlington is on record as being
committed to both the spirit and letter of federal equal opportunity legislation; reference Public
Law 92-112 - The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. With the passage of federal
legislation entitled Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), pursuant to section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act, there is renewed focus on providing this population with the same
opportunities enjoyed by all citizens.
As a faculty member, I am required by law to provide "reasonable accommodations" to students
with disabilities, so as not to discriminate on the basis of that disability. Student responsibility
primarily rests with informing faculty of their need for accommodation and in providing
authorized documentation through designated administrative channels. Information regarding
specific diagnostic criteria and policies for obtaining academic accommodations can be found at
www.uta.edu/disability. Also, you may visit the Office for Students with Disabilities in room 102
of University Hall or call them at (817) 272-3364.
Academic Integrity: It is the philosophy of The University of Texas at Arlington that academic
dishonesty is a completely unacceptable mode of conduct and will not be tolerated in any form.
All persons involved in academic dishonesty will be disciplined in accordance with University
regulations and procedures. Discipline may include suspension or expulsion from the University.
"Scholastic dishonesty includes but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion, submission
for credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another person,
taking an examination for another person, any act designed to give unfair advantage to a
student or the attempt to commit such acts." (Regents’ Rules and Regulations, Series 50101,
Section 2.2)
Student Support Services Available: The University of Texas at Arlington supports a variety
of student success programs to help you connect with the University and achieve academic
success. These programs include learning assistance, developmental education, advising and
mentoring, admission and transition, and federally funded programs. Students requiring
assistance academically, personally, or socially should contact the Office of Student Success
Programs at 817-272-6107 for more information and appropriate referrals.
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E-Culture Policy: [Optional. Suggested language provided, however, please provide instructor
policy on receiving email from students]
The University of Texas at Arlington has adopted the University email address as an official
means of communication with students. Through the use of email, UT-Arlington is able to
provide students with relevant and timely information, designed to facilitate student success. In
particular, important information concerning registration, financial aid, payment of bills, and
graduation may be sent to students through email.
All students are assigned an email account and information about activating and using it is
available at www.uta.edu/email. New students (first semester at UTA) are able to activate their
email account 24 hours after registering for courses. There is no additional charge to students
for using this account, and it remains active as long as a student is enrolled at UT-Arlington.
Students are responsible for checking their email regularly.
Grade Grievance Policy: If you feel it necessary to challenge a specific grade, you must use
the established Grievance Procedure. The Grievance Procedure requires you to present your
case in writing with the following information: student name, area in question, your chosen
answer and the basis to support your alternative answer.
This document is not meant to be inclusive and cannot cover everything that may or may not
happen in class. It is not a contract, but merely a guide.
Date
Topic
Assignment
Jan 17
Introduction
Jan 19
Written Communication
Jan 24
Ethical Leadership (Chap 2)
Jan 26
Evolution of West. Ldshp (Chap 4)
Jan 31
Continuation of Evolution of Western Leadership
Feb 2
Psychology (Chap 5)/Case Study
Feb 7
Short Presentations/Peer Reviews
Feb 9
Short Presentations/Peer Reviews
Feb 14
Psychology II (Chap 6)
Leadership paper/presentation topic due
Feb 16
Continuation of Psychology II
(Topic: Bloomberg Businessweek article
due - 2nd Written Assignment)
Strunk and White
What It Means To Be A Goolsby
Scholar? (1st Written Assignment)
(Topic: Two of Your Strengths & Two
Weaknesses- 1st Short Presentation)
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Feb 21
Etiquette – Ms. Barbara Peet
Feb 23
Management and Leadership (Chap 7)
Feb 28
Power and Leadership from the Top (Chap 8)
Mar 1
MLQ Test Results – Dr. Quick
Mar 6
Short Presentations/Peer Reviews
Mar 8
Short Presentations/Peer Reviews
Mar 13
Spring Break
Mar 15
Spring Break
Mar 20
Teaming and Leadership (Chap 9)
Mar 22
Guest Speaker
Mar 27
Speaker or Chapter 12
Guest Speaker (3rd Written
Assignment)
Mar 28
Business Week Dinner
Attendance is required -6:00 pm to 10:00 pm
Mar 29
Speaker or Chapter 12
Apr 3
Leadership Movie
Apr 5
Leadership Movie
Apr 10
Case Studies
Leadership Movie paper due
Apr 12
Practicing Leadership (Chap 14)
(pg 278 takeaways discussed in class)
Apr 17
Presentations
Leadership paper and copy of ppt slides due
on day of presentation)
Apr 19
Presentations
Apr 24
Presentations
Apr 26
Presentations
May 1
Presentations
May 3
Presentations & Leadership Wrap Up
(Points will be deducted from participation if
you do not complete the MLQ timely)
(Business Week Assignment -4th
Written Assignment-due)
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