Self Advocacy Package

Prepared by the University of Lethbridge Students’ Union in response to the return to classes following job action in the Spring 2022 semester.

Many students are finding themselves in unique situations while we are returning to class following labour disruptions whether it be in regards to finances, modality, prior commitments, or any other number of reasons and no one solution will work for all students. This self advocacy package clearly lays out the rights students have, as well as the pathways to support that are available to them. If a student requires alternate accommodations or is unsure if specific solutions are available to them we ask that they consult the contacts list included for direct support.

Rights While Returning to Class

In accordance to the Assessment of Student Learning Policy and Procedures

  • Changes to the course outline must not disadvantage students.
  • Should be familiar with the academic regulations of the University.
  • Instructors can assume basic literacy, numeracy and computer literacy as prerequisites for University entrance. 
  • Students should monitor their uleth email accounts and use these accounts to communicate with instructors. 
  • Students may be accommodated in extraordinary circumstances, such as bereavement, illness or injury. Instructors may request documentation. 
  • All tests and assignments are due on or before the last day of classes except those identified as final examination or equivalent. 
  • Students will receive a zero for the part of the course grade if they do not submit work, in-class tests, or final examinations without valid reasons. 
    • Students may ask their professor for extensions, and receive an “incomplete” until such time as they are able to complete the requirements of the course. This decision must be decided upon between professor and student.
  • Instructors have a duty to accommodate students with disabilities that have been verified by the Accommodated Learning Centre.
  • No student shall be expected to write three consecutive final exams within 24hrs during the scheduled exam period.

As outlined in the email to faculty:
  • Faculty have been told the following by Provost Erasmus Okine:
    • That no assignments be called due during first 72 hours after return to class
    • That changes to the course outline be made with consultation from the students in the class
    • That faculty consider not linking grades to attendance beyond April 30th (except practica or internship students)

In accordance to University communications to students (as of March 22, 2022):
  • Students were not expected to continue course work while job action occurred. 
  • The revised end date of the Spring 2022 semester is May 5. However, instructors have the flexibility to complete their courses before this date. 
  • Final grades will be due from instructors on May 10 and released to students on May 16. 
  • Some students will have the option to change their grading model to Credit/No Credit. Further information to come. Look below for navigating the credit/no credit grading model.
  • There is no formal final exam period. Delivery of assessments may be re-evaluated by the instructor.
  • If you need FREE accommodations due to the extension of the semester for in-person learning experiences it is available from April 30th until May 5th through housing services. https://www.ulethbridge.ca/housing (apply through normal processes). Current residents will be granted free extensions (to May 5th) in their lease agreements. Students can contact housing.services@uleth.ca with further inquiries. 
  • Students will be given the following refunds/credit:
    • There will be a 20% tuition credit for continuing students to apply to their future semester and graduating students will be receiving a 20% tuition refund. 
    • The Sports and Recreation fee will be reduced by 25%. 
    • The UPass administrative fee will be waived.
    • Interest on student accounts during strike will be waived.
    • There will be a two month credit for students with parking passes.
  • If a student is unable to attend the newly scheduled assessment, the mechanism is for the professor and student to make arrangements for an incomplete grade to be assigned until the final assessment has been completed. This would then be changed to a regular letter grade once the final assignments are complete (or the exam has been written). 

Who to Contact for Support

Remediation: In instances where the student feels that the revisions to the course disadvantage them in any way, or in instances where the student would like to request accommodations, their instructor is the first point of contact. If they are not satisfied with the results, they should next contact the Department/Program Chair or Dean’s Office. If a student feels nervous or intimidated to contact these people they are welcome to buddy up with a fellow classmate or reach out to their faculty’s student representative(s) to join them in these discussions.

Department Chair Contacts:

  • Art: Mary Kavanagh 
  • Anthropology: Jan Newberry
  • Biological Sciences: Theresa Burg
  • Chemistry and Biology: Peter Dibble
  • Drama: Deric Olsen
  • Economics: Duane Rockerbie, Pascal Ghazallian
  • English: Peter Henzi
  • Finance: Vishaal Baulkaran
  • Geography and Environment: Craig Coburn
  • History: Lynn Kennedy
  • Indigenous Governance and Business Management: Andrea Amelinckx 
  • Indigenous Studies: Inge Genee
  • International Management: Luis Escobar
  • Kinesiology and Physical Education: Ilsa Wond, Rob Kossuth
  • Marketing: Tanya Drollinger
  • Mathematics and Comp Sci: Wendy Osborn
  • Modern Languages and Linguistics: Omar Rodriguez
  • Music: Arlan Schultz
  • Neuroscience: Robert Sutherland
  • New Media: Leanne Elias
  • Philosophy: Victor Rodych
  • Physics and Astronomy: Ken Vos
  • Policy and Strategy: Mary Runte
  • Political Science: John von Heyking
  • Psychology: David Logue
  • Religious Studies: James Linville
  • Sociology: Tom Perks 
  • Women and Gender Studies: Glenda Bonafacio

Program Chair Contacts:
  • Aboriginal Health: Bill McKay
  • Academic Writing: Shawn Johnsrude
  • Addictions Counselling: Cindy Gaetz
  • Agricultural Biotechnology: Igor Kovalchuk
  • Agricultural Studies: Danny Le Roy
  • Applied Statistics: John Sheriff
  • Archaeology: Shawn Bubel
  • Asian Studies: John Harding
  • Biochemistry: Steven Mosimann
  • Co-operative Education: Stacey Gaudette-Sharp
  • Cultural, Social, Political Thought: Suzanne Lenon
  • Environmental Science: Stefan Kienzle
  • Indigenous Student Success Cohort: Michelle Hogue
  • Public Health: Nimesh Patel
  • Remote Sensing: Craig Coburn
  • Therapeutic Recreation: Devan McNeill
  • Urban and Regional Studies: Tom Johnston

Dean Contacts:

Student Representative Contacts:

If a student has general inquiries about contingency plans first consult the University FAQ: https://www.ulethbridge.ca/ross/faq-students then contact Kathleen Massey (kathleen.massey@uleth.ca) if needed.

Grade Appeals:

Consult this page to prepare a grade appeal https://ulsu.ca/grade-appeals if you require additional support in the preparation of your appeal please contact su.academic@uleth.ca

Concern/Complaint with a Professor: 

To be addressed by the department/program chair or Dean’s office.

Additional Academic Support:


Financial Support: 


Housing:

housing@uleth.ca

Employment: 

To apply for positions: https://myexperience.uleth.ca/catalogue.htm

Health:


Navigating the Credit/No Credit Grading Method:

The Credit/No Credit grading model as noted in the Academic Calendar for the 2021/2022 year: https://www.ulethbridge.ca/sites/ross/calendar/2021-2022/ug/

  • If students require support please contact regoffice@uleth.ca. 
  • A student may elect to designate some courses as Credit/Non-Credit. This alternative is designed to encourage students to expand their academic interests by taking courses outside their field of major interest. Credit/Non-Credit is not available to Open Studies students.
  • For completion of course requirements with a grade of ‘C’ or higher, the grade earned appears on the academic transcript automatically. If a grade between ‘C-’ and ‘D’ (inclusive) is earned, a ‘Cr’ appears on the academic transcript, should the student choose for Cr/NC to apply to that course. If a grade of ‘F’ is earned, an ‘NC’ appears on the academic transcript.
  • Students may designate courses as Credit/Non-Credit according to the following limits:
    • All single and combined degrees programs:
      • No transfer credit (4)
      • 1.5 - 30.0 transfer credit hour equivalents (4)
      • 31.5 - 60.0 transfer credit hour equivalents (3)
    • All post-diploma programs, with or without transfer credit (2)
    • All post-diploma combined degrees programs, with or without transfer credit (3)
    • All certificate programs and the Dhillon School of Business Post-Bachelor Certificates with or without transfer credit (1)
    • All second degree programs, with or without transfer credit (2)
  • A student is further limited in the number of Credit/Non-Credit designations made per term. In the fall and spring terms, a student may elect Credit/Non-Credit in a maximum of two courses. In summer sessions, a student may elect Credit/Non-Credit in a maximum of one course per session. Once a course is designated Credit/Non-Credit, it counts toward the maximum, irrespective of the outcome.
  • The Credit/Non-Credit alternative may not be elected in courses constituting the student’s major, specialization or minor, required courses in Education and specifically required, non-Dhillon School of Business courses. Education students may elect a maximum of three Education courses as Credit/Non-Credit. For the purpose of this regulation, Dhillon School of Business courses are regarded as the major for the B.Mgt. degree, Nursing courses are regarded as the major for the B.N. degree, Public Health and Health Sciences courses are regarded as the major for the B.H.Sc. (Public Health major) program, and Addictions Counselling and Health Sciences courses are regarded as the major for the B.H.Sc. (Addictions Counselling major) program.
  • No courses carrying a ‘Credit’ designation may be used to meet requirements where the Credit/Non-Credit designation is specifically prohibited in the Calendar. Faculties/Schools may allow substitutions for designated courses at their discretion, but must consider the records of such students as deficient.

Students who may want to apply to the Faculty of Education:
  • The most recent fourteen (14) graded courses are taken into consideration when a student applies to the education program. Having Cr/NCr designations for some courses will prevent some students from applying.
  • Education students are permitted to choose up to three Cr/NCr designations to be applied to education courses across their entire degree.

Students in a Degree or Post-Diploma Program:

  • The majority of the courses that the students within these programs are required to take count towards their degree credits, so this option is minimally available to these students:
    • All post-diploma programs, with or without transfer credit (2)
    • All post-diploma combined degrees programs, with or without transfer credit (3)
    • All certificate programs and the Dhillon School of Business Post-Bachelor Certificates with or without transfer credit (1)
    • All second degree programs, with or without transfer credit (2)
How does choosing a credit/no credit distinction impact applications to future education programs?:

Some graduate or professional programs have stipulations about the number of classes they require for application. Having a credit or no-credit designation on your transcript may impact your ability to apply, as the designation replaces the letter grade on your transcript. 

Why you might consider choosing Credit/No Credit:

If you feel like one or more classes will have a severe impact on your GPA, you may choose to have a Credit/No Credit designation on your transcript in order to avoid having a letter grade impact your GPA negatively. Students who choose this option should be aware of the long-term implications of this decision, including how it will impact applications to future educational programs, and how it may be perceived by admissions offices.

Why you might want to avoid choosing Credit/No Credit:

A Credit/No Credit designation will save your GPA, but may also have an impact on your ability to apply for future programs, as some educational programs require graded courses. Another potential consequence of choosing this designation is that the “Cr” may imply a lower grade than you took the designation for. Finally, once you choose Credit/No Credit, you will not be allowed to reverse your decision. Students who are considering choosing this option should always consult their academic advisor first.