CENTER POLICIES and PROCEDURES
Start and End Dates
Fall Semester:
First year students travel to New York on Monday, August 27, 2007. Orientation
begins in the late afternoon.
Students travel to Costa Rica as a group on Wednesday, August 29th.
There will be an ingathering in Costa Rica from Thursday, August 30 - Saturday, September
1, 2007. Students are taken to their host families on Saturday afternoon
Portfolio Due Date: Monday, December 3, 2007.
Host family contracts end on Wednesday, December 5, 2007.
Spring Semester:
We advise you not to stay with your host family more than three days prior to the start of the semester unless you make alternative financial arrangements with them.
Starts on Monday, Jan. 21, 2008 (orientation for new students in Costa Rica);
Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2008 (all-day ingathering for new and continuing students)
Portfolio Due Date: Tuesday May 6, 2008.
Host family contracts end on Thursday, May 8, 2008.
Policies Regarding Student
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At the Costa Rica Center we hope to provide a positive, safe and challenging learning environment that respects all members of the community and encourages the personal and academic development of each. We all have a responsibility to contribute to such an environment by behaving in a respectful, responsible and ethical way. Below is a summary of the most relevant policies regarding students. Each academic area will review additional policies with you in your classes. For a full description of policies that apply to Global College students, we encourage you to read the FWP Handbook and refer to the LIU Brooklyn Undergraduate Bulletin. http://www.brooklyn.liu.edu/course/under bulletin 06.pdf. |
Academic Responsibilities
A. Seminars:
Because seminar attendance is a very important criterion for obtaining credits, absences and tardiness are serious and can have a negative impact on student evaluations and on the awarding of credit. The coordinators of the various seminars shall inform the advisory staff of repeated absences or tardiness of any student.
B. Spanish Classes
1. If a student decides to take Spanish, he/she should follow the following schedule: for beginning and intermediate students the schedule will be one and a half hours from Monday to Thursday. This hour and a half can be from 8:30-10:00 or from 10:30-12:00. If the student is in the advanced level, the schedule will be only two days a week between Monday and Thursday for one and a half hours.
2. After three tardies or unjustified absences, the student will be talked to in order to determine the reasons for the tardies or absences and an agreement will be reached between the parties involved being that this situation can affect how many credits the student may earn.
3. If a student, for justified reasons, is going to miss a class or another Spanish Program activity, he/she should report it before the class to his/her professor or call the COSTA RICA CENTER before class begins. It is the student’s responsibility to make up the work for the day missed and to study the material from that day’s class. Spanish class absences are not justified for activities that have to do with seminars or advising.
4. If a student decides not to take Spanish, but wishes to gain credits in this area, he/she should create an alternative plan in coordination with the Spanish Program and his/her advisor that has objectives, procedures and specific activities.
5. If a student is going to be in the field, in Costa Rica or in another country and wants to do an independent study in Spanish, he/she should coordinate with the Spanish Program and his/her advisor at the beginning of the semester to plan and approve the different aspects of the independent study.
6. If a student decides not to live with a Costa Rican family, he/she will assume all responsibility for his/her progress and practice with the new language.
7. Written work should be typed.
8. Written work must be turned in before the field trip to Nicaragua or Ecuador so both the professor and the student have time to make the corrections.
9. For any situation that arises related to your Spanish class that needs to be addressed, first please talk directly with the Spanish professor, and then with the Spanish Program Coordinator or the advisor if necessary.
10. For any situation related to the Spanish Program that needs to be addressed, please talk directly with the Spanish Team during their Friday meetings at 8:30 a.m.
C. Field Trips
C.1. All field trips are considered an essential part of our academic program. Students are expected to participate actively and to document their learning in order to receive credits.
C.2. Security is our top priority. Special precautions will be detailed by the group coordinators depending on the site. Any student that does not respect the personal safety precautions will be warned and if he/she continues to disrespect the recommendations he/she will be sent back to Heredia.
C.3. Illegal drugs are absolutely prohibited. Any student carrying or consuming drugs will be sent back immediately and will have to face the legal and school related repercussions.
C.4. Alcohol abuse is not permitted. Abusing alcohol increases your personal safety risks, alters your abilities to make wise decisions, changes your behavior in ways that can offend others and negatively affects your academic performance.
C.5. Students cannot get involved in political demonstrations because of the potential danger and local laws limit foreigners’ participation in local politics.
C.6. Respect for the local people and culture is very important as part of our mission of being responsible world citizens.
C.7. Respect for quiet hours is important, not only for the other members of the group but also the other hotel guests.
C.8. Any student planning to stay longer or to =participate in different activities than those planned by the Costa Rica Center must have the approval of their advisor prior to the trip and must coordinate beforehand with the field trip coordinator.
C.9. Students who commit to participating in a particular trip and then decide otherwise, will still have to cover the expenses of the trip. Exceptions will be made when the reasons for not participating are out of the student’s control.
C.10. Students who do not participate in fieldtrips that are part of any of the seminars that they are taking, will have to decide with their advisor how to cover the content of the trip through an alternative approach.
C.11. Participation of non-enrolled individuals (former students, relatives, friends, visiting faculty, etc.) must be approved by the Costa Rica Center team.
C.12. Faculty and staff, other than the trip coordinators, will have the opportunity to participate in any particular fieldtrip as long as financial matters and responsibilities during the trip can be worked out.
D. Individual trips outside or inside Costa Rica during the academic term:
If a student is engaged in an activity or academic project inside or outside the country during the academic term, for more than a week, the following steps must be taken.
D.1. Schedule the activity in the Learning plan.
D.2. The file must contain detailed information about the place where the student will be (telephone, address, fax, e-mail) and the name of the individual(s) to contact there.
D.3. The advisor shall consult the list of steps to take whenever a student goes on a project outside of Costa Rica, included in the Field Project Manual.
E. Use and possession of vehicles:
The Costa Rica Center recommends neither the use nor the possession of vehicles during the academic term. If a student rents, purchases or brings a vehicle, it shall be his/her entire responsibility. This includes motorcycles, cars and bicycles.
F. Visits by family members and friends
For the smooth running of the program, visits by family members and friends are not recommended during the academic term. Students shall be advised in the first communication made to them as to the most appropriate dates during the semester to receive visits.
G. Lines of Communication
If you have a concern or suggestions regarding a particular course, we encourage you to first discuss your concern with the instructor or seminar coordinator to give him or her the opportunity to address the issue. If you are unsatisfied with his or her response, please discuss the issue with the area coordinator, the advisor, and finally with the Center Coordinator.
H. Timely Completion of Academic Work
You are expected to hand in your completed work as specified in the respective courses. Failure to do so could have negative consequences on your evaluation and even the earning of full credit.
I. Substance Abuse
Members of the [Global College] community are expected to respect and abide by the rules, laws and cultural norms of the places in which they reside and travel. Students are responsible for their own behavior and will be treated accordingly. (Program Handbook 2005, page 58)
The use of illegal drugs is prohibited. Any student found distributing or using illegal drugs can expect to deal with the consequences of his or her behavior with no extraordinary support of the Program’s staff or resources. . …Students and faculty are reminded that abuse of controlled substances jeopardizes not only the individual’s welfare, but that of the entire program. (Program Handbook 2005, page 58)
J. Alcohol Abuse
- No alcohol is permitted in the Latin American Center or during academic activities (academic field trips, short academic trips, recreational activities at the center, classes, seminars, etc)
- Intoxication and disorderly conduct resulting from the misuse of alcohol are
unacceptable and will result in disciplinary action up to and including suspension. (LIU POLICY) - In students’ free time, for their own safety and health, the Costa Rica Center encourages students to drink responsibly.
C) Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism Policy
Students are expected to conduct themselves in accordance with the normally accepted standards of academic life. That implies that they will conduct themselves with due regard for the rights of others and, in particular, that their behavior will not interfere with the ability of the academic community to carry out its usual academic functions. It also implies that they will observe the usual standards of integrity with regard to the preparation of essays and the taking of examinations. Students are also expected to comply with those reasonable rules of procedure promulgated by a faculty member for the conduct of his or her class or by the college or school for the conduct of its business.
Specifically, students must be aware not only of the performance and intellectual standards of each course, but also of the means acceptable in achieving those goals. Students are expected to study all materials presented and to master them. Students may avail themselves of all sources that will further that mastery: textbooks, the library, student study sessions, tutoring, study aids, and so on. Ultimately, however, the instructor’s judgment of a student’s performance is based on the student’s own intellectual achievement and honesty. Cheating on examinations and plagiarism of any sort are unacceptable and, if proven, are cause for the most severe penalties up to and including suspension or dismissal from the University. The classroom instructor determines the rules of acceptable student conduct during examinations. Each instructor has the right to insist on procedures to ensure the integrity of those examinations: seating arrangements, no communication among students, the restriction of materials available to students during the examination, and so on. If a student is discovered cheating in a classroom examination or written assignment, either by crib notes or by receiving information from or giving information to a fellow student or by any means not stipulated by the rules of the examination, the instructor has the right to confiscate all test materials from the person or persons involved and give the grade of zero for the examination to the person or persons knowingly involved. The instructor also has the right to fail the students for the course. Also, students who submit written or other work probably not their own or who submit work with sources inadequately acknowledged or with an inadequate system of documentation for a specific course assignment may be given the grade of zero forthe work submitted and a failing grade for the course.
D) Disciplinary Action
Students are expected to maintain a level of personal behavior which does not compromise the functioning of the center, the general learning environment within the community or one’s own ability to achieve set academic goals. A center director may place a student on disciplinary probation or, in drastic circumstances and after notifying World Headquarters and the Program Dean, may even expel a student from the center. Students may be required to take a semester’s leave of absence for disciplinary reasons if, after discussion with the student, center and WHQ staff, it seems obvious that discipline is likely to remain a concern.
Behaviors warranting such extreme measures include use of illicit drugs or abuse of alcohol; sexual or any other kind of harassment: abusive behavior towards oneself, other students, faculty or others; and behavior which jeopardizes the pursuit of learning. (Program Handbook 2005, page 56).
Any breach of discipline may result in disciplinary action, including suspension or dismissal. The Faculty-Student Judicial Review Board, in accordance with its procedures, may hear all cases that may result in suspension or dismissal and will recommend an appropriate course of action to the Dean. The activities of a student may upon occasion result in violation of state or federal law. Respect for the presumption of innocence requires that the institution not impose academic sanctions for the sole reason that a student is or has been involved in criminal proceedings. The institution may, however, impose its own sanctions to protect the safety of other students, faculty and property and to safeguard the academic process. If students, in breaking the law, violate institutional regulations, they will be subject to no institutional penalty greater than that which would normally be imposed. All matters involving criminal activity will, upon approval of the Provost, be referred to the appropriate civil authorities for action. If there is a possibility that testimony or other evidence at an institutional hearing may be subject to disclosure to civil authorities by way of subpoena, the institution’s proceedings should be postponed to safeguard the student’s right to a fair civil determination.
