Date: October 19th, 2016

To: Faculty of the Institute of Environmental Toxicology

From: Graduate Students of the Institute of Environmental Toxicology

As the graduate student body of the Environmental Toxicology Graduate Program, we wish to address events of the past semester that we feel have been unjustly conducted. We understand current changes and redirection are underway within the Graduate Program and clear direction and leadership may be in a state of flux, however we also feel that our own opinions and perspectives on the matter have not been sought or considered. The following are a list of grievances that as a graduate student body we wish to see considered:

• Seminar this semester was changed from a Monday meeting date to a Wednesday meeting date the week classes started. Additionally, students were not emailed regarding this change nor was opinion gathered regarding the change.
• Due to the above change, several students who had previously arranged schedules (classes, TAing, meetings, etc.) around the initial class period were no longer able to attend seminar, scrambling to add another to their schedules, or rearranged their schedules to accommodate the new day.
• Students were informed the August 31st seminar was canceled less than an hour prior to the start of the seminar. This behavior would not be tolerated were the conditions reversed and a student canceled with their committee within an hour of meeting.
• September 1st, through an email, students were informed they are now required to find and attend seminars outside the delegated day and time to attend and provide evidence of this attendance at the end of the semester. This was inconsiderate of the graduate students of this institution for multiple reasons:
  • Students who, as previously mentioned, had adjusted schedules to accommodate the new seminar day now have to allocate time to attend another departmental seminar.
  • A list of contacts or other departmental seminars that could be of interest were not included, leaving it to the students to try and assemble meeting days, times, and contacts.
  • A schedule of the monthly ETOX seminars was not provided.
  • Burden of proof is placed on the students who had registered to attend the institutional seminar.
  • This announcement was emailed a week after the add/drop date preventing students from arranging their schedules to re-enroll in courses or register for a seminar of another department.
  • The Institution has historically had a lack of course offerings. For those who have completed coursework, this seminar acts as the one key educational opportunity remaining connected to the field of environmental toxicology. While learning opportunities are present in other seminars, we want to learn more about the ongoing research and opportunities that pertain to our degree of choice.
• We were informed in the September 1st email that Dr. Baldwin would be the first institutional speaker, yet on the seminar day (Sept. 14th), Dr. Baldwin informed the attendees that he had only been told the day prior he would be speaking. A lack of organization within the Graduate Program needs to be addressed.
• Furthermore, students did not receive notice of the October 19th seminar (moved to Oct 26th) until five days prior. This seminar was set up for students to review SETAC posters, yet due to the lack of notice, students had no clue they would need to have their posters prepared for this nor that they would be expected to present for the seminar.
• Finally, the two institutional seminars that have been held thus far, Sept. 14th and Oct. 26th, have been centered around an institutional faculty member and the students themselves. If seminar is to be held only once a month, we expect speakers that make up for the lack of seminars in-between.

In response to the above grievances, the graduate student body proposes the following as options to ameliorate the current conditions:

• Our current Graduate Program student body is comprised of fourteen students. Given this relatively small number, it would be therefore possible to obtain the feedback and opinions of the entire graduate body prior to making decisions.
• The president of the Environmental Toxicology Student Organization could act as liaison and help facilitate feedback and communication between faculty and students.
• Dr. Steve Klaine made it a point to expose students to the cutting edge of the field through a variety of speakers. This effort was appreciated and beneficial to the student body and should not disappear with his passing. We would like to see a diverse set of speakers, but this does not have to translate into speaker expenses. There are many qualified speakers within the Upstate who can speak to current water problems, policy, scientific technology, etc.
• Students already attend other departmental seminars that are of interest to us or pertain to our research. We are graduate students because we enjoy learning. However, not all other departmental seminars pertain to our research, our interest, or our field. We would like the option to attend other departmental seminars to make up for those institutional seminars we cannot attend, but do not wish them to be required in place of our own seminars.
• In cases where a speaker is not possible, the graduate student body would like to have our fellow graduate students present instead. Many students are preparing for proposal defenses or final defenses and would benefit from the opportunity to present, as well as inform their peers of their current research.
• In the rare case that no external speakers or graduate students can speak, we would enjoy the opportunity to read a cutting edge peer-reviewed article and hold discussions with our peers and faculty of the institution in place of a seminar.
• Finally, if none of the above are considered and the decision in made in the future to continue with a monthly ETOX seminar, we ask that either:
  • The semester requirement of an Environmental Toxicology seminar is removed from the degree plan
  • The seminar be scheduled for a timeslot that will not conflict with other course registration, i.e. 6pm on Friday

-or-

We kindly ask that you consider our thoughts regarding the current seminar as well as the involvement of the graduate students in institutional decisions. To better facilitate understanding between faculty and graduate students, we also ask that communication is strengthened and graduate students are kept informed in a timely manner of changes and problems within the institution.

Thank you,

The Graduate Student Body of the Environmental Toxicology Graduate Program