To Our Faculty:
As you complete your fifth week of fully online instruction I hope that you are settling into a rhythm and adjusting to the “new normal.”
I know this transition hasn’t been easy, but I want to assure you that, by all accounts, you are doing great work. As always, I thank you for your valuable efforts and for helping to make Case Western Reserve University the premier institution that it is. Let’s finish strong this spring!
Now, some updates…
- Guidance to Students Regarding P/NP: The Office of Undergraduate Studies recently sent out guidance on managing academic standing questions from students as they enter into decisions around Pass/No Pass. I encourage you to review that guidance here.
- Faculty Feedback: We are in the process of coordinating various feedback mechanisms about the experience of teaching remotely this spring, from surveys to focus groups. Some of these activities already are happening at the department/unit level, and additional ones will occur after the semester ends. We want to encourage your full participation in these activities. We have much to learn from you.
- Remote Summer Courses: Please note that we are going to operate under our regular summer policies/procedures as well as cost structures. We are being very open to students about these plans so that they can make informed decisions. Thanks to everyone who has stepped up to offer summer courses remotely.
Finally, as President Snyder and I wrote April 9, we will apply a dual-delivery approach to instruction for fall courses—that is, via simultaneous in-person and remote instruction. Like many of our peers, we want to ensure that all of our students can continue their learning, whether or not they are able to return to campus.
We know that many of you are concerned about what dual-delivery may mean for you and your students. We are also fully aware that there are many unanswered questions surrounding dual-delivery—from how to practice effective social distancing in classrooms to how to stagger teaching schedules and accommodate synchronous learning across multiple time zones. Please know that we are working to address many of these issues now, and we will be reaching out to you to discuss them in further detail. Please stay tuned.
Again, thank you for all that you do.
Sincerely,
Ben Vinson III
Provost and Executive Vice President