SLIM Policies

Accessibility Policy

Emporia State University will make reasonable accommodations for persons with documented disabilities. Students need to contact the Director of Student Accessibility and Support Services and the professor as early in the semester as possible to ensure that classroom and academic accommodations are implemented in a timely fashion. All communication between students, the Office of Student Accessibility and Support Services, and the professor will be strictly confidential.

Office of Student Accessibility and Support Services

William Allen White Library, room 209K
Emporia State University
1 Kellogg Circle / Box 4023
Emporia, KS 66801
Phone: 620-341-6637
Email: sass@emporia.edu

Diversity & Inclusivity Policy

Emporia State University supports an inclusive learning environment where diversity and individual differences are understood, respected, appreciated, and recognized as a source of strength. We expect that students and faculty at Emporia State will respect differences and demonstrate diligence in understanding how other people’s perspectives, behaviors, and worldviews may be different from their own.

If there are aspects of the design, instruction, and/or your experiences within this course that result in barriers to your inclusion or accurate assessment of achievement, please notify the unit head (Department Chair or equivalent) as soon as possible, and/or contact the office of the Assistant Dean of Students for Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion. [Policy and Procedures Manual, Section 4L.]

SLIM Grading Scale

96-100: A

90-95: A-

87-89: B+

84-86: B

80-83: B-

77-79: C+

74-76: C

70-73: D

0-69: F

SLIM Technology Requirements

Updated Approved 10/17/2018

Computer technology is integrated throughout the curriculum, including the use of Canvas, ESU’s learning management system, and use of video-conferencing software. All students must have devices, high-speed Internet access, and current software for home use that makes possible full participation in extensive course assignments. See the ESU TechSite for software available to students at no cost. Contact the ESU financial aid office for details about possible funding for purchase of computer equipment.(Approved 10/17/2018).

SLIM Netiquette Policy

This course will involve the exchange of ideas, questions, and comments in an online and/or blended learning community. In all of your class communications, please use the same tact and respect that you would if you were talking to classmates face to face. Remember that in online communication the visual and auditory aspects are missing, so be especially careful to ensure your emails and discussion postings accurately convey your meaning and are not open to misconstruction. Humor is especially difficult to convey in this environment, so take extra care with your writing. Please maintain your professionalism and courtesy at all times when interacting with others in the class.

Course Evaluations

Updated 4/16/2015

Course evaluation is an important part of the process of teaching and learning. SLIM uses the IDEA evaluation instrument to gather feedback from students on the effectiveness of each and every course. The resulting data is reviewed by the instructors and the Dean, who work together to improve teaching and learning across the whole of SLIM. Evaluation surveys are made available to students toward the end of each semester, and periodic email reminders are sent to encourage participation. The surveys are administered by The IDEA Center through the Campus Labs platform, and student responses are anonymous (unless students share any identifying information in their comments). Nobody in SLIM has access to individual student surveys at any time, and aggregated data is only made available to instructors at least one week after final grades have been submitted.

SLIM Grade Policy

Approved 9/19/2018

All graduate courses required in the university-approved curricula of SLIM’s master’s degree programs, certificate and licensure programs, academic concentrations, and doctoral program--or their approved substitutions--must be passed with a final grade of B- or better to receive academic credit. If a student does not receive a final grade of B- or better in any or all of SLIM’s required courses, then the student will be given an academic warning and the student will be notified by SLIM administration that he or she must retake that course or those courses. In addition, if a student has a semester GPA of less than 3.0, he or will be given an academic warning.

When a student has been given an academic warning, an administrative hold will be placed on the student’s record to block future enrollment, and the student will be removed from any registered courses for the upcoming semester. Before the student can be enrolled, he or she is required to meet with the student’s academic advisor with the goal of developing an academic improvement plan. The administrative hold can only be released by the student’s academic advisor or by the SLIM dean upon satisfactory completion of the academic improvement plan.

If the student fails to complete the terms set forth in the academic improvement plan, then the student’s academic progress will be reviewed by the student’s academic advisor and the SLIM dean, and a decision will be made regarding whether the student should be academically dismissed from SLIM’s graduate program

This SLIM Grade Policy applies to all students in SLIM’s master’s degree programs, certificate and licensure programs, the doctoral program, and academic concentrations. It also applies to all those who have passed into MLS or doctoral degree candidacy.

SLIM Incomplete Grade Policy

Approved 11/14/2018

SLIM’s Incomplete Grade Policy upholds the Emporia State University Incomplete Grade Policy .

SLIM’s Incomplete Grade Policy further stipulates that an incomplete request will not be considered approved without an Incomplete Request Form having been submitted by the instructor and approved by the SLIM dean within two weeks after the issuance of the incomplete. If the incomplete grade is being requested for reasons of health, then documentation must be submitted to the SLIM dean’s office before the final grade change is made.

If a SLIM student’s request for a single incomplete grade is approved by the instructor and dean, then the student will be limited to enrolling in six credit hours in the immediately succeeding semester. If a SLIM student requests more than one incomplete grade to be issued at the conclusion of a semester, then an administrative hold will be placed on the student’s record to block future enrollment until all incomplete grades are finished and the final grade changes have been submitted by the instructor(s), signed by the SLIM dean, and accepted by the ESU Registrar’s Office.

Academic Dishonesty

At Emporia State University, academic dishonesty is a basis for disciplinary action. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, activities such as cheating and plagiarism (presenting as one's own the intellectual or creative accomplishments of another without giving credit to the source or sources.)

The faculty member in whose course or under whose tutelage an act of academic dishonesty occurs has the option of failing the student for the academic hours in question and may refer the case to other academic personnel for further action. Emporia State University may impose penalties for academic dishonesty up to and including expulsion from the university.

Academic Appeal Policy

Revised 11/17/2009

As stated in the ESU Academic Appeals Policy and as adapted by ESU’s School of Library and Information Management, “a student who believes he or she has been unfairly dealt with concerning academic progress” is entitled to request an academic appeal. As is further stated in the Academic Appeals Policy, “the appeal must be initiated within 1 semester after the semester in which the issue occurs.”

The ESU Academic Appeals Policy states that its purpose is “to ensure that due process is observed.” In order to make that assurance, we must process the appeal as expeditiously as possible, preferably within 25 working days. The term “working days” includes Monday through Friday within fall and spring semesters, and it excludes legal holidays, university vacation days, the period of final examinations, and intersessions.

It is understood that the intent is to move the academic appeal procedure along as fast as is reasonably possible. When these appeal procedures requires an action that may not be accomplished within the prescribed time, the regional program director, in consultation with the SLIM Academic Appeals Committee, when appropriate, may extend the prescribed time if such an extension is requested before the expiration of the period originally prescribed.

As in the ESU Academic Appeals Policy, SLIM affirms that “it is not intended that an appeal shall fail or succeed upon a technicality. Therefore, all application of any part of this policy shall be equitable and reasonable.”

The procedures to be followed in processing a SLIM academic appeal are as follows:

The student should make every attempt, when possible, to discuss the issue with the faculty member, in person or via email or telephone and attempt to resolve the issue.
If this meeting between the student and the faculty member does not resolve the issue to the student's satisfaction, the student should then contact his or her regional program director to assist in clarifying the issues of the conflict.
If clarification does not bring resolution and the student wishes to submit a formal academic appeal, then the student will be required to contact the regional program director and submit a formal Request for an Academic Appeal.
Upon receipt of a formal Request for an Academic Appeal, the regional program director will notify the dean and the SLIM Academic Appeals Committee. If the SLIM Academic Appeals Committee is convened, the regional program director will send to that committee (1) a written statement reflecting the regional program director’s attempt to resolve the issue, (2) the written statement by the student, and (3) a written response made by the course instructor to the issue in conflict.
The convened SLIM Academic Appeals Committee shall review the written statement, and if the Committee finds that additional information is needed, it may interview the student and/or the faculty member. A face-to-face interview is not required. If an interview is deemed necessary, then it could be conducted in person or by telephone. The regional program director should inform the student who is processing a grade appeal that he or she has the option of asking another student or member of the University community to be present at any interview requested by the dean or by the SLIM Academic Appeals Committee. This is an internal procedure to resolve an academic dispute, and legal counsel will not be allowed to speak for the student or for the course instructor in this interview. All deliberations of the SLIM Academic Appeals Committee shall be confidential.
The SLIM Academic Appeals Committee shall then make its recommendation to the SLIM dean. If requested by the SLIM dean, the SLIM Academic Appeals Committee will send the dean a copy of all written materials used in its deliberations and its own written decision. The dean will have an additional 25 days to make the final decision. The regional program director is responsible to see that the final decision is communicated to the appealing student, the student’s regional program director, and to the Emporia State University Registrar’s Office.

Guidelines for Graduate Work

The following is a framework for evaluation of graduate work in the School of Library and Information Management. Student work, including group projects, will exhibit the following qualities:

Objectives
1. A clearly defined purpose statement relating the paper. Project or other activity to the course and assignment objectives.
Content
1. Substantial and pertinent content which fulfills the stated purpose.
2. Application of appropriate theories from information psychology, sociology of information, management of information organizations and information engineering to the practice of the information professions.
3. Quality, i.e., based on relevant research, analysis, synthesis, and logical organization, rather than quantity is emphasized; creativity and originality are encouraged.
4. Differentiation between generally accepted knowledge (fact) and personal opinion.
5. A literature review, when appropriate, with citations which place the work in the context of previous research in the information professions and related disciplines.
6. Contribution to evaluation of knowledge evidenced in the literature through analysis and synthesis.
Form
1. For formal papers, logical organization, which includes a thesis statement and careful development of the paper, is important. Appropriate reference to the literature of the field should be prepared with consistent application of the American Psychological Association style manual.
2. Adherence to grammatical structure and standard English usage
3. Appropriate use of the communication medium, whether written, oral, or other formats. Students needing remediation are expected to seek help with the appropriate laboratory or service on campus, e.g., Writing Lab.

Faculty-initiated Student Withdrawal Procedure

SLIM instructors follow the university's policy of faculty-initiated student withdrawal which states:

If a student's absences from class, disruptive behavior, lack of prerequisites, or academic dishonesty become detrimental to the student's progress or that of other students in the class, the faculty member may advise the student to withdraw from the class. Withdrawal may also be advised if the student is inappropriately enrolled in the class. If the faculty member chooses to withdraw the student, he/she shall attempt to notify the student in writing that a faculty initiated withdrawal is in progress. This notification will be copied to the department chair and Academic Affairs office to serve as the request for withdrawal. If efforts to contact the student have been unsuccessful, or unacknowledged, the faculty member shall then seek the aid of the Academic Affairs office in contacting the student. The Academic Affairs office shall provide the student with information about the existing appeals procedures.

Upon receiving a written request for withdrawal from the faculty member, the Academic Affairs office may initiate a student withdrawal from the class. None of the above implies or states that faculty members are required to initiate any student withdrawal.

SLIM TechCircle Policy

Open Office Hours

Face-to-face or over-the-phone help is available during these times on a FIRST-COME FIRST-SERVE basis. If you anticipate needing assistance, it is best to schedule ahead of time via e-mail.

Troubleshooting Requests

Allow at least one business day for our office to respond to your requests.

Our office is open weekdays and we adhere to the university schedule. Please be aware that a request sent to us over the weekend or during a university holiday may not be addressed until the next working day.

Course Templates

Soon after the SLIM courses for the coming semester appear in Canvas, our office will load them with a SLIM template unless otherwise requested by a faculty member.

Syllabi

About one month prior to the start of class we will email you a template that outlines both required and suggested sections of a SLIM syllabus.

Please return your completed syllabi to us by the date requested, so that our office can have it posted before the start of semester classes.

Course Reserves

Our office can locate and submit documents that faculty members would like to have in course reserves. If you are a faculty member wishing to put a course reading on reserve, you should contact our office at least one week in advance with your course number and section along with either a pdf file or a FULL citation, including page numbers.

Online Communication Policy

Approved 10/17/2018

This course will involve the exchange of ideas, questions, and comments in an online and/or blended learning community. In all of your class communications, please use the utmost tact and respect. Remember that in online communication the visual and auditory aspects are missing, so be especially careful to ensure your emails and discussion postings accurately convey your meaning and are not open to misconstruction. Humor is especially difficult to convey in this environment, so take extra care with your writing. Please maintain professionalism and courtesy at all times when interacting with others in the class.

SLIM Course Evaluation Policy

Approved 11/14/2018