Landscape Institute
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Academic Policies
The general program policies and procedures of the Arnold Arboretum as stated in this catalog apply to all students. Students are not exempt from them because of failure to read or understand the catalog and/or misinformation received from other sources. Students who seek special consideration for other reasons should appeal in writing to the Landscape Institute administration, being as prompt and detailed as possible.
Academic Integrity and Attendance
All students in the Landscape Institute are expected to maintain high standards of academic integrity. Papers submitted to meet course requirements must be the students' own work. The Landscape Institute expects credit students to be active and engaged participants by attending all classes, taking all exams, and completing all coursework on time. Students enrolled in noncredit courses are also expected to attend all classes and complete all coursework the instructor requires, except for midterm or final exams or final projects or papers. Late work may be submitted only with instructor approval and according to school policy. See incomplete coursework information.
Students are responsible for the accuracy of the information they include on all forms and applications. Submission of fraudulent information may be grounds for disciplinary review.
A student who is inadequately prepared, fails to attend classes, neglects coursework, disregards the rights of others or disrupts course progress with inappropriate behavior may be required to withdraw by the administrative board and excluded from future courses. Such students are not eligible for tuition refunds for those courses.
Cheating
During examinations there can be no communication between students and no use of books, papers, computers, calculators, or notes except with permission of the instructor. Students may not copy any portion of another student’s exam, assignment, or project. Collaboration on assignments is prohibited unless specifically permitted by the instructor. Students must acknowledge any collaboration and its extent in all submitted coursework.Students may not submit the same or similar work for more than one course except with the written permission of the instructors involved.
Disregard of basic principles of honesty results in a review by the administrative board. The student is notified of this review and has the opportunity to present a letter of explanation. The board may dismiss the student from the course or program. Dismissal is recorded on the student's record. Any instructor who has questions concerning the academic integrity of a student's work should bring them to the attention of the director.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the theft of someone else’s ideas and work. It is the incorporation of facts, ideas, or specific language that is not common knowledge, is taken from another source, and is not properly cited. Students are expected to follow the standards of proper citation and avoid plagiarism. Whether a student copies verbatim or simply rephrases the ideas of another without properly acknowledging the source, the theft is the same. In the preparation of work submitted to meet course or program requirements, whether a draft or a final version of a paper, project, take-home exam, computer program, application essay, oral presentation, or other work, students must take great care to distinguish their own ideas and language from information derived from sources. Sources include published or unpublished primary and secondary materials, the Internet, and information and opinions of other people.Students are responsible for following the proper forms of citation as delineated by Harvard University in Writing with Sources: A Guide for Harvard Students and Writing with Internet Sources, prepared by Harvard’s Expository Writing Program. Writing with Sources: A Guide for Harvard Students is also available online in the Research Help section of the Grossman Library website. Hard copies of both publications are available at 30 Chauncy Street and are on reserve at Grossman Library. Additional information on writing resources.
Confidentiality of Student Records
Both the Landscape Institute policy and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), as amended, provide students with certain protections concerning the confidentiality of their educational records. No information about Landscape Institute students, except that which is defined below as directory information, will be released outside the Landscape Institute and Harvard University without the student's prior written consent unless otherwise authorized or required by law. The Landscape Institute defines the following student information as directory information: name; dates of attendance; certificate program; prior degrees and schools attended; expected or actual date of graduation from a certificate program. Students have the right to withhold the disclosure of this information by submitting written requests to the Landscape Institute office.
Under FERPA, the Landscape Institute is allowed to disclose, without the student's prior written consent, student information that is not considered directory information to school officials with legitimate educational interests. A school official is a person employed by the Landscape Institute or Harvard University in an administrative, teaching, research, law enforcement, or health services position; or a person or company with whom the Landscape Institute or Harvard University has contracted.
A student may review her or his academic record by requesting an unofficial transcript or by making an appointment with the director.
Grading Policy
Instructors assess student performance on the basis of their attendance, class participation, and completion of assigned papers, presentations, and projects.- A, A- are honor grades; B+ is commendable; B is average; B- is satisfactory; C+, C, C- are unsatisfactory; and F designates failure. There are no grades of A+ or D. Grades below B- do not count toward the Certificate in Landscape Design, Landscape Design History, or Landscape Preservation.
- ABS (Absent) designates absence from the mid-term or final exam. An ABS may be changed to a letter grade only if a makeup exam is taken before Feb 1, 2009, for a fall semester course, Mar 1, 2009, for a winter semester course, Jun 1, 2009, for a spring semester course, and Oct 1 for a summer semester course. If the student does not complete the midterm and/or final exam by these dates, the grade for these exams becomes an F and the final grade is calculated accordingly.
- INC (Incomplete) is given only if the student does not complete the required coursework before the end of the course, and only if the student and instructor have made an arrangement for its completion. The student must file a Contract for Incomplete Coursework, signed by the instructor, with the Registrar’s Office. To change an Incomplete to a letter grade, coursework must be completed by the agreed-upon date, which must be no later than the deadlines listed below. It is the student's responsibility to send the coursework to the instructor and to see that the final grade is sent by the instructor to the Registrar’s Office. If a change in grade is not received by the deadlines below, the grade will be calculated using the available coursework the instructor has received. Assignments that the student has failed to complete will be included in the grading calculation, using a grade of F for each missed assignment.
Incomplete Deadlines
Fall Semester: Jan 23
Winter Semester: Apr 3
- WD (Withdrawal) designates that the student has officially withdrawn from a course after the second class and before the withdrawal deadline.
Course Withdrawal Deadlines
Fall Semester: Oct 17
Winter Semester: Dec 12
Students who wish to withdraw from landscape modules or workshops must submit a Course Withdrawal Form to the Landscape Institute office by the designated withdrawal deadline for the module or workshop in question (noted in the course description in this catalog).
Students who discontinue attendance and do not file the appropriate forms with the Landscape Institute office by the designated deadlines receive the grade of F. The grade WD does not revert to F; however it is a final grade that remains permanently on the student’s record without affecting the student’s GPA. Additional information on withdrawal from a course or module (link to registration page).
Academic Standing
Students who receive three grades (in any combination) of INC, ABS, WD, or lower than B- are considered to be in poor academic standing, and their records are reviewed by the academic board. Students are notified of this and have the opportunity to present a written explanation of their performance to the board. The board reviews this explanation along with the student's record and determines whether the student will be placed on academic probation.
Grade Reports and Academic Records
Grade reports for the academic semester are issued once all grades for the semester have been submitted by the faculty. Reports for fall semester courses are generally mailed in February; reports for winter semester courses in March; reports for spring semester courses in June; and reports for summer semester courses in September. Grade reports are not considered official transcripts and are not available to students before the stated mailing times. Grade reports are sent to the address in the student's academic record. Please notify the Landscape Institute office of a change of address immediately. Courses are listed on a student's academic record with letter grades.
Student Papers and Course Materials
Course materials (papers, drawings, landscape projects, and models) submitted for a course in satisfaction of a course requirement become the physical property of the Landscape Institute. The student retains all rights to the intellectual and creative property contained within the material. Submission of coursework represents the student's acceptance of these terms.
The Landscape Institute assumes no safeguarding of any course material and at its own discretion may retain, return, or discard it. A student who wishes to have final papers or drawings returned must submit a stamped, self-addressed envelope to the instructor. Unless returned by the faculty member directly to the student, final papers and projects are held by the Landscape Institute office in a designated space until Feb 28 for the fall and winter semesters; Jun 30 for the spring semester; and Sep 30 for the summer semester. After these dates, all work will be discarded to make room for the next semester's coursework.
Students should include their name, the instructor's name, and the course title on all work submitted. This prevents new course material from being discarded along with older materials from a previous semester.
Course Evaluations
Toward the end of a course, module or workshop, students are asked to complete a course evaluation form that includes numerical rating scales and essay questions. Completed evaluations are submitted to the administration of the Landscape Institute and are shared with the instructors at the end of the semester after instructors have submitted their final grades.
Cancellation and Rescheduling of Class Due to Weather
The Landscape Institute administration considers the following factors when deciding whether classes will be canceled due to inclement weather.
- The severity of the weather
- The conditions of major highways
- Whether there is a snow emergency or parking ban in Cambridge.
If bad weather forces the cancellation of classes:
- An announcement is made on WHDH/Channel 7 News Stormforce, WCVB/Channel 5 News, and WRKO (680 AM) radio.
- Students may call the Landscape Institute office at 617.495.8632 to hear a prerecorded message.
- The same procedure applies if in the course of a day the weather deteriorates and a decision is made to cancel afternoon and evening classes.
Other places to find this information include the following websites:
All canceled classes must be made up. Each course or module must include all of the originally scheduled class time. Instructors may extend the semester or make other changes in the schedule to offset a cancellation. The faculty must contact the Landscape Institute staff before making these changes in order to schedule a room. Once a room is scheduled, the instructor will announce the revised meeting date in class so that all students are aware of the revised schedule.
Cancellation and Rescheduling of Class Due to Instructor Illness or Emergency
When a class is canceled due to instructor illness or emergency before the day of the class, the Landscape Institute staff will promptly send an email to the entire class. If an instructor cancels on the day of the class, both the instructor and the Landscape Institute staff will try to call all students, but notification before they leave for Cambridge cannot be guaranteed.
Sessions canceled because of instructor illness or emergency must also be made up. Each course or module must include all of the originally scheduled class time. Instructors may extend the semester or make other changes in the schedule to offset a cancellation.
Drug Free Schools and Campuses Act of 1989
The Drug Free Schools and Campuses Act of 1989 prohibits the unlawful possession, use, or distribution of drugs and alcohol by students and employees on Harvard University property or as part of any University-sponsored activity. Information is available about the University's standards of conduct regarding alcohol and drugs, applicable legal sanctions under public laws, health risks associated with the illicit use of drugs and the abuse of alcohol, drug and alcohol counseling and treatment resources on campus, and the disciplinary sanctions that may be imposed in instances of misconduct involving alcohol and drugs. This information is available in the Landscape Institute office.
Sexual Harassment Policy
Sexual harassment is discriminatory and unlawful. Federal and state laws define sexual harassment as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual's work or school environment. Such conduct is regarded as a violation of the standards of conduct required of all persons associated with the Landscape Institute of Harvard University. The Landscape Institute will not tolerate any form of sexual harassment. Students, instructors, or staff who engage in sexual harassment will face appropriate discipline.
Students with complaints of possible sexual harassment should call the Landscape Institute at 617.495.8632 and speak to an administrator. A full explanation of the Landscape Institute’s sexual harassment policy is available at the Human Resources office at the Arnold Arboretum.
Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act of 1990
In compliance with the Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act of 1990, the Harvard University Police Department publishes an annual security booklet entitled “Playing It Safe.” The booklet describes security policies, provides statistical information on the occurrence of crime on campus, and outlines some of the counseling programs the University offers. Individuals can access this information online.
The information above is provided to assist students enrolled in the Landscape Institute educational programs. Additional resources are noted under Information for Students and available in printed form in the Landscape Institute office.