hey all! chelsea here again. academic affairs has had a pretty exciting few weeks. to recap:
-bookbagging opened on the new ACES, and it definitely wasn't the catastrophe it would have been a few weeks ago. there's still a few bugs, but i'm really happy that it's at least functional now. check out student.groups.duke.edu/academic_affairs for the OIT and DSG guides to the new ACES, or email me (cpg5@duke.edu) if you are confused. we had another focus group meeting and members got access to a test version of registration, which went really well for me. if only i could actually get in to ariely's class next semester though...
-underload passed through the academic standards committee! this means it should go to ECASC and then [hopefully] the arts and sciences council. again, i have to stay mum on the details for now, but this will be really cool for students if it passes.
-ben was surfing old duke sites and found a syllabus database--what a good idea! we're trying to revamp the site and link it to our evals system. a couple problems, though: 1. it's written in .PHP, which none of us know very well 2. there's a cgi code to get into the site for edits that we can't crack. if you could help us with these problems, there might be a work study or some type of compensation in it for you. please help!
-career-focused research and software training workshops are coming along nicely! i'm meeting with reps from the career center, library, and OIT next week, and hopefully we'll have some workshops put together in the spring.
-the committee is trying to jump start majors unions. if you're interested in getting involved, let us know. also, if you are an exec member in your major's union, let us know that too.
-also going on: [trying] to start on standardizing transfer credit. writing a new pass/fail policy memo. working to get a new focus that links to duke engage. working on a survey to see what classes are the most oversubscribed and brainstorming ways to fix it. helping DIYA to create a DSAS certificate. creating new half-credit courses in popular subjects. chicka chicka yeahhhh.
let me know if you want to get involved/have any questions/think AA is the hottest committee in DSG.
academically,
chelsea
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Academic Affairs, woot woot
Hey all, this is Chelsea, the VP for Academic Affairs. I'll try to keep you updated on all of the things the AA Senators and I are doing to try to make academics at Duke better for students. Please comment or send me an email, though, if you have any ideas or need help with an academic problem--we're here to help you.
This week, we chose our new at large senators (Michael Mandl, Michelle Sohn, Andrew Schreiber, and Ben Getson) and had our first full committee meeting. We decided to send out a how-to guide to everyone before class registration to make sure that people can navigate the new ACES (I know-yikes!). We're also still working with the people in OIT to try to fix the problems with the new system. We gave them a big list at our first focus group, including making one menu that will be on every page and making the bursar's bill easier to read. I just emailed Kathy Pfeiffer, the head of the project, about setting a date for our next meeting: hopefully we'll fix the rest of the problems soon.
We've also been working with Portia, a student affairs senator, to set up a new focus program about Africa and Africans. Dean Baker was really excited about the idea, and suggested that we link the project to Duke Engage. Harrison, Portia, and I are now talking to professors to see if they would be interested. Let us know if you have any tips!
My pet project right now is working with the library, OIT, and the Career Center to set up career-focused research and software training workshops. These would be offered through the career center on topics like 'Researching Equities' or 'Learning Microsoft Excel'. It's still in the planning phases, so we'd love feedback on topics, etc.
One of our big three projects is on the table right now: changing the underload policy to be more flexible for all students. I have to stay mum on the details because it's in a private committee right now, but I feel good about the progress. It would be awesome if we got it passed, so watch out for it at the end of this semester!
I've got three midterms on Monday and Tuesday, so I better stop blogging and start studying. Leave a comment or shoot me an email with any questions--cpg5@duke.edu.
~Chelsea
This week, we chose our new at large senators (Michael Mandl, Michelle Sohn, Andrew Schreiber, and Ben Getson) and had our first full committee meeting. We decided to send out a how-to guide to everyone before class registration to make sure that people can navigate the new ACES (I know-yikes!). We're also still working with the people in OIT to try to fix the problems with the new system. We gave them a big list at our first focus group, including making one menu that will be on every page and making the bursar's bill easier to read. I just emailed Kathy Pfeiffer, the head of the project, about setting a date for our next meeting: hopefully we'll fix the rest of the problems soon.
We've also been working with Portia, a student affairs senator, to set up a new focus program about Africa and Africans. Dean Baker was really excited about the idea, and suggested that we link the project to Duke Engage. Harrison, Portia, and I are now talking to professors to see if they would be interested. Let us know if you have any tips!
My pet project right now is working with the library, OIT, and the Career Center to set up career-focused research and software training workshops. These would be offered through the career center on topics like 'Researching Equities' or 'Learning Microsoft Excel'. It's still in the planning phases, so we'd love feedback on topics, etc.
One of our big three projects is on the table right now: changing the underload policy to be more flexible for all students. I have to stay mum on the details because it's in a private committee right now, but I feel good about the progress. It would be awesome if we got it passed, so watch out for it at the end of this semester!
I've got three midterms on Monday and Tuesday, so I better stop blogging and start studying. Leave a comment or shoot me an email with any questions--cpg5@duke.edu.
~Chelsea
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