Course Policies & Expectations
Communications
Students enrolled in any of these courses must use their WCC issued E-mail account. Students that do not currently utilize this account must activate it, and can then choose to forward messages to their favored E-Mail account. Throughout the semester, the instructor sends messages regarding syllabus updates, assignment updates, grade status, and other important announcements.
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Interpersonal Communications
Students are strongly encouraged to complete COM 102 prior to registering for any of my classes. Just because you have paid for the privlege of enrolling in a course does not give you the right to call people
degenerative and offensive names. This is a growing problem that appears to be especially applicable to the critique environment. Students using language or actions that creates a hostile, uncomfortable, or unsafe environment for others to remain present, or is perceived to be degenerative, distasteful, or disrepectful to any person, race, class, or social group, can be immediately discharged from the class session, and forfeit all earned grading credits for the session.
College Closings
Students are strongly encouraged check the WCC Website for college closings due to weather conditions or other unforseen events. If you would like to be notified automatically by another media such as voice mail, text message, or E-Mail, then
log-in to MyWCC, to enable the Automatic Emergency Notification Service. It can save time, money, personal hardship, gas and the environment.
Campus Safety & Security
Fire: If there is a fire or other reason a building needs to be evacuated, the fire alarm will ring. Exit the building using the nearest stairway. Do not use elevators. When exiting the building, make sure you are at least 150 feet from the building until the all clear signal is given.
Tornado: The Garden Level of the Gunder Myran Building is the best tornado shelter on campus! If a tornado warning is issued for the WCC campus area, the tornado siren will activate outside and an emergency message will broadcast throughout campus. Please seek shelter in the closest room/area designated as a tornado shelter. If you are unable to find a marked tornado shelter, seek shelter in an inner hallway or restroom, away from exterior windows.
Property Security: Do not leave laptop computers, smart phones, tablets or other valuables unattended anywhere on campus. If parking on campus, roll up your windows, lock your doors and keep personal belongings out of sight.
Call Campus Safety (734) 973-3411 or 3411 from a College house phone to report any suspicious activity or safety concern. Contact the security office if you'd like to be escorted to your vehicle in any campus parking lot [especially at the conclusion of evening classes] if you do not feel safe going alone.
Attendance Policy
All students are expected to be present for each class session. Students are expected to participate in class lecture times and to work during studio/lab as needed to complete images for their portfolio. Showing up and then not engaging in work for the class does not earn attendance credit. Tardiness of 15 minutes or more is considered as a half-hour of absence. Departing class early is considered unaccountable time, so attendance credit is not earned.
• This is an academic learning environment, not a country club: students are not customers.
• Come in prepared to work. Running out of materials is not a reasonable excuse to leave early.
• Trips to stores to buy supplies or the like is not considered a wise use of class time, nor a reasonable excuse to depart class. These are errands that need to be completed outside of classtime.
• Contacting the instructor by e-mail or voice mail is encouraged if you find that extenuating circumstances will prevent you from attending class.
• The number of contact hours accrued during the semester is your responsibility. Make sure to read the grading policy regarding attendance since it can make a significant impact on the final letter grade.
• Lack of preparation on your part does not consitute an emergency on my part (the instructor). Students are expected to have an awareness of what is occurring in each class meeting by means of the course syllabus. Plan your studio work sessions accordingly, especially when it comes to inviting in friends, companions, or relatives to be photographed for assignments.
Attendance is more than just being a warm body in an instructional space
Students are expected to be actively engaged with assignments and materials relevant to the course. Full attendance credit is garnered only when a student displays appropriate use of class or studio time.
Examples viewed in previous episodes of my classes that are an unacceptable use of lecture/lab time:
• Hanging around in the lab area and socializing for extensive periods of time (10 minutes or more).
• Napping in the studio. If you are too tired to be here because you pulled an all-nighter before your 8:00am class, or have a splitting migrane, then go home. Napping does not garner attendance credit.
• Eating breakfast, lunch, or dinner during class or lab time is not acceptable. Students ordering take-out food and using class time as their meal time does not garner credit. The Photo Lab is closed for one hour between classes to accommodate meals, which can be easily managed during these times.
• Surfing the Internet, checking e-mail, interacting with Facebook or the like, is not an appropriate use of classtime. Students are held accountable to this during any class meeting time.
• Students are responsible for bringing what's required to stay busy during class. Showing up for class and then sitting at a computer workstation, doing nothing, does not earn a student attendance credit.
Academic Integrity
The instructor is very aware of the possibility that the open format of cognitive assignments enables students to share answers and information to increase the likelihood of obtaining a better score. The instructor strongly encourages you to take ownership of your learning process. Do not reveal, share, copy, or discuss answers of cognitive assignments/quizzes until AFTER a deadline has expired. Clear evidence of plagiarism discovered among student work is subjected to all individuals involved receiving zero credit for the assignment in question.
Learning Accommodations
If you need an academic accommodation because of a learning disability, contact the instructor at your earliest convenience. You are not required to disclose any details about the disability with the instructor, but should contact a counselor in Learning Support Services (LA 104, 734.973.3342) to obtain documentation of the condition so that it can be verified. The instructor can then make arrangements with you to accommodate the condition.
Assignment Distribution Format
It is the responsibility of the student to obtain assignments and handouts for these courses, which are available as Adobe Acrobat PDFs. It is required that a student has access to a computer, the Internet, a black-and-white printer, and paper. If you do not have access to these resources at home, then utilize the WCC Library Computer Commons.
Turning-in Assignment Work
•Unless otherwise noted, most written assignments are to be turned in by hand, in a hard-copy paper format. Make sure to write clearly and legibly with either a pencil or black/blue color pens. Other color pens do not make a professional impression. Word processed documents are also accepted, however, errors created during the transcription of the course material which result in incorrect responses are the responsibility of the student.
• E-MAIL COMPLETED ASSIGNMENTS ONLY WHEN REQUESTED BY THE INSTRUCTOR. Otherwise, contact the instructor prior to submitting work via E-Mail.
• IMAGES FOR CRITIQUE and portfolio evaluations are submitted and accepted only by means of the Digital Media Arts Network Server, Class Folders/Turn-in Work, for each class. Details regarding the submission of images can be found on each course Website.
Late Assignment Policy
Assignments are accepted late but do not garner full credit.
Examination Make Up
Mid Term and Final Exams can be taken before or after the scheduled day of the exam. Students that are absent the day of the exam however, forfeit the points possible in any hands-on component designed into the exam. The hands-on questions are set up only on the day of the exam. The loss of these points can make a significant impact on the potential grade of the exam itself, and the final letter grade for the course.
Don Werthmann
professional faculty — photo
washtenaw community college