Sections

When the Langara Board of Governors approves a budget each year, a certain number of sections are assigned to each Department. This is your Department’s Status Quo Section Budget, and it typically remains the same each fiscal year. It includes ADT as well as teaching sections.

The term section can be used differently in different circumstances. In academic terms, a section usually refers to a specific class of a specific course. In budget terms, sections actually refer to 1.00 workload units (wlu).

In many disciplines, a single academic section is the same as a single budget section (1.00 wlu). However, there are exceptions. For example, a single academic section of a lab science is usually 1.33 wlu. In some departments, other values are also possible. It is the responsibility of the Department Chair to schedule courses within the sections (wlu) budget.

In addition to the Status Quo budget, your department may be allocated additional sections/wlu from other sources after the budget is approved. The main sources of additional sections are:

  • International (IE) sections – these are allocated by the College to increase seats for international students and/or for domestic students displaced by high IE enrolments.
  • Hybrid sections – these sections are paid for by Continuing Studies as a result of an agreement with the Department to allocate seats to CS students. The frequency of these sections depends on the original agreement between the Department and CS.
  • Growth sections – these are additional sections given to a Department due to a College decision to increase enrolment in that Department or to increase support courses required by another Department.

Once you have an approved sections budget, plan your course offerings for the entire fiscal year. If you are offering any support sections for other departments, connect with them to schedule accordingly. There will likely be changes as you refine the schedule each term, but a full year plan will provide a better idea of what is coming.

Translating a sections budget into academic sections can be quite complex, and Department Chairs need to take multiple factors into account:

  • Balancing the number of offerings between the summer, fall, and spring semesters based on program and student demand
  • Considering faculty teaching rotations and contractual commitments
  • Assigning ADT sections appropriately
  • Working only within the fiscal year’s budget - it is not possible to move sections to or borrow sections from a future budget

Visit the Section Budget segment of this toolkit for further information from Financial Services.

Room Bookings 

Visit the Campus and Facilities section of this toolkit to learn more about meeting room and classroom booking requests.

Leaves

Articles 8.1 and 9 in the LFA Collective Agreement outline the provisions around all leaves available to faculty members. As a leader, you should become familiar with the language around leaves. Ensure that your team is aware of their leave benefits, and communicate out any practices that your Department may have with regards to:

  • Vacation or unpaid leave requests
  • Department scheduling
  • Substitutions
  • Temporary replacements for extended leaves 

Visit the Wellness and Attendance Management section to learn more about leaves due to illness/injury. Should you need any further clarification, feel free to contact your Partner, HR Services.

Final Exams

Policy F1007 - Final Examinations outlines the principles that govern final examinations and their administration for the College's credit/regular studies courses. Below are some key points to consider. Please review the policy for detailed information.

  • Final exams are only held during official examination period
  • The Department of Registrar and Enrolment Services will prepare the schedule to ensure minimal conflict for students
  • Exams can be scheduled any day of the week, including evenings
  • Length: 2 hours for courses 2999 or lower, 3 hours for courses 3000 or higher
  • Students must write exams in accordance with scheduled date, time, and location
  • Exceptions may be made for students under Section 5.5 of the Policy
  • Exams shall normally constitute 20-35% of the final grade - deviations require approval from Education Council
  • Policy E2007 - Course Credit: Special Consideration considers students who are late or who miss an exam as a result of extenuating circumstances
  • Regular faculty members must retain exams for one year and then confidentially destroy them
  • Term faculty will deposit exams to Department Chair, who will retain exams for one year and then confidentially destroy them