Final Grades for Spring 2020 Semester

To:	Montgomery College Community
From:	Dr. Monica Brown, Senior Vice President for Student Affairs Dr. Sanjay Rai, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
Subject:	Final Grades for Spring 2020 Semester
Date:	April 7, 2020
During this extraordinary semester, we have witnessed the best of the Montgomery College community.  Faculty and staff have been creative and flexible in adapting to remote teaching, advising, academic support, and service to students.  Students have demonstrated remarkable resilience in the face of the sudden changes to their course delivery.  At the same time, we know that many students have expressed concern about their course grades and have requested some guidance regarding their options for final grades this semester. The best option for students is to complete their courses this semester with final grades as determined by the faculty member’s assessment of student work.  A final letter grade submitted by the faculty member to indicate successful completion of a course will ensure compliance with federal and state financial aid regulations and will qualify students for graduation.  However, we understand that this semester especially, some students may require more time to complete a course.  In keeping with Montgomery College’s academic regulations, a faculty member may choose from these options when recording a student’s grade for the semester: 1.    Course letter grade as defined in the course syllabus – The faculty member submits this grade by the final grade deadline, May 22, 2020. 2.    Incomplete (I) grade – The faculty member submits this grade after agreement with the student to complete the work by a specified deadline beyond May 22 and until September 25, 2020.  Faculty members may choose to extend this deadline. 3.    Incomplete due to crisis (IC) grade – The faculty member submits this grade after agreement with the student, who has completed a portion of the course but is unable to complete because of the COVID-19 crisis.  The student may complete the work through the end of the spring 2021 semester, May15, 2021. Through the Academic Appeals process, a student may request to change their enrollment status in the course by choosing one of the following options.  Students may request these changes themselves, and as an emergency exception to the usual academic regulations, the deadline for making these requests has been extended to July 1, 2020.  Students may make the change after faculty members have submitted their grades. 4.    Change from credit to audit (AU) status.  The AU grade will appear on a student’s transcript and may have an impact on the student’s financial aid. 5.    Withdrawal in crisis (WC).  The WC grade is appropriate if a student was unable to participate in the course after March 23, 2020, because of the COVID-19 crisis. Processes for requesting the AU and WC grades through an expedited academic appeal will be posted on the COVID-19 website and on the academic appeals website.  Specific instructions will be available by April 10, 2020.  Questions may be directed to raptorcentral@montgomerycollege.edu. 6.    Withdrawal from course (W).  The W grade will appear on a student’s transcript and may have an impact on the student’s financial aid status.  Students can withdraw from any course by choosing the “Drop” option on their schedule screen in MyMC by April 19, 2020. Students who receive a W or WC grade may be eligible for a full or partial refund of tuition depending on their individual circumstances.  All requests for refunds will be handled on a case-by-case basis, and refunds may have an effect on a student’s financial aid. Students should confer with their faculty members about whether an incomplete grade is appropriate, or if they should consider withdrawing from the course or changing to audit; however, students do not need the faculty member’s permission to do so.  Students who receive financial aid should confer with a financial aid advisor about the impact on their financial aid status.  The following page provides some specific information about each option that can provide guidance to students and advisors. We know that Montgomery College faculty and staff members have taken into consideration the profound stress that this crisis has placed on students, and we appreciate the dedication to student success that they have shown through their ingenuity and compassion.  None of us could have imagined this situation at the beginning of the semester, yet after two weeks of remote teaching and learning, Montgomery College continues to demonstrate its values of academic rigor and excellence, student support, and service to the community. Please be well and stay safe. Grading Options and Financial Aid for Spring 2020 If you do this: This is how it will affect your financial aid: 1.    Withdraw from a class with a W and no refund of tuition. W grade on transcript.  No credit for course.  A W grade is not satisfactory completion of a course, so this will affect your satisfactory academic progress for federal and state financial aid. 2.    Withdraw from a class with a W and get a refund of tuition. W grade on transcript.  No credit for course.  A W grade is not satisfactory completion of a course, so this will affect your satisfactory academic progress. If you get a refund of tuition, all or part of your spring financial aid may be removed. You will owe the College for whatever aid we are required to return. 3.    Change a class from credit to audit. No credit for course.  AU on transcript.  The AU grade is not satisfactory completion of a course, so this will affect your satisfactory academic progress. The date of the AU change determines if the college must return spring aid, which you will have to repay. 4.    Withdraw from class with a “WC” grade for “withdrawal in crisis.” WC grade on transcript.  Under new federal guidance for spring 2020, this does not affect your satisfactory academic progress. If you get a refund of tuition, all or part of your spring financial aid may be removed. You will owe the College for whatever aid we are required to return. Athletes should talk to the Athletic Director before withdrawing and veterans receiving GE benefits should consult the college Veterans Specialist. 5.    Request a grade of “IC” for “incomplete in crisis.” IC is a temporary grade. You will be required to complete your classwork by the end of the spring 2021 semester, or the grade will convert to an “F.” Under new federal guidance for spring 2020, this does not affect your satisfactory academic progress. It may affect future Maryland state financial aid eligibility if you don’t complete the course by the end of summer 2020. 6.    Grades as currently defined in syllabus This will have the same impact as before on satisfactory academic progress.

Fall 2013 Updates from the Registrars

Update provided by Ernest Cartledge on 8/26/13

If you have questions for your Campus Director of Enrollment Services and Assistant Registrar, please contact by email:

·        Takoma Park/Silver Spring- Marjorie.Davis@montgomerycollege.edu

·        Germantown- Sandra.Clark@montgomerycollege.edu

·        Rockville- Eunice.Akitobi@montgomerycollege.edu

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Fall 2013 Registration:

·         All students are required to register online.

·         It’s essential that all necessary overrides are entered into Banner (PERMIT workflow) to allow students to register without barriers. Please follow departmental guidelines.

·         Students who may register in person: Early Placement, Underage, Student Athletes

·         Increase in credit hours should be noted in SPACMNT (a paper form should not be filled out).

·         Admissions and Records will not accept overrides on the add/drop form until the first day a class meets.

·         Waitlists will be cleared at 11 p.m. the day of the first class meeting.  If you want a copy of the waitlist, be sure to print a copy of it before 11 p.m. 

You can find additional updates and changes on our Resources for Faculty and Staff web page: 

·        Important Dates and Deadlines

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Check your class rosters

·        Once a course begins, students are required to seek written faculty permission to register

·        Students are dropped for non-payment AFTER classes begin: August 29, September 5, and 12 at 6 a.m.

·        To avoid unregistered students in your class, print a new roster after 8 a.m. on each one of these dates

·        Check for students who are registered as “Audit”. If student wants to register as “Credit”, he or she must do so immediately (Schedule Change form attached).

If you are adding students to your class after 20% of class meetings, registration will require  additional signed permission from the Academic Dean.

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Submitting Grades and Verifying Attendance

All original grade entries must be submitted through My MC. 

·        LDA reporting is required for all U and F grades.  Last Date of Attendance (LDA) reporting is a required measure to ensure the College’s compliance with Federal Title IV funding (financial aid) regulations.   LDA should not be entered prior to reporting final grades, should not be used in the midterm grade field, and should not be reported for any grade other than U or F. All of these uses lead to difficulty submitting final grades.

·        NA should be used to report students who never attended your course.  Use of the NA placeholder is limited to the midterm grade roster  and should be used prior to 20% of class meetings to meet the Federal guidelines.  You will notice that once you report an NA for a student who has never attended your course, the student will be dropped from your class roster within 2-3 business days.  If you miss the 20% deadline, you will have to drop the student with a “W” (form attached). If you do not drop the student or the student doesn’t drop themselves, you should give the student an “F” at the end of the semester. Do not use “NA” as a final grade.

·        Midterm Grades due October 18, 2013

·        If you need to submit a grade change, we recommend sending an e-mail from your MC e-mail address to the appropriate campus for processing.  The e-mails should contain the CRN, subject code, course number, semester, student name, M-number, old grade and new grade: 

o   Germantown: GermantownGrades@montgomerycollege.edu

o   Rockville:  RockvilleGrades@montgomerycollege.edu

o   Takoma Park/Silver Spring:  TPSSGrades@montgomerycollege.edu

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 Use of “I” Grade

It is imperative that “I” grades are not used as place holders for students who do not attend or have stopped attending class. You may access the “I” form at top of Final Grade Roster on MyMC (form also attached).

9.411     "Incomplete" Grade

A.    Normally, the use of an "I" grade is limited to bona fide emergency situations that occur at the end of a semester and that prevent students from completing all course requirements in a timely fashion to meet the final grade submission requirements of the Office of Admissions and Records.

B.    Given the emergency nature of the situation, either the instructor or the student in consultation with the instructor may initiate the request for an "I" grade. It is the responsibility of the instructor to specify the exact work to be completed to meet course requirements. The instructor and the student should hold a reasonable expectation that course requirements can be completed in accordance with C below.

C.    When the grade of "I" is recorded, the course work must be completed within the four weeks following the beginning of the next full semester unless the instructor notifies the Office of Admissions and Records that an extension has been granted by filing the appropriate form.

D.    The instructor may extend the completion date of any course by filing the appropriate form with the Office of Admissions and Records specifying the new date of completion. This date cannot be extended beyond the end of the next full semester following the award of the "I" grade

E.    The Office of Admissions and Records will record the grade as assigned by the instructor. If no grade is received by the specified date in either C or D above, a grade of "F" will be recorded.

F.  In accordance with AR 9.463, the grade of "I" will not be included in the cumulative quality point average. Quality point averages will be computed for all students without regard to (an) "I" grade(s).

Student Privacy [FERPA] Resources

Have you completed the FERPA training? If not, please log in to MyMC today and complete the FERPA video and quiz. The FERPA training is accessible under the Employees tab (see Online training for Student Record Privacy).

·        www.montgomerycollege.edu/ferpa

·        FERPA Policy: 2013-14 Academic Catalog p. 59, “Student Cumulative Records”

·        www.montgomerycollege.edu/verified/pnp/41003.doc

·        Questions?  E-mail FERPA@montgomerycollege.edu

Ernest Cartledge

Assistant Director of Enrollment Services and College Registrar

Ph: 240-567-7991

Fax: 240-567-5104

Spring 2013 Reminders from the Registrar

Midterm Grades are due March 25, but will extend until March 27 (due to snow day). Please do not enter NA for a midterm grade (and do not enter NA in the Final grade column). If the student never attended, please enter an “F” or complete a drop form to drop student with a “W” (last date of attendance is always the start date of the course). Send the form to the Admissions and Records Office.

- Missing Midterm Grade Report will go out to Deans on March 29

- Summer registration begins April 1

- Fall Registration begins April 22

- Remind students to check their MyMC accounts for drop with “W” deadlines in your courses.

Final Grades are due May 23 for non-graduates. To ensure timely graduation clearance, grades for prospective graduates are due Friday, May 17. Grades for courses that meet that Friday evening, Saturday or Sunday are due Monday, May 20. You will receive annotated rosters from our graduation coordinators prior to that point identifying prospective graduates in your course(s).

GPA without AELP Courses

Reminder:

If you get a student who is transferring and applying to a competitive program, internship, or scholarship, who has done well in all their courses, except for the AELP, please be aware that Kim McGettigan from the VP/Provost Office has offered to write letters for the students explaining what the cumulative GPA is when the AELP classes are not included. It is recommended to verify/calculate the GPA without the AELP prior to referring students to Kim.

McGettigan, Kim
Administrative Manager
Office of the VP/Provost
Takoma Park/Silver Spring, ST/306
240-567-1311
Kim.McGettigan@montgomerycollege.edu

Audit to Credit Reminder

Remember if a student accidentally registers for a course under audit they must change this prior to the 20% deadline in order to avoid having to complete an academic appeal.

To change from audit to credit students need to bring a paper registration form to their professor, check the correct box and sign under instructor permission. The student must then hand in to admissions.

I grade procedure

In the event that you submit an “I” at the end of the semester, you will need to complete the Incomplete Form and submit to Admissions and Records within 2 weeks after final grades are due.

The "I" grade contract can be found in the h drive under "fillable forms" "Student forms"

If you have questions contact the Registrar.