Technical Details

Current Release Version: FY24.2.1

Release Date: 01 Mar 2024 

Security Roles: SPS Advising

Releases

Release FY24.2.1 [April 2024]

• Incomplete Grade Requests
  • Portal:
    
    • Created a portal (https://advising.sps.columbia.edu/portal/incomplete_grade_requests)
    • When a student logs into the portal, two queries are executed:
      • Incomplete_grade_request_form_responses - identifies any incomplete grade request forms that the student has completed. It joins to the record of the course by the class schedule GUID in order to display the class name, term, and instructor name.
      •  Student Courses - gets a list of courses on the student schedule in which there is no grade and the start date was before the current date.
    • The view page consists of the following sections:
      • javascript_controls provides the code to call up an incomplete grade request form, hide and unhide DOM elements, make certain form elements read-only, and move DOM elements around the page.
      • course_list_table is a hidden table listing the student's eligible courses. 
      • page-header displays a simple page header.
      • incomplete_grade_requests is a table of all of the incomplete grades the student has requested (if any) and the statuses of those requests.  The last column contains either the student signature, or a button to call up the form.
      • course_list_drop_down is a select list of courses that are eligible for an incomplete grade request. To populate this form, a liquid template for loop cycles through the array of the student's eligible courses. For each course, it then iterates over the student's list of requests to see if the student already has a request for the given class. If the student has already requested an incomplete grade for a given class, that class is not included in the drop-down list. When the student selects a course from the drop-down menu, the javascript code pulls the course name, the instructor's name, and the term from this table. If the student clicks the link to complete a new Incomplete Grade Request, the form is displayed in the form_div, and this select element is added to the DOM of the form. When the student selects a course, it calls the updateCourseInfo function, which updates the form fields containing the course information (course name, term, instructor name, etc.)
      • fake_course_list_dropdown is a blank select element. If the student chooses to sign their name to an existing request, this select element becomes populated with the name of the course that the student selected, and the field is read-only. This element gets added to the form through a javascript function.
      • form_div is an blank div element which provides a location for a form to be provided. When the div is visible but an incomplete grade request does not exist, it simply displays the message "Form loading. Please wait..."
      • page_footer_links - provides one of two links depending on the status of the page. If there is no incomplete grade request present, it provides a link to complete a new one. If the form is displayed, it provides a link to see all of the student's requests.
  • Form:
    • The Incomplete Grade Request form consists of five sections:
      • (Unlabeled) Contains a heading that says: "Form Mode: Instructor Entry." This is the only field on the form that is defined as "Internal only." Its presence on the form let's the javascript functions know whether the student is entering data on the form or the instructor is. This, in turn, is used to make certain fields read-only. This way, the student can see the fields that the instructor will be populating. This section also contains two hidden fields: CUID External ID field. The CUID field is the student's CUID. The External ID field is a field on the Incomplete Grade Requests Entity Table. It is populated by javascript and is used to match the form to the request.
      • Instructions - Provides guidelines for the students about incomplete grades.
      • Requested Information - This is the section for the student to complete. It has fields for the requested date, the student's first name, last name, UNI, etc.  It also contains form fields related to the course (name, section, term, instructor name, instructor email address). These are form fields because the one that actually matters for the entity is the Class Schedule Row GUID field. (The others are for display purposes). All of these fields get updated automatically when the student selects a course.
      • Instructor Response - The section where the Advising representative enters the instructor's response on their behalf. The fields are: (Approval status, default grade, completion requirements, and completion due date).
      • Agreement - The Advisingn represntative adds the instructor's name on their behalf. The student enters their name to signify agreement with the terms.
    • Scripts (javascript functions on the form):
      
      • lockUnlockSubmitButtonFromStudentSignature - This function checks to see if there is a value for the student signature (when in student signing mode). If there is an entry, the button is unlocked. If not, it is locked.
      • cloneFieldAndHideOriginal - If a field is disabled, its value does not become submitted with a form. This function makes a clone of an existing form field with its value displayed, and makes it disabled. Meanwhile the original field remains active but hidden, preventing the user from editing it. This is a feature allows the  "Requested Information" fields to be displayed but locked when the instructor fields are being entered (or when the student is signing their name) and for the "Instructor response" and "agreement fields" to be active but hidden when the student is initially filling out the form.
      • lockUnlockUpdateButtonInternalEntry - When the instructor is completing their section of the form, this controls the behaviors of various fields and the submit button. For example, if the request is denied, then the completion requirements and and due date should be disabled and the default grade should be set to N/A. If, however, the request is accepted, then those fields should not only be disabled but required. Additionally, this function will control whether the submit button is enabled or disabled based on the above criteria. 
      • (Startup function) - the script determines what mode the form is in - student entry, internal entry, or student signature. Depending on which mode it is in, it locks and unlocks different fields. Also, if it is in student entry or signature mode, a check is done to see if the student is on the form page or the portal page. (The student should never enter this form from the form page due to javascipt code in the portal). If the student is on the form page, it automatically redirects to the portal page.
  • WIdget 
    • A widget of incomplete grade requests is displayed on the student's registered courses page. However, if the user clicks the link to add/edit an incomplete grade request, no form appears. Instead, a link takes the user to incomplete grade request form page, where the user can update existing requests in internal entry mode.

• Change of Modality Request Form
  
  • Students enrolled in a remote program who want to change to in-person (or vice versa) complete a Change of Modality form.
  • The student receives a confirmation email upon completion. The email also goes to the student's advisor and spsadvising@columbia.edu
  • The request must be approved by the program director and advisor.
  • Once approved, it should get sent (manually) to Andy Hrycyk for processing.
• FERPA Release Form
  
  • The FERPA  Release form designates one or more people who can speak on behalf of the student. Students complete a form that grants permission to an individual who or an organization whose representatives can speak about their record on their behalf.
  • Students receive an email confirming that their request was received. The confirmation e-mail also goes to spsadvising@columbia.edu.
  • Information about the individual's designee(s) are displayed on a FERPA Release tab on their profile page in Slate. 
  • Students will have the ability to revoke a a FERPA release by emailing their advisor. In that case, the advisor can access a form to change the status from active to inactive.
  • The FERPA Release tab has separate sections for FERPA releases that are active and inactive.

Release FY24.2.0 [March 2024]

• Leave of Absence Fully Executed Communication
  • When the status of a student's Leave of Absence request becomes fully executed, if "Suppress Communications" is set to "no", and it has been approved by the program rep, the advisor, and, in the case  of a medical LOA, the wellness representative, a confirmation email automatically goes to the student and a copy goes to:
    
    • If the leave was for a medical reason: his/her advisor and the wellness alias.
    • If the leave is voluntary or military: his/her advisor.
• Return from Leave of Absence Form
  
  • Students complete a form in Slate when they are ready to return from a Leave of Absence.
  • The form asks the reason for the leave of absence, the term they plan to return for, and whether they are applying for on-campus housing. It also requires a letter about the reason for their leave and how they plan to return successfully.
  • Students receive an email confirming that their request was received. The email also goes to the student's advisor (if they have one) and spsadvising@columbia.edu.