The Arts and Sciences Council approved a change in the grade appeal policy and listened to a presentation by Christoph Guttentag, dean of undergraduate admissions, at its final meeting of the year Thursday.
The amended grade appeal policy would give the director of undergraduate studies and the chair of each department the ability to change a grade in a course without instructor approval, if the situation is deemed appropriate.
Under the current policy, only the instructor can change a grade after it is issued. A student can appeal a grade to the DUS, who will forward it to the chair of the department and ultimately to the senior associate dean of Trinity College of Arts and Sciences or Pratt School of Engineering. The administration, however, can only review and advise on the situation, not change the grade.
George McLendon, dean of the faculty of arts and sciences, said the revised policy is intended to uphold the values of the University. Situations warranting the use of the new policy would be rare and may appear only "once in a decade," he added.
Robert Thompson, dean of Trinity College and vice provost for undergraduate education, said 12 of Duke's peer institutions were contacted regarding their grade appeal policy to guide the University's review. "It became clear from my conversations with deans at the various universities reviewed that the procedures for appealing grades differ in detail and relative complexity but always start with the instructor and go next to a departmental officer," wrote Norman Keul, associate dean of Trinity College, in a document distributed at the meeting.
Six of the peer universities permit grade overrides in "egregious cases of misassignment," and five do not permit an override under any circumstances, Keul said.
Schools that allow overrides only do so in extreme circumstances, such as sexual harassment, mental illness or cases of plagiarism dropped during the judicial process, Keul added. "A couple of schools cited concerns about possible legal action against the university as a factor motivating a change," he said.
During the meeting, Guttentag also presented to the council a review of the past year's admissions processes. Although more students were admitted off the waiting list for the Class of 2010 than usual, the quality of the class remained unchanged, Guttentag said.
He added that the Office of Undergraduate Admissions increased recruitment efforts by sending out more mail, arranging more alumni meetings with prospective students and holding more Blue Devil Days this year.
Following his presentation, Guttentag answered questions from the council regarding the diversity of the incoming freshman class, the involvement of faculty in reviewing applications and the Campus Culture Initiative's recommendation of "raising the low end of admissions."
In other business:
The council approved two new certificate programs-Modeling Biological Systems and Islamic Studies.
Provost Peter Lange spoke about implementing the CCI and emphasized that administrators will continue discussing the CCI with students and faculty.
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