General Course Policy

§ 01

Contacting Professor Rosenberg

To reach Professor Rosenberg, use the email address printed on your course syllabus. For anything longer than a short question, or for grade discussions, book an appointment instead — a fifteen-minute meeting is almost always faster than a chain of emails. See the Contact page for the full policy.

What is not permitted, to be perfectly explicit:

• Sending messages to the professor, or responding to his comments on assignments, within the Learning Management System (Canvas, Blackboard, etc.).
• Leaving voicemail.
• Leaving written communication in his mailbox, office, or anywhere else on the planet.
• Leaving messages with university personnel — deans, secretaries, other members of faculty, mascots of any species.
• Etc.

Again: reach Professor Rosenberg by email, at the address printed on your course syllabus — and by appointment for anything more involved.

§ 02

Deadlines

1. Course assignments. Extensions are rarely granted. If you believe your situation to be extraordinary, do not hesitate to see the professor. See “Exceptions to the Rules” below for the categories that qualify.
2. Course exams. Extensions are never granted.

§ 03

Attendance & Meetings

Attendance

1. You are expected to attend all scheduled meetings.
2. Some universities have a general policy stating that if the professor is x minutes late, students may leave without penalty. Professor Rosenberg does not subscribe to this policy. Students are expected to remain in attendance for the full duration of each class.

3. Ordinarily, there are no make-ups. If you miss a class meeting during which an in-class assignment is scheduled, you will receive a 0 for the missed assignment. In many courses, the lowest x number of grades are dropped in specific domains — check your syllabus to see if and how this applies to your course. Discussion Boards and Response Papers are the most common in-class assignments that may be eligible to be dropped. Essays and Exams are never dropped.
4. If you are not present when it is your turn to participate or when an in-class assignment is given (i.e., you arrive late or step out of the classroom and miss your turn or the assignment itself), you will fail the assignment. Exceptions are sometimes granted.
5. For assignments scheduled over an entire class — such as exams — late arrivals are not permitted for any reason whatsoever.

Meetings

Even if your course meets in person, the professor may schedule some meetings on Microsoft Teams. See the “Additional Information for Online Meetings” section below, and see Getting Started with Microsoft Teams on the homepage for further remote-meeting information.

§ 04

Technology

1. Your course's Learning Management System (Blackboard, Canvas, etc.) is the central hub of your course. All assignments are found and completed on the LMS, and you are responsible for all posted “Announcements.”
2. Use the LMS's Calendar to keep you organized and abreast of all assignments. If you do not see assignments, be sure that your course is activated to display.
3. Review the full Technology Policy, and refer to your syllabus as well.

§ 05

Exceptions to the Rules

We accommodate those issues that arise in students' lives to the extent that such accommodations are fair and reasonable.

Emergent issues

For all emergent issues, missed assignments will be recorded as zeroes until and unless the student has been excused. For those assignments missed after the last day of the course (Final Exam, final assignments, etc.), it may take until the middle of the upcoming semester — fall or spring — for a resolution, as we are not available during semester breaks.

Illness

Doctor's notes must be submitted as soon as reasonably possible via email, at the address on your course syllabus. Only a scanned letter on a doctor's or hospital's letterhead is acceptable. All notes are verified. If the note is unable to be verified to the professor's satisfaction, the note is deemed invalid. We make one telephonic attempt at validation during normal business hours and will remain on hold for a maximum of ten minutes. We do not accept doctor or hospital call-backs.

Armed Forces & First-Responders

If you are a member of the armed services or are employed as a first responder, please see the professor at the beginning of the semester. Verification process is the same as it is for illness, above.

All Other Issues

Foreseeable obligations — religious responsibilities, court appearances (including jury duty), job-related or other personal obligations (weddings, vacations,^* etc.) — do not automatically exempt students from assignment deadlines or other course responsibilities unless arrangements have been made with the professor (or TA) well in advance.

If your issue is not one listed above, you are still encouraged to see the professor or TA if you believe it to be extraordinary. We define “extraordinary” not as cataclysmic but as anything that is out of the ordinary. Simply put: it never hurts to ask.

Yes, believe it or not, there have been students who booked vacations during the semester.

§ 06

Additional Information for Online Meetings

Be sure to download and install Microsoft Teams well before your first scheduled meeting, and confirm that your microphone and webcam work.

Lectures

Link on course homepage

Office Hours

Link in confirmation email

Required

Webcam + mic

1. Sign in with your roster name. Your Teams display name must reflect exactly what appears on the official course roster — regardless of which version of Teams you use (personal, work-or-school, or an enterprise account issued by your university). Unrecognized users will not be admitted, and, for purposes of policy, you will be considered absent until you rectify the issue. Absolutely no policy exceptions will be made regarding missed coursework because you were not admitted due to an unrecognized name.
2. The use of cellphones and tablets is strongly discouraged because they lack much of the necessary functionality to successfully participate in your online meetings.
3. You must use a webcam and remain visible for the duration of your meeting. A microphone is also required; it is not permissible to use the chat function in lieu of a mic.
4. Situate yourself in a quiet place without loud, disruptive background noise. If you become a disruption, you will be removed from the meeting. For purposes of policy, removal from a meeting is equivalent to removal from the classroom due to disruption.
5. Meetings are not the place to test your technology. Make sure that it operates properly before your meeting. Microsoft's Teams support center has instructions for testing your audio and video setup.
6. Your presence in the Teams lobby does not indicate attendance to the meeting. You must be admitted by the host and be present in the meeting room itself. See “Attendance & Meetings,” above.
7. All meetings — including intellectual property such as shared and uploaded files and screencasted materials (PowerPoint presentations, etc.) — are owned and copyrighted under the copyright provision at the foot of this site, and may not be recorded, shared, or accessed in any way without written consent.