Cathy Kittelstad

Email communication should be from your official Clemson email account. I have close to 200 students or more each semester, so you will need to remember to include in your email which section of which class you are in. While I try to answer emails fairly quickly, the standard is to allow 24 hours during the week and 48 hours on weekends/breaks before emailing me again. When inundated with emails, I triage them, responding to the emails that require a quick response. If you feel your email was important but did not receive a response within 24-48 hours, do not be afraid to gently remind me that you are waiting for a response. Keep in mind that when I receive the same question from several students, I send a blanket response to the class, so it could be that your response was included in that email. Lastly, due to federal rules, without written permission, I will not correspond with a student's parent or guardian.

Clemson University values the diversity of our student body as a strength and a critical component of our dynamic community. Students with disabilities or temporary injuries/conditions may require accommodations due to barriers in the structure of facilities, course design, technology used for curricular purposes, or other campus resources. Students who experience a barrier to full access to this class should let the professor know, and make an appointment to meet with a staff member in Student Accessibility Services as soon as possible. You can make an appointment by calling 864-656-6848, by emailing studentsaccess@lists.clemson.edu, or by visiting Suite 239 in the Academic Success Center building. Appointments are strongly encouraged; drop-ins will be seen if at all possible, but there could be a significant wait due to scheduled appointments. Students who have accommodations are strongly encouraged to request, obtain, and send those to their instructors through the AIM portal as early in the semester as possible so that accommodations can be made in a timely manner. Please be aware that accommodations are not retroactive. It is the student's responsibility to follow this process each semester. You can access further information at the academics/studentaccess/index.html page.

Clemson University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, pregnancy, national origin, age, disability, veteran's status, genetic information or protected activity in employment, educational programs and activities, admissions and financial aid. This includes a prohibition against sexual harassment and sexual violence as mandated by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. This policy is located at http://www.clemson.edu/campus- life/campus-services/access/title-ix/. Ms. Alesia Smith is the Clemson University Title IX Coordinator, and the Executive Director of Equity Compliance. Her office is located at 223 Brackett Hall, 864.656.0620. Remember, email is not a fully secured method of communication and should not be used to discuss Title IX issues.

I expect to foster a nurturing learning environment based on communication and mutual respect. I expect to have adults in class who will conduct themselves with professionalism and courtesy at all times, showing not only respect for others, but also by being willing to hear new ideas.

Students are expected to be courteous and respectful in all interactions with fellow class members, TAs, and the instructor, whether this interaction occurs online, during class, or outside of class. Student misconduct will not be tolerated. Student misconduct includes but is not limited to whispering or talking during lecture, which is rude not only to the instructor but also distracting to fellow class members; arguing with an instructor or TA about course policies; being rude or disrepectful towards fellow class members or an instructor; sleeping in class; disrupting class; using a computer or other device for anything other than the expected class use as specified by the instructor; consistently showing up late for class, or leaving early before the end of class without permission from the instructor; and refusing to follow course policies or instructions stated by an instructor. The instructor and TAs have the right to assign seats or to ask students to move to another seat if they feel it is necessary, and refusing to sit in an assigned seat will also be considered as an act of student misconduct. NO tobacco or electronic cigarettes are allowed to be used in class or labs.

I encourage feedback on various aspects of this course, including but not limited to content, quizzes, exams, style, and treatment. I will give serious consideration to any suggestions for improvement. Please feel free to express your opinions or comments during my office hours or via email. I value your opinions and comments as they are important for improving the quality of this course.

The Notification of Absence module in Canvas allows students to quickly notify instructors (via an email) of an absence from class and provides for the following categories: court attendance, death of immediate family member, illness, illness of family member, injury, military duty, religious observance, scheduled surgery, university function, unscheduled hospitalization, other anticipated absence, or other unanticipated absence.

The notification form requires a brief explanation, dates and times. Based on the dates and times indicated, instructors are automatically selected, but students may decide which instructors will receive the notification. This does not serve as an "excused absence" from class. It is simply a notification of absence and students are encouraged to discuss the absence with instructors, as the instructor is the only person who can excuse an absence. If students are unable to report the absence by computer, they may reach the Office of Advocacy and Success. Students with excessive absences who need academic or medical assistance can also contact the Office of Advocacy and Success.

If you encounter difficulty with this course, speak to your instructor or TA; many times a brief discussion will clarify things enough to get you back on track.

In addition to my office hours, refer to the help information posted on Canvas for additional help resources. There, you will find information about the lab ta tutoring times available.

If you are having recurring or consistent problems with the course content, feel free to stop by the TAs' office hours or my office hours. Office hours are on a first come first serve basis. If my office hours do not work for you, you can make an appointment to meet with me at another time that works for both of us. Please do not make an appointment unless you cannot attend office hours due to a conflict with your class or work schedule. Due to the number of students I have each semester, I cannot meet with everyone individually.

Also, when you come to my office for help, please have specific questions prepared. Office hours or meetings with me are not a time for you to work on the assignment in my office. Vague emails about needing help will receive a response asking for specific questions, and given the delays that can occur with emails that exchange can take quite some time, leaving you less time to complete your assignment.

Additionally, if you want something to be a priority for me, make sure it is a priority for you as well. If you have issues with attending class regularly, do not expect me to sit down and reteach the material just for you. If you wait until the last minute to start an assignment, email responses may be delayed.

Today's college experience is fraught with pressures and temptations which many students and parents are unaware of, or don't fully appreciate, especially with the changes to the way everything operates in response to the recent Covid-19 virus. Accordingly, you should be watchful for signs of stress and depression in your feelings and behavior. You should be aware that there is nothing wrong with seeking help when things aren't going right. In addition to your professor and the Academic Success Center (above), you should be willing to avail yourself of the services of the Redfern Health Center for counseling and psychological services if things feel out of control either academically or personally.

1. Attend all classes and labs.

2. With programming classes, to learn how to program requires practicing with code on your own time. It is said that for every hour of class time, you should be practicing and studying 2-3 hours (so 6-9 hours per week on your own time to practice programs and/or study).

3. Look over the materials that are provided and read the corresponding material in the book before class meets. Then during class going over the material, ask questions when you are not understanding.

4. Start out of class assignments or exercises asap - don't wait until the last minute.

5. Make use of office hours for extra help in understanding the concepts.

6. Form study groups with classmates or utilize the Teams Group to communicate with each other and/or to study the concepts.

7. If you're not already, get used to the fact that college is a lot of hard work. That's how it's always been, that's how it will always be. Learn to manage your time.

8. Get used to the fact that programming classes require a ton of time and often with some struggling - yes, I have spent hours upon hours working on a single program - that is the nature of programming. Having to figure stuff out by looking things up in a resource book or using google to understand a concept is the best and only way to learn and actually really understand the material or understand what you are doing.

9. Additional resources are listed on the syllabus - in addition to the book, there is zybooks, w3resource, and also hackerrank that may be good resources. cplusplus.com is also a great web based resource.