GENERAL ACADEMIC POLICIES

AUDITING COURSES

The intention to register for an audit or change from credit status to audit status must be submitted to the Registrar’s Office by the 10th class day of a 15-week course. Credit is not granted for audited courses. To audit a course, the following guidelines apply:

• Students who wish to audit a course after late registration must have the instructor’s permission.
• There are no requirements for audit other than attendance.
• Students must pay regular tuition for an audit.
• On a space-available basis, senior citizens (age 60 or older) with valid identification may audit credit courses at no tuition charge: certain fees may apply.

CANCELLATION OF CLASSES

If the enrollment in any course is insufficient, the course may be cancelled at the discretion of the Provost & Vice President for Academic Affairs.

CLASSROOM VISITS

Cayuga students, other than those registered for a scheduled classroom course, are permitted to visit that classroom under the following conditions.

• With the instructor’s approval, a Cayuga student who is registered in another section of a course may attend the alternative section for up to three class meetings. Attending more than three class meetings will require the written approval of the instructor and the appropriate Division Chair.
• With the instructor’s approval, a registered Cayuga student who is not enrolled in a particular classroom course may attend one class meeting of the course. Any additional visits will require the written approval of the instructor and appropriate Division Chair.

COURSE WITHDRAWAL POLICY

Students may withdraw from a course up until the 60% mark of the course and receive a “W” on their transcript. The student must initiate the withdrawal by completing a Schedule Adjustment Form available in the Registrar’s Office or the college website. The form must be returned before the close of business on the date of the 60% mark of the course. Please refer to Dates and Deadlines for the specific date of the last day for students to initiate a withdrawal from a course for each term.

DOCUMENTED COURSE WITHDRAWAL POLICY

After the 60% mark of the semester, a student may not withdraw from a course unless, in the judgment of the course instructor, he or she has a serious, documented reason for doing so.

The student must have a serious reason to seek course withdrawal after the 60% mark of the course (such as illness or death in the family). He or she should discuss course withdrawal with the course instructor. The student must provide the course instructor documentation in the form of a Documented Late Course Withdrawal Form, available from the Registrar’s Office or the college website, along with supporting documentation, such as a health care provider’s verification of student illness (physical or psychological) or of major illness of an immediate family member; copy of obituary, listing relationship of deceased to student; letter from student’s employer; or written statement explaining extenuating circumstances for review.

This form and documentation must be submitted to the course instructor for review. If in the judgment of the instructor the student’s request for late withdrawal is valid, the instructor at his or her discretion may then issue the student a “W” for the course. The faculty instructor will submit the Documented Late Course Withdrawal Form and the appropriate documentation to the Registrar’s Office by the close of business on the last day of class where it will be kept on file.

Please refer to Dates and Deadlines for the specific date of the last day of classes for each term.

Late withdrawals can have serious impacts on the financial aid of students and the finances of the institution. Therefore, the use of late withdrawals should be limited. Students are cautioned to speak with the Financial Services Office before withdrawing from a course, as withdrawing may compromise their financial aid.

CROSS REGISTRATION

SUNY’s Cross registration policy is primarily intended to resolve scheduling conflicts for required courses that would delay timely program completion. By providing a process to take required courses at other SUNY campuses, cross registration allows students to complete requirements in situations where a course or courses are unavailable at their home campus.

The student is responsible for:

1. applying for and obtaining approval from the Home and Host Campuses prior to cross registering;
2. submitting a certificate of residency for billing purposes;
3. meeting prerequisite requirements for registration;
4. notifying the Home Campus of any enrollment changes at the Host Campus; and
5. paying special course fees and voluntary usage fees.

For eligible students to receive the benefits afforded by the cross registration process, both the home and host campuses must approve a student’s request to cross register prior to cross registration. Whenever possible, the institutions should make the determination prior to the start of the home campus’s academic term.

If students do not obtain the required approvals for cross registration from both the home and host campus prior to cross-registering, the home campus has the authority to approve or deny, on a case-by-case basis, the transfer of courses taken via cross registration at other SUNY campuses, including general education and transfer path courses in the major.

DEFINITION OF FULL-TIME STATUS

Fall, spring or summer: Full-time status is defined as 12 or more credit hours of study per semester. Permission of the division chair is required to exceed 19 credit hours per semester.

January intersession: Permission to exceed 6 credit hours is required from the division chair.

A credit hour is equivalent to 750 minutes of instruction. A laboratory credit hour is equivalent to 1,500 to 2,250 minutes of instruction.

DROPPING AND ADDING COURSES

Students may drop and add courses through their myCayuga account until the day before a class begins. If you want to add or drop a course after the course has started, you must do so through the Registrar’s Office or by contacting Centers for Student Engagement and Academic Advisement. During the drop and add period, students can make adjustments to their schedule without receiving a withdrawal (W) on their academic record. Please refer to the Academic Calendar for detailed registration deadlines.

Students may drop and add courses through their MyCayuga account until the day before a class begins. If you want to add or drop a course after the course has started, you must do so through the Registrar’s Office or by seeing your advisor. During the drop and add period, students can make adjustments to their schedule without receiving a withdrawal (W) on their academic record. Please refer to Dates and Deadlines for detailed registration deadlines.

FELONY CONVICTION

A prior felony conviction may hinder a student’s ability to enroll in a course or complete the requirements of certain academic programs and/or meet the criteria for licensure required by certain professions.

FERPA POLICY

The purpose of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is to afford certain rights to students concerning their educational records. The primary rights afforded are the right to inspect and review the educational records, the right to seek to have the records amended and the right to have some control over the disclosure of information from the records. Cayuga’s FERPA policy can be found on the College’s web page. To obtain a FERPA release form, contact the Registrar’s Office.

INDIVIDUAL/INDEPENDENT STUDY

Under special circumstances, it is possible to complete a course through individual or independent study. Details are available from division chairs.

LATENESS AND LEAVING CLASS EARLY

If a student is late for class or leaves before the class is over, or if a student leaves class and returns during the class, the instructor at his or her discretion may consider that student absent. Students are required to wait a minimum of ten minutes before leaving a class if an instructor is not present at the beginning of a class period, unless instructed otherwise.

LATE REGISTRATION

Students may change their schedules during the drop/add late registration period. However, the missed classes that occurred before the student added the course may, at the discretion of the instructor, count as absences in the student’s attendance record for that course.

PLAGIARISM POLICY

Withdrawal Resulting in a Grade of “F”

In cases of plagiarism or academic dishonesty, an instructor may apply a failing grade which preempts a student’s right to withdraw from the course. To apply the failing grade, the instructor should have indicated the potential consequence of plagiarism or academic dishonesty on the course outline, specified what is acceptable and not acceptable with respect to artificial intelligence, defined or given examples of same on the course outline, and ensured distribution of the course outline to all students in the class.

There must be solid evidence of the alleged plagiarism or academic dishonesty if a failing grade is to be assigned under these circumstances. The decision to assign a failing grade under these circumstances must be made in consultation with the appropriate division chair. Students may challenge such a grade only through the academic grievance process.

RULES AND REGULATIONS

As an enrolled Cayuga student, you are expected to follow College rules and regulations as well as all local, state and federal laws. Incidents of misconduct and violation of the Student Code of Conduct are reported to the Director of the Centers for Student Engagement and Academic Advisement, convener of the Faculty/Student Judicial Review Committee. If you are found in violation, you may be subject to disciplinary action ranging from admonition to expulsion.

STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT AND STUDENT HANDBOOK

Student conduct procedures, the student code of conduct, and a complete list of possible sanctions are detailed in the Student Handbook. Additionally, a separate Right to Know handbook relating to Cayuga’s drug and alcohol policy, prevention of sexual harassment, and campus safety and crime statistics is distributed annually to each student.

Besides being familiar with the Student Code of Conduct, each student should be aware of the following rules:

1. According to New York State law, firearms are not permitted on campus or in any College building. Also, any instrument to be used as a weapon and explosives of any kind are not permitted on campus.
2. Use, distribution or possession of illegal substances is not permitted on campus. Such use, distribution or possession is a violation of college regulations and is subject to action by the College.
3. The use, possession and distribution of alcoholic beverages is not permitted on any and all locations operated by Cayuga Community College for employees, students, and its visitors, except for an occasion expressly sponsored by the President’s Office. The policy regarding such events is available in the Student Handbook.
4. Cayuga Community College is a tobacco-free campus. Tobacco use of any kind is prohibited anywhere on campus or college property.

The College may initiate disciplinary proceedings for off-campus incidents involving violations of the Student Code of Conduct when the violation is committed while participating in a College-sanctioned or sponsored activity, the violation adversely affects the educational or service function of the college, or the violation adversely affects the individual’s suitability as a member of the College community. In determining whether to exercise off-campus jurisdiction in such cases, the Director of the Centers for Student Engagement and Academic Advisement will consider the seriousness of the alleged offense, the risk of harm involved, and/or whether the off-campus conduct is part of a series of actions which occurred both on and off campus.

TRANSCRIPT NOTATION POLICY

A student found responsible and suspended or expelled after a conduct process for violations that constitute a crime of violence will have the following notation added to their transcript:

• Suspended (or expelled) after a finding of responsibility for a code of conduct violation
• A student who withdraws while conduct charges constituting a crime of violence are pending will have the following notation added to their transcript: Withdrew with conduct charges pending
• Suspended students may appeal the inclusion of the transcript notation one year after it is applied at which time the notation may, in the sole discretion of the College, be removed. Transcript notations for expelled students are permanent. If a finding of responsibility is vacated, the transcript notation shall be removed.

WAITLIST

Students can be added to a course waitlist if the section is full. Students are notified if a seat becomes available via their college email (or private email if a college email hasn’t been assigned) and have twenty-four hours to register for the course. After the twenty-four hour time period has passed, the student is removed from the waitlist and the next student on the waitlist is notified of the availability. The waitlist process expires the day a course begins and students should work with their advisors during the drop/add period if they were unable to complete their schedule of classes.

WITHDRAWAL FROM THE COLLEGE

A student wishing to withdraw from the college must complete an Official Withdrawal Form available at the Centers for Student Engagement and Academic Advisement. The completed form must be returned to the Centers for Student Engagement and Academic Advisement or the Financial Services Office. If this procedure isn’t followed, your withdrawal will not be official, and you will not qualify for a refund if the withdrawal date is during the refund period for that particular semester. A withdrawal after the refund period has ended will result in a “W” grade for each course in which you were enrolled.