AB578: Bill Text

LRB-0668/2

MJL&PG:wlj:jf

2005 - 2006 LEGISLATURE

2005 Assembly BILL 578

July 27, 2005 - Introduced by Representatives Schneider and Kreibich. Referred to Committee on Colleges and Universities.

AB578,1,5 An Act to renumber 36.28; to amend 36.28 (title); and to create 36.11 (49), 36.11 (50), 36.11 (51), 36.28 (2), 38.04 (32) and 115.28 (50) of the statutes; relating to: rights of University of Wisconsin System students, adopting maximum weight standards for pupil textbooks, and contracts that grant naming rights.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill requires the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin (UW) System to guarantee certain rights to students and to regulate the academic conduct of instructors. Specifically, the bill does the following:

1. Requires an instructor to approve or deny a request to add a course within five days of the request.

2. Requires an instructor teaching a class with only one examination to provide a week of study time before the examination.

3. Requires the suspension of all parking rules for the week preceding and following each semester.

4. Requires grades to be submitted no later than ten days after the final examination for the course.

5. Prohibits an instructor from requiring students to purchase or use a text the instructor has authored for the course without obtaining the approval of the student government.

6. Requires the chancellor to revoke tenure of a faculty member or deduct six months' pay for an untenured instructor whose academic advising causes a student to be enrolled at least one semester more than he or she otherwise would have been enrolled.

7. Prohibits an instructor from requiring students to complete a course evaluation until after the final examination is given.

8. Requires, by no later than the 2012 academic year, audio or video recordings of all lectures and course sessions to be made available to students for downloading from the Internet.

9. Requires an instructor who adopts a policy of reducing the grades of a student due to illness resulting in absenteeism to state that policy in writing and permits a student to appeal any decision based on that policy to the appropriate academic dean.

10. Requires an instructor to excuse the absence of a student whose family member, fiance, or fiancee dies or becomes extremely ill and to allow a student to take any examination missed because of the funeral of a family member, fiance, or fiancee.

11. Requires an instructor to meet with a parent or guardian who requests to speak with the instructor concerning the academic performance of his or her child no later than one week after the request, unless mutually agreed to otherwise, if the child grants written permission.

The bill also limits the work day of a medical intern to 16 hours and prohibits the Board of Regents from entering into a contract that grants naming rights to a UW arena, playing field, or stadium.

Finally, the bill directs the Department of Public Instruction, the UW Board of Regents, and the Technical College Board to adopt maximum weight standards for textbooks used by pupils and students.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB578, s. 1 Section 1. 36.11 (49) of the statutes is created to read:

AB578,2,3 36.11 (49) Student rights. The board shall ensure that all of the following occur:

AB578,2,6 (a) If a student requests to add a course that needs the approval of the instructor, the instructor must approve or deny the request within 5 days of the request.

AB578,2,9 (b) The instructor of a course that requires only one examination during the semester must provide students with one study week between the last day of class and the day of the examination.

AB578,3,2 (c) An instructor may not require students to purchase or use a text that he or she has authored without authorization from the student government.

AB578,3,6 (d) If an instructor's academic advising causes a student to spend at least one semester more in college that he or she would otherwise have, the chancellor shall, if the instructor is tenured, revoke the tenure or, if the instructor is untenured, shall deduct 6 months' pay from the instructor's salary.

AB578,3,9 (e) All parking rules shall be suspended, other than those relating to parking for persons with disabilities, during the week before the end of the semester and the week before the beginning of the semester.

AB578,3,11 (f) An instructor may not require students to complete a course evaluation until after the final examination or course requirement is given.

AB578,3,14 (g) No later than the 2012 academic year, audio or video recordings of all lectures and course sessions shall be made available to students for downloading from the Internet each day following the lecture or class session.

AB578,3,17 (h) An instructor shall submit grades to the registrar no later than 10 days after the final examination, or, if no final examination is given, no later than 10 days after the final class.

AB578,3,24 (i) If an instructor wishes to adopt a policy of reducing the grades of students due to illness resulting in absenteeism, the policy shall be in writing and a student may appeal any decision based on the policy to the appropriate academic dean. An instructor shall excuse the absence of a student whose family member, as determined by the board, or fiance, or fiancee becomes extremely ill or dies and shall allow a student to take any examinations missed because of the funeral of a family member, fiance, or fiancee.

AB578,4,10 (j) If a parent or guardian requests to speak with an instructor concerning his or her child's academic performance, the instructor shall meet with the parent or guardian no later than one week after the request, unless they mutually agree otherwise. Before holding a conference, the instructor shall obtain the student's written permission. If the conference has the potential to be confrontational, the instructor shall ensure that a person from his or her department is present at the conference and shall inform the parent or guardian that the parent or guardian may request that a person of his or her choosing also be present. After the conference, the instructor shall inform the parent or guardian of other avenues that may be pursued if the parent or guardian is not satisfied with the results of the conference.

AB578, s. 2 Section 2. 36.11 (50) of the statutes is created to read:

AB578,4,15 36.11 (50) Textbook weight. By July 1, 2006, the board shall adopt maximum weight standards for textbooks used by students. The standards shall take into consideration the health risks to students who transport textbooks to and from college each day.

AB578, s. 3 Section 3. 36.11 (51) of the statutes is created to read:

AB578,4,19 36.11 (51) Naming rights contracts prohibited. The board may not enter into a contract that grants naming rights to any University of Wisconsin System arena, playing field, or stadium.

AB578, s. 4 Section 4. 36.28 (title) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB578,4,21 36.28 (title) Medical school enrollment.

AB578, s. 5 Section 5. 36.28 of the statutes is renumbered 36.28 (1).

AB578, s. 6 Section 6. 36.28 (2) of the statutes is created to read:

AB578,4,25 36.28 (2) No medical school intern may work more than 16 hours a day as an intern.

AB578, s. 7 Section 7. 38.04 (32) of the statutes is created to read:

AB578,5,5 38.04 (32) Textbook weight. By July 1, 2006, the board shall adopt maximum weight standards for textbooks used by students. The standards shall take into consideration the health risks to students who transport textbooks to and from college each day.

AB578, s. 8 Section 8. 115.28 (50) of the statutes is created to read:

AB578,5,10 115.28 (50) Textbook weight. By July 1, 2006, adopt maximum weight standards for textbooks used by pupils in public and charter schools. The standards shall take into consideration the health risks to pupils who transport textbooks to and from school each day.

AB578, s. 9 Section 9. Initial applicability.

AB578,5,14 (1) The creation of sections 36.11 (49) and 36.28 (2) of the statutes first applies to students enrolled and instructors employed in the academic year following the effective date of this subsection.