August 27th, 2020
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Dear Bobcat parent and family members,I've heard from many of you this past week with questions about the delivery of courses and our withdrawal deadlines. I have asked my friend and colleague, Dr. Kandi Gresswell, interim registrar, to offer some insights in this week's message. Also, please check out President Cruzado's important email sent today about symptomatic student testing. -Matt Caires Hi, Parents and Family Members! We are happy to have your Bobcat on campus! My staff and I have worked hard to update the academic calendar and course offerings so your student can finish the semester earlier and as safely as possible. Given these changes, I want to make sure you're up to date with some important deadlines and to specify the different modalities we are offering this semester. You are often our principal ally in reminding students about dates and deadlines! We post these dates on the academic calendar, the registration handbook, and on all our social media accounts. Despite our best efforts, some students are still unaware of the deadlines. Please keep these dates handy and help us spread the word! Add/Drop DeadlinesFriday August 28 is the last day students can drop a course without a grade via MyInfo. After this day, students will need to utilize a drop form to request a withdrawal from the course. After this date, adding courses is restricted to extraordinary reasons onlySeptember 4 is the deadline for students to pay or confirm their bill. All students who have not paid or confirmed by this date will be dropped from their classes. September 5 - November 9 all classes dropped between these dates will be graded with a "W" November 10 - End of the Semester no drops are allowed
To minimize the number of offices your students need to visit, we've moved the add/drop process completely online. And new this semester, the Registrar's Office will not override any classroom seating capacities for face-to-face/in-person courses to ensure social distancing can be respected in the classrooms. You can find the add/drop forms as well as instructions for how to fill the form out and appropriately route it here: https://www.montana.edu/registrar/adddropcourse.html Course ModalitiesWe have learned a lot since COVID-19 first impacted Montana State in March. Our faculty have received training on exceptional online course delivery and have spent time exploring alternative pedagogies to support students regardless of the learning platform used. Of course, not all courses are online this fall. We are offering the following course modalities, each respecting social distancing and following best practices to minimize the risk of COVID-19 for our students, faculty, and staff: Internet/Online Synchronous: Listings with an "Internet/Online" notation that include days and times are synchronous. That means students log-in during those meeting times and participate in real time. Internet/Online Asynchronous: Listings with an "Internet/Online" notation that do not include days and times are asynchronous. Students engage with course materials without a specific meeting time. Students in asynchronous classes are expected to move through the course material at an appropriate pace, even without set meeting times. Blended: Courses are offered partially via remote platforms (internet/online) but with a significant portion conducted in person. Information on how instructors are managing this blended mode is available in students' Brightspace/D2L accounts. Students are expected to attend the in-person portions of these classes at the time and the classroom listed in the class schedule. Face-to-Face: Courses are offered in person in a classroom on campus. Students and faculty are required to wear a face mask or face shield in classrooms. All on-campus classrooms have been set up to enforce social distancing. Questions about classes can be directed to advisingcommons@montana.edu, and students can learn more about the different course delivery modes from our Academic Technology and Outreach office. Specific questions about majors and programs of study should be directed to course faculty or academic departments. RegistrationBefore we know it, it'll be time for your student to register for Spring 2021! We will keep you advised of these dates as they approach later this semester. Thank you for taking the time to read through these important deadlines and tips to help your student, or students, be successful here at Montana State! Please don't hesitate to contact me directly -- I am here to help. King regards, Kandi Gresswell, EdD |
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Bobcat Parent & Family Program |