SUNY New Paltz is publishing important messages and news updates related to the College’s response to COVID-19 on the campus news website. Use this link to view all these posts in one place.
The update below was shared with faculty and staff on March 24.
Campus community members can view updates at the Coronavirus Information and Coronavirus FAQs webpages, which are being updated regularly as this situation evolves.
A message from the Office of the Provost, Office of Instructional Technology,
and Office of Graduate and Extended Learning
Contingency Planning in Blackboard Classrooms
Although we hope that everyone will remain healthy and able to attend to their courses, we know that it is essential that we make contingency plans in the event that someone becomes incapacitated. If you have any questions about this information, please reach out to your Dean.
Access to Bb Course Shells
Please request that your chair and dean be given access to your course shells in the event of any of the following:
- You test positive for COVID-19, whether or not you are symptomatic
- You are exhibiting symptoms consistent with COVID-19, whether or not you have been tested and confirmed
- You are experiencing any other serious health issues or other circumstances that might prevent you from attending to your courses for more than a day or two
Addendum, March 30: You should do this only if one of the above three conditions is an active condition for you. We do not intend this to mean that the chair will become the instructor, rather, the goal would be to have someone in the shell to make any necessary announcements until a substitute is identified and in place. Also, we are aware that divisions are organized in a variety of ways and in some cases the department chair may not be the preferable choice for back up access. Please visit with your department chair and/or dean if you need clarification on that point.
Substitute Instructors for Your Courses
Please consider, for each course that you teach, identifying an appropriate colleague or potential adjunct who might be able to step into the course in the event you become ill and unable to complete the course. You may want to share your list now with your department chair, or just keep it ready and available to share in case you become ill. Appropriate compensation for replacements will be determined at the time the replacement begins, taking into consideration expected length of replacement.
Gradebook Preparation
Please make sure that you have an up-to-date gradebook in Bb that clearly identifies each graded activity and its overall value in the course and make sure that you have all students’ grades entered in the gradebook. This will be necessary in the event that someone else has to step in to complete your course.
Updated Syllabus
Please post an updated syllabus in your Bb course shell that includes all expectations for the remainder of the semester. Again, this will enable another person to step into the course if necessary.
Plan-B Guidelines for a Substitute
Consider preparing some guidelines that a substitute instructor could consult and deploy if necessary. You could place those instructions in a section of Bb that is available only to individuals with instructor-level Bb privileges.
Intellectual Property
New Paltz adheres to the SUNY system policy. The relevant language is:
With respect to faculty materials used on the web for instruction, under the current SUNY policy, copyright ownership is treated no differently than faculty materials produced for the classroom. That is, faculty own the copyright under the academic work-for-hire exception embedded in SUNY’s copyright policy.
