College in the Schools (CITS)

Responsibilities for CITS Students, Teachers, Faculty Liaisons, and School Districts

Student Responsibilities

Students are held accountable for meeting all course requirements and for observing deadlines, examination times, and other policies and procedures as stated on the class syllabus. Students must initiate and monitor their UMD e-mail account. Attendance is one of the most important factors for student success in UMD classes. Scholastic dishonesty is not tolerated (see UMD official policy).

CITS Teacher Responsibilities

CITS teachers commit to:

Participating in course-specific training workshops;
Prior to the first year of teaching in the program, new CITS instructors work closely with their UMD faculty mentor;
Participating in UMD campus visits and customized training;
Participating in the CITS subject-specific listserv;
Informing students of testing dates and deadlines for papers and projects on the course syllabus, approved by the UMD faculty mentor prior to the beginning of the term;
Using UMD's approved textbook(s) and curriculum;
Using UMD's course-specific grading rubric to determine UMD grades;
Notifying students of their progress on a routine basis, especially prior to the deadline to withdraw from the course-before the end of the eighth week of the semester;
Posting UMD grades using UMD web grader prior to the semester deadline; and
Teaching at least one term of a CITS course each year or by special arrangement.

CITS Faculty Liaison Responsibilities

Designing and delivering workshops to prepare first-time and continuing CITS teachers to teach University-level courses;
Overseeing CITS course curricula, text selection, syllabi, assessment and evaluation;
Overseeing implementation of the approved UMD grading rubric;
Facilitating CITS subject-specific online discussions;
Maintaining the critical link between the high schools and UMD for ensuring quality and integrity of the CITS programs;
Mentoring CITS teachers;
Evaluating CITS teachers' classroom teaching and sharing best practices; and
Presenting course content to CITS students during site visits, as requested by the CITS teacher.

School District Responsibilities

Participating high schools and districts are responsible for the following costs associated with CITS:

Tuition
School districts are billed directly for students registered as of the end of the eighth week of the semester.
Teacher Stipend for Summer Workshop
UMD offers summer teacher workshops for CITS teachers at no charge. Materials are provided free of charge to CITS teachers. During the workshops, CITS instructors and University faculty mentors review curriculum, grading rubrics, discuss new research findings, explore a content area in depth, and evaluate new classroom resources. These workshops are essential to maintaining the critical link between the high schools and the University of Minnesota for ensuring the quality and integrity of the CITS program. Districts are requested to compensate CITS teachers for their workshop time.
Transportation for Campus Visit
School districts provide transportation for CITS students and teachers to visit the UMD campus at least once per semester to receive customized training, to conduct scholarly research, to observe in a regular UMD class, and to attend special events.
Textbook Purchase
Faculty mentors approve textbook selection. CITS courses use the same or equivalent college-level textbooks used in UMD campus courses.
Class Size Limits
High Schools determine their enrollment limits for each course; however, UMD recommends classes not exceed 35 students. In addition, UMD recommends WRIT 1120 College Writing, CSt 1010 Romanticism and Revolutions, and foreign language classes not exceed 25 students.