An update:

On March 31, Samford’s Howard College of Art and Sciences (HCAS) announced a change in its grading policies. According to Dean Timothy D. Hall, in response to “the unexpected change in teaching modality, stress, and challenging conditions for our students, faculty and staff” the HCAS is:

• Suspending the 12-hour credit limit on pass/fail courses
• Allowing freshmen to opt for pass/fail grading
  Pushing the pass/fail option deadline to April 30
• And extending the pass/fail option to minor and major requirements.
• While these changes are a step in the right direction, they do not help Samford students outside of the HCAS.

On March 25, the Samford’s Brock School of Business (BSOB) informed students that it is:

• Suspending the 12-hour credit limit on pass/fail courses
• Allowing freshmen to opt for pass/fail grading
• Pushing the pass/fail option deadline to April 30
• And extending the pass/fail option to some non-major and non-minor course

Unlike the HCAS, the BSOB stipulates that no pass/fail course will fulfill major or minor requirements for graduation. 

According to Michael Hardin, the BSOB’s Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, these changes were made in accordance with a desire to “maintain...academic quality and ensur(e) student success.”

First, the BSOB’s update to grading policies does not to “ensur(e) student success.” It leaves behind members of our community facing financial, emotional, and physical hardship due to the COVID 19 pandemic.

Second, offering Samford students the option to have their classes graded on a pass/fail basis would not diminish Samford’s “academic quality.” Many academically rigorous universities, including Yale, Dartmouth, Columbia, Harvard, and MIT, have either implemented mandatory or optional pass/fail grading across their universities. Even without a coercive grading system in place, Samford students—like students from these institutions—will remain committed to their higher educations, putting forth an honest effort each day despite this international emergency. In addition to negatively impacting students within Samford’s business school, the BSOB’s grading policy implies that students of the HCAS who choose to have classes graded on a pass/fail basis lack academic integrity.

We encourage all members of Samford's community—students, parents, alumni, etc.—to reach out to President Andy Westmoreland with this message: Samford should modify its grading policy evenly across the university, giving all undergraduate students the option to have any of their courses graded on a pass/fail basis, while still satisfying degree requirements.

For God, for Learning, Forever

Sincerely,

Niki Brooks and Robert Nikont, Class of 2020