By Pat Roxborough and Garwin Davis, Staff ReportersWESTERN BUREAU:
Twenty-nine students from the University of Technology's Engineering Department are challenging last month's decision by the tertiary institution to downgrade their diplomas.
The decision was communicated to the students late last month in letters signed by UTech's Examination Validation Committee Chairman George A. Roper.
"We regret to inform you that as a result of applying the correct regulation the class of award has been changed from honours to credit. We apologise for any inconvenience this has caused you," read one such letter.
However the students, whose challenge is detailed in a petition addressed to the UTech's academic board and copied to Mr. Roper, who is also the senior vice- president of academic affairs, said they are not prepared to accept the decision.
"We have worked hard for these diplomas and we are not going to accept this," said Terrence Whittingham, on behalf of the 29 students who signed the petition.
Mr. Whittingham, whose diploma was downgraded from the highest category - honours to credit, told The Sunday Gleaner last week that the institution has promised to meet with him this Friday to explain the decision.
"There is no reasonable explanation that can justify this and the students are not going to accept the award," he added. "If it means demonstrating - peacefully of course - at the graduation we will do it. If it means going to court we will do it."
UTech's graduation ceremony is scheduled for November 25.
According to the grading policy described in the addendum to the 1999/2000 handbook put out by UTech, students have to gain a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.05 and pass all courses in their final year on their first attempt in order to achieve a diploma with honours.
A minimum GPA of 2.75 is required in order to achieve a diploma with a credit and a minimum GPA of 1.70 for the lowest class of diploma, the pass. The students believe that the class of the award was based on the old system while the grading of their academic work was based on a new system.
"There should be one system for awarding and grading, i.e. if the new system is being used to grade then the new system should be used to award and the same goes for the old system," read an excerpt from the students' petition.
In the meantime, several of the students, who had already sent out application letters and resumes based on the original awards, are wondering what they are going to tell their prospective employers.
"To be told at this late stage that the results were wrong...(will) send a negative signal to all these prospective employers," the students said.
