INTEGRITY

FINAL PROJECTS – EVERYONE MUST BE PRESENT

SPRING FINAL EXAMS SCHEDULE / FALL FINAL EXAMS SCHEDULE

FMX GRADING TABLE

A	4.0	100 – 95	Outstanding
AB	3.5	94 – 89	Excellent
B	3.0	88 – 84	Very Good
BC	2.5	83 – 77	Good
C	2.0	76 – 72	Average
CD	1.5	71 – 66	Below Average
D	1.0	65 – 60	Passing
F	0.0	59 – 00	Failure

• NF Failure (Three absences may result in a grade of NF)
• I Incomplete (Generally not given. These must be negotiated, students must already be in good standing, and must be due to extreme medical or family emergency that comes up.)
• S Satisfactory
• U Unsatisfactory

CASS Labs Physical address
In case of an emergency, use this address for the Cass Labs
611 UT University Drive, Tampa FL 33606

Copyright
All the text/images/audio/video/CODE clips you will use in any of your projects will have to be credited correctly. EVERY single text/image/video/audio/CODE you use should be yours and/or copyright free. If you use the code from somebody else, it needs to be recontextualized according to your needs with sufficient differences between the source and your application.
There are sites such as archive.org that provide copyright free material. If you ever use their material you MUST give proper credit.

Academic Integrity
Cheating, plagiarism, copying and any other behavior that is contrary to University standards of behavior will not be tolerated.
Students caught violating any aspect of the University of Tampa’s Academic Integrity Policy will be penalized in all cases. Penalty ranges from “0” on an assignment to “F” for the course without regard to a student’s accumulated points. Students may also face expulsion. It is the student’s responsibility to become familiar with the policies of the university regarding academic integrity and to avoid violating such policies. Policy information is found at Academic Integrity Policy

I take integrity very seriously, including academic integrity. I will monitor all submissions and exams for violations of the academic integrity policy. Students are held responsible for knowing and observing the University’s Academic Integrity Policy posted at: http://www.ut.edu/provost. If you have any questions about the policy, please feel free to talk with me.

Under no circumstances are you to provide an electronic copy of your work to another student. This includes allowing them access to your computer where they may access the file on their own without your consent! It is your responsibility to protect the integrity of your work. All parties involved will be reported to the Dean of Students.

Do NOT provide students in the other section, in case there are multiple sections of a class, with information regarding class discussion or “answers” to class preparation assignments. This hinders their ability to learn the material and is considered a violation of the academic integrity policy. This violation would be considered a “Class preparation assignment” violation and would receive the sanction detailed below.

You must properly document all sources used both in bibliographic format and through proper citation within the text itself. Failure to provide proper citations within the text of any assignment that you submit is plagiarism and will be reported. This DOES NOT JUST APPLY to research papers. It also means that you need to identify where data was obtained when it is presented.

The University has a subscription to turnitin.com plagiarism prevention software. This software compares documents to web resources as well as papers that have been submitted to Turnitin from any institution. I will evaluate each document for plagiarism before I grade it using the information from turnitin.com, along with my own examination of each document.

The sanctions within a course are determined by the instructor.

I have established the following sanctions for this course:

Project / Exam / Presentation / Other:
F AS A FINAL GRADE IN THE CLASS

ALL academic violations will be reported and sanctioned

You may not retake a course under forgiveness if you have an academic integrity violation in the course.

Once an official violation accusation has been made, the student may not withdraw from the class or from the University until the accusation is resolved. The Office of the Associate Provost must notify the Registrar and/or the appropriate degree program director that the student cannot drop the class or withdraw from the University.

If the student is found not responsible, the student will be given a letter acknowledging that the student was not responsible for the alleged violation and the student may choose to withdraw from the course or from the University. If the published withdraw date has passed, the action of the Committee shall supersede the published drop date so the student will still have the opportunity to withdraw without any penalties.” If the student is found responsible for the academic integrity violation by the instructor or upon appeal found responsible by the Office of the Associate Provost or Academic Integrity Hearing Committee, the sanction will be imposed and the student may not withdraw from the course.

Participation

A class is a multiway form of communication. I am very open to a lot of proposals, and NO DISCRIMINATION will be tolerated or accepted. Consider the class as a brainstorming session. And please contact me during office hours, or send me an email so we can solve any problem before the class.

No animals, persons or yourselves will be harmed during the production of your assignments. Nothing can justify harming physically or psychologically a living creature – including yourselves. You are responsible for the respect of other students, and I count on your integrity for this.No email, chatting, messaging, texting, facebook, web-browsing OF ANY KIND will be allowed during our sessions. You are paying way too much money to do these personal matters in class, therefore NO LAPTOPS are allowed in the class. Take notes in paper! All the cell phones should be TURNED OFF during the duration of the class. NO EATING or DRINKING in the classroom will be tolerated, unless it is required by a medical prescription.

Any type of intoxication – drugs, alcohol or even a hangover – will be reported to the authorities.My role in your academic experience is to be your coach or trainer: I guide you, point you in the right direction, knowing that you are the ones who do all the work. I expect you to assume an active role in your learning process.

Course Surveys

All students are expected to complete the course surveys at the end of the semester. No excuses!

Attendance is mandatory

Media theory, practice and history courses are performance-based classes, and interaction with peers and the professor cannot be duplicated outside of class. Regular class participation and continuous faculty evaluation are crucial elements of the learning process. One cannot participate, or receive feedback on one’s work, if one is absent. Attendance is mandatory. If you are absent, it is your responsibility to acquire any material that you have missed, not the professor’s responsibility. An absence is an absence; there are no “excused” and “unexcused” absences. Coming to class late (after roll call), leaving early, failing to be prepared for class, or failing to fully participate in class, will count as an absence.

I really consider that participation, punctuality and attendance are the most important parts of a class. If you miss a class, you will never be able to experience that class again. I use the word “experience” because not all the information given during the class can be put in paper, or even videotaped. Classes are a question of communication, and communication implies many different ways of exchanging information, the feeling, the laughter, the collective experience… It is your responsibility to initiate and maintain communication with me in case of an unusual circumstance.If you were not able to do your homework, please do not miss a class! Never miss a class and be responsible for your actions.

If you are absent the day a project is due and you have not posted your homework on Blackboard, your blog, your site, via Email or sent me the homework with a classmate, you will get an F on that project.

Depending on the circumstances – a medical excuse, an emergency for example – I will grade a late project over the minimum grade I awarded to the projects that were presented on time, only if you are present in the classroom when the project is due. The longer you take to present your project, the worse the grade.

Do not miss a class even if you consider the topic of that particular class to be shocking to you for any personal reason. If you do not experience the subject matter presented in the context of the class your perception of this subject matter will be completely distorted and disconnected from the flow of the class. The syllabus is structured to follow a specific order, if you miss one contextualized explanation, you may miss an essential component of the class. If you still consider the subject matter is shocking to you, START A CLASS DISCUSSION during the presentation, and let everybody know the reasons why you consider the subject matter to be objectionable, so that we can all benefit from this discussion as a group. This is a University, and the discussions of each topic are expected to be treated in a mature and adult level.

The links/materials/movies I provide in the syllabus cannot be used outside the context of the class and they cannot replace the content of a specific class.

If an absence qualifies as an excused absence (see UT’s general attendance policy), the instructor will accommodate the excused absences in a fair manner. Any work missed MUST be made up in a timely manner; arranging to replace missed work is the responsibility of the student. Students must give notification to their instructors of excused absences in advance as soon as they are aware of it and documentation is REQUIRED. Failure to provide notification in advance can result in an UNEXCUSED absence. Employment schedules, athletic conditioning and practice schedules and personal appointments are NOT valid reasons for scheduled absences. Making up work for UNEXCUSED absences may be allowed or declined entirely at the discretion of the instructor. Extended illnesses may interfere with the successful completion of courses, and in such cases a student may want to withdraw from the course.

FMX Attendance Policy

The FMX Department follows the UT Attendance Policy that excuses absence for a variety of reasons stated below in the policy. All unexcused absences credit adversely against the course grade, by one half-letter grade for classes that meet twice per week, and one full letter grade for classes that meet once per week. Lateness, leaving early, and late returns from breaks, may also count as absence. Please be prompt to class and plan to attend all sessions.

UT Attendance Policy Excused Absences

There are two categories of excused absences for which accommodations will be made by the faculty: scheduled and unscheduled.
Scheduled absences involve time conflicts that are known in advance, for which students have notified their instructors. Acceptable reasons for scheduled absences include:Court-imposed legal obligations (e.g., jury duty and subpoenas)Medical illnessRequired participation in University-sponsored events (e.g., performances, athletic events, academic research presentations)Observation of religious holydays, requirements of military service. ..)

Employment schedules, athletic training and practice schedules, and personal appointments are not valid reasons for scheduled absences.

Unscheduled absences involve unforeseen emergencies such as illness, injury, hospitalization, deaths in the immediate family, consequences of severe weather, and other crises. Students should contact instructors as soon as possible in these cases. Instructors may require documentation or verification to excuse unscheduled absences.

Procedures for Excused Absences and Make-up Work

Students must notify their instructors of scheduled absences in advance (for approved reasons as noted above). In the event of an emergency unscheduled absence (as described above), students must contact their instructors as soon as possible and provide documentation if required.

If an absence qualifies as an excused absence as defined above, the instructor will accommodate the excused absences in a manner that does not penalize the student for the absence. Instructors will provide a reasonable opportunity to make up missed work; however, arranging to make up missed work is the responsibility of the student.

If an excused absence coincides with other graded work (e.g., homework collection, in-class activities, quizzes, presentations, activities, etc.), the student shall be given a reasonable opportunity to make up such work or shall not have that work averaged into the student’s grade, at the discretion of the instructor provided it is not identical to the course’s stated accommodation for an unexcused absence. An instructor may determine that missing a certain amount of participation-dependent activities (whether excused or not) precludes successful accomplishment of learning outcomes. In cases like this, the instructor may advise students to withdraw from such courses.
Making up work for unexcused absences may be allowed or declined entirely at the discretion of the instructor.

Documentation includes hospital admittance invoices, published obituaries, airline tickets, etc. (not notes from home). It is advised that if emergencies come up that this is properly documented through the dean of students’ office so that the dean may notify all faculty involved. Documentation must be given within one week of the illness or emergency. Please contact the professor in advance of any absence or lateness by email.

Court Imposed Legal Obligations

The University respects the need for all citizens to serve on a jury when called to duty. If a student serves as a juror, class absences will be considered excused when the student provides advance notice to the instructor, the instructor acknowledges the request and the student provides written verification of jury selection and proof of service.

Any potential student juror may notify the court of conflicts or undue hardship and request an excuse from service. The individual student must make the decision as to whether jury service will present an undue hardship and then take the affirmative action to request to be excused from service, and may need to provide a written explanation to the court. If a student does not request to be excused and is selected to serve, the student may miss a prolonged period of time resulting in the inability to complete the academic requirements of classes.

Documented Medical Attention for Illness

Students are excused for absences due to documented illnesses or injury that require medical attention. Documentation must be provided from a licensed health care provider and clearly indicate that the student is unable to attend class. While students should not attend class with infectious conditions, even if medical attention is not sought, the decision to excuse absences from undocumented illnesses is at the discretion of the individual instructor. Extended illnesses may interfere with the successful completion of courses, and in such cases a student may want to withdraw from the course. After the withdrawal deadline, students may submit an academic petition with proper documentation to withdraw from courses.

Documented University Sponsored Activities

The University recognizes the importance of participation in University-sponsored activities such as musical and theatrical performances, athletic competitions and research presentations. It also recognizes that such participation may result in conflicts with scheduled class times. It is the responsibility of participating students to provide a full list of anticipated conflicting days to instructors by the end of the first week of the term, and directors and advisers of University activity programs have an obligation to assist students with this task. Students are responsible for identifying potential absences specific to a particular class and notifying individual instructors of these conflicts. Please note that a general schedule for a team or ensemble does not satisfy this notification requirement. Students should provide instructors with addenda (e.g., end-of-season tournaments, newly scheduled events or rescheduled events) that result in new conflicts as soon as they are available. Directors and advisers of University activity programs should consult with participating students prior to registration to help them choose courses that do not have excessive anticipated conflicts.

Notification of Observed Religious Days

Care will be given to schedule required classes and examinations in view of customarily observed religious holy days. Students must provide written notice to their instructors at the beginning of each academic term if they expect to be absent from a class or a scheduled examination for the observance of religious holy days. No student shall be compelled to attend class or sit for an examination at a day or time when such activity is prohibited by his or her religious belief, as long as the student has provided timely notice.

Any student who believes he or she has been treated unfairly with regard to the above may seek review beginning with the department chair, and if no resolution is reached, with the dean of the college.

Security

Make sure you are signed up for text alerts through the SMART system.

The first order of safety is to know where you are at all times: street addresses, and classroom numbers are important. Please keep the PDF List Campus addresses in an available place on your smartphone so you can bring this up in the event of an emergency.
In the event of an accident or incident occurs within your classroom, please contact the following in the order listed:

1. Call 911
It is left to the instructor’s best judgment as to when emergency response is needed. When in doubt, CALL 911. You will never be penalized for making the call even if it turns out it was not a necessity.

The Communication Cass Building is located in the Cass Building at 611 UT University Drive, Tampa, Florida 33606. Know your classroom numbers. The Communication Cass Building room numbers are notated with (CCB)

Call Campus Safety
813-257-7777

Be prepared with your building name and room number, located above the emergency phone in each classroom. Campus safety can coordinate any additional response needed.

Call UT Health and Wellness Center
813-253-6250
111 North Brevard Ave. (behind Austin Hall)
Should any party involved in an accident need medical attention for non-life threatening injuries, the Health and Wellness Center can provide medical treatment.

Warren Cockerham (Media Production Coordinator)
Office: 257-7811

In addition to contacting the above, the instructor and person(s) involved in any accident must also fill out an Accident / Incident Investigation Report. These forms are available from the FMX Staff Assistant, and Michael Ingold. Again, it is left to the instructor’s best judgment as to when a report needs to be filed.

First Aid Kits are located in the Equipment Cage and Black Box Studio. Please use them as needed. If you notice that supplies are low in a first aid kit please contact Warren Cockerham, to let him know.

In the event of an intruder comes in to the classroom:

If an incident should occur, faculty and staff should remember that the University subscribes to the city of Houston’s “Run, Hide, Fight” training: Run to a safe place. If that is not possible, find a place to hide. If there is no other option, fight the attacker aggressively with whatever weapons are available (a pencil or hot coffee, for example).

Production Safety and Class Attire

Follow Production Safety from Handout Provided on Blackboard. This includes wearing closed rubber sole shoes during production shoots.

Complete safety training and sign off on forms prior to booking in UT.Siso.co for facilities access to Black Box.

RESPONSIBILITY, SAFETY AND LEGAL ASPECTS:

When shooting your film you must observe UT policies, and follow the law, to keep everyone safe. This includes following individual rights to their image and obtaining releases, location permitting, animal treatment laws, weapons policies and laws, and more. Please avoid plots that involve weapons in class projects senior thesis films. Generally, these plots are cliché anyway, and graduate schools, such as USC have advised students not to submit this type of work for consideration. They have stated that the work with shot ‘em ups, etc., is cliché and they are looking for more meaningful, and socially responsible work. In addition, the University Campus has strict regulations regarding concealed weapons, real or prop, and violating these regulations, may lead to expulsion from the university. Let’s also remember that Bruce Lee’s son died during a movie shoot that involved the use of a blank gun. In prior classes, Campus Safety drew their weapons on students during a film shoot, when prop- guns were in use. Therefore, it is a strict policy for this course that any use of weapons including prop weapons, or things that resemble weapons in projects Experimental Films and films is prohibited from this course. If any student is are planning to use weapons in their film, off campus, they must reveal this to the professor in advance of any shoot, by document, or potentially jeopardize successful completion of the course. Since, here are other regulations and laws that are involved in this type of shoot, and therefore, the filming with weapons on or off campus, is not in-line with course objectives.
http://articles.latimes.com/1993-04-01/news/mn-17681_1_actor-brandon-lee

WEAPONS AND FIREWORKS

No student or guest, while on any property owned or controlled by The University of Tampa, shall possess, store or carry a weapon or firearm on their person or in any motor vehicle.

Exemptions:
Chemical agents are permitted, but may be used only as a defensive weapon.
Certified law enforcement officers may wear a service firearm in accordance with their department policy and federal, state and local laws.

UT Campus Safety officers.

Reserve Officer Training Corps or University recognized ROTC drill team members, to the extent they are legally permitted to possess firearms or weapons, may do so when training or performing official duties.

Reporting Violations:

Potential or suspected weapons policy violations should be reported immediately to Campus Safety officials. Nonemergency reports may be submitted via the silent witness program at www.ut.edu/silentwitness orsilentwitness@ut.edu.
Individuals violating the weapons policy or making a false report of any kind, with the intent to deceive, mislead or otherwise misinform, may result in University disciplinary action and/or criminal prosecution.

Enforcement:

University officials will seize any unauthorized firearms or weapons. Seized items may be secured in the Campus Safety office or turned over to the appropriate law enforcement agency. If the owner is legally permitted to possess the firearm or weapon, and it is returned, it must immediately be taken off campus.

Definitions/Clarifications:

F irearms: Any pistol, rifle, antique firearm, starter pistol, BB gun, paintball gun, simulated firearm toy gun, or any item that is designed in appearance to resemble a firearm. Concealed Carry Weapons Permit (CCW) holders are not exempt.
Weapons: Knives used to invoke fear or intimidation, brass knuckles, swords, slingshots or any item than may cause bodily injury or harm. Electrical Weapons: Any non-lethal device that is designed to deliver an electrical current whether by impact and/or by the firing of a dart or projectile that, upon contact, will deliver a specified electrical current to its target. Ammunition: Any item designed to be fired from a firearm or device for the purpose of propelling a projectile. Chemical Weapons: Any device that has the ability to disperse a chemical agent, either through aerosol or foam spray, is permitted as long as it complies with Florida Law (790.001 (b) FSS) in its size, chemical solution and delivery mechanism. Fireworks or Other Explosives: Any material that will render an explosion. Firearms and Weapons Possession: The University considers persons in possession of firearms or weapons if such items are in a residence hall room, vehicle or common space.