8.1 Business Continuity
Champlain College takes precautionary measures to ensure that student learning and instructional processes can continue in a “virtual environment” even during an extended emergency such as severe weather, contagious disease, physical infrastructure failure, campus closure, or similar incident. Continuation of classes in a virtual environment also means that payment to instructors can be maintained during the emergency for all classes that continue either online through a College-provided learning management system, or through some other process that has been approved by a division dean.
In the event of such an emergency, faculty members are expected to continue teaching in a virtual environment. For appropriate courses, Champlain College’s eLearning department, along with each academic division, will provide each instructor with a skeleton course that has been created in the College’s learning management system. In some cases, the Division Dean may determine that no virtual environment is appropriate or available for a course, and in that event may cancel the remainder of the course or take other appropriate steps.
In order for this emergency preparedness plan to be effective, it requires that faculty do the following prior to the start of each semester:
- Be prepared with basic skills in managing an emergency course online using the College’s learning management system.
- As needed, participate in basic training provided by the College and attain basic competency in managing an online course.
- Become familiar with your online course, when available, by logging in and preparing yourself to manage your students’ learning process in the online course.
- Become familiar with the College’s emergency communication channels and how to access its eLearning support systems.
- If you are using an alternative virtual process approved by the Division Dean, become familiar with the use of that process.
At the beginning of each semester, instructors will need to:
- Upload the course syllabus.
- Engage with each class in at least one virtual activity during the first two weeks of the semester, or as soon as practicable, to ensure that students know how to access the online course (eLearning will provide you with ideas if you need them) or alternative course delivery.
- Be prepared, if notified, to contact all students and continue the class in the online learning management system provided by the College or in the alternative virtual process approved by the Division Dean. In order to assist this effort, you should consider posting an announcement to the class as part of your initial activity.
In the event of such an emergency, instructors will be notified of the schedule by which classes will continue in a virtual environment. The delay between campus closure and the start of virtual classes will be no less than one week in order to allow time for both students and faculty to travel, as required, and make final preparations. Upon notification, this requires that you:
- Make any final adjustments to your lesson plans in preparation for use of your virtual environment.
- Begin, at the appropriate time, to engage with each class and monitor students’ progress by engaging with the class no less than four times per week.
The eLearning department is providing the following training and support opportunities for Academic Continuity faculty:
- Step-by-step instructions can be found on the eLearning website at http://www.champlain.edu/faculty-and-staff/academic-affairs/teaching-and-support-resources/elearning-for-facultyhttp://www.champlain.edu/faculty-and-staff/academic-affairs/teaching-and-support-resources/elearning-for-faculty. If you have any additional questions, please email elearning@champlain.edu.
- One-on-One training by eLearning staff members is available for faculty by appointment. To set up an appointment, please contact elearning@champlain.edu, or 802.383.6655.
(Source: full-time Faculty Handbook, July 2015 edition.)
8.2 Confidentiality
Members of the faculty should make themselves aware of various confidentiality requirements imposed by the College and by federal laws, e.g., The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA). Members of the faculty are expected to use good judgment in determining which affairs of the College are confidential and to make conservative decisions in case of doubt. College legal counsel, with the permission of the Provost and Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration, can be consulted for advice in this regard. See the section on FERPA Guidelines.
(Source: full-time Faculty Handbook, July 2015 edition.)
8.3 Use of Copyright Material
The College, as an educational institution that is both a consumer and producer of information, supports the College community’s responsible and good faith exercise of fair use of copyrighted materials in pursuit of the College’s educational mission. The College is committed to complying with laws protecting the rights of copyright holders, while recognizing that those rights are limited by fair use and other provisions of copyright law. The College provides information and resources to educate members of the College community about copyright law, the rights of copyright holders and the exercise of fair use. The faculty, staff and other College employees, the students of the College, and all members of the College community have an obligation to make informed and responsible decisions regarding their use of copyrighted materials and are obligated to comply with copyright law.
(Source: full-time Faculty Handbook, July 2015 edition.)
8.4 Investigation of Concerns Relative to Business Practices
The purpose of this policy is to establish procedures for submitting complaints or concerns regarding financial statement disclosures, accounting or business practices, finances, internal controls or auditing matters, or suspected violations of Champlain’s Code of Business Conduct. For other issues see the Assistant Vice President of Human Resources for advice on the mechanism for reporting.
This policy applies to all employees and students of Champlain College.
Whistleblower: A person who reports potential wrongdoing with respect to the College’s financial statement disclosures, accounting or business practices, finance, internal controls or auditing matters, or potential violations of the College’s Code of Business Conduct, to the College’s administration and/or Board.
The College’s internal controls and business policies and procedures are intended to prevent or detect improper activities with respect to the College’s financial statement disclosures, accounting or business practices, finances, internal controls or auditing matters, and/or suspected violations of Champlain’s Code of Business Conduct. Nonetheless, the College welcomes information concerning potentially undetected improper activities of this sort. The College, therefore, encourages employees, students, alumni, parents and others to report in good faith, their concerns about suspected improper activity as described in this policy. No individual who, in good faith, reports a matter covered by this policy, shall suffer harassment, retaliation, or adverse employment, academic or education consequence as a result.
A complete copy of this policy is in the full-time Faculty Handbook, July 2015 edition.
8.5 Academic Freedom
Academic freedom is essential to the integrity of intellectual inquiry and scholarship, to the dissemination of knowledge, and to the search for truth and wisdom. It is the foundation upon which all of the intellectual activity of the College rests. Champlain College affirms the vital role of diverse perspectives in helping students to grow and succeed in the educational environment. The administration, faculty, staff and students share responsibility for fostering a climate that is favorable to the free exchange of ideas and to the examination of conflicting ideas and interpretations using generally accepted disciplinary standards of inquiry. Freedom of speech and expression extends to all members of the academic community, subject to commonly accepted limits as described below and in other College policies, such as, for example, the College’s Nondiscrimination and Harassment Prevention Policy.
Faculty members are free to pursue scholarly interests without fear of censure, discipline or reprisal. This freedom extends to the display, publication and performance of creative work. Faculty may speak freely on all matters of College governance, and may speak, work, or act as an individual in the public arena without fear of institutional discipline or restraint.
A fundamental goal of higher education is the development of students’ skills of analytical and critical inquiry. To this end, faculty are free to teach and discuss any aspect of a given topic pertinent to the course as a means of teaching students to explore and evaluate competing perspectives and interpretations as they learn to make their own informed judgments. Faculty have a concomitant responsibility to teach students to evaluate knowledge claims using generally accepted standards of evidence, and to promote respect for competing views offered by others. Students have the right to a safe classroom environment in which they explore controversial ideas in an atmosphere characterized by openness, tolerance and civility, and where they will be graded on the intellectual merits of their work.
The College endorses the principles of academic freedom. Specifically, the College affirms the following AAUP statement:
1. Teachers are entitled to full freedom in research and in the publication of the results, subject to the adequate performance of their other academic duties; but research for pecuniary return should be based upon an understanding with the authorities of the institution.
2. Teachers are entitled to freedom in the classroom in discussing their subject, but they should be careful not to introduce into their teaching controversial matter which has no relation to their subject.
3. College and university teachers are citizens, members of a learned profession, and officers of an educational institution. When they speak or write as citizens, they should be free from institutional censorship or discipline, but their special position in the community imposes special obligations. As scholars and educational officers, they should remember that the public may judge their profession and their institution by their utterances. Hence they should at all times be accurate, should exercise appropriate restraint, should show respect for the opinions of others, and should make every effort to indicate that they are not speaking for the institution.
http://www.aaup.org/NR/rdonlyres/EBB1B330-33D3-4A51-B534-CEE0C7A90DAB/0/1940StatementofPrinciplesonAcademicFreedomandTenure.pdf
The protection of academic freedom and the requirements of academic responsibility apply to all full-time and part-time faculty members teaching at the College.
(Source: full-time Faculty Handbook, July 2015 edition.)
8.6 Intellectual Property
The purpose of the Intellectual Property and Copyright Policy is to ensure that works embodying intellectual property rights created at Champlain College are identified and that their ownership is determined fairly so that the works can be used and disclosed consistent with the College’s educational mission and activities. Although the typical application of intellectual property laws will result in Champlain College owning the intellectual property rights in works created by faculty members, Champlain College recognizes a customary exception to College ownership of traditional faculty-produced academic materials.
Click here for the full policy.
(Source: full-time Faculty Handbook, July 2015 edition.)
8.7 Discrimination, Harassment and Hazing Prevention
Champlain College is committed to providing its staff, faculty and students the opportunity to pursue excellence in their academic and professional endeavors. This opportunity can only exist when each member of our community is assured an atmosphere of mutual respect, free from unlawful discrimination and harassment. This policy outlines expectations regarding how individuals who are members of the Champlain College community are to treat others in order to ensure such an atmosphere of mutual respect and a safe environment for our students, faculty and staff.
The Discrimination, Harassment, and Hazing Prevention policy applies to all administrators, employees, admissions or employment applicants, students, members of the Board of Trustees, agents of the College, and volunteers involved in College-related activities. The policy also applies for and to those who do business with the College in their interactions with members of the College community, and to other visitors.
The complete policy is available in the College Catalog.
8.8 Sexual Misconduct
Champlain College is committed to providing its staff, faculty and students the opportunity to pursue excellence in their academic and professional endeavors. This opportunity can only exist when each member of our community is assured an atmosphere of mutual respect, free from unlawful discrimination and harassment. This policy outlines expectations regarding how individuals who are members of the Champlain College community are to treat others in order to ensure such an atmosphere of mutual respect and a safe environment for our students, faculty and staff.
The complete policy is available in the College Catalog.
8.9 Statement on Professional Ethics
The College affirms the AAUP “Statement on Professional Ethics,” originally adopted in 1966 with revisions in 1987 and 2009. The Statement is presented here in its entirety and applies to all members of the faculty, full-time and adjunct:
Professors, guided by a deep conviction of the worth and dignity of the advancement of knowledge, recognize the special responsibilities placed upon them. Their primary responsibility to their subject is to seek and to state the truth as they see it. To this end professors devote their energies to developing and improving their scholarly competence. They accept the obligation to exercise critical self-discipline and judgment in using, extending, and transmitting knowledge. They practice intellectual honesty. Although professors may follow subsidiary interests, these interests must never seriously hamper or compromise their freedom of inquiry.
As teachers, professors encourage the free pursuit of learning in their students. They hold before them the best scholarly and ethical standards of their discipline. Professors demonstrate respect for students as individuals and adhere to their proper roles as intellectual guides and counselors. Professors make every reasonable effort to foster honest academic conduct and to ensure that their evaluations of students reflect each student’s true merit. They respect the confidential nature of the relationship between professor and student. They avoid any exploitation, harassment, or discriminatory treatment of students. They acknowledge significant academic or scholarly assistance from them. They protect their academic freedom.
As colleagues, professors have obligations that derive from common membership in the community of scholars. Professors do not discriminate against or harass colleagues. They respect and defend the free inquiry of associates, even when it leads to findings and conclusions that differ from their own. Professors acknowledge academic debt and strive to be objective in their professional judgment of colleagues. Professors accept their share of faculty responsibilities for the governance of their institution.
As members of an academic institution, professors seek above all to be effective teachers and scholars. Although professors observe the stated regulations of the institution, provided the regulations do not contravene academic freedom, they maintain their right to criticize and seek revision. Professors give due regard to their paramount responsibilities within their institution in determining the amount and character of work done outside it. When considering the interruption or termination of their service, professors recognize the effect of their decision upon the program of the institution and give due notice of their intentions.
As members of their community, professors have the rights and obligations of other citizens. Professors measure the urgency of these obligations in the light of their responsibilities to their subject, to their students, to their profession, and to their institution. When they speak or act as private persons, they avoid creating the impression of speaking or acting for their college or university. As citizens engaged in a profession that depends upon freedom for its health and integrity, professors have a particular obligation to promote conditions of free inquiry and to further public understanding of academic freedom.
http://www.aaup.org/AAUP/pubsres/policydocs/contents/statementonprofessionalethics.htm?PF=1
(Source: full-time Faculty Handbook, July 2015 edition.)
8.10 Campus Smoking Policy
Indoor smoking is banned in all College buildings. As of September 2012, outdoor smoking is banned on campus within 25 feet of all entries, outdoor air intakes and operable windows. From 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., outdoor smoking is banned on the central campus except in a designated area.
The complete policy is available in the College Catalog.
8.11 Animal Policy
Students are not allowed to have pets in classroom, residence halls, in college vehicles (including shuttle buses) or at College-sponsored events. There are exceptions to this rule.Please note that Service Animals are allowed wherever the student is, but Assistance Animals may only be present in the student’s housing, if approved by CAS. Students are encouraged to provide indentifcation that the animal is a Service Animal so that others are aware it is a working animal.
The full policy is available in the College Catalog.
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