Resources for Faculty

Adequate attendance recordkeeping requires all instructors to confirm their class lists, record attendance each class, and identify and report absences when necessary.

Confirming Class Lists

• Within a week after the end of the drop/add period, instructors should review the Registrar’s class roster and notify the Registrar if there are any errors in the roster.

Recording Attendance

• College of Law instructors should record student attendance during every class period.
• Instructors may use any method that creates a written or electronic record of student attendance. For example, the instructor may circulate a class roster for students to sign, post a sign-in sheet by the door, call roll, or record absences on a seating chart.
• Promptly after each class, instructors should review their records to identify students who missed class.
• Instructors should keep a record of student communications about absences, such as the reason for absences and expected returns from lengthy absences.
• Instructors will keep their own attendance records. On request, faculty administrative assistants will help with record keeping for classes with large enrollments.
• When submitting grades at the end of each semester, instructors will be asked to confirm that they made a good faith effort to record attendance.
• Instructors should retain attendance records for three years after the end of the semester. Instructors may keep their own records or keep them with the Registrar, at the instructor’s option.

Reporting Absences

• If a student misses class for more than one week, the instructor must promptly notify the Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs, Student Affairs and Diversity unless the student has communicated to the instructor a plan to return. For example, if a student misses two consecutive sessions of a class that meets once a week, or misses three consecutive sessions of a class that meets twice a week, and the student has not communicated an intent to return, the instructor should notify the Assistant Dean immediately.
• If a student misses class for more than a week but has communicated an intent to return, the instructor should keep a record of that communication.
• The Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs, Student Affairs and Diversity or the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs will follow up as necessary to facilitate compliance with University requirements. 
  

Standard 404(a) of the ABA Standards for Legal Education identifies these core responsibilities of law school faculty:

1. Teaching, preparing for classes, being available for student consultation about those classes, assessing student performance in those classes, and remaining current in the subjects being taught;
2. Participating in academic advising, creating an atmosphere in which students and faculty may voice opinions and exchange ideas, and assessing student learning at the law school;
3. Engaging in scholarship, as defined by the law school;
4. Service to the law school and university community, including participation in the governance of the law school, curriculum development, and other institutional responsibilities described in the Standards;
5. Service to the profession, including working with judges and practicing lawyers to improve the profession; and
6. Service to the public, including participation in pro bono activities.

 The University of Cincinnati College of Law embraces and strives to exceed these expectations.  

The College of Law Faculty adopted the following policies at their February 2016 meeting:

• All faculty should provide learning outcomes in their syllabi.
• All faculty must provide syllabi to be published on the UC Law website.
• The College strongly encourages professors to use formative assessment in their courses.

The College of Law provides two types of listservs for the benefit of its faculty, students, and staff, namely, moderated listservs and unmoderated listservs.

Moderated Listservs

Members of the College of Law community are automatically subscribed to one or more moderated listserv based on their relationship to the College.

College of Law administration, faculty, and student organizations established by the College directly or through the Student Bar Association may, upon approval of the List Moderator, post to moderated listservs announcements that are pertinent to the business of the College of Law. Moderated listservs are not forums for debate, discussion or the exchange of ideas.

Notices of meetings, events, or activities that student organizations sponsor shall be made through the weekly e-mail newsletter sent through the Office of Student Affairs. These will also be posted on the student intranet’s events calendar (access for law students, faculty, and staff only) so that students can easily locate information pertaining to these meetings, events, or activities. Student organizations should also make use of their own internal distribution lists to advertise their events, meetings, and activities.

Student organizations may use the moderated listservs to post an initial introductory e-mail inviting students to join their organization at the start of each fall semester, and an additional email to announce the upcoming election of their officers in the spring semester.

The List Moderator shall determine whether a submission is appropriate for the list based on the aforementioned criteria.

Requests for reconsideration of rejected submissions shall be made first to the List Moderator by e-mail. Upon request, a review of the List Moderator's second rejection may be made to the Director of the Law Library and Information Technology, whose determination is final.

Unmoderated Listservs

Unmoderated listservs offer forums for discussion and exchange of views, as well as outlets for postings that fall outside the parameters of the moderated listservs.

Members of the College of Law community who wish to participate in an unmoderated listserv must affirmatively subscribe to it, and may unsubscribe at any time. Subscriptions may also be controlled by the list owner.

Only subscribers may post to unmoderated listservs.

Conduct of subscribers who use the unmoderated listservs is governed by applicable University rules, policies and codes of conduct. Complaints of unmoderated listserv abuse should be directed to the appropriate University or College of Law administrator.

Access to College of Law Listservs

The use of moderated and unmoderated listservs provided by the College of Law is a privilege extended to faculty, administrative staff and students of the College. The College of Law reserves the right, pursuant to University and College guidelines, to unsubscribe individuals who abuse this privilege. The College of Law further reserves the right to discontinue any listserv at any time without notice.