Important messages, dates and news from the Faculty office.
Important Dates and Deadlines
 
Tuesday April 10, 2018 from 1:30pm to 3:00pm
Arts Graduate Council Meeting 

Thursday April 12, 2018 to Friday April 27, 2018
Winter Term examinations 

Tuesday April 17, 2018 from 1:30pm to 3:00pm
Undergraduate Chair Meeting 

Wednesday April 18, 2018
deadline to submit agenda items for Faculty Board 

Wednesday April 18, 2018 from 10:30am to 12:00pm
Undergraduate Chair Meeting

Thursday April 26, 2018 from 9:30am to 4:00pm
Research in Aging Symposium
 
Friday April 27, 2018 from 3:30pm to 5:00pm 
Faculty Board
 
Tuesday May 1, 2018
Summer Term begins

Tuesday May 1, 2018 from 11:00am to 12:00pm
FAS Administrators meeting


Monday May 7, 2018
Final deadline to submit grades for Winter 2018 Undergraduate Courses (by 12 pm)
 
spacerequests Space Requests
Campus Planning is receiving requests for additional space from Departments within the Faculty of Arts and Science, many of them linked to new faculty positions.  Space on campus is currently at a premium and Campus Planning is looking for surplus space that may be available.  If departments in the Faculty have any space that they wish to turn over, please contact Tony Gkotsis, University Planner ( tony.gkotsis@queensu.ca   ) with room numbers so that they can compile a list of spaces that may be available to accommodate growth.
fund2018-19 Income on Endowment Funds

The Pooled Endowment Fund (PEF) payout for 2018-19, which will be 12.73 cents per unit.
 
You may recall that at its meeting on March 4, 2016, the Board of Trustees approved the University's recommendation on the payout from the PEF for the fiscal years 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19. The payout recommendation is based on a thorough analysis with input from a working group with stakeholder representation. The working group's recommendations were made to the Vice Principals' Operations Committee (VPOC) prior to submission to the Investment Committee of the Board of Trustees. (see report
 
The approved hybrid formula has a long-term target payout rate of 4.0% and includes upper and lower bands at +/- 0.5% of the target rate to prevent over- and under-spending in extreme market conditions. The confirmed payout rate for 2018-19 is 12.73 cents per unit, which represents a 6.0% increase from the 2017-18 payout rate of 12.01 cents per unit. Based on the ending unit value for calendar 2017, this payout would imply a dividend rate of approximately 3.6%, which is slightly above the lower band of 3.5%. The significant increase in the payout is partly attributable to an increase in the PEF unit value over calendar 2017, and partly due to the decision to increase the formula's long-term target payout rate from 3.7% to 4.0% while simultaneously reducing the amount that is withdrawn from the PEF each year to support the operating budget. The attached Board submission from February 2016 includes further details.
 
The 2018-19 income will be credited to endowment funds in early May. A forecast of future payouts is included in the budget guidelines.
 
Brian O'Neill, CFA
Director, Investment Services
Queen's University
(613) 533-3034 
examsUndergraduate Exams Information for Instructors and Professors 

Academic Consideration during the Exam Period
Please note that the Senate Policy on Academic Consideration for Students in Extenuating Circumstances is applicable during the final examination period. In the Faculty of Arts and Science, students who are too ill to write the examination or are experiencing extenuating circumstances are being directed to the Academic Consideration Request Portal (ACRP) to submit a request for consideration. Instructors are asked to recognize the University's good faith approach and provide the student with support in the form of an alternative or deferred assessment.
  1. Request for Academic Consideration using the Self-Declaration for Brief Absence Form (up to 48 hours)
    Students may use the Self-Declaration request form for an extenuating circumstance that is expected to resolve itself within 48 hours. The instructor will receive an email from the Faculty Office notifying them of the student's request. In this case, the student could be required to write a deferred examination any time after the 48 hour absence, if it does not result in 3 consecutive exams within 24 hours.
  2. Request for Academic Consideration for Short-Term Extenuating Circumstances (more than 48 hours, up to 3 months)
    Students should use the Academic Consideration for Short-Term Extenuating Circumstances request form (more than 48 hours and up to 3 months) if they are experiencing extenuating circumstances that will last for more than 48 hours. In this case, the University requires supporting documentation. Instructors will receive an email from the Faculty Office notifying them of the request and verifying receipt of appropriate documentation. Given the volume of requests during the exam period, there may be a delay in the notification.      
Please note that for both types of requests, it is the responsibility of the students to follow up with the instructor, but that it is up to the instructor to determine the date of the deferred examination, in accordance with their departmental policy on deferred examinations, if applicable. Deferred examinations could be scheduled up to the end of the subsequent term. Any further extensions based on continued extenuating circumstances will require a written appeal to the Associate Dean (Studies).   

New Regulation on Extenuating Circumstances Occurring During an Examination
Additions to Academic Regulation 8, Final and Mid-Year Examinations, were recently approved by Faculty Board. The new Academic Regulation 8.4.3 is meant to provide instructors with the discretion to allow re-writes of final and mid-year exams in rare situations where it is determined that the student's exam attempt was affected by extenuating circumstances and is deemed not to be a valid attempt:
"Students who experience serious illness during the course of writing a scheduled examination that prevents them from completing the examination, must notify an Examination Proctor prior to leaving the examination hall, or prior to exiting the examination session of an online proctored examination. The Faculty Office will liaise with the instructor of the course to determine if the examination attempt is considered valid. If students leave the examination hall or exit an online examination without notifying and Examination Proctor, the examination attempt will be considered valid and no retroactive consideration will be possible.

If, after consultation with the instructor, the examination attempt is not considered valid, permission for the student to re-write the final examination may be granted for documented cases at the discretion of the instructor(s) and the Associate Dean (Studies). Alternatively, other options for the student to complete the course may be provided."


Incomplete Grades (IN)
When the deferred final examination is scheduled after the submission of grades, the instructor should submit an incomplete grade (IN), as defined in Academic Regulation 10.3.4. Please note that the latest date by which the course requirements may be completed is the end of the subsequent term, which would in this instance be September 15, 2018. Any further extensions based on continued extenuating circumstances will require a written appeal to the Associate Dean (Studies). Students with extenuating circumstances who have been unable to complete the majority of their work in a course should instead consider submitting an appeal to drop the course.

The Faculty Office is currently revising the ''Permission for an Incomplete Grade or Deferred Examination'' form to align it with the new Academic Consideration Policy and Protocol. In the meantime, instructors are welcome to use it or adapt it if they wish to formalize their agreement with the student regarding the date of the deferred exam.

Re-weighting of marks
The option of re-weighting marks i.e. allocating /shifting marks associated with missed work to another academic requirement that assesses similar learning outcomes should be used mainly when:
  1. a student has missed a small component of academic work and/or
  2. a) it is not possible to have the same assessment at a later time because the component has been compromised (i.e. answers posted or material covered in class) or
    b) when it is not possible to set an alternative assessment (with the same learning outcomes).
It is possible to redistribute marks on a mid-term to a final exam when the final exam assesses the same learning outcomes as the mid-term. However, it is not recommended if it puts the student in a Pass/Fail situation.

It is not possible to retroactively redistribute marks from a missed final exam (or a comprehensive/end of term assignment) to a previous component of the course. If this final component of the course is missed, the preferred option will be to give the student an Incomplete (with a deferred exam or an extension of the assignment). The alternative option would require an appeal to the Associate Dean (Studies) for Aegrotat Standing, which is only possible when the student has completed at least 60% of the course.
gradememo Grades Memo (Winter 2018 Undergraduate Courses)

Final Deadline - Monday 7 May 2018 by 12:00 noon

Please review the full grades memo here.

 
Additional information about Grading is now available on the Staff and Faculty website:  
cybersecurityYou are at risk - new course on Cybersecruity at Queen's and you're enrolled

Higher education institutions like Queen's have experienced an increase in cyberattacks over the last few years. These attacks typically come in the form of stealing your data and/or holding your systems hostage. No data or device is immune from these kind of attacks.

In light of this marked increase in cyberattacks, Queen's University has made protecting the university's information and technology an important priority. Cyber crime is a billion-dollar industry because your data is valuable to cyber criminals.  Universities provide an especially tempting target because of the nature of openness, sharing, and collaboration in which innovation thrives. 
 
Whether it be intellectual property, research, financial, student or personal data, it is worth protecting! That's why Queen's has created a new Cybersecurity Education Course now available for all staff and faculty. I encourage you to take the course.
 
Sometime in the next few days you will receive an email from " securityiq@infosecinstitute.com" with the SUBJECT LINE " Invitation to attend Queen's new Cybersecurity course" indicating that you are enrolled in the InfoSec Institute's interactive Security Awareness Training. You will also receive instructions on how to access the course.

We are anticipating that you will complete the course over the next few months.

If you have any questions about Arts and Science's involvement in the course, please reach out to Cormac Evans.

If you have any questions about the Cybersecurity course, please reach out to the Information Security Office iso@queensu.ca.
museMarketing Muse save the date
Thursday, May 24 

The fourth annual Marketing Muse conference is fast approaching - for now, just save the date and stay tuned for more details. This event is FREE for all Arts and Science Staff and Faculty, and is a great way to connect with and learn tips and tricks for cost-effective student recruitment and departmental communications. 
tableauTableau Training Sessions

Hands-on Introduction to Tableau
for Queen's Faculty and Staff, with access to Tableau files on Queen's Active Directory:
  • Wednesday, April 11th, 9-11am
  • Thursday, May 10th, 9-11am
Drop-in Sessions for Tableau advanced (or curious!) users for Queen's Faculty and Staff, with access to Tableau files on Queen's Active Directory:
  • Wednesday, April 11th, 11am-noon
  • Thursday, May 10th, 11-noon
All sessions are in Jeffery 156, with Tableau Reader Version 10.5, on each computer. Each session is scheduled for 2 hours, but usually last about 1.5 hrs. (You only need to attend one session!)

Email Lydia at reportsartsci@queensu.ca to register - or also if your Department would like your own session!