Senate Bill 24-25-12
| Bill ID: | 24-25-12 |
| Name: | Review of the Alleged Arbitrary and Capricious Grading Policy |
| Proposed: | 05/09/2024 |
| Sponsor: | Jessica O’Hara, PTK Faculty, Assistant Clinical Professor |
| Proposal: | Upon review of Policy Number: III-1.20: Policy for Review of Alleged Arbitrary and Capricious Grading by the Educational Affairs committee, we found that there was the potential for confusion in how a student grievance should be handled due to the existence of the more comprehensive Policy Number: V-1.00(A): University of Maryland Policy on the Conduct of Undergraduate Courses and Student Grievance Procedure. We propose that both Policy Number: III-1.20: Policy for Review of Alleged Arbitrary and Capricious Grading and Policy Number: V-1.00(A): University of Maryland Policy on the Conduct of Undergraduate Courses and Student Grievance Procedure be reviewed by the appropriate Senate Committees and potentially combined and simplified for clarity. Policy III-1.20 outlines a specific procedure for a department chair to follow to resolve a grievance brought regarding arbitrary and/or capricious grading, which involves convening a committee of at least three tenured faculty members. This is different than the policy set for in V-1.00(A) that calls for the establishment of screening and hearing boards at the College or School and campus levels. It would be worth reviewing if the procedure should be the same for all academic grievances or remain different for cases of arbitrary and/or capricious grading. Additionally, our committee identified that the expectations of faculty and academic units in the conduct of academic courses were comprehensively described in the V-1.00(A) but missing from Policy III-1.20. This could be resolved by generating a unified policy for all student academic grievances. A successful outcome for this proposal would be the generation of a single policy that details how difference kinds of student grievances should be handled depending on the type and scope of the grievance and who the grievance is against. This would ensure that Colleges and Schools have clarity in how to deal with academic grievances and potentially streamline the policy so that all grievances are handled in a similar manner. |
| Active? | Yes |
| Policy: | https://policies.umd.edu/academic-affairs/university-of-maryland-procedures-for-review-of-alleged-arbitrary-and-capricious-grading-undergraduate-students |
Status
| Status: | Under Review |
| Reviewer: | Educational Affairs Committee |
| Received: | 2025-03-14 |
| Decision: | The SEC voted to amend the current Educational Affairs Committee charge. |
| Next Step: | The committee will continue their work with the amended charge. |
| Related Files: |
| Status: | Complete |
| Reviewer: | Senate Executive Committee (SEC) |
| Received: | 2025-02-21 |
| Decision: | The SEC voted to amend the current charge document to incorporate the elements of the additional proposal |
| Actions: | The University Senate Office received a proposal asking for review of the “UMD Procedures for Review of Alleged Arbitrary and Capricious Grading-Undergraduate Students” committee composition. Currently the procedures have a requirement that the committee reviewing allegations of arbitrary and capricious grading are composed of “at least three tenured faculty members at a rank equal or superior to that of the instructor.” This provision does not reflect the now-significant role played by PTK faculty in delivering undergraduate education. More importantly, it denies PTK faculty any participation in a process by which their conduct may be evaluated and adjudicated. Since the policy is already being reviewed broadly by the Educational Affairs Committee, the SEC voted to amend the current charge document (Senate Document #24-25-12) to include a review of the committee composition that conduct the Review of Alleged Arbitrary and Capricious Grading. |
| Next Step: | The committee will continue their work with the amended charge. |
| Related Files: |
| Status: | Under Review |
| Reviewer: | Educational Affairs Committee |
| Received: | 2025-02-10 |
| Decision: | The SEC granted the Educational Affairs Committee an extension to complete this charge. Extension from May 2, 2025 to November, 7 2025 |
| Next Step: | Educational Affairs Committee review |
| Related Files: |
| Status: | Under Review |
| Reviewer: | Educational Affairs Committee |
| Received: | 2024-11-08 |
| Decision: | The Educational Affairs Committee will review the charges at their next meetings. |
| Next Step: | The Educational Affairs Committee will provide the SEC with a report. |
| Related Files: |
| Status: | Complete |
| Reviewer: | Senate Executive Committee (SEC) |
| Received: | 2024-10-08 |
| Decision Date: | 2024-10-15 |
| Decision: | The Senate Executive Committee charged the Educational Affairs Committee with the review of this proposal. |
| Next Step: | The Educational Affairs Committee to review the charges at their next meetings. |
| Related Files: |