2012 08 07 Undergraduate Catalog Cover - Lake Erie College

ACADEMIC POLICIEScitizens may audit one course per semester for a nominal fee.Please contact the Bursar’s Office for the exact amount.Pass/Fail PolicyIn certain courses, performance is evaluated as Pass (P) or Fail(FR); grade point averages are not affected by such grades. Agrade of Pass is equal to a grade of “C” or higher. Only electivecourses may be taken Pass/Fail, with some exceptions;exceptions include internships and educational field experiences,at the discretion of the department. Elective courses specifiedwithin the major cannot be taken Pass/Fail.The following conditions apply to the Pass/Fail option:1. Students must be in good academic standing (2.0cumulative GPA).2. Freshmen may not choose the Pass/Fail option.3. Students must choose the Pass/Fail option at the timeof registration. Changes are not allowed after thesecond week of classes.4. Students may choose no more than 12 semester hourson a Pass/Fail basis.5. Faculty members will not be officially notified by theRegistrar’s Office when a student has chosen thePass/Fail option for their course.6. Students taking a course on a Pass/Fail basis mustcomplete the same course assignments as students on atraditional grading system and receive a grade of C (notC-) or better to be assigned a grade of Pass. TheRegistrar’s Office will convert the grade submitted to a“P” or “FR” as appropriate.Grade AppealUnder ordinary circumstances, faculty members reserve the rightto give the final grade to a student. To change a final grade, theremust be compelling and justifiable reasons to implement a gradeappeal process.1. Students must first contact the faculty member issuingthe grade in an attempt to resolve the issue. Studentsmust contact that faculty member immediately uponreceiving the final grade for the course.2. If the issue is not resolved to the student’s satisfaction,he or she must appeal to the Dean of the area.3. If the issue is still not resolved to the student’ssatisfaction, he or she must appeal in writing to theAcademic Standards Committee (ASC) within one monthof receiving the grade.4. The student must present compelling specific reasons inwriting in order for ASC to initiate further action. Someof the specific reasons include, but are not limited to:clerical error not acknowledged by the faculty member,harassment, change in grading standards during theterm and gross incompetence.5. ASC will contact the faculty member in question in orderto provide a platform for him or her to present therationale for the grade in question.6. If ASC believes that the “probable cause” warrantsfurther review, then a grade appeal process will follow.A Grade Appeal Committee will be formed.7. The student must provide to ASC all relevantinformation for determining the final grade, includingwritten assignments, attendance, papers, etc., inadvance.8. The Grade Appeal Committee will inform the VPAA oftheir recommendation. The VPAA will inform theRegistrar, faculty member and student of any changes ina timely fashion.9. The faculty member may make the grade change at anytime in this process and must notify ASC of doing so.The Grade Appeal Committee shall be composed of thefollowing:• A member of ASC• A member of the faculty within that discipline or asimilar discipline, appointed by ASC• Faculty member outside of the discipline, appointed byASC• The president of the Student Government Association ora delegate selected by the President of SGA.Repeat Course PolicyAny student receiving a grade of C- or lower in a course mayretake that course one time. In the case of a repeated course,only the higher grade of the two attempts will be used tocalculate the cumulative GPA. If the grade received is an F, thestudent may repeat the course until credit is earned. Only thefirst F is forgiven; every subsequent grade will be used tocalculate the cumulative GPA. Grades from all course attemptswill appear in the student’s academic record. A student mayretake no more than two courses for which he or she earns agrade of C-, D+, D or D-. Credit hours for a repeated course, or itsequivalent, will apply only once for the purposes of meetingdegree requirements. Only credit hours earned from a firstcourse attempt will count for Progress Toward Degreerequirements.Page | 23Lake Erie College | 2012 - 2013 Undergraduate Catalog | Student Handbook | Student Athlete Handbook