Motion US04/05-6 – Proposal to
Modify Procedures for Processing
Y Grade Changes
Sponsored
by: Scholastic
Review Committee, Shelly Kerr, Chair
Approved
by: Undergraduate
Council on April 13, 2005
For
senate action: May
11, 2005
Moved
that,
Requests
for any grade changes involving the “Y” mark must include a letter
of explanation to the University Registrar who approves, denies, or determines
alternative appropriate action for the request.
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Background to the Motion
In
1970, the University
of Oregon faculty
approved a grading scheme that eliminated the grades of D and F and substituted
the mark of Y, meaning no basis for grade.
Since that time, the D and F grades have been reinstated, but the Y
remains. Over time, the Y has been
used to indicate that the student registered incorrectly and did not attend
class so there was no basis for evaluation. The University of Oregon
is one of the few campuses in the country that use this mark, so there is not a
ready understanding of the mark’s meaning by transcript readers. In an effort to alleviate the confusion,
a proposal was first made to eliminate the Y grade and institute a more
commonly found mark of NC, meaning “no credit.” Both the Undergraduate Council and
Graduate Council discussed the proposed elimination of the Y grade and new NC
mark. The Graduate Council was in favor of eliminating the Y mark, but the
Undergraduate Council felt use of NC had too negative a connotation on a
transcript. The Undergraduate
Council therefore recommended retaining the Y mark, but having subsequent
changes to the Y grade go through the Registrar for approval. An example of an approved request would
involve processing a retroactive drop/add petition, switching the student to
the correct class section, and subsequent submission of an earned grade.