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- Academic Continuity - Archive: March 27, 2020
Academic Continuity - Archive: March 27, 2020
Page Updated: March 27, 2020, 4:00 p.m.
Distance Learning and Contractual Obligations
The following guidance is in response to questions pertaining to faculty office hours, classroom observations, annual evaluations, and the reappointment, tenure, and promotion process.
- Both full-time faculty and adjuncts who are responsible for, and paid for, office hours will hold office hours through distance technology and will notify their students and their department chair regarding how they plan to hold the hours. These notifications should be made on or before Friday, March 27.
- Classroom teaching observations that have not yet been conducted during the Spring 2020 semester, will only be conducted if requested by the employee to be evaluated. The department may use the new protocol for observations in online settings (Article 18.2(b)3), where the course was changed to a distance modality mid-semester, provided the employee is made aware and has the option to proceed with the observation. Teaching observations for those who have been teaching online since the start of the semester, and who were otherwise contemplated to be observed pursuant to the new provision in Article 18.2(b)3 for online observations, will have their observations conducted.
- Annual evaluations which include the conference and confirming memorandum will have the conference conducted through distance technology, which may include telephone and/or videoconferencing.
- Decisions on tenure, promotion, reclassification and discretionary assignment salary differentials that are currently in process shall be completed.
- Faculty and staff shall be permitted to retrieve personal belongings and materials needed to work remotely. Some colleges may allow staff, faculty and students on campus this weekend (March 21-22) to collect any personal or work-related materials they need. Thereafter, access to campuses will be limited except by appointment. We will develop a process for this; in the interim, please contact your dean or the provost.
- Shared Governance (e.g., Senate, P&B, and Departmental Meetings An important part of business and academic continuity is sustaining the work of our various shared governance structures and processes. Article 7 of the Public Officers Law, to the extent necessary, permits any public body to meet and take such actions authorized by the law without permitting in public in-person access to meetings and authorizes such meetings to be held remotely by conference call or similar service, provided that the public has the ability to view or listen to such proceedings and that such meetings are recorded and later transcribed.
Activation of Research Ramping Down Protocols Mandated
Effective Monday, March 23, all research projects must ramp down/suspend unless they can be conducted remotely and all colleges shall activate their corresponding emergency protocols related to animal care, equipment etc. Please See the Research Continuity section of the website for all updates and details.
Prospective Academic and Business Travel (Faculty, Students, and Staff)
All non-essential university-related international and domestic travel is indefinitely suspended at this time, this includes the suspension of all Spring 2020 and Summer 2020 study abroad programs. It also includes all CUNY-sponsored student international travel (including spring break), non-CUNY credit-bearing programs, and non-credit travel under the auspices of CUNY or any CUNY college or student organization. Please know that credits earned on non-CUNY study abroad programs this summer will not be accepted by the University.
Requests for exceptions to this policy will continue to be reviewed by the Office of Global Education and Initiatives and the Office of Risk, Audit and Compliance, but will also be elevated to the Executive Vice Chancellor and University Provost, who will make a final recommendation to the Chancellor after consideration of any national and local travel restrictions, as well as guidance established by local health authorities and the CDC for New York and the travel destination to limit the risk of exposure and unintended geographic spread of COVID-19. Offices supporting group travel should continue to submit Trip Proposals and provide risk management reporting as usual.
Planning for and Returning from Personal Travel
The Department of State’s Global Health Advisory (issued March 19, 2020) warns that a shutdown of international travel options is imminent, and that Americans abroad should arrange to immediately return to the U.S., or risk an indefinite stay abroad. All Brooklyn College students on Study Abroad have returned to the United States. In order to help CUNY students return home before it is too late, CUNY will continue to offer rebooking support to any CUNY student or employee abroad (regardless of citizenship) who is unable to make these arrangements directly with the airline. Individuals should contact evac-support@cuny.edu with details on their CUNY affiliation (includingEMPLID if possible) to receive instructions on accessing this support. Employees returning from abroad should contact their supervisors to make arrangements to work remotely, if this is not already in place.
The objective of an academic continuity plan is to help safeguard the academic term from the standpoint of our students' academic progress and their financial aid as we work to address the challenges posed by COVID-19.
The U.S. Department of Education has indicated that at a minimum, our faculty must be able to "communicate to students through one of several types of technology—including email—… and [that] instructors must initiate substantive communication with students, either individually or collectively, on a regular basis."
As an example of this, the USDE offers that "an instructor could use email to provide instructional materials to students enrolled in his or her class, use chat features to communicate with students, set up conference calls to facilitate group conversations, engage in email exchanges or require students to submit work electronically that the instructor will evaluate."
All of these minimal levels of interaction and more are supported by the CUNY licensed software solutions itemized in previous guidance (see thread below) and identified in the CUNY coronavirus portal. We will continue to help navigate and learn tools for distance education during the semester. Simple, low-tech solutions are fine; faculty need not feel that they must master complex technologies. The important thing is being able to deliver instruction as per the guidelines above and ensure students are learning.
The most important thing is for faculty to confer with their students to get a sense of what the most effective and equitable way to move forward with distance learning, considering both faculty and student readiness, accessibility to devices, and reliable Internet access and phone capabilities. How can faculty, given these realities, create optimal conditions for students to meet their learning outcomes? If there are any in-person meetings of classes, because it has been impossible to convert them to distance learning, no student may be penalized for not attending, and alternate accommodations need to be made for the student(s). To emphasize the point: All courses that can be converted to fully online delivery should be converted.
The university has stated that we should privilege asynchronous over synchronous distance learning approaches. The reality is that our faculty and students' lives and daily schedules will surely be disrupted in the days to come — especially now that the NYC Department of Education has indicated a move to distance learning.
Note
CUNY has asked faculty and staff to be prepared to accommodate affected students to the greatest reasonable extent. This includes, among other things: facilitating enrollment after the deadline, fast-tracking academic advising, permitting make-up exams and extending due dates of final assignments and projects. In this same spirit and understanding the minimum USDE requirements to meeting learning outcomes, we urge faculty members to privilege asynchronous over synchronous distance learning approaches. Indeed, the most important thing is for faculty to confer with their students to get a sense of what the most effective and EQUITABLE way to move forward with distance learning should be, considering both faculty and student readiness, accessibility to devices and reliable internet access, and phone capabilities. Ultimately, faculty and colleges should ask themselves how they can create optimal conditions for students to meet their learning outcomes. Because the reality is that our faculty and students lives and daily schedules will surely be disrupted in the days to come — especially now that the NYC Department of Education has itself indicated a move to distance learning.
Conversion of Courses
Per guidance issued on March 11, college presidents and deans will be required to submit an implementation plan to the Office of Academic Affairs. The deans are working with chairs to provide course level detail. See below.
Middle States Council on Higher Education
MSCHE is working directly with colleges, as well as with CUNY Central, to provide support and flexibility for accreditation matters. Please know that Central will work with colleges to navigate the current rapid changes, but that MSCHE expects individual college relationships and reporting to remain in place.
Additional Blackboard Help Desk Support
CUNY has contracted with Blackboard to provide this telephone support as an additional service to our students and faculty to ensure coverage when the campus help desks are closed and Blackboard administrator support to students and faculty is unavailable. See the Center for Teaching and Learning’ Digital Toolbox page.
New Curricular Resources and OER Resources for Faculty
Please check the Center for Teaching and Learning for updates
Testing Options and Efforts to Secure Proctoring of Distance Learning Exams
CIS is working with Respondus, an online assessment and learning tool to support the immediate needs for an exam proctoring solution). Two products they offer, LockDown Browser and Respondus Monitor enable students to take online exams from home, while deterring cheating and protecting the exam content itself. Both applications integrate seamlessly with Blackboard and used with over 80 million assessments annually. Additional information is forthcoming.
Cloud-Based Adobe Licenses for Students
CIS is working now with Adobe to enable student access through the CUNY Login page using their @login.cuny.edu credentials. Faculty already have home use of these tools under our current CUNY licensing agreement. The services in question are described below.
- Adobe is making temporary at-home access to Creative Cloud available until May 31, 2020 for universities who currently have only lab access for students, at no additional cost.
- Adobe provides a student asset migration portal that enables graduating students to transfer the assets associated with their assigned school account to a personal account.
- Adobe will be sharing a curated set of resources soon on the Adobe Education Exchange website to help faculty with their transition to online instruction.
Incomplete Grades
Students who receive an INC grades in the Spring 2020 term would generally be required to submit outstanding work, “according to a deadline established by individual colleges of the University but no later than the last day of the following semester.” The University, however, will allow students to submit incomplete work to faculty for resolution of INC grades for courses taken in Spring 2020 through the Fall 2020 semester, and the new deadline for faculty to submit Incomplete to Grade forms to the Registrar’s Office for resolution will be Wednesday, December 23, 2020 (for KCC/LAG/GCC – March 1, 2021). This date coincides with the “Final Grade Submission Deadline” for Fall 2020 courses. For Students who received an INC grade in the Fall 2019 semester, the University will allow students to submit incomplete work to faculty for resolution through end of Summer 2020 semester. The new deadline for faculty to submit Incomplete to Grade forms to the Registrar’s Office for resolution will be August 30, 2020.
Last Day to File for Pass/No Credit/Fail Option
For eligible students that meet the requirements of our “Pass/Fail/No Credit Option” policy, the University will move the deadline to Thursday, May 14, 2020 (KCC/LAG/GCC – Session 1: June 4, 2020; Session 2: August 1, 2020). This is the published “Last Day of Classes,” and before final examination week, and also prior to the “End of the Spring Term”. See note below on possible financial aid impact on students. Some notes on this option below.
Students should consult with their academic and financial aid advisor to confirm if such election will still allow them to count the course towards their major/degree requirements, if credit is earned with a grade of P. In order to receive this grade, a student needs to continue participating in academically related activities, complete all assignments, and take the final exam/culminating experience. If a passing letter grade is earned, the student will receive a grade of ‘P’ and credit for the course with no impact on GPA. If a failing grade is earned (F), the student will receive a grade of NC/NP which does not affect the GPA. Students must remain in compliance with Federal and State Satisfactory Academic Progress guidelines.]
The University is consulting broadly about the possibility of extending the Pass/No Credit/Fail Option to additional courses, understanding the extraordinary circumstances we face ant the fact that a blanket, centralized move in this direction would be warranted with both expediency and consistency in mind. Furthermore, a temporary blanket approach could alleviate the need for students to consult their academic and financial advisors. Preliminary discussions on this from had been had with the Chair of the University Faculty Senate and the corresponding regulatory agencies.
Course Withdrawal Period
Last Day to Drop with a Grade of “W.” The current deadline date listed on the calendar is Wednesday, April 1, 2020. We will move that date to Thursday, May 14, 2020 (for KCC/LAG/GCC – Spring Session 1: June 4, 2020; Spring Session 2: August 1, 2020). This is the published “Last Day of Classes,” and before final examination week and also prior to the “End of the Spring Term.”
Student Veterans, National Guard and Reservists
Please advise students who are activated to communicate with their campus Veterans Services Coordinator, Registrar’s Office, and faculty. The University might be facing one of the following scenarios:
- National Guard students called up as early as the week of April 1, 2020;
- Military personnel may be activated in 30 days; or
- Military units might be given notice of activation at any time.
Students’ response to all three scenarios should not be to drop classes or discontinue their Spring 2020 coursework. Rather, as per CUNY Military Activation Policy Sections 3.1 – 3.3 listed below, faculty can and should accommodate activated students to enable them to complete the Spring 2020 semester.
3.1 A student who is called to active duty in the armed forces of the United States or National Guard should be given every consideration around either making up the work for the course, obtaining an Incomplete, or being given the grade that he or she has earned at the time that he or she is called to duty.
3.2 At each college, the appropriated committee or other designated authority shall be empowered to grant the remaining number of credits required for graduation to a member of the graduating class who lacks twelve or fewer credits in elective courses to complete the requirements for the degree for those called to active duty in the armed forces of the United States. Credits should be applied from the service members JST (Joint Service Transcript) as MILT elective credit.
3.3 Colleges shall encourage students who enter military service to maintain their status as students by availing themselves of such opportunities as may be offered to them (by the colleges, by other accredited colleges, and/or by service agencies) to continue their studies while in Military Service.
Disability Services
During this transition to distance learning, CUNY’s faculty remain the University’s most vital resource in ensuring reasonable accommodations for our more than 11,000 students with disabilities. As our faculty deliver course content via distance learning modalities, we ask that they consider the following overarching principles and key resources:
- Under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), CUNY college are still required to provide equal access to our university's academic programs—even in a distance learning environment.
- Campus Offices of Disability Services (ODS) continue to serve as key sources of technical assistance and support to faculty in determining the best ways to reasonably accommodate students with disabilities in distance learning instructional modalities.
- The barriers that exist at the intersection of a student's disability and course design may be different from those posed by the original course format. Some accommodations students used before may no longer apply in distance learning formats, and some accommodations not considered previously may need to be considered now; we appreciate our faculty's flexibility and collaboration with ODS staff and students with disabilities themselves to meet their accommodation needs in distance learning modalities.
To aid in these efforts, the Reasonable Accommodations: A Faculty Guide for Teaching Students with Disabilities resource was developed specifically for CUNY faculty to provide them with information and best practices to be most effective in meeting the needs of students with disabilities and achieving the goal of equal access. This guide includes helpful information in accommodating students with disabilities in distance learning, including the following two sections:
Please know that our campus Offices of Disability Services will work closely with our CUNY Office of Student Inclusion Initiatives to ensure that our faculty have the support they need to successfully and meaningfully accommodate students with disabilities. We are grateful to our faculty and to our disability services professionals for their abiding commitment to the access, success, and wellness of students with disabilities.
During this transition to distance learning, CUNY’s faculty remain the University’s most vital resource in ensuring reasonable accommodations for our more than 11,000 students with disabilities. As our faculty deliver course content via distance learning modalities, we ask that they consider the following overarching principles and key resources:
CS/MS and Adult Literacy and Language Immersion Programs
CUNY Start/Math Start, CUNY Language Immersion Program (CLIP), and the Adult Literacy Program are all planning on moving their instruction online by March 19, 2020. The Central Office staff that support each program have been working with college teams to develop plans for this transition using both synchronous and asynchronous delivery via platforms like Blackboard, Dropbox, Zoom, and WebEx, and how to make use of video, discussion tools, chat, and other technology tools to deliver instruction. Each program will develop a plan, to be provided to the appropriate college leadership, that details how content will be delivered, multiple options for communicating with students, and how student work will be assessed to document learning outcomes have been met. Colleges are encouraged to make any local resources that are available to faculty to assist with this conversion available to these programs as well. CUNY CIS is also supporting assessment of technology needs for these programs if there is not a local college resource readily available. We will provide further guidance on any standardized testing that typically takes place in CUNY testing centers, which would also be developed for students in developmental education classes that require the CUNY Assessment Test in Writing (CAT-W) and CUNY Elementary Algebra Final Exam (CEAFE). CUNY OAA has also confirmed with the New York State Education Department (NYSED) Adult Career and Continuing Education Services that our adult literacy programs should follow the guidance of their respective agencies/organizations (ie: CUNY, SUNY, DOE) regarding the use of distance learning strategies to maintain program continuity and keep students and teachers engaged while in-person classes are suspended.
Clinical Placements — HHS Programs
Previously, the Office of Academic Affairs has shared important information with campus HHS leaders about how to request and secure permission from NYSED to move clinical placements into a distance learning modality. Currently, there are several applications pending submission or approval across colleges, including nursing, social work, physical therapy and audiology programs. The University encourages programs to seek guidance from their accrediting body on approved alternative training models and submit application requests to NYSED OOP for their proposed alternative.
Clinical Placements — Education Programs
As of Monday, March 16, education students who are participating in clinical placements for fieldwork or student teaching required by their academic program, and their faculty supervisors, were told not report to school/field sites until further notice. Education Deans and Chairs are receiving specific guidance and resources on conducting virtual fieldwork from Ashleigh Thompson via email and postings on http://www.cuny.edu/teachered. Nearly identical to what has been offered to DOE teachers, a new CUNY-specific instance of this remote learning website was set up for CUNY faculty use, free up to 50,000 users: https://learn.flglobal.org/courses/cucy-rtol-rapid-transition-to-online-learning. In light of theDOE school closure, and plan for three-days of professional development for teachers at school sites this week, we have heard requests from schools, CUNY students and faculty about candidates attending these days so they can participate in training and assist with remote learning delivery for their school site. Upon careful review, CUNY will support clinical fieldwork placements that support schools’ use of remote learning, under the following conditions.
- The principal invites/approves the candidate's continued participation;
- cooperating teachers can provide adequate supervision to students in the context of remote learning;
- faculty are willing and able to support student placements, as required; and
- students are aware of risks and willing to take the necessary precautions, as per available guidance, to participate in the school-based training during the crisis.
The health and safety of our students and faculty remain a top priority, therefore considerations for placement may be addressed on a case-by-case basis. This update does not preclude colleges from engaging in virtual fieldwork, which was previously recommended. This policy, and its four conditions, pertains to social workers, therapists, counselors and other students with required school-based placements.
Guidance for CUNY Students Working in Internships
CUNY students working as interns, whether with private or public sector employers, should abide by the internal protocols of their internship site. They may work if the site remains open and is allowing interns to report. In addition to the work site’s coronavirus policy, students who are sick or have knowingly been in contact with anyone who is sick should notify their internship manager and CUNY program manager or contact immediately. We ask that all students and supervisors touch base to work on a course of action. Some students may be working with individuals in vulnerable populations, so we ask that supervisors and students use their best judgment. Companies or organizations may institute telecommuting or work from home policies that apply to students. We ask students to inform their internship manager or CUNY program manager if their employers move to telecommuting/work from home policies. Students should confirm that they have the tools they need to do this effectively and reach out to their internship manager or CUNY program manager with any questions or concerns.
Guidance for Campus-Based Internships
Similar to the guidance for public and private sector internships, students and supervisors should abide by the protocols and policies set by the institution.
Guidance for Credit-Bearing Internships
Students will maintain enrollment in Spring 2020 campus-based academic internship courses at their discretion and the discretion of college faculty with whom they are registered. Students and faculty will continue to meet in seminars via online/distance learning tools once they are introduced at the campuses. Students and faculty will work together to redesign any assigned internship deliverables, to ensure that learning outcomes reflected in course syllabi are met and measured at the conclusion of the semester. Where permissible, academic internship responsibilities given to students by outside organizations at the beginning of the semester will continue to be carried out via remote. In cases where internship responsibilities cannot be carried out via remote, campus faculty will develop and assign alternative experiential learning responsibilities and goals to students enrolled in credit-bearing courses.
College Now Courses and Early College High Schools
NYCDOE schools are implementing a remote learning model beginning March 23 through April 20, 2020. NYC DOE schools are in recess the week of March 16 as staff prepare for remote learning. Students should not report to school buildings for instruction during this time. No in person instruction can take place in DOE high schools beginning March 16, through April 20. We recommend any courses enrolling current NYC DOE students, including those taking place on CUNY campuses, follow this model. Early College High schools will fully implement NYCDOE's remote learning plan beginning on Monday, March 23 - April 20, 2020. Students should not report for instruction during this time. Students are not in attendance from March 16 – 20. From March 17 - March 20, students who need technology in order to access remote learning can report to their schools to get it - they will receive communication from their schools regarding plans for this. All students will begin receiving information on remote learning plans during this time. Remote learning begins March 23.
- Classroom teaching observations: observations that have not yet been conducted only need to be conducted if requested by the instructor. Teaching observations for those who have been teaching online since the start of the semester will have their observations conducted as usual. The protocol for online observations can be found in the contract: Article 18.2(b)3.
- Annual evaluations will be conducted through telephone or videoconferencing.
- Promotion and tenure decisions that are in process shall be completed.
- Tenure applicants for 2020: faculty whose candidacies are coming up in fall 2020 semester can receive a one-year extension by emailing the provost by May 1, 2020.
- Tenure applicants post 2020: faculty can request a tenure clock extension by following the procedures normally followed at the college. The requests must be made by February 1 in the year immediately preceding their tenure review.
- Appointment/non-reappointment notices: notices will be sent, at a minimum, to an employee’s CUNY email address. Especially in cases of non-reappointment, multiple methods of communication will be used, including CUNY email address, personal email address, and text to cell phone number.
- P&B meetings will be held remotely with secret ballot voting.
A schedule and information about remote systems and processes is being developed in collaboration with faculty leadership and is forthcoming.
Please address any questions to Anne Lopes, anne.lopes@brooklyn.cuny.edu or Tammy Lewis Tlewis@brooklyn.cuny.edu.