1. Attendance is important.  It serves you well to attend class and develop responsibility for your obligations.  You are preparing for a career.  Consider class attendance and assignments as your job now.  The instructor is your employer and boss.  You will be evaluated from this perspective.  Business policy states that if you're going to miss work (class), you call your boss  (instructor) and leave a message that you will not be at work (in class). Please team up with someone in the class from whom you can obtain the notes for the class(es) you miss.   Ignorance is NOT bliss.  Please call in advance and leave a voice-mail message if you will not be able to attend class.  When you miss class, ask yourself if you would call in to your supervisor at work with the same excuse.

2. There will be no make-up work or exams allowed for missed tests and assignments unless written documentation is provided to classify the absences as excused.  Pop quizzes and in-class participation activities cannot be made-up for any reason.  The student is responsible for contacting the instructor and meeting these requirements as well as making the necessary arrangements for make-up work.  A phone call the day of your absence is only common courtesy, and will facilitate arrangements with the instructor regarding make-up work.  Missed exams will be administered as essay tests, by scheduled appointment, at the convenience of the instructor.  Written assignments that were due during an absence are due upon the student’s return to classes at the university.  The student is held responsible for assignments, instructions and lecture information given during his or her absence; therefore, it is advised that the student contact someone present during the missed class and procure this information.  Classes missed due to inclement weather are considered an excused absence by this instructor.  No student should feel it is necessary to risk life and limb on the highways if the weather is threatening.   All final exams will be administered at the time scheduled according to the university class schedule.  No exceptions will be made.  Rescheduling final exams will be allowed only for the instances which meet published university regulations.

3. The ability to meet deadlines and follow a schedule is needed to succeed in any career.  Therefore, assignment deadlines have been established.  Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the due date, unless otherwise specified in class.  Work turned in after class, will be reduced by 50% immediately.  NO EXCEPTIONS WILL BE MADE.  This means items which need to be printed should be ready at the BEGINNING of class.

4. Material assigned for discussion on the outline should be read BEFORE coming to class.  The student is expected to be prepared to participate in daily class discussion.  Failure to prepare for class discussion may result in participation penalty to points accrued, or pop-quizzes administered more frequently.

5. Instructions for required assignments are provided in the syllabus, and will be discussed for further clarification in class.  Additional information, guidelines, and specifics will be posted throughout the semester on the class website.  No incompletes will be given at the end of the semester; plan to complete all assignments and receive a grade for the course.

6. All paper work and assignments are to be typed unless otherwise specified.  Proofread you work, and correct typos and spellos.  If your grammar and writing skills are poor, contact an English or Writing tutor in the Writing Center for assistance.  Papers not meeting these minimum requirements will be returned for correction, before being graded.  Therefore, it is your responsibility, not mine, that your papers are correct when they are turned in. Staple all materials in the upper left-hand corner; do not use paper clips or plastic folders with slidebar holders.  Do not place individual pages of reports in plastic sleeve covers.  Papers and materials which fail to meet this criterion and result in loss will the liability of the student, no the instructor.  Make a back-up copy of your work before turning in the assignment.  When you use a computer/word processor for your papers make a duplicate printout and keep a backup disk with copies of all files.

7. Grading

If you desire an A your work should:
reflect correct spelling, sentence structure and grammar
reflect a high level of effort and creativity
complete and exceed requirements of the assignment by 150%
be attractively presented, (neat, clean and legible)
be more impressive than everyone else’s
be stapled in the upper left-hand corner
not be encumbered in a plastic or paper folder (exceptions allowed for portfolios)

If you choose to meet only the minimum requirement in your work, you should expect a C for your average efforts.  Visuals required for specific assignments will be evaluated for neatness and accuracy.

8. Correct reference of research work and projects is essential.  This means that ALL reports and papers must be accompanied by a reference sheet (bibliography) and appropriate citations of sources, i.e., footnotes or endnotes, in-text reference citations at outlined in the APA Publication Manual  (call #808.066 A512P 1994).  Visuals acquired for the purpose of computer-generated visuals, must also be correctly referenced, and noted in the copyright materials included in class handouts. All reports and assignments are to use APA format guidelines.  This means all references must be appropriately cited and referenced.  Information obtained online must be appropriated referenced and cited as with any other materials.  See the instructor’s web site for links to suggestions for correct referencing guidelines for online information.  Work which does not meet this specification and requirement will not be accepted for credit, graded!  No papers may be re-submitted to meet these guidelines.

9. Class participation and conduct: come to class on time.  This conveys respect for the instructor and a sense of personal responsibility.  When a person is speaking to the class, whether it is the instructor, a guest speaker, or another class member, you are to be courteous, attentive and quiet.  No tobacco, including smokeless, products are permitted in class.  The instructor PREFERS no caps;  I like to see your face in class!!

10. I encourage you to develop and maintain the highest standards in all your class work and outside activities.  Try your hardest and do the best that you can.  Be proud of your work and most importantly, yourself.

Educational and personal development require a consistent and constant maturing of habits toward acceptance of responsibility, time management skills, balancing academic and extracurricular activities and efforts.  Thus, you can expect to be judged by instructors and by prospective employers with greater scrutiny as you progress through the educational process.