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

Dear Schulich Faculty and Staff,

I want to start by thanking each of you for your dedication to fostering the very best conditions for Schulich students to thrive during the 2022-23 academic year. The transition back to campus and in-person delivery has been successful because of your dedication and flexibility. Below, I have outlined the key information you may find relevant for preparing to teach in Summer 2023. As always, I wish you the best for your work in the upcoming term and that you each enjoy some time away this summer.

Academic Policies and Guidelines for Summer 2023: 

In-person as Delivery Standard: continuing from Fall and Winter, all Summer 2023 courses that are coded LECT or SEMR are in-person, including midterms and exams. 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 windows for take-home exams.

Programs with a high contingent of late-arriving students will have the option of live-streaming or recording in-person classes for the first two weeks of term to accommodate students who may be delayed by travel barriers or other circumstances (such as the federal public service labour disruption). 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 accommodation options based on course structure and academic expectations. Students will be advised that accommodation may vary from course to course and may include but not limited to livestreaming/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 semester, they should not continue in the program and should connect with Student Services on available options.

Instructors are kindly asked to continue supporting students in these times when the global and local environments remain challenging.  

If you have a student whose situation may require additional support or consideration, please contact Luba Pan, Director, Student and Enrolment Services (panlyuba@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 for Summer. 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 which may arise during the term (instructor and student illness, guest speakers not able to attend in person, etc.). If due to unforeseen circumstances you encounter a need to exceed the discretionary two online sessions limit, please contact assocdeanacad@schulich.yorku.ca for approval.

Remote Access to Course Materials: It is recommended that instructors continue to make course materials for in-person courses accessible online.  You may use one of the following methods for sharing your lecture content whenever possible:

  • Lecture Capture (live-streaming/recording class sessions): Each classroom will be set up with a webcam and tripod to facilitate live-streaming of the instructor. Instructors can also livestream using their own devices in addition to the webcam and tripod equipment provided (but not as a replacement of the webcam and tripod). For more detailed instruction on how to do this, review the Live Streaming and Recording In-Person Classes guide, as well as CITE’s Classroom A/V Technology Training recording.
  • **Note that for privacy reasons recordings should only capture the instructor and not students.
  • Pre-Recording Lectures: Creating asynchronous lectures can be done quite simply via Zoom, PowerPoint, or Echo360. Review the Designing Asynchronous Lectures guide for a list of how-to videos.

Class Participation and Attendance: The Canvas Discussions tool is a simple and effective means to allow students who are unable to be present in class the opportunity to contribute their thoughts on course content. However you choose to assess participation and attendance this term, please adopt a generous and multi-faceted approach to assessment that is defined clearly in advance, as per the School’s policy.  

COVID-19 Policies and Instructor Illness The University continues to recommend masking while indoors on campus. YUScreen was discontinued during the Winter; screening is now available through Ontario’s website.  

The best source of up-to-date information regarding the University’s COVID protocols continues to be the Better Together website. If you get sick or are unable to clear the screening, do not come to campus. Viable options for dealing with illness continue to be: using the buddy system with another qualified instructor, deliver the class online using one of the two online meets covered by in-person delivery, or cancel the class and schedule a make-up session. If scheduling a make-up session, ensure you leave yourself enough time to contact your area admin as well as the ADAO for scheduling assistance.   

Student Illness: 

Please remind students that if they get sick or fail the province’s screening, they should also not be coming onto campus.  

  • As a reminder, the University’s existing policies regarding absence from class remain in place. Students are required to stay home when they are ill, and they should not be penalized for being absent. Senate has recently voted to extend until the end of December 2023 the suspension of requiring an Attending Physician Statement Form in cases of absences due to illness; this extension is to allow the Senate sub-committee an opportunity to amend the policy around the need for student documentation to reflect the current and ongoing needs of students, instructors, and governance committees adjudicating student appeals and petitions. 

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 prior to the exam period and by the SAS exam deadline (TBD). To have accommodations in place for the start of Summer 2023, students are expected to register with SAS by April 24 for S1 courses and by June 19 for S2. Ultimately, it is students’ responsibility to be informed about and follow the registration/renewal process to keep their accommodations current.

Congress 2023:  There will be no classes held during the week of Congress (May 27 to June 2). As part of York’s Memorandum of Understanding with the Federation of Humanities and Social Sciences, non-course events cannot be scheduled the week before or the week after Congress (May 20 to June 9 inclusive).

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.

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

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

  • A/V Equipment Issues: Staff will be conducting rounds at 7:30am each day to turn on the classroom equipment and ensure it is operational. Should you experience an issue in your classroom please contact the Schulich Help Desk at (416) 736-5824 (or ext. 55824) or drop by the desk on the 3rd floor of the Schulich building (7:30am-10:30pm MF, 8:00am-5:00pm weekends).
  • Microphones and Personal Windscreens: Each classroom is equipped with a lapel microphone should you wish to make use of one. Instructors can obtain their own personal windscreen (cover) for the lapel mic, for hygiene purposes, by visiting the concierge if you do not have one already. Covers are assigned one per instructor, so please continue to bring it with you in future weeks.
  • Classroom Power Outlets: The availability of power outlets varies by classroom. If you are planning 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 meet 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 term. Late requests may not be accommodated. Additionally, exams that are scheduled outside of Schulich or MacEwen buildings cannot accommodate the provision of additional electrical outlets.

Room Access with YU Cards: Rooms in Schulich that previously required access via a white HID card have been replaced and now require 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 through your operations manager (for staff). We strongly encourage instructors teaching in summer 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 Honesty Violations:  Student and Enrolment Services has also created an electronic form for instructors to submit complete information for investigation of suspected academic honesty violations. Please be reminded that when an instructor perceives an academic honesty violation, the protocol is to notify Student Services and the Office of the Associate Dean Academic using this form; instructors are not to pursue further communication about the incident, investigation, or disciplinary measures with students.

  • The University’s Office of Academic Integrity has a new website dedicated to Artificial Intelligence and includes guidance on the use of generative AI technologies in course work:  “To promote clear and consistent practices, students across York are not authorized to use text-, image-, code-, or video-generating AI tools when completing their academic work unless explicitly permitted by a specific instructor in a particular course. Otherwise, using AI tools to aid in academic work (in whole or part) that is submitted for credit constitutes one or more breaches under York’s Senate Policy on Academic Honesty (“Senate Policy”).

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 will sometimes ask an instructor to sign an Enrolment with Permission form. This is not allowed 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 is complete, which is when the waitlist expires. If a student is on a waitlist for a course, instructors can encourage them to attend the first class to better prepare them to transition into the course if space permits.

Questions? 

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

Additional Questions:

Kind regards,

Kevin Tasa
Associate Dean Academic