Policies
Table of contents
- The Pandemic and Absences
- Honor Code and Academic Honesty
- Artificial Intelligence
- Student Hours
- Gender Expression and Identity
- Diversity, Inclusion, and Respect
- Accessibility
- External Resources
- Mandated Reporter
The Pandemic and Absences
The coronavirus pandemic has upended our normal way of life since March 2020, and the disruptions that we’ve experienced since then will have lasting effects in various ways. As of August 2024, we are slated to be on campus and in person in Fall 2024 (yay!), but if the pandemic surges again or other one-off concerns arise, we have to be ready to shift online and conduct our class via Zoom and other online media.
Please rest assured that your health and safety and that of your family and friends will always come first, and I make it my mission to create a classroom environment that is supportive and safe as you navigate what’s happening in our world and deal with everything else that you have to deal with, in practical and emotional terms. If you have to miss class to take care of yourself or others, either physically or mentally, then do so and just let me know that you’ll be missing class via email before the class meeting in question. If you need extensions on assignments, ask for them. If you would like extra help outside of class time, don’t hesitate to let me know.
I reserve the right to penalize your semester grade by one full letter grade (e.g., from an A- to a B-) if you accrue three or more unexcused absences (i.e., you are absent from class and have not communicated with me about it up to 24 hours after the absence on three separate occasions). I recognize that emergencies may preclude you from communicating with me about an absence in a timely fashion; I simply ask that you reach out as soon as you can so that I can excuse the absence if necessary and so that we can make sure that you have the resources that you need to keep up with the class.
Needless to say, these are unprecedented times which call for extraordinary measures. Please don’t ever hesitate to email me, visit with me during student hours or non-preordained times via appointment, or leave a group or private message in the Discord server with any questions, issues, or concerns that you have. We’re all figuring it out as we go; the best we can do is to be here for each other with compassion and patience. And maybe an occasional fuzzy animal picture or meme.
Honor Code and Academic Honesty
You are expected to abide by Fairfield’s Honor Code and its tenets of Academic Honesty, posted here. Cheating on homework, assignments, quizzes, or exams (defined here as but not limited to reproducing answers from an answer key, referring to forbidden notes to help answer questions, copying another student’s answers, or using AI to generate assignment answers [see below]) may result in penalties ranging from a failure on the specific assignment to failure for the entire course. Any instance of academic dishonesty will be reported to and adjudicated by the appropriate deans and administrators.
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a tool that can help us work through and with our course content in a streamlined and efficient manner, but only if we use it responsibly. For example, ChatGPT is only as accurate as the data that it uses, and while it can translate Latin into English, it will often not be able to capture the correct context for certain vocabulary words or the larger context of a passage. As students, your goal in this course is to gain a basic command of the Latin language by practicing with concepts like vocabulary and inflection; using AI to think through those concepts for you runs counter to the goals of the course and indicates that you are not fulfilling the course’s objectives.
In sum, I expect all of the answers on your submitted work to have come directly from your own brain. You may use AI to refine and check your answers, but you must not use AI to generate those answers. I want to track your progress and understanding through this course, not a computer’s!
In detail, the use of AI in this course is subject to the following guidelines:
Types of AI covered by this policy: any automatic translation services that render Latin into English and vice versa (including but not limited to Google Translate and Apple Translate) and interfaces that respond to user-generated prompts (including but not limited to ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, Apple Siri, and Google Gemini).
Permitted use: AI may be used:
- to refine the clarity of written expressions (including checking English spelling and grammar) without changing the substantive content or original ideas of the work.
- to check the accuracy of your answers on open-note assignments, with the understanding that you generate those answers first, without any help or input from AI.
Prohibited use: You may not use AI:
- to generate content, including but not limited to answers on assignments, Latin vocabulary and inflected forms, and analyses of passages.
- to produce vocabulary items or paradigm charts for any part of speech; all vocabulary and word endings must come from our course website.
Disclosure and non-compliance: While you are not required to disclose the use of AI in a permitted capacity (i.e., to check your grammar or your work), you are expected to maintain academic honesty and integrity in all your assignment submissions. Any violation of the guidelines above will be considered a violation of academic integrity and adjudicated according to Fairfield University’s policies.
Student Hours
Student hours are an opportunity for you to meet with me outside of class to discuss anything you’d like: questions about course material, clarifications about assignments, even simply shooting the breeze. My student hours are times that I am sure to be in my office, unless you’re notified otherwise, so I highly encourage you to take advantage of them! I’m also happy to make appointments outside of my regular student hours if they conflict with your availability; simply shoot me an email or a direct message on Discord with what times and dates work for you.
Gender Expression and Identity
I (Prof. Libatique) am a cisgender man and use he/him/his pronouns. Your first assignment will be to fill out a Google Form to let me know what I should call you, what pronouns you use if you opt to share them, and what you hope to learn from this class. My goal is to avoid dead-naming, as the name that you use may not match the legal name on my class roster.
Diversity, Inclusion, and Respect
Studying the ancient Mediterranean world at Fairfield is one way to challenge a centuries-long tradition that reserved the study of the ancient world for a privileged elite. The challenge goes beyond simply welcoming students however they identify their race, ethnicity, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, religious or spiritual tradition, or socioeconomic background. As we work to see the multicultural world of the ancient Mediterranean through the original thoughts and language of the Romans, we reflect on and actively explore how this can help us recognize and respond to structures of power and privilege in our own lives.
This work is especially important today, when historically false images of the ancient world are being invoked to support particular political viewpoints. Studying the ancient Mediterranean helps us see through erroneous assertions about the “whiteness” of the ancient Mediterranean and reject claims that the Greco-Roman world is the special province of any ethnic or political group.
Accessibility
Any student who feels the need for accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact the Office of Accessibility to discuss support services available. Students with disabilities can begin the accommodation request process by completing the online intake form through the “Accessibility and Accommodations” portal on my.fairfield or by contacting the Office of Accessibility at ooa@fairfield.edu. Contact information for the Office of Accessibility can be found here. You may also call 203-254-4000, x2615, or visit the Office on the main floor of the DiMenna-Nyselius Library in the Academic Commons.
If you are already registered with the Office of Accessibility, please be sure to get your accommodation letters and deliver them to me in a timely fashion. Instructors need 4-5 days advance notice to be able to facilitate the process of receiving testing accommodations.
External Resources
In addition to my email and student hours, there are resources outside myself, like the Office of Academic Support and Retention and the Writing Center that can help with assignments or your progress through the course in general. Remember, there is no such thing as a stupid question.
By the way, to test whether you’re reading the syllabus all the way through, please send me an email with a photo of your favorite ancient Roman monument by Wednesday, September 11, at 10am, with the subject line “Caesar and Pompey were ARCH-enemies!” If you do so, you will receive five (5) extra credit points on your semester total (see Grading for the course grading structure).
Mandated Reporter
As an instructor, one of my responsibilities is to help create a safe learning environment on our campus. I also have a mandatory reporting responsibility related to my role as your professor. It is my goal that you feel able to share information related to your life experiences in classroom discussions, in your written work, and in our one-on-one meetings. I will seek to keep information you share private to the greatest extent possible. However, any information that you disclose that addresses actual or suspected discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation based on sex requires my sharing that information with those on campus who are able to provide you with necessary resources.
If you would like to discuss the matter confidentially, this website lists confidential resources that are available to you under section 20.1.