SECTION 4

ADVISING AND TEACHING

In this section:

• Access to and Confidentiality of Student Records
• Advising Responsibilities of Faculty
• Advising Center
• Center for Teaching and Professional Development
• Committees
• Educational Mentoring Teams
• Exams
• Grading
• Library
• Mentoring Teachers
• Teaching - Class Assignments and Teaching Load
• Teaching - Office Hours

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (commonly known as FERPA or the Buckley Amendment), provides access for parents and students over the age of 18 (or attending a postsecondary institution) to their children's/their own, "education records." FERPA also protects parents'/students' privacy in those records by prohibiting their disclosure, or information contained in them, without written consent. "Educational records" are described as those records, files, documents, and other materials directly related to a student that are maintained by the University. See more detailed information below for access to and privacy of different types of records that the faculty and departments may keep regarding students.

Also note that, outside of academic records, a number of administrative departments that support academic services on campus may have access to student records, such as the Customer Service Center which accepts payments of fees/tuition from students and other student records pertaining to Financial Aid, Student Housing, etc.

http://www.calstate.edu/GC/Docs/Records_Access_Manual.doc

Advising students is a responsibility of the faculty and should be considered an essential aspect of teaching. Advising requires faculty to be available to students at accessible hours and remain thoroughly informed with regard to curricular policies, practices and regulations. Faculty involved in or with access to student records should be aware that FERPA provides access to and privacy of student records. (See Access information above.)

An advisee folder kept on a student by an instructor or in the departmental office constitutes an academic record subject to review. Any notes added to that folder become a part of the record. Access to the advisee folders must be limited to those with a legitimate need to have access such as the adviser, the department chair and those who may provide the record maintenance such as a departmental administrative assistant. It does not extend to private notes or "memory aids" maintained by an instructor for his/her own personal reference and which do not become a part of a permanent or continuing file and which will not be viewed by any other person.

Some faculty members and department staff are involved in deliberations regarding the admission of students to special programs such as nursing and teacher education. Information about students used to determine admission may be kept confidential unless it becomes a part of a student's ongoing file. When information about a student that was originally used to determine admission to a program is used for any other purpose, it then must be made available to that student upon request. (Applicants who are not admitted, however, are not covered under the Act). This right to review extends only to those records that pertain to that student as an individual. This right of review extends to all students currently enrolled and those who have attended the University in the past.

See additional information on Advising in Section 7 and the websites below.

http://www.sonoma.edu/UAffairs/policies/advisingpolicy.htm

http://www.sonoma.edu/AP/ge.html

http://www.calstate.edu/LaborRel/Contracts_HTML/CFA_CONTRACT/CFAtoc.shtml Article 20, Workload

The Advising Center coordinates campus-wide academic advising of students and provides training to faculty and staff who are responsible for providing advising services. For additional information, see Section 7 and the websites below.

http://www.sonoma.edu/SAS/Advising

http://www.sonoma.edu/UAffairs/policies/advisingpolicy.htm

Professional development opportunities are available to faculty through the Center for Teaching and Professional Development (CTPD). This Center assists faculty in all areas of their professional lives through workshops and discussion groups, arrangements for mentors for faculty, providing a resource library, and confidential individual consultation. A variety of topics are addressed through the Center, including the use of computers and other technology in instruction, teaching methodology, curricular and instructional development, organizational development, research and writing, and faculty career development. The Professional Development Subcommittee is conducting a search in Fall 2004 for a new Center Director to begin in Spring 2005. An announcement of the position can be found at http://www.sonoma.edu/CTPD/ctpddirector.html.

http://www.sonoma.edu/CTPD

http://www.calstate.edu/LaborRel/Contracts_HTML/CFA_CONTRACT/CFAtoc.shtml Article 25 and Article 26

An additional professional responsibility of faculty is participation on committees. Beyond membership in academic department and school committees, such as the RTP Committee, Recruitment Committees for staff or faculty positions, and Curriculum Development Committees, faculty also serve on many university and systemwide committees which support the academic, administrative, and student programs and services.

http://www.sonoma.edu/as/university.committee.shtml

http://www.sonoma.edu/Senate

http://www.calstate.edu/LaborRel/Contracts_HTML/CFA_CONTRACT/CFAtoc.shtml Article 20, 29, and 30

The Education Mentoring Teams (EMTs) are part of an ambitious advising and college orientation program for all incoming first time Freshman. An EMT consists, minimally, of a faculty member and a student services professional and usually a peer advisor. All incoming students are assigned to an EMT in order to assure that all students receive advising. EMTs also provide the instruction for a 2 unit Freshman Seminar course and the academic advising for assigned freshman. For additional information see the links below and Academic Advising in Section 7.

http://www.sonoma.edu/sas/emt/index.shtml

http://www.sonoma.edu/sas/advising/ge/gepattern.html

Faculty develop methods of examination for courses they teach and provide academic advising to students regarding campus wide support services, such as the Testing Office, and examination requirements, such as the WEPT examination. See the links below for further information.

http://www.sonoma.edu/UAffairs/policies/finalpolicy.htm

http://www.sonoma.edu/UAffairs/policies/shared.htm

http://www.sonoma.edu/UAffairs/policies/weptpolicy.htm

Faculty who post student grades must do so in a way that protects the privacy of those concerned. Grade Book materials are confidential. Students are entitled to receive information concerning how their own grades were determined without actual access to the physical record. The decision of whether or not to post grades is left to the discretion of each instructor. To maintain confidentiality and protect students right to privacy, grades are not to be posted with (1) the names of students, or (2) using complete Social Security numbers in alphabetical order or (3) any other form of identification which would easily identify a student. If partial student identification numbers are used, it is recommended that the list be in numerical, rather than alphabetical order. Faculty concerned with grading and alternate methods of posting grades and confidentiality surrounding the issue of grades should contact the Admissions and Records Office and the Center for Teaching and Professional Development for advice and guidance.

Students have the right to file a grade appeal and that process is governed by CSU Executive Order 320 and campus policy. When grade disputes cannot be settled informally, students have a right to file an appeal and faculty members cooperate fully with the grade appeal process. Instructors provide the appeal officer with evidence to support the grade, such as a detailed syllabus, instructions, sample work from the student, attendance rosters, and demonstrate consistent grading patterns through the grade book and other evidence.

See also: Student Privacy Rights in the Glossary and Terms, Section 9.

http://www.sonoma.edu/ar

http://www.sonoma.edu/CTPD

http://www.sonoma.edu/UAffairs/policies/academic/htm

http://www.sonoma.edu/UAffairs/policies/creditpolicy/htm

http://www.sonoma.edu/UAffairs/policies/gradepolicy/htm

http://www.sonoma.edu/Provost/WASC/portfolio/fepl.html

The library is located in the Jean and Charles Schulz Information Center and provides many services to faculty and students. New faculty should participate in a library tour and orientation. For additional information and links, see Section 7, Library.

Mentoring students and colleagues is another responsibility that faculty members are frequently expected to perform. Faculty may request a mentoring relationship with a faculty colleague (usually someone outside their department) through the Center for Teaching and Professional Development. A number of new faculty have availed themselves of this service which helps as they acclimate themselves to all aspects of life at SSU. Faculty may also arrange for private consultation on topics such as developing goals and learning outcomes for a class; dealing with problem students; incorporating the use of the Web into teaching; and, understanding the RTP process.

http://www.sonoma.edu/CTPD

http://www.calstate.edu/LaborRel/Contracts_HTML/CFA_CONTRACT/CFAtoc.shtml Articles 20 and 25

Instructional responsibilities of faculty extend beyond the classroom and include activities such as preparation for class, evaluation of student performance, office hours, advising students, syllabus preparation, research of subject matter and instructional methodology. The assignment workload of a faculty member is guided by provisions within the Collective Bargaining Agreement. When making assignment workload decisions, consideration may be given in a variety of areas, such as, graduate instruction, distance learning, laboratory courses, sports, student teacher supervision, supervision of field work, thesis supervision, or service on CSU or SSU committees. In addition to their specialized functions, assignments to Librarians, Coaches and Counselors may include teaching, student advising, supervision of student interns, and service on committees.

http://www.calstate.edu/LaborRel/Contracts_HTML/CFA_CONTRACT/CFAtoc.shtml Articles 20, 29, and 30

Faculty notify students of their office hours which may be revised each semester. Notification may include posting hours on office doors, bulletin boards and web pages, listing in the course syllabus, or by e-mail to students enrolled in their classes. Office hour activities may include consulting with students regarding grades, progress, and providing academic advising functions.

http://www.calstate.edu/LaborRel/Contracts_HTML/CFA_CONTRACT/CFAtoc.shtml Article 20

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