Goodbye paper process, hello eForm

While most grade changes are initiated by faculty from the grade roster in the faculty center, there always existed scenarios in which grades that are not part of the roster need to be reported or changed. Previously these “non-roster” grade changes were submitted via paper form, or for the last 2 years via a non-secure PDF form that we created in response to COVID disruptions since paper was no longer a viable option. The paper/PDF form had to be routed to various levels of review and approval via box or intercampus mail. Routing included the instructor, the academic dean’s office, and the Registrar’s Office for manual processing. Needless to say, it was a time consuming process that was behind the times and needed to be improved. The non-roster project aimed to and succeeded in creating an eForm that reduces the time it takes to process a grade change, removes manual processing, and creates an electronic and secure workflow for routing between the instructor and Dean’s office before ultimately updating the student record. The new process takes out the manual processing work previously required by the RO, meaning the grade changes update directly to the student record without any manual involvement from RO student services staff. This project also positively impacted the student experience. The streamlining of the process and workflow, removal of time consuming manual work, and other design and workflow improvements present on the form means that the student record is updated with the correct grade in a timely manner. Grades and grade changes can impact a students academic standing, degree completion, and degree clearance just to name a few things, so this project succeeds at updating the student record in a more timely and accurate manner. The RO student services and development team worked with project managers from DoIT Academic Technology (DoIT AT) in the development of the eForm. Targeted communications were sent to primary users or those who work closely with faculty announcing the new tool and a how-to KnowledgeBase document was created as a guide for when and how to access and use the form. Since the form went live in early March and as of Monday 4/18, 65 grade changes have been submitted via the new eForm. The form has been well received and a welcome process improvement.