University policies for comprehensive review

Academic Support Resources serves as the policy contact for many University policies. There are several policies up for comprehensive review in 2025-26, and we are currently gathering feedback from our stakeholder communities. Please see the list below of policies that are up for review. You can share your feedback to asr@umn.edu. When writing, please be sure to include which policy you are providing feedback on. 

• Undergraduate Degrees with Distinction and Degrees with Honors: Twin Cities, Crookston, Morris, Rochester
• Credit and Grade Point Requirements for an Undergraduate (Baccalaureate) Degree: Twin Cities, Crookston, Morris, Rochester
• Using Email as Official Student Communication
• Academic Calendars: Twin Cities, Crookston, Morris, Rochester 
• Grading and Transcripts: Twin Cities, Crookston, Morris, Rochester
• Class Scheduling: Twin Cities, Crookston, Morris, Rochester

Graduation Planner will be retired January 2026

Graduation Planner will be retired on January 30, 2026. While Academic Support Resources (ASR) is planning to implement a new tool for students, there will be a period of time when no long-term course planning tool is available. 

The retirement is due to multiple factors, but primarily because it will no longer function once the uAchieve Cloud project is completed (mid-February 2026), and it will not meet digital accessibility requirements by the April 2026 deadline. 

There is no current timeline for the new long-term planning tool yet, but ASR will begin making plans once the uAchieve Cloud project is complete. This means there will be a gap between when Graduation Planner is retired and the new tool is launched. The intent is to make this period of time as short as possible.

Communication to students about this transition will be handled centrally, coordinated by each campus’ Registrar’s Office. A message will be added to Graduation Planner in early October informing them of the retirement timeline and directing them to more information. Additional communications to students will be available for reference on the uAchieve cloud project page. Colleges, departments, and advisors are welcome to supplement those communications for their students.  

A town hall meeting was held on September 25, and a recording of this meeting will be available the first week of October. More information (and future updates) is available on the uAchieve cloud project page. 

The newly updated Academic Support Resources (ASR) website

The Academic Support Resources (ASR) website was updated on September 22, 2025. The goals of the redesign included helping users find the processes and resources they need quickly and efficiently and improving accessibility and usability.

The website features streamlined navigation and an improved user interface. All existing links have been redirected, so any bookmarked links to the old version of the ASR website are still usable. 

Policy reminders

As we near the start of the term, we wanted to share a few policy reminders. The Mandatory Attendance policy requires students to attend the first class meetings for all enrolled classes unless they have prior approval from their instructor to be absent. Please consult the policy FAQ for more details on how this policy applies to online classes or when students register after the first day of classes. 

Please also consult the Excused Absences and Makeup Work policy and the Makeup Work FAQ. Reasonable accommodations must be made for students who miss class due to excused circumstances, including:

• Illness, especially for in-person or blended classes
• Religious holiday observance
• Pre-approved first-day absence
• Late registration

Instructors are expected to observe scheduled class times as stated in the Teaching and Learning policy. 

We also recommend reviewing the Student Conduct Code.

U Card reminder

With the start of the term approaching, remember to bring your U Card to ensure access to campus buildings. You can find entrances with a card reader by reviewing Campus Maps and turning on the layer for Accessibility in the top right. 

Directed Activity Contract: Transition to new solution

The new version of the Directed Activity Contract in the Jadu platform will go live the week of August 4. All new contracts will be initiated and carried out using the new solution. Any in-progress contracts will finish out using the previous version in WorkflowGen. 

The new version follows the same workflow and requires the same information. There are changes and updates to the language, question format, and interface. All in-progress contracts in WorkflowGen must be completed by Friday, September 12, 2025. Any in-progress contracts may no longer be available after this date, as WorkflowGen is prepared for retirement. For questions about Directed Activity policy and procedures, please contact oue@umn.edu. 

Academic Standing training course

A refreshed version of the Academic Standing training course was released earlier this month. Only new users who are responsible for updating the academic standing of undergraduate students are required to take this course. 

Quarterly APAS User Group

APAS users are invited to attend our quarterly APAS User Group meeting on Tuesday, August 19 at 1 p.m. over Zoom. APAS and TES best practices, training, and helpful tips and tricks are shared along with timely information. Please reach out to apasle@umn.edu if you do not already have the meeting invite on your Google calendar. You may also submit questions or topics for discussion in advance if there’s something you or your team would like more information about.

New Coursedog prompts

The Curriculum Administration Best Practices Working Group has approved new Coursedog prompts related to modality and assessment. These changes are effective July 1 for Twin Cities and Rochester Fall 2025 and later proposals. Please direct questions to oue@umn.edu. 

Coursedog modality definitions

The modality selections available for courses in Coursedog will be updated and effective on July 1 to align with those in PeopleSoft. This update impacts all University of Minnesota campuses. Changes will not be made to previously approved courses, but courses should be updated to reflect the appropriate modality selections when updates are being made through standard processes. 

Please direct questions to oue@umn.edu. 

25Live is live

25Live went live on June 17, 2025 and replaced Astra as the University’s academic room scheduling system. This multi-year project involved many partners from across the University. Check out the 25Live support page for links to training, guides, and more information. If you have any questions or need support, please reach out to ocmsched@umn.edu.  

Quarterly APAS User Group

APAS users are invited to attend our quarterly APAS User Group meeting on Tuesday, August 19 at 1 p.m. over Zoom. Best practices, training, and helpful tips and tricks are shared along with timely information. Please reach out to apasle@umn.edu if you do not already have the meeting invite on your Google calendar. You may also submit questions or topics for discussion in advance if there’s something you or your team would like more information about.

FERPA Q&A

Q: A student has opted out of directory information and wants to be anonymous in an online course. Are we required to allow the student to take the course anonymously?

A: No. Under FERPA, a student may not use their right to opt out of directory information disclosures, because this prevents school officials from identifying the student by name or disclosing the student’s electronic identifier or institutional email address in class.

25Live update

25Live is replacing Astra on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. Astra will become view/read-only at the end of the day June 13, 2025. Departmental schedulers are required to take online training and have already been enrolled in the course in Training Hub. No training is required for those who only request rooms. You can find more information about 25Live on the ASR website.

uAchieve upgrade project

A project to move the University’s on-premises uAchieve (aka APAS) installation to the cloud was kicked off. This project will also include an upgrade to the newest version of uAchieve. The project is still in early stages and a timeline hasn’t been finalized yet, but launch is expected to be in spring 2026. Updates will be shared in the APAS User Group, in the Record, and at Registrar’s Advisory Committee meetings. 

FERPA Q&A

Q: Is it a FERPA violation to have an open office door while meeting with a student who is asking questions about their academics? 

A: Individuals who are having sensitive conversations or discussing specifics of a student's record/academics/etc. should make every effort to ensure that the conversation is private to avoid unintentionally sharing personally identifiable information (PII) data with anyone other than the student.

May virtual RAC meeting

ASR will be holding a virtual RAC meeting 9-10 a.m. (CDT) Monday, May 12. Details and the agenda will be shared with the RAC google group in advance. 

Quarterly GPAS User Group

Join the quarterly GPAS User group meeting 9-10:30 a.m. Monday, April 28 to discuss all things GPAS. The focus will be on graduate education policy and degree clearance as well as reviewing how the policy ensures compliance. Toni Abts from the Graduate School Policy Office will present on common policy questions. Not a GPAS User Group member? Join the GPAS Google Group.

Collegiate program changes for fall 2025

ASR is coordinating the move of six specific, identified graduate programs (and one undergraduate minor) to new collegiate homes by the end of August 2025. Students in affected programs will be moved into the new college and plan code effective fall 2025. More information can be found on the 2025 program collegiate transitions webpage. 

Quarterly APAS User Group

APAS users are invited to attend our quarterly APAS User Group meeting on Tuesday, May 6 at 2 p.m., held via Zoom. This quarter’s meeting will cover TES questions related to generic transfer credits, APAS topics related to the Credits in the Major requirement, and declared versus what-if audits. We will also be highlighting resources that APAS users may find helpful. Please reach out to apasle@umn.edu if you do not already have the May 6 meeting invite on your Google calendar.

FERPA Q&A

Q: Can I share my work calendar with my personal email account if my meetings have student information in them? 

A: No. It is important to maintain security around student data. This kind of sharing reduces that security. You can consider other ways to access your calendar on personal devices (e.g., Google’s calendar app) or find ways to remove student data from your calendar (e.g., keep the data in a restricted Google doc linked in the calendar). 

25Live update

A launch date has been set for 25Live, the class and room scheduling system replacing Astra at the University of Minnesota. Beginning Tuesday, June 17, 2025, all academic and event room scheduling will be done in 25Live.  

Training is currently being developed and will be available in Training Hub in late May. Training will be required for those who will manage spaces in 25Live. Those required to complete training will be automatically enrolled in late May and will receive further information.

More information is available on the 25Live project page. 

Fall registration appointment times

Fall 2025 class registration begins Thursday, April 10 for Twin Cities undergraduate students. Registration appointment times were posted for students in MyU on Monday, March 24. Students can find their appointment time by logging into MyU, selecting the "Academics" tab, then selecting the "Registration" sub-tab. Registration times and information on how to register for classes are available on the One Stop website.

If a student needs their appointment time adjusted because of a system error, contact One Stop Student Services (onestop@umn.edu). Include the student's internet ID, student ID, and name.

Policy review: Undergraduate Degrees with Distinction and Degrees with Honors

As part of the University’s comprehensive review process, we are beginning consultation on the Undergraduate Degrees with Distinction and Degrees with Honors policy. We are seeking your feedback through Friday, April 18. Feedback about the policy language and FAQs can be sent to Amber Cellotti (knap0071@umn.edu) and Colleen Harms (harms231@umn.edu). 

FERPA Q&A

Q: Our Events staff have asked for student names, email addresses, and mailing addresses to forward to the commencement photographer who will use the information to mail photo proofs taken at the ceremony to students. This information is considered limited directory information. Does this mean we need to receive permission from each individual student in order to release their information to the photographer? Or can we share the information so long as the student has not fully suppressed this information in their record? 

A: Student contact information that hasn't been suppressed is in the "limited directory category," which means we can share it within the institution.

In a case like this, there are two potential options: 

1. The photographer has a contract with the University, and the contract designates the photographer as a school official and obligates them to securely handle student data.
2. Students provide consent.

ASR recommends option 2. Most graduation processes have a student consent component built into them. This is typically for the student to give consent to have their name in the program or to have content on a website, regardless of whether they change their directory suppression status. Consent for the photographer can be built into this process similarly.

Course Enrollment Limits and Cancellation Policy review

The Course Enrollment Limits and Cancellation Policy is going through comprehensive review. This policy was last reviewed in 2020. Please provide any feedback you have on the policy and FAQ by adding comments or suggestions to the documents linked below by Wednesday, March 5. 

• Policy - Course Enrollment Limits and Cancellation
• FAQ - Course Enrollment Limits and Cancellation

If you have any questions, please reach out to Carin Anderson-Thoms (ande8670@umn.edu) or Toni Abts (twheeler@umn.edu).

ASR annual report

The 2023-24 ASR annual report is now available. This document contains information on all of ASR’s units including the impact of day-to-day operations and the highlights of projects and initiatives. ASR has responsibilities for the Twin Cities campus and systemwide on mission critical systems and processes, all with the overarching goal of fostering student success. We hope this report is helpful in understanding our work. 

The annual report is also available on the ASR website. Please feel free to share with others who may be interested. 

Milestones training course

A refreshed version of the Milestones training course was released in late January. You are only required to take this course if you are responsible for adding and updating milestones in Campus Solutions using the Student Milestones page. 

FERPA Q&A

Q: Can an instructor or faculty member share progress information with a student’s advisor?

A: Yes, an instructor or faculty member can share information (e.g., current grades or progress) that the advisor needs to know in order to assist the student. This is within FERPA's "need to know" legitimate educational requirements.

GPA calculator to launch in APLUS

The APLUS team completed their development work and testing on the GPA Calculator. It will be available to advisers in APLUS starting Monday, February 3 in the Academics tab. ASR will decommission the existing tool following the launch of the replacement in APLUS.

New feedback form for ASR student communications

ASR developed a new feedback tool for communications it maintains for students. If you have feedback about content on a website, an email, or a form, you can complete this simple form. Submissions will be reviewed regularly but not necessarily immediately. Please use standard support channels for situations that require individual or urgent attention. 

FERPA Q&A

Q: What is the appropriate use for or sharing of class rosters and/or class photos? 

A: Class rosters (including photos) are considered private data. They are only to be used by people who support class activities (e.g., professors, instructors, TAs, administrative staff). Students may know the other students in their class (and usually can see this information in Canvas).