December 2, 2016

Dear School of Engineering Faculty,

We, the University of Kansas Engineering Student Council, are writing this petition on behalf of the Engineering Student Body to bring attention to the student response regarding the School of Engineering New Grading Policy. The engineering faculty has recently voted to implement a plus/minus grading system in the School of Engineering, effective in the Fall of 2017. The vote was taken by the faculty senate with minimal representation of undergraduate students.

We believe a plus/minus grading system will be detrimental to the Engineering Student Body as a whole. Many high achieving students in the School of Engineering receive A’s in a percentage range that in the new system will be considered an A-. This 0.3 weight change in a student’s GPA can negatively affect a student’s overall GPA. This could affect students who are of or at risk of probationary status for their scholarships. Additionally, the plus/minus grading system is likely to lower the average GPA of the School of Engineering as a whole.

We also believe students were not openly informed on the matter. While a small population of students may have been aware of the potential policy change, we do not believe the majority of students were aware of the discussion. Because of this, the many students were not able to voice their opinions before the voting occurred. The Engineering Student Body deserves more official undergraduate student representation at faculty senate meetings, especially when matters directly affecting students’ academic standings are discussed.

Voting on the new grading policy has occurred. We request individual faculty members act in the best interest of their students when deciding to implement the plus/minus grading system into their courses beginning in the Fall of 2017. Overall, we request there be multiple official undergraduate student representatives at engineering faculty meetings in order to create more transparency throughout the engineering community. We would also like to see greater advertising for when faculty senate meetings occur in order for students to have the opportunity to voice their opinions.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

University of Kansas Engineering Student Council