In compliance with the requirements of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, each faculty member must provide a syllabus for each course taught. At the beginning of each term, students will be provided with a syllabus for each course in which they are enrolled. For guidance in the construction of course syllabi, a template is available here and online under the Faculty tab of my.Wofford.edu. A list of the information that a syllabus must include is also provided.
You can find the time your final exam is scheduled during exam week by looking at the calendar on the registrar’s web page.
If you need any assistance with building your syllabus or wish to discuss any aspect of teaching, contact the Director of the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, Justin Bailey, with any questions you may have. He will be happy to help you prepare for your first semester teaching at Wofford.
Faculty are required to submit course syllabi every semester to a database that is maintained by the college and available for SACS review. To submit your syllabi, click the Syllabi Upload link on the faculty tab of my.Wofford.edu; syllabi can only be submitted in Word or PDF format.
Book orders for fall semester classes are usually due by the middle of April. Books for Interim classes should be ordered by mid-October. Spring semester books should be ordered by late October. The bookstore will contact instructors via e-mail regarding book orders. You can make your textbook selections on Moodle > site home > Follett discover (your courses will be listed here and you can add textbooks to any that need them).
Wofford uses Moodle as it’s Learning Management System. Your courses will be pre-loaded into Moodle each semester and you are free to design your Moodle pages as best suits the needs of your class. If you need assistance setting up your Moodle pages, you can contact ITS (help@wofford.edu) or Director of the Center for Innovation and Learning.
A class roster or a class roster including photos of students (where available) can be created by accessing the Faculty tab of my.Wofford.edu.
During the first week of each semester, a student can add a class (provided room is available) or drop a class without an advisor’s signature. After the first week of the semester, a student has the possibility of withdrawing from a class with a grade of (W) until the end of the ninth week of class; after that date, any student who withdraws from a class will receive a failing grade (F). Any student interested in withdrawing from a class in which he/she is enrolled must complete the automated Withdrawal Form found on the student page of my.Wofford.edu under the Registrar’s spotlight section. A ‘W’ does not affect the student’s GPA or hours earned but will be noted on the transcript.
There are two circumstances in which a class override might be given. In both circumstances, the process for providing an override for a student is available in Banner Web under the Faculty & Advisors > Student Menu. Note that providing an override for a student does NOT enroll them in the course; the student must access Banner and enroll him or herself in the class. Each class that is available for registration is assigned a capacity based on the type of course and the classroom in which the class will be held. During open registration for the class, a course will be closed to additional students if the class reaches capacity. The instructor associated with the class may provide a capacity override for an individual student in order to permit that student to enroll in the course in spite of it being closed; such a decision should take into account the student’s class year at the college, the student’s major (if appropriate), the size of the classroom and whether additional students might change the nature of the course.
In addition, an instructor may provide a general override for a student in the circumstance in which the student cannot add the class due to a problem not related to capacity. For example, if the class requires a prerequisite course and the student does not have the prerequisite on his or her transcript, the instructor can issue a general override for the student which will allow the student to sign up for the class even though he/she does not have the appropriate prerequisite.
Each faculty member can decide what grading scale they wish to use in their classes. The selected scale should be explained in the syllabus. Wofford College assigns both midterm and final grades in each course; midterm grades are due approximately seven weeks into the semester. Note that midterm grades are recorded in Banner but do not affect a student’s GPA in any way. Grades may be recorded in the Faculty Grade Assignment portal under the Faculty tab of my.Wofford.edu. Grades may also be submitted by going directly to BannerWeb.
A faculty member normally may not change a final grade (the grade of Incomplete [I] is not considered a final grade once it is submitted to the registrar except for unusually extenuating circumstances, such as an error in computation or a clerical error). When a grade needs to be changed for such reasons, it can be done using Grade Change Form on myWofford. The note will be placed in the student's file. The same rule and procedure shall apply in the case of changing an Incomplete (I) after the deadline provided by the catalogue when such Incompletes would automatically become F's.
Students may occasionally ask for a grade change because of a concern about eligibility for a scholarship or other program. Faculty members should assist students in understanding that grades provide evidence of work completed during a class and are not normally shaped by outside influences.
Wofford College provides the highest standards in higher education teaching. The Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) offers a variety of teaching support, offering events and workshops throughout the year, in addition to dedicated support for pre-tenure faculty. The CETL director can assist with new curricular activities and help faculty address complicated topics with sensitivity and foster innovative approaches to engagement and assessment. Keeping abreast of new developments in the scholarship of teaching and learning, the director of CETL provides support for faculty by problem solving and discussing teaching effectiveness, pedagogy and/or the scholarship of teaching and learning.
The Sandor Teszler Library serves as the main point for library service and houses the primary collection. In its services and collections, the library seeks to support the curriculum of the college and to foster an atmosphere of independent learning. The library’s objective is not to develop comprehensive collections in all areas, but to develop selective, up-to-date collections appropriate to undergraduate education and teaching.
Collection building is seen as a joint responsibility of the library's professional staff and the teaching faculty within the departments. Budgetary allotments are made each year using a long-established formula and with the approval of the library committee. The librarians attempt to inform faculty of new books and the faculty are expected to purchase books and other works which will strengthen the collection in their areas of teaching responsibility. The library maintains an online catalogue, as well as subscriptions to a variety of electronic databases and an array of links to other libraries and information resources by consortia agreement. All faculty have free access to these services. Inter-library loan, course reserves and reference services are also available. The library supports the development of students’ research and writing skills through a program of bibliographic instruction. Each fall, instructors of FYI courses are expected to take their students to the library for orientation and instruction. All departments are encouraged to assist the library in providing a secure grounding in the research methods of their disciplines.
Peer tutoring is available at no charge to Wofford students. A list of courses with peer tutoring is found on the Student tab of my.Wofford.edu. It can be worthwhile reminding students about this resource, particularly first-year students. If you have students that need assistance, please contact peertutor@wofford.edu or see https://my.Wofford.edu/student/learning-assistance-home
Accommodations, such as extra time for tests and testing in a separate room for students are coordinated through the Wellness Center. At the college level, students are responsible for initiating the process to receive accommodations by completing an online form and supplying appropriate documentation from a licensed professional to support the request. Once those requirements are met, faculty members will receive notification from the Wellness Center that a student has qualified for accommodations. Then, it is the student’s responsibility to initiate a conversation with the professor to determine how the accommodations will be met. Following that conversation, the faculty member submits an online form to confirm the meeting with the student. This form also contains a comments box for the faculty member to write any information he/she thinks is pertinent to the situation. For example, some faculty members write what times testing will start and end and where testing will take place. Faculty members should include a statement about accessibility services on their syllabi. To learn more, visit the accessibility services page.
Some students are granted extra time for tests and/or a distraction-free environment to take tests. Accessibility Services will then inform the student when and where their exam will take place.
Students have access to the Counseling Center on campus free of charge. Some faculty choose to include a link to counseling services in their syllabi.
A condition of matriculation at Wofford College is the signing of the Honor Pledge in which students promise the faculty and fellow students they will not engage in any act of academic dishonesty. The pledge reads as follows:
I understand that Wofford College seeks to develop the character as well as the intellect of its students. I understand that Wofford students are expected to be honest, trustworthy, and honorable. Further, I understand that behavior contrary to these expectations threatens the values of the college and destroys trust among members of our campus community. I have read and understand the provisions of the Wofford College Honor Code governing academic dishonesty. I understand that academic dishonesty reflects poor judgment and character, undermines the integrity of the academic program, and diminishes the value of the credentials of the graduates of the college. As a sign of my membership in the Wofford College community and of my allegiance to its principle of honor, I promise the faculty and my fellow students that I will never engage in an act of dishonesty in my academic work.
As a reinforcement of the promise, students will sign work submitted in a course with the word “pledged” and their signature. The entire document is available on page 41 of the student handbook. This document lists the students’ rights and responsibilities under the Honor Code and defines a partial list of acts of academic dishonesty. Instructors should refer to this document on their class syllabi and are encouraged to discuss what acts constitute academic dishonesty in their classes.
When anyone in the Wofford College community has reason to believe that a student has committed an act of academic dishonesty, it is appropriate and right to report the matter in writing to the provost and the chair of the Academic Integrity Committee or to the faculty member involved. If the report goes to the faculty member, he/she will notify the provost and the chair of the Academic Integrity Committee. Upon receiving a report, the chair of the Academic Integrity Committee will notify the chair of the Honor Council (and the faculty member, if the report did not originate with the faculty member in question), and begin the process of adjudicating the case as described in the Wofford College Honor Code. Members of the Wofford College community must use their best judgment in determining whether acts are covered by the definitions of this code and therefore constitute academic dishonesty.
Instructors who suspect that an instance of academic dishonesty has occurred will report the circumstances to the provost and the chair of the Academic Integrity Committee.
Frequently asked questions and a flow chart of the process of reporting an Honor Code violation can be found on my.Wofford.edu > faculty > policies and procedures
Course information (class roster, registration overrides) and advising information can be found in BannerWeb. The link to access BannerWeb can be found on MyWofford > Home > System Links > BannerWeb.
DegreeWorks is a web-based tool to help students and advisors monitor progress toward degree completion. DegreeWorks considers Wofford degree requirements and produces an audit worksheet to assist advisors and students in reviewing past, present and future academic coursework. You will only have access to the DegreeWorks for your advisees; as such, you won’t have access to DegreeWorks until your third semester at Wofford. The registrar’s page offers DegreeWorks explanations and help guides.
Starfish is a tool with features to help advisers, department chairs and faculty members. It is the official monitoring software and means of communication for issues of student success and is linked on the Faculty tab of my.Wofford.edu. Through Starfish, instructors can identify concerns about a student for several reasons (attendance, mental health, etc.) and raise a flag. This then automatically notifies relevant on-campus parties, making them aware of the concern so that the student can receive assistance.
Starfish has many other uses. It can allow for quick messages to “groups of students” (students in all my courses, students in one of my courses, or my advisees). Faculty members can easily verify course rosters each semester and see a list of advisees who have been flagged with academic issues. Students can schedule office visits through Starfish that will fully integrate with the Outlook/Office365 calendar.