Start of Semester

Unless there is a standard course syllabus it is part of your responsibility to develop a syllabus for the course you are teaching. If you are new to the program, it is often useful to see a syllabus for the course when it was most recently taught as well as a course description or outline and to have an understanding of the course’s purpose and objectives within the curriculum. 

If you would like a syllabus template we ask that you please use simple syllabus (see below.) For a list of all required portions of your syllabus please also see simple syllabus. 

Copies of past syllabus are available through your program assistant. 

All faculty are required by their CBA to forward a copy of your syllabus to the school by the first day of class. If you are using simple syllabus you need not forward anything it will be downloaded. However, if you choose not to use simple syllabus you must email a copy to somsubmission@usfca.edu .

Simple Syllabus

The School of Management requires all adjunct faculty to use simple syllabus and suggests that all fulltime faculty use it as well, 

The tool can be found here.

 Simple Syllabus is the online platform that enables instructors to create an easy-to-manage, interactive syllabi for their courses at USF.

What are the benefits of using Simple Syllabus?

Integrates into your Canvas course

Provides templates that are visually appealing, easy to use, and have a consistent look and feel

The standardized look and feel can more easily help students find the information they are looking for

University policies will be automatically populated into your course syllabus

Templates can be customized for specific program or departmental academic policies and guidelines

Provides an interactive navigation menu so that students can more easily locate course information and specific sections in a syllabus

Instructors can see which students have viewed the course syllabus and how often they viewed it

Centralized repository for storing and sharing course syllabi

Students can use a personalized dashboard to view all of their course syllabi and materials list in one place

Demonstrates support of USF’s Go-Green (paperless) initiative

Designed to meet accessibility standards outlined as part of Section 508 so that all students have an equal opportunity to learn

Incorporated into the Canvas Dons Template

Syllabi can be downloaded as PDF document

Syllabi can be copied into future semesters, as needed

Canvas is a powerful course-authoring tool that allows you to extend the classroom or create a totally online learning environment. The features include threaded discussion forums, tools for submission of student assignments , document sharing, and e-mail messaging.

While many instructors use Canvas’s Grade Center to track student performance, please note that grading records kept in Canvas are not connected to the student’s records. Please remember that to enter an official transcript grade; all grading is done in Self-Service Banner (SSB) via MyUSF, which will immediately show grades in the student’s USF records.

Please navigate to the Canvas Wiki or ITS (below) for more information or training. Canvas is best used with Chrome, Firefox or Safari.

Training

In order to transition to Canvas you must attend a training to become familiar with Canvas, or make an appointment with a CIT Instructional Designer for an individual consultation. To learn more, please read navigate to the Canvas page. For a tutorial on editing your canvas profile, please follow this link.

Access

You can access Canvas via your MyUSF account 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Once logged into MyUSF clock on the Learning Technologies tab, and then the Login button for Canvas. If you need support please email its@usfca.edu.

Per our University Registrar both federal and  Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) definition of credit hour, which USF follows, is that for each unit of credit, there should be approximately one hour (50 minutes) of in-class instruction (seat time) and two hours of out-of-class preparation (homework, readings, assignments, etc.) by the student, each week in a designated semester or term. 

Concerning break time, a 4-unit course in the fall or spring, meeting once per week for 15 weeks, is scheduled for 220 minutes each week - i.e. 200 minutes of instruction (seat time) plus 20 minutes for break.  When that break occurs during class is up to the faculty member. 

Office Hours

Faculty are expected to keep regular office hours on a schedule approved by the Dean. Office hour expectations are a minimum of 15 minutes per week per unit of teaching, which equates to at least one hour per week for a 4-unit course. 

Office hours are to be included on your course syllabus, as well as information about where and when you can be reached (telephone numbers, email address, etc) as well as published on the USF internal website. You need to let students know as far in advance as possible if office hours are canceled.

Please note that office hours are considered part of the normal duties of being an instructor at USF and thus there is no additional compensation for holding office hours.

Office Supplies

We keep a supply of popular office materials available on hand.  Please feel free to drop by and pick up anything you need. If there is something you need that we do not have on hand please reach out to Regina S Maniti <rsmaniti@usfca.edu> who can order it for you. Note, that it will take a little over a week for the supplies to arrive, so please plan accordingly. 

Supply Locations

Hilltop:

Malloy Hall 241 Adjunct office  - in the long cream drawers in the back of the room; the 3 drawers on the far left side have supplies

Downtown:

Copy/Mail Room

SWAG & Gifts

If you need to order SWAG or a gift please reach out to the Associate Dean of the proper academic unit. If you need just a small item you can reach out to Regina Maniti <rsmaniti@usfca.edu>. Give her one week advance notice to prepare the item. It will be available for pickup from Malloy Hall or the Downtown Campus at an arranged time.  

Printing and copies are expensive and hard on the environment. Before starting on a print project please consider if the information can be distributed electronically or by some other means.

Where can I print to?

There are printers throughout all campuses.  Please contact Regina Maniti rsmaniti@usfca.edu to assist with setting up your account. All network printers operate using Sharp Business Systems, which means that a USF ID card or a copy card will be required to copy/print/scan. 

For assistance with downloading print drivers please contact itshelp@usfca.edu or visit this page for instructions.

For any large printing projects please follow the instructions below, or speak with Regina Maniti (rsmaniti@usfca.edu) .  

Faculty teaching schedules can be found in MyUSF by logging in and going to your dashboard:

Clicking on the “all apps” link

Click on Banner Self-Service (Faculty)

Click on the link “Faculty Detail Schedule “ - there will be a summary of all classes assigned to the instructor.

This link will also include such information as the building and classroom assigned to the course.

Holidays & Breaks

A five-year academic calendar for the University of San Francisco can be found online here. Faculty should familiarize themselves with key dates – beginning/ending of classes, holidays, census date, final examination period, and last day to submit grades. Please note that the School of Management observes all holidays on this calendar, regardless of campus, and no classes should be held on holidays or breaks. It is also valuable to consider the linked multi-faith calendar as well when planning your semester.

Makeup Sessions

If you need to cancel a class without advance notice, please email somclasscanceled@usfca.edu. Makeup sessions can be held online for ease of the students, however you cannot require students to attend a class that was not part of the schedule when they registered for the class. If you would like hold a makeup class in a physical location please email Katherine Green kjgreen@usfca.edu 

It is the faculty's responsibility to order their textbooks, also known as book adoptions. Submitting your adoptions early and directly to the bookstore, ensures that students will get the right course materials for their course at the most affordable price. 

If you do not have a textbook, then you must notify the bookstore. 

Instructions on how to complete your book orders can be found at this linked PDF.  

For support with technical issues, please call Adoption Support or send an email via the Contact the Bookstore page

Adoption Support: 877-713-6697

Monday – Friday 7:00am – 10:00pm (CDT)*

Email: AIPsupport@bncservices.com

Classroom assignments are done via lottery by the USF Registrar office. Neither the type of class nor seniority of the faculty or their schedule is taken into account by this lottery. Every year over 100 courses are not able to be roomed in the classroom lottery and schedules must be changed in order to find a room for the class. Any requests for a change of classroom due to personal preference is entirely up to the luck that an alternative might just be open at your class time.

The only accommodations that are made for faculty are for faculty who have a note from a physician filed with the USF HR office.

How to find your classroom assignment:

Go to Banner Self-Service Faculty

Choose Faculty Detail Schedule

The classroom is listed here

Adding a class:

Graduate program waitlists are handled by Graduate Student Affairs. Undergraduate waitlists are only for electives and are handled by faculty in conjunction with CASA. Please send the students to the appropriate team for support.

If your class has a waitlist that is full, and a student approaches you seeking your signature do not sign an add/drop form. They may be trying to circumnavigate the waitlist.

Priority is given only to graduating seniors, followed by those with senior class standing; those students will be moved up to the top of the list in the order in which they registered. This is a straightforward process and issues of a personal nature are not taken into account.  Students may add classes until the end of Late Registration (normally the end of the first week of classes).

The waitlist will remain in effect until the Last Day to Add Classes. The Last Day to Add Classes is published on the 5-year academic calendar. 

If your class does not have a waitlist and your classroom capacity can take more students than your course capacity you may sign students into your course. Classroom capacity is posted in the classroom or you can contact Katherine Green in Academic Affairs for assistance. Class enrollment numbers may not exceed the room seating capacity and no exceptions will be made to this policy.

Adjunct faculty should talk to the major lead before adding students to their classes.

Dropping a class:

Students who drop a class must fill out a Registration/Add/Drop form and take it to the Office of the Registrar. 

Students who drop a class before the census date must obtain the signature of their academic advisor. 

To drop a course between the census date through the tenth week of class (the last day to drop) in a regular semester, students must obtain the signatures of the course instructor and a representative of their student affairs office. 

Students who do not attend class or who tell the instructor they are dropping the course without filling the required form will have a failing grade (F) posted to their record for that course by the faculty.