FYI from FYE - July 2020
Dear Members of the Class of 2024,
The fall semester is coming together and we thank you for your patience and your assistance
in the process. Well more than 90% of you completed the Skidmore Class of 2024 Fall
Preference Survey, and your enthusiasm came through clearly in your responses. You
are making plans to come to Skidmore College from all over the U.S. and the world,
and you are doing so knowing that there will be challenges along the way. Some of
you have decided that the best course for you is to stay home and complete your first
semester at Skidmore College, online. Both of these are courageous choices. We are
impressed by your resolve and are taking all possible steps to see that your Skidmore
College experience is fulfilling no matter where you are this fall. This edition
of FYI from FYE will detail some of those steps and provide information that will move you further
down the path to your very own First-Year Experience. Allow me to highlight three
bits of very exciting information before you set about reading the rest of the newsletter.
First, as you learned yesterday in an email from the Registrar, you have now been placed in your Scribner Seminar—the course that will anchor your First-Year Experience. It’s official! You are now registered for your very first Skidmore class! And it will be no ordinary class. It will be deeply interdisciplinary and equally engaging. On top of that, it will be taught by the professor who will serve as your academic advisor and mentor during your first two years at the College and attended by the peer mentor who will be prepared to support and encourage you in a variety of ways. You can expect to hear from your Seminar faculty member and/or peer mentor in the coming days.
Second, by July 24th the Skidmore College Master Schedule will be made available on the Registrar’s website. At that point you can begin “shopping” for classes in earnest. An academic adviser will contact you shortly after the Master Schedule is released to help you identify specific courses to meet your interests and needs, and you will “lock in” those courses on the first-year registration days of August 11th and 12th. In the meantime, I wish you happy shopping!
Finally, there is the very important matter of move-in day. Exactly when you are able to arrive on campus and what the guidelines will be are complicated matters that involve several campus offices as well as county, state, and federal agencies. We continue to develop plans to satisfy all of them while maintaining your health and safety as our top priority. We will share the move-in plan with you as soon as we are able, but please be sure to review the quarantine and arrival plan that was emailed yesterday and respond to the survey no later than Wednesday, July 22 (Skidmore log-in required). Until then, stay tuned to the FYE Summer Reading Portal so you don’t miss opportunities to engage your classmates, peer mentors, and professors in discussions of Stories of Your Life.
Sincerely,
Professor Emeka
Checklist of Upcoming Deadlines
July Checklist
| Activity | Due Date |
|---|---|
| Scribner Seminar Placement * | Emailed to your Skidmore email on Friday, July 17 |
| Submit ID picture | July 1—August 5 |
| Write RAP | July 1—August 23 |
| Master Schedule Available | by July 24 |
| Second Advising Period | July 24-August 10 |
| Mail in Health Services forms | Due August 1 |
| Register for Skidmore Urgent Notification System (SUNS) | Ongoing |
*Important: Questions or concerns about your Scribner Seminar placement should be sent to Professor Emeka. Please be sure you review the mode of instruction (campus or online) with your plans for the fall.
Upcoming Deadlines
| Activity | Due Date |
|---|---|
| Complete online alcohol education class (students will receive an email with a link to the course on or around August 1) |
August 3—23 |
| Register for Classes | August 11 and 12 |
Campus Updates
New Student Orientation
Skidmore has made the decision to hold an online orientation for the Class of 2024
to be sure you have the information you need before you come to campus. Some aspects
of the virtual student orientation experience will occur on a specific day/time, while
other components will be pre-recorded, so you can view on your own time. Our goal
is to connect students to campus, resources, and most importantly to each other.
Please be on the lookout for more information in early August.
Pre-Orientation
From the Office of Campus Life & Engagement
Due to concerns related to COVID-19, all campus and community-based Pre-Orientation
Programs will not be offered this August. While we are disappointed to share this
news, the Office of Campus Life & Engagement is committed to working with all student leaders
to explore virtual and safe and healthy in-person opportunities for incoming students
to connect with each other and build community this fall. If you have any questions
or concerns, please contact our Pre-Orientation Program by email: preorientation@skidmore.edu or phone: 518-580-8338.
Be on the lookout for information about the Weeks of Welcome program, which will run from August 24th – October 18th.
Your Skidmore ID
Your ID is essential for your first day at Skidmore. It is not just for the dining hall and library; your ID is also the key to your residence hall, your room, and a declining balance card. Prior to arriving on campus, we ask you to upload a photo for your ID. Once approved, your photo will be processed and your ID will be available when you check in. However, students who do not submit appropriate photos (or never submit photos) will face unnecessary delays when they arrive on campus.
Please use the guidelines below when submitting your photo. Photos that do not follow these guidelines or are deemed inappropriate will not be processed.
Between July 1 and August 5, incoming students should upload a photo for their student IDs.
Photo Submission Guidelines
- This picture is for identification purposes
- The picture must be in color
- The picture must be less than 500 KB in size
- The picture must be a minimum of 300 x 300 pixels
- The picture must be a file type of .jpg, .jpeg, .gif., or .png
- Please use a plain light color or blank background
- No hats, sunglasses, jewelry, or garments that obstruct the view of your face
- Eyeglasses should be worn if normally used by students
- Eyes should be open and looking at camera
- There should be a small space between your head and the top of the image
- Head should be positioned directly facing the camera, not leaning on anything
Any questions or concerns should be directed to the Card Office at 518-580-5854.
What is Student Academic Services (SAS)?
SAS serves all Skidmore students interested in strengthening their academic performance or skills by organizing peer tutoring and Peer Academic Coaching (PAC), and by offering professional one-on-one and small group academic support. SAS collaborates with other campus offices and faculty to support all Skidmore students—with specific responsibility to international students, English Language Learners (ELL), students of color, student-athletes, and students with disabilities.
Student Academic Services and Accommodations
Skidmore College cultivates an inclusive and supportive learning community and values the diverse learning styles of our students. In pursuit of this effort, we are committed to providing students with disabilities full and meaningful access to all college programs and activities, and we strive to provide individualized accommodations necessary for students to realize an equal opportunity to succeed.
Following admission, we encourage students to submit an Application for Accommodation along with supporting documentation as soon as possible. The purpose of early application is to foster an interactive process of accommodation, to familiarize students with the Skidmore community, and to enable students to be fully informed about Skidmore's disability services policies and procedures (prior to the first semester on campus). There are also important differences between high school and college that students should be aware of. The central purpose of accommodations at the college level is to provide equal access to Skidmore's academic programs and curricular and cocurricular activities. All accommodations must be approved by the Coordinator for Student Access Services and are never retroactive.
Common Accommodations
- Extended test time
- Testing in a distraction-reduced location
- Supplemental class notes
- Texts in alternative (digital) format
Differences between High School and College
|
High School |
College |
|
Academic support is often scheduled for students. |
Students must schedule and access the support they need. |
|
Teachers, guidance counselors, and parents typically take the lead on advocating for students. |
Students must advocate for themselves. |
|
Parents can provide students with excused absences due to illness or the effects of a disability. |
Attendance requirements are established and enforced by individual faculty members. All students are expected to adhere to class attendance policies which cannot be waived as an accommodation for a disability. Similarly, assignment due dates cannot be waived or altered as an accommodation for a disability.
|
Students can also reach our Coordinator for Student Access Services, Meg Hegener, at (518) 580-8150.
See you in August!
Required Course for Incoming First-Year Students
We know you're excited about coming to Skidmore and we are thrilled to welcome you to our community. Skidmore College is deeply committed to the health, wellbeing and happiness of its community members. In an effort to prepare you for the unique challenges and responsibilities of college, we require each incoming student to complete the following online courses offered through our partnership with 3rd Millennium Classrooms:
- Alcohol-Wise
This is an alcohol prevention program. Whether you drink or not, Alcohol-Wise will empower you to make well-informed decisions and will help you cope with the drinking behavior of peers.
- Marijuana-Wise
This is a marijuana prevention course that provides you with accurate information about marijuana, including its effects.
- Consent & Respect
This is a comprehensive course addressing intimate partner violence, healthy relationships, bystander empowerment and consent.
The courses will become available to you on August 3, 2020. The deadline for completion is August 23, 2020. Failure to complete the course may result in a referral to the Student Conduct Office.
The instructions and the link for accessing the courses will be sent to your Skidmore email address.
If you have questions, please contact Kim Golemboski at kgolembo@skidmore.edu or 518-580-5484.
Please note: We will also be sending a Part 2 to these courses approximately 30 days after the start of the semester. Additional information and instructions will be sent to your Skidmore email account once the semester begins.
Class of 2024 on Facebook
If you haven't done so already, please join the FYE at Skidmore Facebook group. This is a closed group for students in the Class of 2024 only, so if you'd like to join, please visit the page and send a friend request. If your Facebook username is different than your legal name, please email our student monitor Matt Clark and let him know both your legal name and your Facebook username.
FOR FAMILIES: WELLNESS AT SKIDMORE
Skidmore Health and Wellness departments are busy planning for Fall 2020. COVID-19 has definitely changed all of our lives, but what hasn’t changed is our commitment to student health and well being. We’re working hard to support your transition to Skidmore. Please check our websites for updated information about services and programs and don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions or concerns.
