Syllabus

CASLE & SCUE 322 40: Towards A Green Sculpture

Fall 2010: Monday/Wednesday 6:00-8:50, Sculpture Conference Room

Office hours available upon request

Zach Springer

903-705-2678

zach@craftandconcept.com

Description

This course will explore possibilities for making sculpture in ways that are not harmful to humans or the rest of the ecosystems. In our class we will collaborate as we examine our own practices for ways we can continue with the forms and ideas we are interested in, in a more ecologically conscious and responsible manner. We will conduct analysis and experimentation of materials and processes. Each student will be responsible for presenting these experiments on a regular basis, and for making work that arises out of the experiments and is an extension of their own interests in studio art. There will be a community- based collaborative project as part of the course. This project will extend the exploration initiated in the experiments and will be considered as one avenue that many artists are taking towards a green sculpture. For their independent work students may choose to make sculptural objects, installations, site-specific work, performance, video, sound works, to work in mixed media and/or new ways.
This course is also offered under CASLE 322. Students enrolled in Community Arts and Service Learning courses and internships may earn a Certificate in Community Art. For more information, please call Julie Metzler in the Academic Resource Center, 802-3357.

Objectives

Upon completion of this course students will understand the historical and contemporary motivation behind sustainable art practices, and how those ideas can function on a practical level. Students will be able to safely design and build their own artwork while being conscious of their impact on the environment around them.

Community Connection

During this course students will initiate a residency outside of the KCAI campus where they are expected to collaborate with an individual or group of people to create a site-specific artwork. This artwork should not only be well crafted, it should also serve a purpose to the community.

Throughout the semester each student will need to schedule a time to meet with Zach at their location to discuss what their plans are.

Evaluation

Your grade is based on your performance in this class, which includes not only the quality of what you produce, but also how you contribute to the class through participation.

Each project will receive a letter grade based on:

25% - craftsmanship & presentation

25% - ambition & work ethic
25% - experimentation

25% - documentation to class blog

Final course evaluation will be based on:

25% - class participation

25% - Blog posting

10% - Assignment 1

15% - Assignment 2

25% - Final Project

Grading scale

A (100-94%), A- (93-90%), B+ (89-87%), B (86-84%), B- (83-80%), C+ (79- 77%), C (76-74%) C- (73-70%), D+ (69-67%), D (66-64%), D- (63-60%), F (59-0%)

Extra Credit

Almost every Thursday night there is an artist lecture at 7:00 in Epperson Auditorium. If you attend one of these and write a personal response on our class blog you can receive 2 extra credit points towards final grade. If the writing does not clearly articulate your ideas you will be asked to revise it, and Zach will help if it is needed.

Class Schedule

Week 1 August 23 Introduction, Set up class blog, Intro to first presentation, Set presentation schedule

August 25 Work on 15 Minute Presentations in Janis Library (Meet in Sculpture)

Week 2 August 30 15 Minute Presentations with 15 minutes of class discussion for each

September 1 15 Minute Presentations with 15 minutes of class discussion for each, assign “ I am

for an Art” reading (found on blog)

Week 3 September 6 Labor Day! No class!

September 8 Teacher presentation on Green Sculpture, talk about reading, Introduce

Assignment 1: Instructables

Week 4 September 13 Class vote on individual projects, Work day for Assignment 1

September 15 Assignment 1 due, 15 Minutes of class discussion for each

Week 5 September 20 Introduce Assignment 2, Assign presentation schedule, Work day

September 22 Assignment 2 Presentations

Week 6 September 27 Assignment 2 Presentations

September 29 Guest Speaker Jesse McAfee, class discussion, Intro Assignment 3, Assign

presentation schedule

Week 7 October 4 Assignment 3 Presentations

October 6 Assignment 3 Presentations, Introduce Assignment 4

Week 8 October 11 One on one meetings with Zach

October 13 One on one meetings with Zach

Week 9 October 18 Guest Speaker, Class Discussion

October 20 Work Day

*** As a class we will discuss the final weeks of this class and how it should be scheduled. This does not mean we don’t have class.

Week 10 October 25

October 27

Week 11 November 1

November 3
Week 12 November 8

November 10
Week 13 November 15

November 17
Week 14 November 22 15 minute Final Assignment Presentations with 15 minutes of class discussion for

each

November 25 15 minute Final Assignment Presentations with 15 minutes of class discussion for

each

Attendance Policy
The general attendance policy is in place because students are responsible for the entire content of the courses, including required portfolios and examinations. An absence from a regularly scheduled class or studio session is defined by a student not attending a scheduled class time and/or missing a significant portion of any class time (as defined by the instructor). If absences meet or exceed 15 percent of the class meetings in any one semester, the student will be subject to a reduced final full letter grade. The use of attendance in grading, up to that point, is at the discretion of the instructor. If absences reach 20 percent of the class meetings in any one semester, the student will fail the course (if absences are excused, the student may be eligible for a withdrawal from the course).

"Excused absences" include absences due to illness of the student, illness of an immediate family member for whom the student must care, death of an immediate family member, religious observance (where the nature of the observance prevents the student from being present during class), or representation of KCAI in an official capacity. Students seeking an excused absence must provide documentation to the ARC to substantiate the excuse. The ARC will notify instructors that the documentation is on file. Students with excused absences are responsible for completing all course requirements as outlined by the instructor.

15%

1 credit hour		3 credit hours		5 credit hours		6 credit hours		9 credit hours
1x/wk		1x/wk	2x/wk	1x/wk	2x/wk		2x/wk	3x/wk	4x/wk
2.4 classes		2.4 classes	4.8 classes	2.4 classes	4.8 classes		4.8 classes	7.2 classes	9.6 classes
Morning/afternoon sessions w/ lunch break:				4.8 sessions	9.6 sessions		9.6 sessions	14.8 sessions	19.2 sessions

20%

1 credit hour		3 credit hours		5 credit hours		6 credit hours		9 credit hours
1x/wk		1x/wk	2x/wk	1x/wk	2x/wk		2x/wk	3x/wk	4x/wk
3.2 classes		3.2 classes	6.4 classes	3.2 classes	6.4 classes		6.4 classes	9.6 classes	12.8 classes
Morning/afternoon sessions w/ lunch break:				6.4 sessions	12.8 sessions		12.8 sessions	19.2 sessions	25.6 sessions

Attendance Procedures

If a student has been marked absent (could include tardies counted as an absence) for 15% or more of the class, the instructor, if it is before mid-term, will give them a down grade if the mid-term earned grade lowered by one full letter grade is a C- or less. At any point in time during the semester, if a student is marked absent for 15% or more of the class, the instructor will inform their department chair and the Associate Vice President for Student Achievement. The Associate Vice President for Student Achievement will send notification to the student warning them they have missed 15% of the class(es), telling them this will have a negative impact on their grade, and requiring them to meet with the department chair who will reinforce where they stand and explain to them what will happen if they are marked absent for 20% of the class.

If a student has been marked absent (could include tardies counted as an absence) for 20% or more of the class, the instructor will inform their department chair, the Associate Vice President for Student Achievement and the Registrar’s Office. The Associate Vice President for Student Achievement will send notification to the student informing them they will receive a failing grade (F) for the class. The notification will let them know that, if the absences are excused absences as outlined in the policy, they may request the failing grade be changed to a withdrawal (W). The Academic Standards Committee will review these requests to verify if the absences were excused and warrant a withdrawal from the class.

Disabilities Accommodations
Students who have documented disabilities and are eligible for accommodations must provide documentation of the disability to Kathy Keller, Disabilities Coordinator in the Academic Resource Center before accommodations can be provided.

Academic Dishonesty Policy

Academic Dishonesty is defined as follows:

A) The copying of another student’s, work or the use of unauthorized notes and materials during examinations,

B) Plagiarism, or the presentation of either the written or visual work of others (including that of other students), as one’s own

C) Plagiarism is a serious offense in the academy, as well as illegal in the context of our nation’s copyright law. As such, it is important to know what plagiarism is in both one’s studio- and liberal arts work. According to the Modern Language Association, plagiarism is "the wrongful act of taking the product of another person's mind, and presenting it as one's own." In other words, plagiarism is the use of not just words but ideas borrowed from someone else without crediting the source. Students are required to learn the arts-standard, Chicago Manual of Style guidelines for citing sources referenced in their own work, and must follow them carefully in their research and writing projects.

Students are also expected to be honest in their studio practices, particularly since the practice of appropriation is such an important strategy in art history. Though they might appear to be similar, plagiarism and appropriation are actually two very different practices. While it is true that appropriation involves taking possession of something often without permission—which for the visual artist usually means taking an image—it is also true that an appropriated image isn't passed off as the original production of the appropriating artist. Indeed, the appropriation artist wants the viewer to recognize that an image has been utilized and referenced. (An artist who appropriates an image inevitably wishes to comment upon the original source in some way, usually as a critique, parody, or homage—all of which happen to fall under the realm of “fair use” in copyright law.) As such, appropriation is actually more like citing a source than plagiarizing it.

All academic dishonesty is taken as an offense against the Institute and may result in penalties assessed by the faculty member teaching the course in which the offense has occurred and the Judicial Board, up to and including expulsion.

KCAI Academic Dishonesty Procedures
In the event academic dishonesty is suspected by the instructor of the course, the faculty member is responsible for sending a Notice of Alleged Dishonesty to the student, departmental chair, Associate Vice President for Student Achievement, and Vice President for Academic Affairs. This letter must include the following information:

A. Student’s Name

B. Instructor’s name and name of the course

C. Short description of the original assignment

D. Alleged dishonesty

E. Date of alleged dishonesty

F. Time, date, and location of the meeting set to discuss the allegations with the student, faculty member, and department chair.

The faculty member, Associate Vice President for Student Achievement and department chair are to meet with the student in an Academic Hearing to discuss the allegations. This committee will then decide if the student has violated the academic dishonesty policy or if the allegations have been dropped.

All hearings are to be taped and kept on file within the college for five years.

The Associate Vice President for Student Achievement may be notified at any time during this process if the faculty member, department chair, and/or Vice President for Academic Affairs believe the student is in violation of additional campus policies and/or the Student Code of Conduct, in which the student judicial procedures would apply and begin.

The faculty member and department chair will determine the appropriate sanctions, which may include:

A. A zero or an “F” on the assignment

B. Failing the course; grade forgiveness prohibited

C. Suspension

In severe cases of academic dishonesty or in the case of repeat violations, sanctions may include withholding of the degree, revocation of the degree, or expulsion.

Appeals
The student may appeal the resolution of an Academic Hearing in writing to the Vice President for Academic Affairs within ten business days of the issued resolution letter. If the student receives the resolution letter via US mail, the request for appeal must be submitted within ten business of the postmarked letter.

The Vice President for Academic Affairs of the college will consider the request for appeal and conduct the appeal hearing, if applicable.

A judicial resolution will only be reversed or remanded if:

A. The college did not follow published academic dishonesty procedures.

B. New information is available that was unavailable at the time of the hearing, and the new information is relevant to the hearing resolution.

C. The sanction is inappropriate for the violation.

The written request for appeal must include:

A. Name of the student.

B. Instructor’s name and name of the course.

C. Short description of the original assignment.

D. Alleged dishonesty.

E. Resolution of the hearing process and imposed sanctions.

F. Reason for appeal (see reasons for reversal listed above).

G. Supporting material, if applicable.

The Vice President for Academic Affairs will render a written decision within ten business days of consideration of appeal. Notice will be hand delivered, delivered to rooms in the Living Center, or mailed via US postal service to the student’s local address.

The Vice President for Academic Affairs may:

A. Uphold the original resolution and sanctions.

B. Uphold the original resolution and alter the sanctions.

C. Dismiss original resolution and sanctions.

The decision of the Vice President for Academic Affairs is final and binding.

(Faculty members shall articulate their basic grading policy concerning academic dishonesty in their syllabi.) Additional penalties, up to and including expulsion, will be determined by the Judicial Board working in tandem with the faculty member who reported the offense.

Cheating/Unauthorized Assistance

It is inappropriate for students to provide or receive unauthorized assistance during an examination or for other assignments. For example, the use of cheat sheets, copying from another individual’s paper/examination is in violation of the KCAI student code of conduct.

KCAI Disability Services

KCAI will provide services and accommodations as mandated by the Americans with Disabilities Act and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.

Students requesting accommodations based on disability status should provide KCAI appropriate documentation. The documentation must be in written form from a licensed health care professional or educational professional who is qualified to diagnose the disability and recommend specific accommodations. Documentation must be within 3 years of being current. KCAI has the right to require a student to supplement the documentation if it is determined that the information in the initial documentation is incomplete, inadequate, or the qualifications of the health care provider or professional are in question. The documentation should state the specific disability and include recommended accommodations with a rationale if needed.

All documentation will be kept confidential.

Students with documented disabilities are encouraged to provide documentation whether or not they opt to have accommodations in place so that if a specific need arises, an accommodation can be put in place in a timely manner. Accommodations are not made on a Post Facto basis. Accommodations are not put in place unless requested by the student.

All requests are confidential.

Send Documentation to:

Katherine Keller, Disabilities Coordinator

E-mail: kkeller@kcai.edu Phone: 816-802-3485