Entering final grades

For most sessions including undergraduate full semester classes, final grades are due on Friday, December 27, by 11:59 p.m. Grading due dates and grading how-to guides are available. Instructors can get help by emailing srhelp@umn.edu or calling 612-625-2803.

New Faculty Center guides

The Faculty Center how-to guides, which cover class rosters, grading, and more, are being transformed from PDFs to Google Docs. This will allow for easier updating when system changes occur and will make the documents more accessible. We are posting the revised guides as they are completed.

One Stop office closures

The One Stop St. Paul and West Bank locations will have special hours on a few days in December:

• Thursday, December 19: St. Paul and West Bank offices close early at 1:30 pm
• Thursday-Friday, December 26-27: St. Paul and West Bank locations closed

Service will be available as usual at the East Bank location in 333 Bruininks Hall, including Graduate Student Services and Progress.

Academic alerts in APLUS - potential pilot

The project team who is working on creating the functionality to add academic alerts (formerly mid-term grades) to APLUS is considering a potential pilot where we could assess risks or opportunities before a wider rollout of the feature in APLUS. If your college might be interested in piloting this process next summer, please reach out to Adrienne Bricker (abricker@umn.edu).

Digital diplomas

Our first issuance of digital diplomas will happen this Friday, December 6. There are currently 358 eligible students (124 undergraduates, 234 graduates) across all campuses. All students who have their degree awarded moving forward will get both a paper and digital diploma, both of which are considered official. The diplomas will be sent as a secure PDF with University branding from the vendor, Parchment. Currently, they are not available for duplicate ordering. If you have questions, contact Erik Sparby (spar0110@umn.edu).

No RAC in January

There will be no Registrar’s Advisory Committee (RAC) meeting on January 6. The next meeting will be in February with details to be determined. Past RAC meeting minutes are available.

FERPA Q&A

Question: What should I do if a military recruiter asks me for student contact information?

Answer: Per the Solomon Amendment, military recruiters are permitted to request student directory information. The Office of Institutional Research is the designated campus department that fulfills these requests.

Auto-enrolling from waitlists starts in November

On November 25, the process will begin for auto-enrolling students into classes for which they are on the waitlist. Auto-enroll runs from November 25 until January 21. If you encounter any issues with waitlisting or the auto-enroll process, contact the ASR Office of Classroom Management at ocmsoftwarehelp@umn.edu. More information on how students can add themselves to a waitlist is available.

New Directed Activity Contract online

A new online workflow for directed activity contracts is now available. The contract is for active undergraduates (including non-degree) who want to earn credit for directed research or directed study projects. Information about the workflow is available in the Directed Activity Contract workflow guide (for staff only).

When helping students, use the following:

• students can access the contract at z.umn.edu/Directed_Activity
• students can read about the process at ugresearch.umn.edu/find-opportunity/directed-research

Name recording playback now available in APLUS

There is a new feature in APLUS that allows you to listen to the recording of students’ names via the NameCoach tool. If students have recorded their names in Canvas, the recordings will be available for playback in APLUS. To listen to a student’s name in APLUS, press the purple play button next to their name. You can also hover over the play button and the phonetic spelling will display if the student entered one. If no play button appears, it means a student has not made a recording. Recordings are optional and at this time must be made in Canvas.

Spring 2020 appointment times

Last week, registration appointment times were posted for students in MyU, with spring 2020 registration beginning on Tuesday, November 12. Students can find their appointment time by logging into MyU and selecting the "Academics" tab, then selecting the "Registration" sub-tab (how-to instructions are available). The registration times are available on One Stop.

To adjust an appointment time for a particular student, contact One Stop Student Services (onestop@umn.edu). Include the student's internet ID, student ID, name, and campus.

FERPA Q&A

Question: If a class is offered remotely using web conferencing technology and the class session is recorded (such that students are identified in the recording), can the recording be shared?

Answer: If the recording is shared with other students enrolled in the class, yes. For example, the recording could be shared with students who were absent, or needed to review a presentation they made.

However, sharing the recordings outside of the class is not permitted unless the students have given their signed, written permission.

*Credit to AACRAO for the FERPA article inspiration.

APAS updates

The new APAS has been available since July 1 and has experienced widespread use from both students and staff. Here are key updates since we launched the new system:

• Several new job aids were created for staff. You can find them at the new APAS support page. This is also where you can find resources to share with students. Feel free to make a copy of the student guides to customize based on your specific needs.
• Final “DARS” APAS reports were generated and imaged for every undergraduate student who was in an active or leave of absence status on June 30, 2019. The reports are available in Perceptive Content. If you have a need to reference one of these audits, you will find them in the “U DAR Final APAS” drawer.
• As of September 22, the most recent effective dated program displays in APAS for discontinued students

The Transfer Articulation and Degree Audit (TADA) project continues through July 1, 2020. Our main focus now is bringing transfer credit details into PeopleSoft. This will enable prerequisite and repeat checking for this coursework during class enrollment.

Provide feedback on Graduation Planner

Academic Support Resources is exploring new options for a graduation planning tool that would replace our current tool, Graduation Planner. We’d love to hear from you if you have opinions about Grad Planner, or can express needs/wants, or lack thereof for a future tool. Give feedback at z.umn.edu/gradplanfeedback.

One possible option for a new tool is called Stellic. We are currently piloting Stellic on the Twin Cities campus to learn more about it and more about our needs. Undergraduate students and advisors from departments in the College of Science and Engineering are participating in the pilot. It will help validate functionality, accessibility, usability, understand needs and gaps, and inform a potential RFP process, which would happen early 2020.

Mid-term grades for 1000-level classes

Mid-term grade rosters are now available for instructors to submit grades and comments for fall 2019 classes. While the University policy on in-progress notifications applies to students in 1000-level classes, mid-term alerts benefit all students and instructors who have students who are struggling at the mid-point of the term should submit mid-term grades. We emailed instructors to prompt them to enter mid-term grades by the withdrawal deadline for their classes (November 11 for full semester classes) and we will send a reminder email in mid-October.

Class List now includes students’ advisors

The Class Roster (Class List) now includes the ability to view a student’s advisor using the Related Content link. Instructors and proxies may access the Class Roster through the MyU Faculty Center. We will update the View Class Rosters guide soon to include this information. If you have administrative access to PeopleSoft Campus Solutions, you may also view assigned advisors on the Class Roster page using the Related Content link.

Reminder on students with single names

In Peoplesoft, individuals with only a single name (e.g., “Cher”, or “Prince”) should have their name entered in the Last Name field and “FNU” (First Name Unknown) entered in the First Name field. If you are responsible for creating new student IDs (Empl IDs) in PeopleSoft Campus Solutions, such as using Quick Admit, follow this practice when entering students in the system. For complete Quick Admit instructions, see our Quick Admitting a Student user guide.

Veterans Appreciation, November 13

The 13th annual Veterans Appreciation event will be held on Wednesday, November 13, 2019 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the Great Hall in Coffman Memorial Union. The event recognizes the sacrifice and service of University veterans, military members, and their families. This event is free and open to the public. It will feature:

• T-shirts for veterans and drawstring bags for guests
• Pizza, beverages, snacks, and games for all
• University and community partner information fair
• Massage therapy and Pet Away Worry and Stress (PAWS)

FERPA Q&A

Question: How do I report an incident that might be a FERPA breach?

Answer: The official email to report FERPA breaches is security@umn.edu. Reporting suspected breaches helps the University determine whether a breach occurred, helps us correct errors, and notify impacted students. For reference, you can review the procedure on reporting suspected FERPA breaches.

New Academic Records fee

Starting fall 2019, the University has a new one-time Academic Records fee applied to student accounts. This replaces the prior practice of collecting payment on a per-document basis (i.e. transcripts and duplicate diplomas). The new Academic Records fee is based on a student’s enrollment type: $75 for non-degree; $150 for undergraduates, professional, and graduate students. If students have questions, they can contact One Stop Student Services.

The change from a per-document fee to a one-time fee will benefit students in a few ways. The fee is included in cost of attendance figures and is eligible for financial aid. It also gives them unlimited requests for official documents and improves security by reducing credit card payments. More information about the Academic Records fee is available.

Extended hours for Bruininks One Stop office, fall 2019

During the first two weeks of the fall term, One Stop Student Services will have extended in-person hours at the Bruininks Hall location:

September 3-6, 2019
Tuesday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

September 9-13, 2019
Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

APAS degree audit formatting updates

The APAS team has started to make simple formatting changes to the APAS degree audit to improve usability. You will first notice changes at the top of the audit, to Liberal Education & University Requirements. The most noticeable changes will be sentence case formatting (WE ARE GOING TO STOP SHOUTING ON THE APAS!), and making content on the page easier to scan. No content is being changed. We are only updating the style and location of text. Next, the team will begin working on major requirements, doing the same sort of style and location changes to improve usability.

Makeup Work policy

The Makeup Work policy has some updated content including new FAQs and language about “single episode” illnesses.

Students are generally not required to provide medical documentation when missing class for a single episode medical absence. In these instances, it is sufficient for students to communicate with the instructor via email or phone or in person. Students may also submit the Self-Reporting of Illness Resulting in Absence from Class to communicate single absences that don’t require documentation. Students are signing that it’s accurate and that providing inaccurate information via the form is subject to disciplinary action

Boynton is aligning its practices with its peers in the Big 10 and is no longer providing contact notes for routine illnesses.

Constitution Day celebration event

In celebration of Constitution Day, the Humphrey School Center for the Study of Politics and Government is hosting “Using Social Media Data for the Common Good” on September 12, 2019. Learn more and register for the event.

In 2004, under Senator Robert Byrd's urging, Congress changed the designation of September 17 to "Constitution Day and Citizenship Day." Constitution Day and Citizenship Day commemorates the formation and signing of the US Constitution by thirty-nine brave men on September 17, 1787 and recognizes all who, born in the US or by naturalization, have become citizens.

Congress has the following two requirements in the commemoration of this day:

1. The head of every federal agency should provide each employee with educational and training materials concerning the Constitution on September 17.
2. Each educational institution that receives Federal funds should hold a program for students every September 17 (or a weekday closest to September 17).

If you would like to share this information with other colleagues or students, feel free to share z.umn.edu/constitutionday.

FERPA Q&A

Question: An Asian American student group would like a list of all students in the college that identify as Asian. May we supply the list?

Answer: Under FERPA, an institution cannot designate race, gender, or ethnicity as “directory information.” You, therefore, cannot supply the email list in this case. However, you may facilitate if you like by communicating the student group’s interest in your regular emails, newsletters, etc. Interested students may then “opt-in” by contacting the group.

Students received 2019-20 aid awards

Staff in the Office of Student Finances have completed the first round of 2019-20 financial aid packages. A total of 17,066 undergraduates and 4,125 graduate and professional students received aid award packages. They sent emails to students to let them know they can view their aid in MyU. They will continue to package aid awards as students continue to submit financial aid applications for 2019-20.

Use “directed” in directed research/study course titles in ECAS

Your department likely already does this, but please be sure to use the word “directed” in the course titles of your directed research or study courses in ECAS. The new Directed Activities Contract (currently in development) searches for the keyword “directed” in course titles and displays only those courses to students when they are filling out the contract. If a course is supposed to be for directed research or study, but does not have “directed” in the title, the student will not be able to select that course for their contract.

A summary of the Directed Activities Contract project appeared in a past issue of this newsletter. The contract will be available for all students in any college to use. We plan to launch the form this fall for spring 2020 registration. Please share this information with others in your department who create proposals in ECAS. If you have questions, contact oue@umn.edu.

FERPA Q&A

Question: I'm working with a student that was the victim of a crime. The student wants assurances that the other student involved in the crime is not going to be in her classes. As it turns out, that other student is no longer at the university. Can I tell her that?

Answer: Most likely, yes. Since enrollment status is directory information at the U of MN, we can state that the student is no longer enrolled. If the student has fully suppressed their information, we are unable to discuss current enrollment status and can only confirm that we do not have a record of the student in question.

APAS update on July 1

An update to the APAS (Academic Progress Audit System) will go live on July 1 as part of the Transfer Articulation and Degree Audit (TADA) project. Students and staff who use APAS will notice a new look and feel to APAS reports and minor changes to navigation. Those with additional access to process exceptions will have a new way to make exceptions within APAS. You can familiarize yourself with these changes in advance by referring to the APAS job aids.

The new APAS will be found at a new URL: apas.umn.edu. We will update links to APAS within MyU and One Stop, but you will need to update any bookmarks you have.

If you have questions about the TADA project, email the project team at tada@umn.edu. If you need help with APAS, contact the APAS team at apasle@umn.edu.

Financial aid award packages in July

From late-June to early-July, the Office of Student Finance cancels estimated financial aid awards in order to create the actual financial aid award packages. This is for incoming New High School (NHS) and New Advanced Standing (NAS) students. Sometimes, when students no longer see their estimated financial aid awards, they panic and think that we have taken away their financial aid. That is not the case. Students can access their actual financial aid package in mid-July via MyU once tuition and fees have been finalized. If students have questions, please direct them to One Stop Student Services.

As an FYI, students must complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) each academic year in order to be considered for financial aid. Encourage students to complete the FAFSA at fafsa.ed.gov, if they haven't already done so.

SAP evaluations

For continuing students, financial aid Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) evaluation began in late May. Some students will be suspended from further financial aid eligibility because they have not met these standards. Students who have documented mitigating circumstances that interfered with their ability to meet SAP standards may submit a Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal. You will see some students in this situation, as we require that they work with their advisors to develop an academic plan that is realistic and leads to meeting SAP standards and getting their degree.

FERPA Q&A

Q: If alumni use a personal email address to ask questions regarding their student record, can you correspond with them?

A: It depends. The part of an alumni's student record that was created while they were a student continues to be protected under FERPA after they graduate. The directory suppression level selected by them while they were a student also remains in place (unless they change it). If they gave us written permission to use a non-U of M email address as a way to contact them, it's wise to inform them how to reactivate their U of M account or to only share general, non-student specific information. If you are unsure whether or not it is really the student, or you are uncomfortable using a non-U of M email address to correspond with alumni, it is reasonable to ask them to call you so that you can verify their identity or ask them to contact the Technology Help to reactivate their U of M email account.

TADA Phase 1 Launches July 1

The first phase of the Transfer Articulation and Degree Audit (TADA) project will be complete on July 1 with the launch of an updated APAS. Students and advisors will notice a cleaner look to APAS reports and some minor changes to the navigation for running audits.

Because most changes to basic functionality are minor, there is no training required for those with view-access to APAS reports. Those with exceptions access will be required to complete online training to maintain their access.

There are upcoming opportunities to see the new APAS and exceptions process demonstrated as well as hands-on practice before launch. More information about the exceptions training and links to job aids is available.

Phase 2 of the project commences immediately following the completion of the first phase and will continue through July 2020. More information is available on the project website. 

Student view of the new APAS

MyU: My Finances - revamp going live mid-June

A revamped version of the My Finances section of MyU will launch in mid-June. Students will be able to view the financial aid they’ve received in an interactive table, see their remaining MN State Grant, U Promise and Pell Grant eligibility, and review personalized cost of attendance and Satisfactory Academic Progress figures. The new features will help students make informed decisions when deciding upon their financial aid.

One view of the new My Finances 

Students that participated in a recent usability study indicated that the revamped My Finances is intuitive, the new elements are well-integrated, and that they appreciate the new information that’s being presented. Participants were also asked to rate the revamped My Finances section using the System Usability Scale (SUS); the revamped My Finances section received an average rating of 93 (an average SUS score is 68).

NameCoach in Canvas for summer classes

NameCoach is now available systemwide in Canvas. NameCoach is a web-based tool that allows students and instructors to record their name for others to hear its pronunciation. It is best used in a class setting, either online or in person. Feel free to tell instructors in your college or department about the new tool. They can access NameCoach through their Canvas account profile or courses in Canvas. Read more about NameCoach from OIT.

Directed Activity Contract in progress

A cross-functional project team led by the Office of Undergraduate Education is developing an electronic Directed Activity Contract. The form will be for any Twin Cities undergrad from any Twin Cities college to use to request directed activity enrollment (directed research, study, and/or reading). Currently, there are various ways students request this type of enrollment depending on their college or department. Through the new form, OUE seeks to deliver a single user experience to students and faculty, and collect cohesive data surrounding undergraduate research.

The new Directed Activity Contract will be available for students enrolling in spring 2020 classes. The project team will share more information when it is available.

Academic load changes for summer 19

Starting with summer 2019, the Twin Cities campus is piloting new definitions for summer full-time and half-time academic loads for non-degree enrollment. Changes only apply to summer session enrollment for non-degree seeking students.

MyU and PeopleSoft outage June 1-2, 2019

PeopleTools, the PeopleSoft development platform, will be updated this Saturday and Sunday, June 1-2, 2019. During the update, MyU, PeopleSoft, and their dependent applications will be unavailable. The following are specific impacts to note:

• ECAS and PCAS
• APAS and GPAS
• Grad Planner
• Perceptive Content
• WorkflowGen

Note that Schedule Builder (schedulebuilder.umn.edu) will still be available for planning coursework, but students will not be able to use the shopping cart and register during the update. Access to Canvas (canvas.umn.edu) and University email (mail.umn.edu) will not be affected. Visit the IT Service Status page for the latest information on system availability.

After the update, it is recommended to clear your cache before logging into the affected systems. Job aids on the new PeopleSoft homepage and navigation options are linked via MyU > Key Links > PeopleSoft.

PeopleTools 8.56 update

PeopleTools, the PeopleSoft development platform, will be updated June 1-2, 2019. During the update, PeopleSoft and MyU will be down. The update includes new homepages and navigation options. All PeopleSoft users will start receiving messages in May with more information on what to expect, including an overview video and detailed guides on the new features.

June deadline to apply to graduate - graduate and professional students

The June 1 deadline for graduate and professional students to apply to graduate has been extended to Monday, June 3, 2019 due to the planned MyU and PeopleSoft outage between June 1-2. Please note that this change only applies to the month of June, and the following deadlines will continue to be on the first of the month. The change has been made on the One Stop website.

Two new electronic forms for graduate students

A cross-functional project team transitioned several PDF forms used by graduate students to electronic forms using WorkflowGen. They are the Reviewers’ Report and Final Exam forms, replacing the paper versions of the master’s and doctoral Reviewers’ Report forms and the Final Exam form for master’s (Plan A/B) and doctoral students. We have shared this information with graduate program coordinators, college coordinators, and directors of graduate study. New process guides related to the forms are available on the Grad School website under “Examination Procedures.”

As with many electronic forms, there are benefits for students, instructors, and staff. The electronic forms are easier to use and result in faster processing times. For questions about the Reviewers’ Report of Final Exam forms, contact gssp@umn.edu.

FERPA Q&A

Q: Your college wants to post event photos on its website. Is posting these photos permissible under FERPA?

A: Depending on the photos, the college may be able to post them. At the University of Minnesota, photos are not directory information, so students need to grant permission for them to be publicly displayed if they can be identified in the photos. If the photo is a large group photo where faces cannot readily be identified, it may be posted on the website. Otherwise, student permission is required.

PeopleTools 8.56 update

PeopleTools, the PeopleSoft development platform, will be updated June 1-2, 2019. The update includes new homepages and navigation options. All PeopleSoft users will start receiving messages about one month prior to the update with more information on what to expect, including an overview video and detailed guides on the new features.

Mid-term alerts project wrap-up

Last fall we began a project to improve the mid-term alerts process (see story from November). Our findings and recommendations fall into four different areas:

• Terminology: There are several terms in use for mid-term grades which has caused confusion. We recommend using one term: “academic alerts.” This would encompass/replace “mid-term grades,” “mid-term alerts,” “in-progress notifications,” and “progress reports.”
• Communications: We currently send a start-of-term policy email and a follow-up email to 1xxx-level instructors with information about academic alerts and will continue to send these. In the messages, we added language about the benefits of academic alerts and provided more information about how the alerts are used. We recommend expanding the recipient list beyond 1xxx-level instructors. We have heard from advisors that it is important to have this information on how the student is performing across all their classes, not just the 1xxx-level instructors.
• Policy: We recommend expanding the policy beyond 1xxx-level classes (possibly all) and beyond D, F, and N grades (possibly all). We would need to update the FAQ regarding systems (if not using PeopleSoft to collect the alerts).
• Systems: We recommend transitioning from PeopleSoft to APLUS to collect academic alerts either via Canvas or “Instructor view” (there are advantages and concerns with each). We should continue to require progress reports for student-athletes as this is working well with a high compliance rate.

If you have questions or feedback on this effort, please contact Adrienne Bricker (abricker@umn.edu). This information was presented at the March RAC meeting and slides are available on page 84.

ASR Student Success Analytics update

ASR’s student data and analytics team released the Degree Progress dashboard on December 27, 2018. The dashboard provides summary-level degree progress data to users who can then drill down to student-level detail either by entry term or by plans.

Since then, the team has been meeting with Twin Cities campus colleges to provide training for this strategic dashboard. Once the initial training is completed, ASR the Student Degree Progress team will follow up with colleges to review dashboard features and share what they are hearing from other colleges, understand what student success issues the college is working on and what opportunities there could be, hear ideas on what would make the dashboard more user friendly or usable for collegiate staff and discuss next steps both in terms of new dashboards being developed and how we can better support the college(s). Each college will determine how the tool fits with their strategic plan and who will receive access.

FERPA Q&A

Q: When a staff member ends employment but keeps their U of M Google Calendar, is it an issue that they may be able to view current employees’ calendars, possibly with confidential student information? Should current employees stop sharing their calendar with former employees?

A: Confidential student information should not be shared via a Google calendar. Not all staff retain access to their U of M Google calendars once they leave, but some certainly do, such as alumni. To be cautious, current staff should edit their sharing settings in their U of M Google calendar to end sharing with someone that has left the university. If staff have their calendars set to public or available to the U of M Twin Cities, the calendar cannot contain any private student information or it will violate FERPA either way.

NameCoach software for commencement

We previously announced new software called NameCoach that can aid with name pronunciation. At the beginning of April, NameCoach will be available to use for commencement. The project team who is implementing NameCoach has been in contact with commencement coordinators across the system campuses and will be granting access and providing training in March.

Using NameCoach for commencement will give readers the opportunity to practice names before an event. It helps to simplify the process of gathering name pronunciations and phonetic spellings and has been positively reviewed as an easy-to-use tool. View NameCoach’s commencement information. For questions about NameCoach or access for commencement events, contact Nate Peterson (pete2787@umn.edu).

The project team is currently working with Canvas to implement NameCoach in Canvas in the near future. We will share that information as it becomes available.

Certificate of Attendance

In partnership with the Office of Student Affairs and Printing Services, the Office of the Registrar will be issuing certificates of attendance for students who pass away during their time at the Twin Cities campus but do not qualify for a posthumous degree. The certificate was adapted from one created by University of Minnesota Duluth and will carry the signature of the President and Executive Vice President and Provost. A template is available to view. The intent is to present the certificates to the students’ families at the Northern Stars Student Remembrance ceremony, held for the first time in Spring 2018. Please direct any questions or feedback to Adrienne Bricker (abricker@umn.edu).

Policy review/updates

• The Senate Committee on Educational Policy (SCEP) took a first look at the Withholding Diplomas and Official Transcripts policy at its February meeting. The dollar amount in the policy may be increased and other minor language changes are also being considered. If you have feedback or requested changes for this policy, please email tidball@umn.edu.
• SCEP reviewed the Holds on Records policy at its February meeting and some minor language changes, as well as new FAQs, are likely. If you have feedback or requested changes for this policy, please email tidball@umn.edu.
• In response to feedback, we made a minor change to the Grading and Transcripts policy to clarify that we were referring to the term GPA for the dean's list. (See section E7 of the policy.)

FERPA Q&A

Q: When does the health and safety emergency exception to FERPA apply?

A: FERPA allows school officials to share private student information in the event of a health or safety emergency if disclosure is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other individuals. It is limited to the time period of the emergency, and can’t be a blanket disclosure of information. Whether a disclosure is needed is on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the whole circumstances, and there needs to be a “significant” threat to health and safety. Contact Stacey Tidball (tidball@umn.edu) for questions.

New advisor role in PeopleSoft

We have a request to add a new advisor role in Student Advisor page within PeopleSoft at the undergraduate level for a director of undergraduate studies. This will give departments more flexibility in selecting advisor roles assigned to students. We will move forward with this request unless there are significant concerns with this role. Send any comments and/or questions to Emily Holt (eholt@umn.edu).

Earlier summer registration

Last year we moved the start of the summer registration queue from mid-April to early March. This gave students more time to plan and helped to spread out appointment times for advisors. After this change was implemented, the general consensus from collegiate and advising staff was that it was helpful for students and it assisted departments in their staffing and resource planning. Therefore, we will continue with the earlier summer registration schedule. This year, summer registration opens March 7 for students admitted to degree or certificate programs and March 14 for non-degree and visiting students.

Department of Education Negotiated Rulemaking

Tina Falkner has been selected to serve as an alternate negotiator representing four-year public institutions for the current round of Negotiated Rulemaking with the federal Department of Education (ED). She will sit in on all the negotiations and confer with the primary negotiator about the proposed regulatory changes to the Higher Education Act (HEA) drafted and circulated by ED.

The ultimate goal of this kind of rulemaking is that all parties involved reach consensus on the proposed regulatory changes. This covers a wide variety of topics ranging from eliminating the definition of the credit hour to expanding the types of institutions that are eligible to participate in federal Title IV financial aid programs. You can read the proposed redlines of the portions of HEA that are being negotiated.

FERPA Q&A

Q: I work in Student Services and an instructor is asking me to give them a student’s transcript. Can I share this with the instructor?

A: The instructor can only have the transcript if they have the student’s permission or a “legitimate educational interest” in the full transcript. Typically an instructor would not need a full transcript. Instead, they would need to know whether a student has completed a prerequisite course or meets other minimum requirements.