ACADEMIC STANDARDS COMMITTEE (ASC)
LETTER FORMAT 2009-2010
JUNE 2009

Purpose: The Academic Standards Committee (ASC) is composed of faculty and staff charged with interpreting Indiana University and School of Education policies. Students may appeal to the committee for temporary or permanent waivers of admission requirements for the School of Education and Teacher Education Program (TEP); substitutions or adjustments to their academic program or field placement and student teaching program requirements; and/or exceptions to the graduation requirements.

Process: The ASC meets approximately once a month during the academic year to consider cases. Meeting dates are posted at the front desk in the Office of Teacher Education and on the Teacher Education Calendar of Events at: http://events.iu.edu/webevent.cgi?cmd=listmonth;calID=1795. Appeals are due approximately one week before the meeting. All appeals submitted by the deadline date are considered. Each appeal is decided on an individual basis. Incomplete or late appeals may not receive the timely attention of the committee. The committee may consider precedents, program requirements and/or subject specific faculty opinions in their deliberations. The disposition of each case is reported to the petitioner by e-mail or by U.S. Mail (upon request) and is documented in the student's file.

Letter Format: To present a case to the ASC, prepare a one page typed summary of your request. The summary should be addressed to the Academic Standards Committee and follow this format:

Heading must include the following information:

1. The date
2. Your name
3. Street address
4. E-mail address
5. IUB student ID#
6. Education program (i.e.: Elementary-TIP K-6 or Secondary-Social Studies, etc.)
7. Your TEP status (Unconditional/Conditional Admission, Applied but Denied Admission, Never Applied) 

A. Students seeking approval to use courses not identified in their program must follow these guidelines in their summary:

   Course substitutions from IU Bloomington departments:

1. State your specific request (i.e.: I'd like to request to use IUB course "X" to satisfy the IUB course "Y" requirement in the "Z" program).
2. Justify your request (i.e.: IUB course "Y" was cancelled from the current semester schedule and I plan to graduate after student teaching at the end next semester). 

   Course substitutions from other IU campuses:

1. Submit request to ASC using the standard format. Include course description or syllabus from the other campus.

         Note: Course work from other IU Campuses will nearly always count for elective credit,
                   toward graduation but may not fit into IU Bloomington's Teacher Education Program. 

   Course substitutions from other universities in the USA:

1. Go through the Office of Admissions - Credit Transfer Service (CTS) on-line at:
   http://cts.admissions.indiana.edu/transferin.cfm if you have not yet completed the course. If the course has an IU Bloomington equivalent, attach a print out of the CTS report to the ASC appeal.
2. If an IU Bloomington equivalent has not been identified on the CTS, then the student should complete a Credit Transfer Agreement Form and take it to the Office of Admissions for an individual course transfer review.
3. If the course has been evaluated by the Office of Admissions and comes in as undistributed (UN), then the student is to submit it for evaluation to the appropriate department in the school (i.e.: ENG-UN go to the COLL English Department, HIST-UN go to the COLL History Department, FINA-UN go to the COLL Fine Arts Department etc.) before submitting it to the ASC. Attach the department's written evaluation to the appeal. The ASC will then determine if it fits into the student's teacher education program.
4. If the course transfers to IUB as undistributed education (EDUC-UN), petition the ASC directly. Attach an official course description and/or syllabus whenever possible. 

   Overseas study credits from sponsored programs or foreign institutions:

1. Attach a copy of the Study Abroad Credit Transfer Agreement or IU Overseas Study Advising Form with the appeal to the ASC.
2. If the course has been evaluated by the Office of Admissions and comes in as undistributed (UN), then the student is to submit it for evaluation to the appropriate department in the school (i.e.: ENG-UN go to the COLL English Department, HIST-UN go to the COLL History Department, FINA-UN go to the COLL Fine Arts Department etc.) before submitting an appeal letter to the ASC. Attach the department's written evaluation to the appeal. The ASC will then determine if it fits into the student's teacher education program.  

B. Students with Exceptional Needs or whose Primary Language is Not English (PLNE) petitioning for a PRAXIS I test waiver in order to be admitted to the TEP must:    

1. Provide a copy of the ETS letter acknowledging that special accommodations were approved for the PRAXIS I test. Include this letter with your appeal letter to the ASC. Exceptional Needs students: do NOT submit documentation of your disability from a professional to the ASC.
2. Provide an official ETS score report verifying that the PRAXIS I test was taken with the recommended accommodations, but not passed with a qualifying score. Include this score report with your appeal letter to the ASC.
3. Have completed an online TEP application verifying that they have met all other TEP admission requirements.  

C. Students Seeking Modifications in Field Experiences or Student Teaching Assignments:   

1. Changes in location or circumstances of a placement are determined by the Directors of the activity, the appeals process should be used only in extraordinary circumstances.
2. Submit a request to the ASC using the standard format. The faculty committee will only consider specific and compelling reasons for modifying assignments or requirements. 

Submit your SIGNED appeal letter directly to the Office of Teacher Education or mail your appeal letter to: Academic Standards Committee, Office of Teacher Education, School of Education, Suite 1000, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405. We will not accept letters that have been sent to our office as e-mail attachments unless you are currently studying abroad. A faxed copy of your letter will not be accepted.

Appeals that are denied by the Academic Standards Committee: If you disagree with the decision given by the ASC, you may prepare a written appeal to the Associate Dean for Teacher Education. Your appeal to the Associate Dean for Teacher Education should include new and compelling evidence or rationale that warrants reconsideration of the ASC decision. The new appeal must follow the same format outlined above for the ASC.

Submit or mail your appeal to the Associate Dean for Teacher Education, Office of Teacher Education, School of Education, Suite 1000, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405.