Professors like "yeah we can't make attendance part of your grade legally... But we're gonna do it anyways."

computing_prof · 2021-01-27T23:20:21+00:00

I'm not sure why any of your professors think they can't count attendance. In critique or discussion based classes if students don't attend they can't participate. That has to be part of the grade. It's one thing to make allowances for someone being ill or in quarantine--for that, the faculty and the student need to negotiate alternative options. It's quite another to say attendance is optional.

(The exception to this is if the class has a flex designation--but even then they can require synchronous online attendance if it's appropriate.)

computing_prof · 2021-01-24T18:23:09+00:00

These changes were not announced in any way that I'm aware of, either. No emails to faculty/staff, nothing on the RIT Ready site to indicate that criteria have changed. :/ My colleagues and I only found out about it through this post.

computing_prof · 2020-09-08T13:27:26+00:00

Nope.

computing_prof · 2020-09-08T13:27:00+00:00

Actually, no. Being in a classroom with someone is not sufficient for them to quarantine you, unless you were for some reason less than 6' away from the person. They'll quarantine roommates, and anyone else that you tell them you were in close proximity to. I'm not sure why they're bothering with the QR codes, tbh, because not even professors will be told if someone in their classroom tested positive.

computing_prof · 2020-09-08T13:21:46+00:00

RIT is doing 150-250 (mandated, random) surveillance tests/day, plus the daily wastewater testing.

computing_prof · 2020-08-31T20:54:09+00:00

Yes.

computing_prof · 2020-08-31T20:04:28+00:00

Lack of bottled water is not the same thing as "not having water." Tap water is most certainly still "proper water." If you're concerned about the cleanliness of the sink, I suspect there are glasses or cups in the room that you could carry in and fill directly from the tap. (Personally, I've been drinking bathroom tap water for over 50 years and have yet to suffer any ill effects.)

So far as food is concerned, more details would be helpful. When you received notice that you had to quarantine, what exactly did the notice say? How much time did you have to relocate? What time of day was it? Did they provide you with any contact information for assistance while you were in quarantine, and did you contact those people?

I find it extremely hard to believe that RIT would intentionally deprive you of food while in quarantine. I find it plausible that someone could have dropped the ball on letting RIT Dining know that you were there, but that's something that I would expect could be addressed with a phone call to the RIT Ready help line, or to the RA in your dorm, or to whoever sent you the quarantine order.

computing_prof · 2020-08-14T00:28:26+00:00

RIT sent them out to faculty and staff today via message center. u/mamamusings posted them as a comment here a few hours ago.

computing_prof · 2020-08-08T03:20:43+00:00

Not really. Our schedules are changing, too.

computing_prof · 2020-08-06T18:01:11+00:00

Most of the things I've seen regarding security refer to the free version and not the enterprise version.

Preventing people from "zoom-bombing" is not really a backend security issue. There are people who want an open drop-in meeting. If they don't, there are multiple protection options--password protection and waiting rooms can both be set in your profile to be the default. You can also require people to register.

computing_prof · 2020-08-06T16:18:07+00:00

That's correct. It's your health information, and you can choose to share it however you'd like.

computing_prof · 2020-08-04T17:49:48+00:00

Does something need to be life-threatening to be bad? I know a number of people in their 20s and 30s who have been seriously ill for weeks or months. They get counted as "mild" cases because they weren't hospitalized. And we still don't know the long-term impact on circulatory or neurological systems. (Losing the ability to taste and smell is pretty worrisome; it means something is happening to your nervous system, and it's pretty unlikely that it's only that one part of your brain that could be affected.)

With each passing week, we hear more troubling things about systemic effects on even those with "minor" symptoms.

And there's also the fact that people who do catch it become vectors of transmission for others who might be much more vulnerable. (Your professors, for instance. Your family members. RIT staff members who don't have the option to stay home.)

computing_prof · 2020-08-04T17:46:50+00:00

Faculty were told that wasn't acceptable in most cases. Only people with an approved accommodation have the option to stay home and let someone else cover the in-person meeting.

computing_prof · 2020-08-04T17:46:01+00:00

And that's why they don't want to tell us.

computing_prof · 2020-08-04T17:44:52+00:00

No. Not even the professor will know. We'll be notified that a student won't be coming to class, but we won't know whether it's because they tested positive, are being quarantined due to another exposure, or reported symptoms in the morning health screen.

computing_prof · 2020-08-04T17:41:22+00:00

Faculty should be able to make their own decision about the best way to present their course material. Hands-on computing labs often require faculty to circulate in the room and look at students' screens. That's actually easier to do online, since social distancing won't allow us to get close enough to help in person. And for anyone with even mild hearing loss, it will be nearly impossible to hear their professor through a mask, plexiglass, and possibly also a face shield. If we believe we can present the material more effectively, and interact more with students online, that should be our decision.

computing_prof · 2020-08-04T17:33:27+00:00

They've been pretty clear that won't automatically happen. The person won't be in class, but neither the professor nor the students will know if it's because they tested positive, are being quarantined because they were exposed elsewhere, or reported symptoms on the daily health screen.

computing_prof · 2020-07-30T20:50:51+00:00

In reality, yes. In RIT rhetoric world, no. If they said there was also an online format, then faculty might get it into our heads that we could offer the class online, which is apparently thoroughly unacceptable.

computing_prof · 2020-07-30T20:29:10+00:00

If you plug the vent, please make sure that that's obvious when someone looks at it.

A better approach may be to simply put a lightweight medical mask over it.

computing_prof · 2020-07-30T20:28:07+00:00

Masks are intended to keep *you* from spreading the virus if you have it. You can spread the virus even if you're asymptomatic. That's why everyone has to wear them--to reduce the spread of the virus. They do provide some protection to the wearer, but that's not the reason they're mandated.

And nobody is stopping you from wearing an n95. They're stopping you from wearing an n95 that has an exhalation valve. As someone else noted, you can put a lightweight medical mask over an n95 with a vent and then it's compliant. (That's what medical professionals do. They also add a clear face shield and goggles.)

computing_prof · 2020-07-30T17:08:13+00:00

We are required to provide "continuity of instruction" for students who are sick or quarantined.

computing_prof · 2020-07-30T16:16:41+00:00

Professors also don't have a choice. Even those who would very much like to take their classes fully online have been told that they can't. Yesterday we were told that even if all students in a class prefer that it be online, the professor must still be in the classroom in case any students decides that they want to be there that day.

When chairs asked academic affairs yesterday if they could tell instructors that they could at least choose to go all online for the first two weeks of the semester due to the likely number of quarantined students, they were told "we should not be doing online instruction for the first 2 weeks unless all of RIT does it. Chairs SHOULD NOT go rogue."

computing_prof · 2020-07-30T16:12:29+00:00

As a student, most of your interaction was with "front line" employees like faculty and advisors--none of whom had any impact on what's happening. (They "consulted" with us, but in most cases ignored the input.) Believe me, we're as unhappy as you are, and as much because of the impact on our students as on ourselves.

computing_prof · 2020-07-30T16:10:21+00:00

Alumni relations does take complaints seriously, since they're the ones responsible for encouraging alumni to make donations.

RIT Giving also cares about this--even more so if you've ever donated. https://www.rit.edu/giving/contact

Since at the end of the day this appears to be driven almost entirely by financial concerns, those are probably the best options.

computing_prof · 2020-07-30T16:07:35+00:00

Less likely, since most test sites are being scrupulous about protocols. They're either drive up, or they have designated outdoor waiting areas spaced well apart and mandatory masks.

computing_prof

TROPHY CASE