December 11, 2018 Volume 3 Issue 5

Inclement Weather Reminder

Please remind your department about the Emory Closing information/inclement weather hotline, 404-727-1234. Closings and delayed openings also will be posted to the main Emory web homepage, www.emory.edu and across the University's social media channels. Please discuss with your department how you will distribute closing information to your staff and faculty should a closing occur. For more information regarding emergency preparedness and response, see the Office of Critical Event Preparedness and Response (CEPAR) website: http://emergency.emory.edu/.

Retirement Incentive Program Deadline Reminder

The deadline to apply for Emory College's one-time voluntary retirement incentive plans is April 1, 2019. The incentive plan is open to all members of the faculty who are retirement-eligible under University policy and who are nearing age 65 or older. Email dean_of_faculty@emory.edu with any questions. Full details for Tenure Track faculty and Lecture Track Faculty are available on the Office of Faculty website.

Spring Planning Sessions

The Spring Planning Sessions for Emory College academic departments and programs will focus on updated strategic plans and identifying short- and medium-term goals for each department and program. Call Susan Lee, 404-727-2675, to schedule your spring planning session, if you have not already done so. Any questions, please contact Lori Cavagnaro (lcavagn@emory.edu; 404-727-0773).

Requests for Temporary Faculty, Leave and Course Releases Due January 22

ALL requests for faculty leave, course releases, and temporary faculty are due to the Emory College Office of Faculty by Tuesday, Jan. 22. Copies of the policies and procedures are available on the Office of Faculty website. If you have questions, please email dean_of_faculty@emory.edu.

Faculty Development Opportunities

Two-Day OpEd Project Workshop Offered in Spring 2019

Emory College and the Center for Faculty Development and Excellence, with support from the Office of the Provost, will host the national OpEd Project's two-day intensive " Write to Change the World" workshop for Emory faculty May 15-16, 2019.

Faculty from across all disciplines and ranks, especially women, are encouraged to apply. The OpEd Project provides professional training on how to craft and place op-eds, as well as ongoing support, with a mission "to increase the range of voices and quality of ideas we hear in the world.” Applications are due Thursday, Jan. 31, and can be found on the CFDE website.

Applications for QEP Workshop, Honorarium Open

As part of Emory’s Quality Enhancement Plan: The Nature of Evidence, faculty are invited to apply for the fifth, and final, Faculty Development Workshop on Evidence-Focused Seminars taking place May 15-17, 2019. The application is open to any faculty member who will teach a First Year Seminar (FSEM) OR an upper level seminar in 2019-2020. Faculty who complete the workshop and all requirements will receive an honorarium of $3,000.

More details about the workshop and are available on the QEP website. Email qep.director@emory.edu for more information about the application process and requirements. Applications are due Jan. 14. Decisions and notifications about acceptance will be made by Jan. 25, 2019.

Seeking Faculty Books Published in 2018

The Center for Faculty Development and Excellence, together with the Emory University Bookstore and Emory Libraries and Information Technology, will host on Monday, Feb. 11 2019 the annual "Feast of Words," a celebration of Emory faculty authors or editors of books published in 2018.

At that time, the CFDE also will publish a list of these titles. If you published a book this year, please complete the online form at this link to be included on this list of honorees by Monday, December 17. Please submit information about book-length projects only.

Engaged Citizenship Program Set to Roll Out in January

Engaged Citizenship is an Emory College Arts and Sciences initiative that enables College staff to be of service to the Atlanta community. By encouraging our College employees to devote up to eight hours per academic year of College-funded effort, we hope to see College staff lend their time, expertise, and talent to local, non-profit organizations already devoted to improving the lives of community members in chronic or episodic need. 

Engaged Citizenship is also a way for supervisors to support employee professional development and service to the community. Our current partnership is with the Atlanta Food Bank but we intend to expand community partnerships as staff participation increases. This program, which provides labor in direct service to humanity, is one way the College can contribute to the university’s vision of One Emory – Engaged for Impact. Please support this program by allowing your staff to participate when the call goes out in January 2019.

Degree Tracker Updates

Exceptions for December 2018 graduates should be completed by the end of the semester, and the Degree Tracker team would like to have all exceptions for current students processed as early as possible in the Spring.

Department administrators are empowered to enter these exceptions on their own, but the Registrar’s office is also standing by to help make the entry process as easy as possible. Department administrators can use the Excel template (which has been distributed by OUE to the DUS & UGS listservs) to document exceptions they would like the Degree Tracker team to enter for them. Email the file to degreetrackerhelp@listserv.cc.emory.edu and they’ll take the work off your plate.

You can also use this email if you have any questions about the tool, need a copy of the spreadsheet, or would like to schedule additional Degree Tracker training for yourself or your department. The Degree Tracker team, Office of the Registrar, and Emory UP thank all departments for their feedback and help this semester during the implementation of Degree Tracker.

Undergraduate Education: End-of-Semester Reminders

Fall 2018 Grade Deadline

The deadline for submitting all fall course grades in Emory College is 11:59 p.m., Friday, December 28. Instructions about grade entry can be found on the Registrar’s website.

Final Grade Notification for Students

Beginning this semester, OPUS will automatically notify all Emory students when their final grades for individual courses have posted. The Emory University Student Information Systems (SIS) team working in conjunction with the Office of the Registrar implemented this new process.

Fall 2018 Incomplete Grades

A student may be granted formal permission by a dean in the Office for Undergraduate Education, in consultation with the course instructor, to defer the final examination or other parts of a course. To be eligible, a student must:

  • Have completed at least 50 percent of the course work;
  • Be able to pass the course upon completion of the remaining work; and
  • Be able to complete the remaining work independently (apart from the administration of any missed quizzes or exams).

Approval of Incomplete Grades can only be given by the Office for Undergraduate Education and is based on information provided by the instructor as well as documentation provided to a dean by the student of the specific health or personal circumstances. The submission deadline for incomplete work for Fall 2018 is February 1, 2019 unless otherwise agreed by the instructor and OUE. Questions regarding this policy can be directed to oue.advising@emory.edu and the full policy is available in the Emory College Catalog.

Inclement Weather Policy – Dates for Spring 2019

Due to the increasing number of inclement weather/university closure days in recent years, Emory College authored an Inclement Weather Make-Up Policy. The full policy can be found on the OUE Faculty Resources web page. Should there be a need to enact the policy in Spring 2019, the following dates have been pre-identified as the make-up dates:

  • Saturday, March 23 & Sunday, March 24
  • Saturday, April 6 & Sunday, April 7

OUE will send communications to faculty, staff and students in the event the policy is enacted. Questions regarding policy can be directed to Dean Jason Ciejka (jciejka@emory.edu).

Winter Recess

Emory University will be closed December 24-January 1. This includes the regularly scheduled University holidays (December 24-25, 31 and January 1) and the new Winter Recess days (December 26-28). Staff will not need to use vacation or floating holidays during this time and will be credited back those days if they are already in the system. Have a wonderful and restful holiday!

Upcoming Meetings

Dec 17, 2:00 - 3:30 PM Department Operations Meeting

Location: Room 360, Atwood Chemistry

Jan 14, 4:00 - 5:30 PM Department Chairs Meeting

Location: Ackerman Hall, Carlos Museum

Jan 30, 4:00 - 5:30 PM Faculty Senate Meeting

Location: Jones Room, Woodruff Library