Mar 19, 2024  
2020-2021 Catalog 
    
2020-2021 Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Academic Policies



Students are expected to comply with all college policies and procedures at all times. Standards of conduct and rules and regulations are set forth primarily in this Catalog, the Student Handbook, and the Residence Hall Handbook. Students are expected to read all pertinent materials so that they may make informed choices about their actions. Ignorance of policies is not an acceptable excuse for violating them.

Academic Renewal

Academic Renewal allows for a one-time request to exclude up to 15 semester hour credits for the calculation of the cumulative GPA. Courses and grades approved for Academic Renewal remain on the transcript but are excluded from the GPA calculations. Academic Renewal Applies to F grades only.

Information regarding Academic Renewals:

  • A maximum of 15 credits can be excluded from the GPA.
  • Students can only apply for Academic Renewal once, and it is not reversible.
  • Some academic departments do not accept Academic Renewal when making admissions decisions.
  • If planning to transfer to another institution, be aware that many schools will recalculate a student’s GPA to account for all classes taken at previous institutions.
  • The approval of an Academic Renewal does not remove courses from the official transcripts. Credits are counted as attempted for financial aid grant and loan limits, Veteran Affairs benefits, and other agencies that limit credits attempted.
  • In accordance with Department of Education regulations, all CMC attempted coursework is included to determine Financial Aid eligibility and the determination of Satisfactory Academic Progress. Federal Student Aid program regulations make no provisions for the concept of academic amnesty or academic renewal.

To request Academic Renewal, students must meet the following criteria must meet with an Academic Advisor or College Counselor and prior to submitting the Academic Renewal Request form.

  1. Students must be enrolled and have completed at least six (6) credit hours in a single semester at CMC, with a 2.0 term GPA in that semester.
  2. Students must wait a minimum of two (2) academic years from the last term being considered for Academic Renewal.

Again, students applying for academic renewal are responsible for investigating the impact of this process on their admissions at transfer institutions, financial aid grant and loan limits, Veterans Affairs benefits, and other agencies that limit credits attempted.

Academic Expectations

In order to encourage and foster academic excellence, the college expects students to conduct themselves in accordance with generally accepted norms of scholarship and professional behavior. Because of this expectation, the college does not condone any form of academic misconduct. Academic misconduct includes but is not limited to plagiarism, cheating, fabrication, and knowingly or recklessly encouraging or making possible any act of plagiarism, cheating or fabrication. For more detailed information, please see the Student Handbook.

Colorado Mountain College maintains high standards of academic behavior. All members of the Colorado Mountain College community are expected to exhibit honesty in their academic work. Students have a responsibility to familiarize themselves with and make use of proper procedures for writing papers, taking examinations, and doing research. The principle of academic honesty applies to all student work, including papers, reports, computer work, quizzes, and examinations. Colorado Mountain College reserves the right to suspend or dismiss a student whose conduct is found to be in conflict with the principle of academic honesty.

Academic Standing

Each semester, the Registrar reviews the academic performance of students. This review determines the students’ academic standing. The following sections describe the criteria used to determine academic standing. Students are notified via their CMC email of their academic standing.

Academic Probation

Students who have attempted 9 or more credit hours at Colorado Mountain College (“AW” Administrative Withdrawal is, for this purpose, included as attempted) and who have earned a cumulative grade point average of 1.0 to 1.99 are placed on Academic Probation. Probationary status remains for the next semester of enrollment.

Students who are placed on Academic Probation have one semester of enrollment to bring their cumulative grade point average up to at least 2.0. If, at the end of the next term of enrollment, the students’ cumulative grade point average is not 2.0 or better, they will be placed on Academic Suspension.

Academic Suspension

Students who have attempted 9 or more hours at Colorado Mountain College (“AW” Administrative Withdrawal is, for this purpose, included as attempted) and earned a cumulative grade point average of less than 1.0 will be placed on Academic Suspension.

Students placed on Academic Suspension have a right to appeal the suspension. Please contact your College Counselor for instructions related to the appeal. Usually, suspensions remain in place for at least one semester. Students suspended for academic reasons must, even after one semester, appeal in writing for reinstatement.

Dean’s Honors List

Students with a declared program intent and who have earned six credit hours or more of evaluative grades (“A” through “F” not including “P” in college-level courses numbered 100 to 499) in the semester under review, and have earned a term grade point average of 3.5 to 3.99, are admitted to the Dean’s Honors List.

President’s Honors List

Students with a declared program intent and who have earned six credit hours or more of evaluative grades (“A” through “F” not including “P” in college-level courses numbered 100 to 499) in the semester under review, and have earned a term grade point average of 4.0, are admitted to the President’s Honors List.

Continuous Enrollment and Catalog in Force Requirement

Continuous enrollment is defined as the successful completion at Colorado Mountain College of at least three credit hours, which are applicable to the program requirements, within the previous three semesters including the summer semester.

The catalog in force determines the program requirements for your degree program. The catalog in force requirement and continuous enrollment requirement are based on the Colorado Mountain College academic year, which starts in the fall, and runs through spring and summer semesters.

Students who do not maintain continuous enrollment lose the right to use the original catalog in force requirements, and must use the catalog at the time of re-enrollment.

Students also have the option of selecting the catalog that is in force at the time they apply for graduation, or a catalog between these years.

Please contact the Colorado Mountain College Registrar Office with any questions concerning the catalog in force/catalog of record policy at registrar@coloradomtn.edu.

Incomplete Agreement

The Incomplete grade is a temporary grade, agreed upon by the instructor, indicating that the student has a satisfactory record of work completed, but for exceptional reasons, was unable to complete final assignments due to unexpected events. Unexpected events may include but are not limited to: illness/hospitalization, military deployment, or death of an immediate family member.

If circumstances beyond your control at or near the end of the semester prevent you from completing the course, consult your instructor immediately. The student is responsible for initiating the request for an “Incomplete” grade from the instructor. The instructor will determine whether you have a reasonable chance of satisfactorily completing the remaining activities.

In order to be eligible for an Incomplete, the student must have completed a majority of the course work (75% of the total course made up of assignments, tests, papers, lab work, outdoor field experience, etc.) in a satisfactory manner (C grade, 70% or better).

The student must also provide documentation indicating why they were unable to complete their course work within the semester.

  • The instructor will provide evidence to their instructional supervisor that the student has completed 75% of the total semester course work at a C level (70%) or higher.
  • The instructor may allow the student a maximum of one additional semester (not including summer) to complete the course objectives. Examples of allowable time frames are from the spring semester until the end of fall semester in the same calendar year, or from the fall semester until the end of the following spring semester.
  • An Incomplete Agreement must be submitted on or before the current semester’s grade deadline as published in the Academic Calendar.
  • A description of the work that needs to be completed in the allotted time is required on the Incomplete Agreement form.
  • An academic dean or Assistant Dean of Instruction is also required to sign the Incomplete Agreement.
  • Both the instructor and the student must acknowledge this written contract and keep a copy of the Incomplete Agreement.

NOTE: You are encouraged to let the instructor know as soon as possible if you are having difficulties with any part of the course. Incomplete grades are granted at the discretion of the instructor, and are not automatic. The instructor’s decision to authorize or not authorize an incomplete grade is final. At no time will the Incomplete grade be used as entrance into another current or future course section. Work must be completed in sufficient time for the grade change form to be received by the Registrar’s Office prior to the end of the semester date published in the catalog. Incomplete grades not changed by the end of the semester automatically become failing grades (F).

Grade Appeal

Evaluating student academic performance and assigning grades is one of the main professional responsibilities of the faculty. The student may, however, appeal an assigned grade if he/she has evidence indicating the grade was awarded in a capricious manner. Capricious grading is defined as one or both of the following:

  • The faculty member used criteria other than performance in the course.
  • The standards used to assign the final grade deviated substantially from the standards announced and/or were not uniformly applied to others in the class.

Please note that simple disagreement with the subjective judgment of the instructor does not support a charge of capriciousness.

Students wishing to appeal a grade must first discuss the grade assignment with the instructor. If the matter is not resolved, students may submit a Grade Appeal Request. This notice of appeal must be received within 30 days after the first day of classes for the following term.