Faculty Senate votes to reinstate alternative grading for spring 2021
January 29, 2021
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — After considerable debate at its first meeting of the semester on Jan. 26, the Penn State Faculty Senate voted to implement an optional, opt-in alternative grading system for the spring 2021 semester.
The vote came after a report from the new Policies Influencing Equity (PIE) task force recommended continuing alternative grading in spring 2021, citing the ongoing challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic for students. PIE was created during the fall 2020 semester and charged by Faculty Senate Chair Beth Seymour and Interim Vice President and Dean for Undergraduate Education Yvonne Gaudelius to investigate the possibility of alternative grading in future semesters and the ways in which policies and procedures may have disparate impacts on students. The PIE task force includes faculty, administrators and students.