Makeup Offer for AFAM Students Draws Little Interest
Posted on Oct. 10, 2013Last summer, no one knew how many people might sign up for a course under the University’s unusual offer to 46 former students who did not graduate and who took one or more courses in the department of African and Afro-American studies that were determined to have been academically fraudulent.
By early October, one person had stepped forward to accept that offer; several others have asked about it, and a few more enrollments are expected in the spring semester.
Eighty current students and more than 300 alumni who took AFAM courses that were not taught as advertised were told in June of their opportunity to enroll in additional courses free of all charges.
That followed the University being advised by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to take steps to come into compliance with its standards on academic policies, academic support services and student records and with the federal definition of college credit hours in the wake of a scandal in the AFAM department in which former department Chair Julius Nyang’oro was found to have given grades in courses he set up but never taught.
That advice was part of the accreditation agency’s decision to not sanction UNC over the AFAM issues.
Of the 80 students who took the courses but had not graduated, 34 students were not affected — some registered for one of the suspect courses but did not receive any credit, and others had enough hours to graduate. Others finished their undergraduate degrees at other institutions.
The University offered the other 46 students three options if they wished to pursue graduation. They could provide the past coursework for re-evaluation by a faculty committee; take a challenge examination; or take an additional course, with the University covering tuition, fees and the cost of textbooks and other materials.
Bobbi Owen, senior associate dean in the College of Arts and Sciences, said that UNC had been aggressive in trying to reach the 46 people and that about 10 had inquired about what they needed to do to graduate. In addition to the one who enrolled in a course this fall, Owen said she expected at least two others to enroll by next semester.
For more information about SACSCOC and this issue, visit the University’s accreditation website.
More online…
- Accreditors to Seek Additional Monitoring Report; No Sanction
June 2013 news report - Accreditors: UNC Out of Compliance in Fraud Case
February 2013 news report - BOG Panel Accepts Previous Findings in Academic Probe
February 2013 news report - Martin Says Fraud Isolated to African Studies Department
December 2012 news report - Thorp Says Martin Has Freedom to Decide What Needs to be Done
August 2012 news report - UNC Plans Wide-Ranging Review of Academics-Athletics Relationship
August 2012 news report - Published Transcript Linked to Football Star Peppers
August 2012 news report - Judge Rules Lawyers Can Review Davis Cell Phone Records; Public Cannot
August 2012 news report - Faculty Committee: Should UNC Athletes Be Academically Separate?
July 2012 news report - The UNC’s Faculty Executive Committee report
- UNC Paid Lawyers $467,000 in NCAA Probe
July 2012 news report - Only Football Players Took Hastily Arranged Summer Class, Taught in Absentia
June 2012 news report - No Red Flags in General Independent Study Review
June 2012 news report - SBI Probing Fraud Report in African, Afro-American Studies
May 2012 news report - Evidence of Academic Fraud Found in African and Afro-American Studies
May 2012 news report - Associate Professor New Chair of African, Afro-American Studies
November 2011 news report - University Reviewing Independent Study
October 2011 news report - Practices in African, Afro-American Studies Draw Scrutiny
September 2011 news report - Department Chair Linked to Football Probe Resigns
September 2011 news report - A Flag Is Down: A football season that started with high expectations is being played beneath the shadow of an investigation into improper outside contacts and academic misconduct. From the November/December 2010 issue of the Carolina Alumni Review, available online to Carolina Alumni members.
