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Palo Alto College Schedule/Catalog 2017-2018
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  Mar 28, 2024
 
Palo Alto College Schedule/Catalog 2017-2018 
    
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Palo Alto College Schedule/Catalog 2017-2018 [Archived Catalog]

My Rights and Responsibilities


 

 

Board Policies on Students   

Section F of the Policies and Procedures established by the Board of Trustees of the Alamo Colleges District pertains to students. You are required to be familiar with and comply with these policies.

Student Responsibility for Success   

Students are expected to assume responsibility for contributing to their own development and learning.  To learn more about your role in engagement, communication, self-responsibility, and academic success, visit F.6.2. Student Responsibility for Success

Student Code of Conduct

The Student Code of Conduct disciplinary process is not intended to punish students, but rather to foster a learning environment of thoughtful study and discourse, to protect interests of the Alamo Colleges District’s community, and to challenge those whose behavior is not in accordance with the code. The act of applying to be an Alamo Colleges District college student is an explicit acceptance of the Alamo Colleges District’s policies, procedures, regulations, and administrative rules. All students are charged with notice and knowledge of the contents and provisions of the Student Code of Conduct. All students are expected to obey the law, show respect for properly constituted authority, and observe and comply with the Student Code of Conduct and College District policies, procedures, regulations, and administrative rules.

Academic Integrity Process and Appeal Process

F.4.2.2 (Procedure) Academic Integrity Disciplinary and Appeal Process
http://wcmsstg.alamo.edu/uploadedFiles/District/Employees/Departments/Ethics/pdf/policies/F.4.2.2-Procedure.pdf

Non-Academic Misconduct Process and Appeal Process

F.4.2 (Policy) Student Code of Conduct - Non-Academic Misconduct, Academic Integrity
http://wcmsstg.alamo.edu/uploadedFiles/District/Employees/Departments/Ethics/pdf/policies/F.4.2-Policy.pdf

F.4.2.1 (Procedure) Non-Academic Misconduct Disciplinary and Appeal Process
http://wcmsstg.alamo.edu/uploadedFiles/District/Employees/Departments/Ethics/pdf/policies/F.4.2.1-Procedure(4).pdf

Copyright and Intellectual Property

Students must comply with the all Copyright laws and will be held accountable for violations.  Unauthorized or undocumented use or close imitation of the language and thoughts of another author are against the law.  Copyrights protect students as well!  You own the copyright to anything created as a student. Your assignments, photos, graphics, videos…they are all protected. 

Your instructors and librarians can help you better understand the copyright laws and what is allowed. Be sure to check out the “15 Copyright Rules Every Student Should Know,” a user-friendly guide written especially for college students.

An in-depth look at reproduction of copyrighted works is available through the U.S. Copyright Office and additional guidance is available through the “Agreement on Guidelines for Classroom Copying.” For Alamo Colleges District Board Policy see E.1.7 (Policy) Instructional Resources: Copyrighted Materials and C.1.8 (Policy) Intellectual Property.

Children on Campus Policy

Students are urged not to bring children to classes, labs, or other facilities such as libraries. Minors under the age of 12 must not be left unattended on-campus at any time. Individual instructors may enforce additional restrictions or waivers for their particular classrooms or labs, which will be included in the course syllabus. 

Electronic Devices in the Classroom

Students are required to silence and store out of sight all electronic communication devices when in classrooms, laboratories, libraries, or other areas where such devices would interfere with instruction and learning. Faculty members have the latitude to modify this policy in their syllabi.

Family Education Rights Privacy Act (FERPA)

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) requires any school that receives federal funds to release or withhold a student’s education records in accordance with its rules. For more information please refer to the academic catalog or contact Admissions/Enrollment Services, which can be found in the navigation bar to the left under “Contact Information and Hours.”

Firearms

Licensed Concealed Campus Carry

Licensed concealed campus carry of handguns at the Alamo Colleges District is permitted effective August 1, 2017. Locked-vehicle storage of firearms not prohibited by Texas Penal Code §46.05 is permitted.       

Concealed carry of a handgun by persons licensed to carry may not be restricted except in locations signed as prohibited areas. License holders carrying on campus intending to access prohibited areas must leave their weapons locked in their vehicles. College lockers are not authorized for storage of handguns by license holders.

Open Carry of Firearms

No open carry of firearms is allowed on all property owned, controlled, or leased by the College District, including vehicles operated by the Alamo Colleges District or at any off‐campus premises at a District‐or College sponsored activity, function or event. 

Additional Alamo Colleges District information on firearms is available in the eCatalog/Health and Safety and the Student Code of Conduct and on the Licensed Concealed Campus Carry of Handguns website.

Parking/Campus Access

All of the Alamo Colleges District’s students pay a Campus Access Fee which covers parking at any of the Alamo Colleges District’s campuses, off-site locations or district offices.  

The fee is included when you pay the tuition and fees each semester, with the maximum fee paid not to exceed $50 per year. Once you pay your tuition and fees for the semester, you are eligible to park in any of the Alamo Colleges District’s surface parking lots designated as “Student Parking” or you may request a VIA bus pass at no extra charge. The fee does not guarantee a place to park on campus.

Parking/Traffic Appeal Procedures

Each campus within the Alamo Colleges District is responsible for implementing and maintaining a Campus Citation Appeals Committee to afford due process to any person receiving an Alamo Colleges District Campus Citation through the Citation Appeals Procedure.

Religious Holy Days

A “religious holy day” is a holy day observed by a religion whose places of worship are exempt from property taxation under Section 11.20, Tax Code. Students are excused for the observance of a religious holy day, including travel for that purpose, when they notify the faculty member in writing within the first twelve days of the semester in which day(s) will be observed.

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is a federal requirement students must meet to receive both federal & state financial aid.  A student who is meeting SAP will have:

  • A 2.0 cumulative Grade Point Average or above
  • A sixty-seven percent (67%) cumulative completion rate between hours attempted & hours you have actually completed
  • No more than ninety-nine (99) attempted hours of college level courses (excluding 30 hours of remedial courses)

In addition to the Federal Satisfactory Academic Progress policy, all students applying for financial aid are responsible for complying with the Alamo Colleges District’s SAP Policy.  Once a student is not meeting the SAP policy they will be placed on financial aid suspension and no longer qualify for aid including Federal Direct Loan.

Smart Start

The colleges in the Alamo Colleges District support and promote active student engagement and commitment to learning. Students are expected to attend class on the first day and throughout the semester. Students may be dropped who do not attend the first class meeting or make contact with the instructor regarding the absence. See F.6.1.5 (Procedure) Student Success: Comprehensive Monitoring/Advising System. 

For fully online courses, an attendance verification activity is assigned and must be completed by the 3rd class day.

Always check your ACES account to ensure you were dropped from the course.

Smoking/Tobacco Policy

All of the colleges in the Alamo Colleges District are designated smoke-free including parking lots and all property that is owned, leased, rented, or otherwise under the control of the Alamo Colleges District. Smoke-Free Environment includes the prohibited use of tobacco products and vapor or e-cigarettes. ACDPD officers issue penalty citations to those in violation of the policy. Repeated violations result in disciplinary action.

Solicitation

Solicitation is advertising, taking orders, sales, donations, campaigning (political or other), collection and distribution of literature, etc. Any solicitation on campus must have the approval of the appropriate college official. 

Student Email

Email services are provided to students of the Alamo Colleges District in support of the educational, training and outreach mission of the colleges and the administrative functions to carry out that mission. Your college-assigned student email account is considered the official electronic channel for communication between the Alamo Colleges District and you.  F.7.1 (Policy) Student Email Account an Official Mode of Communication.