The following message is from Kevin Tasa, Associate Dean Academic of Schulich School of Business.

Dear Schulich Faculty and Staff,

Welcome back!  To kick off Fall 2025, the Office of the Associate Dean, Academic is trying something new: they’ve asked me—ChatGPT-5 Thinking—to open this memo so you can see how our voice has evolved since past terms: tighter, plainer, and laser-focused on “what do I need to know?” It’s also a signal about practice: with purpose, transparency, and guardrails, some generative-AI use by faculty, staff, and students is not only permissible but productive (think drafting rubrics, prototyping case prompts, translating materials, or helping students create practice test questions based on course materials), while other uses remain restricted to protect integrity, privacy, and learning outcomes. Thank you for the advising, mentoring, teaching, and service you pour into this School—your work makes the difference. The ADA’s office wishes you a smooth, energizing term ahead. There is abundant information here; we recommend keeping this memo close at hand through the term so that you can refer to its (ever-growing) contents. In the next section, you’ll find details about the University’s policy for AI in course work—what’s allowed versus prohibited, as well as links to resources to support your communication with students about your expectations. Following that, you will find information about other academic policies in effect for 2025-26 (including the new policy on Academic Consideration for Missed Course Work); we wanted to draw your attention to the section on GenAI given how integral conversations about its use in higher ed are becoming.

 AI use disclosure: This opening paragraph was drafted collaboratively by Kathryn Doyle with assistance from GPT-5 Thinking (OpenAI) on August 11, 2025. The human author reviewed, edited, and is responsible for the final text. Prompt summary: “Write an engaging intro for a start-of-term memo that previews AI-use policies and thanks faculty and staff.”

Academic Policies and Guidelines for Fall 2025:

Generative AI in Course Work (Senate Policy on Academic Conduct): “At York, the Senate Academic Conduct Policy prohibits the undocumented or unreferenced use of GenAI by students, ​while further allowing instructors to restrict the use of GenAI tools. ​Note that by default, any documented use of GenAI is not a breach of academic integrity unless explicitly prohibited by the instructor.”​ (emphasis added; quoted from York University’s resource For Faculty – Generative AI in Teaching & Learning)

Given the language of the policy, we recommend that instructors consider adopting the following best practices:

State the Policy and Your Expectations Clearly​

    • Include in the syllabus (under Expectations tab) and in the instructions for each assessment whether and how GenAI tools may be used. ​
    • Reach out to Lindsay Page for example language for AI statements. A good starting point for your consideration is this open source bank of genAI statements for academic course work managed by Ethan Mollick of Wharton Business School: Syllabi Polices for Generative AI – Repository – Google Drive
    • Policies may differ between assignments; ensure instructions appear at the top of each.​
    • In-person computer-based assessments should require the use of Lockdown Browser.

Reinforce During the Term​

    • Discuss the AI policy in class at frequent intervals to ensure students understand it.
    • Encourage students to recheck the policy before beginning any assignment.​

Clarify Boundaries​

    • Your own use of GenAI for course preparation does not automatically permit student use.​
    • Students must follow only the permissions you explicitly set for each assignment.​

Academic Integrity & Citation​

    • If AI use is permitted, require citation and attribution.​
    • Direct students to York University’s guide on How to Cite Artificial Intelligence Tools for acceptable formats.​
    • The student is ultimately responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the citations they use in their work.

Academic Consideration for Missed Course Work Policy:  A new Senate policy—effective September 1, 2025—establishes criteria for student requests for academic consideration for missed assessments and absences from class due to extenuating circumstances such as short-term illness or injury, bereavement of a close family member, or an unforeseen or unavoidable incident beyond a student’s control that prevents them from meeting their academic responsibilities. Notably, the following circumstances are not eligible for academic consideration:

  • social, family, or work obligations
  • travel unrelated to the academic program
  • technological issues.

The policy further details the processes students must use to arrange accommodation related to an ongoing physical or psychological illness or disability, religious observances, or mandatory legal obligations such as jury duty. For further details, please see the attached policy.

Students may submit up to two self-reported absence requests per 12-week term, and one self-reported absence request per six-week term, without needing an Attending Physician’s Statement. Going forward, students who miss more than two classes should be prepared to submit an Attending Physician’s Statement to the instructor. Consideration for midterms or assessments that are not final exams is at the instructor’s discretion.

In the case of a missed final exam, students must continue to follow the existing Schulich process for deferred standing requests by contacting the instructor within 24 hours, completing the Deferred Standing Request Form within 48 hours, and being prepared to submit appropriate documentation (as determined by SSIR) such as an Attending Physician’s Statement to support the deferred standing request.

Full-time faculty will have received a communication earlier this week from Faculty Affairs regarding how the policy will be operationalized. Specifically, the email describes how students’ self-reported absences will be administered in eClass. At Schulich, we are in the process of exploring what options exist in Canvas and we will communicate further about this as soon as we can.

University-wide Change to Academic Schedule:  Please note that, effective Summer 2025, the University has implemented a series of 10-minute breaks to the academic schedule for all courses to allow students and instructors more time to transition between classes. For example, classes that used to be scheduled from 08:30 to 11:30 are now 08:30 to 11:20. Classes that used to be scheduled from 13:00 to 16:00 are now 13:00 to 15:50. This change applies to all class forms and delivery modes, including labs, tutorials, and courses delivered fully online. The revised schedule is visible to students on Schulich’s course offering site as well as on York University Courses.

In-person as Delivery Standard:  All courses coded LECT or SEMR are in person, including midterms and exams, unless otherwise approved. If alternate assessment tools are to be used, such as Canvas Quizzes, please state this in advance in the syllabus. Please also continue using time duration windows for take-home exams.

Programs with a high contingent of late-arriving international students will have the option of live-streaming or recording in-person classes for the first two weeks of term to add flexibility. Students who may not be able to arrive by the start of classes are expected to communicate with instructors directly on a case-by-case basis and discuss available options based on course structure and academic expectations. Students will be advised that arrangements may vary from course to course and include but are not limited to live streaming/recording class sessions, pre-recorded lectures/materials, access to lecture slides, leniency in participation grade due to unavoidable absence, etc. Students are advised that if they cannot arrive in Canada by the end of the second week of the term, they should not continue in the program and should connect with Student Services on available options.

If you have a student whose situation may require additional support or consideration, please get in touch with Schulich’s Student Services and International Relations team: interrelations@schulich.yorku.ca

15% Remote Delivery Option:  The option of running up to two discretionary online class sessions for an in-person course remains in place this term. Instructors should use their judgment and discretion in deciding if or when to exercise this option. The purpose of these sessions is to help mitigate the impact of the unpredictable circumstances that may arise during the term (instructor and student illness, guest speakers unable to attend in person, etc.). If, due to unforeseen circumstances, you encounter a need to exceed the discretionary limit of two online sessions, please contact assocdeanacad@schulich.yorku.ca for approval.

Peer Evaluation of Group Work:  If you opt to assign a group project that includes a peer evaluation component this term, please be mindful that the instructor is ultimately responsible for all student grades. Bias is possible within group dynamics, so there are principles of fairness and justice that require careful attention. While the School is currently in the process of devising a policy and more detailed guidance for instructors on the integration of peer evaluation in academic assessments, here are some best practices we strongly recommend:

  • Balanced weighting: peer evaluation should be weighted in a way that can influence—but not dominate—the group project grades. For example, it should not be possible for a student to fail the group project or the course based on the outcome of peer evaluation alone. A 20% cap for the peer evaluation in determining the project grade is recommended.
  • Transparency: students need to be informed in advance of how peer evaluations will be used, including their weight in the final grade. This information should appear in the course outline in clear terms.
  • Clear Criteria: provide students with a detailed rubric or criteria for evaluating peers, including expectations for participation, communication, and contribution to the workload of the project.
  • Instructor Oversight: plan to review peer evaluations for anomalies (e.g. unanimously low scores) and investigate before applying penalties
  • Submission Requirements: students should be required to submit (or at least retain) documentation of their contributions (e.g. drafts, data files, meeting attendance logs or notes) so that instructors have an opportunity to validate the results of the peer evaluation before assigning grades.

Instructor Illness: Do not come to campus if you get sick. Viable options for dealing with illness are using the buddy system with another qualified instructor, delivering the class online using one of the two online meets covered by in-person delivery, or cancelling the class and scheduling a make-up session. If planning a make-up session, leave enough time to contact your area admin and the ADA’s office for scheduling assistance.

Student Illness: Please remind students that they should not come to campus if they get sick.

  • Please see the attached policy on Academic Consideration for Missed Course Work relevant to student illness. The policy is also summarized above.

Breakout Space:  Schulich’s breakout rooms are available for use. If you would like to book breakout space for your course, please contact your course support person. Starting in September 2025, breakout rooms will be booked through Outlook Calendar. Updated instructions will be provided on the Student Clubs and Roombooking site once the Microsoft platform is live.

Guest Speakers: Review the Live Streaming and Recording In-Person Classes guide on how to have a guest speaker attend your class online.

Required Course Materials (Including Software and Applications): Starting in Fall 2025, all instructors in the University are required to provide a breakdown of costs associated with required materials for the course that is visible to students; the list of associated costs will need to be included in the course outline. Additionally, it is helpful to include a link to the minimum technical requirements that a student’s device will need to run each piece of software. This will give students the information they need to prepare their computer systems for the course. We have included links to the minimum technical requirements for all Schulich supported learning technology in our student guide here.

Classroom IT Support:  below is a summary of some critical information:

  • A/V Equipment Issues: Staff regularly review the classroom equipment and ensure it is operational. Should you experience an issue in your classroom, please get in touch with the Schulich Help Desk at (416) 736-5824 (or ext. 55824) or drop by the desk on the 3rd floor of the Schulich building (8 am-8 pm weekdays). On weekends, please access technical support by contacting University Services Centre.
  • Classroom Power Outlets:
  • The availability of power outlets varies by classroom. If you plan an in-person, computer-based class meet and require additional outlets, please submit a ticket with details (number of outlets needed, room, date, time, course) to askit@yorku.ca with as much advance notice as possible. Requests received within three days of the meeting may not be accommodated. If you are planning a computer-based, in-person final exam, please ensure the request is included in the area or program’s final exam request submission to the ADAO at the start of the term. Late requests may not be accommodated. Additionally, exams that are scheduled outside of Schulich or McEwen buildings or Curtis Lecture Halls cannot accommodate the provision of additional electrical outlets. IST will be in touch shortly to share further support options available to students concerned about their laptops’ ability to last the duration of an assessment.
  • Pause to Save Student Work in In-person Computer-based Assessments: When conducting an in-person computer-based assessment, please consider implementing a brief pause for all students in the class to save their work, to check that their work saves properly, and that there are no other apparent widespread technical issues that require attention. During winter 2025, there was an influx of instances in which students claimed to have lost data after a significant portion of the exam time had elapsed. Implementing the pause helps to ensure that lost data (i.e. technical failure) does not become a successful form of manipulation as academic misconduct, which is on the rise and is no longer valid grounds for an alternate arrangement (e.g. make-up assessment or shifted weight) based on the Academic Consideration for Missed Course Work Policy.

Room Access with YU Cards: Rooms in Schulich that previously required access via a white HID card have been replaced and now need access to be programmed to an employee YU Card. YU Cards can be obtained from the YU Card Office (https://www.yorku.ca/yucard/). Schulich can no longer provide one-off access to rooms.  Access requests must be made through area administrative staff (for instructors and faculty) or your operations manager (for staff). We strongly encourage instructors teaching next term to request a YU Card and Doorcard access—as needed—as soon as possible to ensure timely access.

Directing Academic and Conduct-related Concerns: Student Services and International Relations has created a flowchart to help students and instructors better direct academic or conduct concerns they may have. See the Academic and Conduct-related Concerns Chart for more information.

Reporting Suspected Academic Conduct Violations: Student and Enrolment Services has also created an electronic form for instructors to submit complete information to investigate suspected academic conduct violations such as cheating or plagiarism. Please be reminded that when an instructor perceives an academic conduct violation, the protocol is to notify Student Services and the Office of the Associate Dean Academic using the form linked above; instructors are not to pursue further communication about the incident, investigation, or disciplinary measures with students. See the complete details of the University’s Academic Conduct Policy for more information about what constitutes academic misconduct.

Enrolment with Permission: Students can register for a course if the number of enrolled students is below the cap. When a course is full, usually 45 for electives and 55 for core courses, students sometimes ask an instructor to sign an Enrolment with Permission form. This is prohibited because a waitlist is created once a course is at capacity. The waitlist remains in effect for the first week of the semester, and students are given priority based on their position on the list. Instructors are only permitted to let students enroll in a course with a waitlist after the first week, when the waitlist expires. If a student is on a waitlist for a course, instructors can encourage them to attend the first class to prepare them better to transition into the course if space permits.

Student Academic Accommodations: Students with formal academic accommodations must register with Student Accessibility Services. Students whose accommodations pertain to exam writing must register with SAS before the exam period and by the SAS exam deadline (October 10 for Fall 2025 final exams). Ultimately, it is the student’s responsibility to be informed about and follow the registration/renewal process to keep their accommodations current.

Adding Support Staff to Canvas: Consider now whether you’ll request that staff other than area administrative staff (e.g., RAs, Graders, Accessibility Support Staff, etc) be added to your Canvas course.

Please note that graders or markers can be used only in exceptional circumstances with the permission of the Associate Dean, Academic. It is the instructors’ responsibility to review Schulich’s Use of Graders policy before proceeding. Complete the grader approval request form on the T&L website to obtain permission.

For all requests, please note the following:

  • The CITE team will be solely responsible for adding all support staff to Canvas courses
  • All support staff must have an employee Passport York account to be added to Canvas. Student Passport York accounts cannot be used to add student employees to Canvas. Instructors should consult their academic area support staff for guidance on this process and budget adequate time for this work.

Once the employee Passport York account is available, complete the request to add support staff to Canvas form on the T&L website. If you are requesting that a grader be added, please attach approval.

YU-Card Required for All Schulich Students:  Effective Fall 2024, all Schulich students are required to have a valid YU-card (mobile or physical). Only a YU-Card or valid Passport are acceptable forms of ID to sign into an exam at Schulich. In line with University policy, students who present a physical YU-card without a picture will also need to show a valid passport alongside the YU-card to sign in for an exam. A driver’s license, health card, Ontario voluntary identification, or pictures of identification will not be accepted. Starting in Fall 2025, the YU-Card will be the only accepted form of ID for signing into an exam. More information about getting or replacing a YU-card is available: YU-card | York University’s Official Photo ID and Debit Card.

Questions? 

Instructors teaching in one-year master’s programs should direct their questions first to their program directors. Program directors will contact instructors if they haven’t already to set up a time to discuss program-specific plans. Instructors in other programs can direct their questions to the relevant area coordinators. 

Additional Questions:

    • IT support tickets (e.g., Canvas, Passport York, Email, O365, etc.): askit@yorku.ca
    • Phone Help Desk: (416) 736 5824 OR ext. 55824

Kind regards,

Kevin Tasa
Associate Dean Academic