Department Chair Designee Authorization Screen

Key points regarding the Department Chair Designee Authorization Screen:

1. The department chair uses this screen to designate other staff or faculty with “department chair authority” to electronically approve student requests for certain permissions, such as requests to register for “permission required,” closed or independent study courses. Departments can decide that only the chair will electronically approve such requests, or departments can use this screen to designate other individuals to electronically approve requests in one, two or more of the areas. For example, many department chairs will want their program assistants to enter the electronic authorizations. If so, the chair would designate the program assistant with authority to enter the approvals. Some departments have heads of advising who they would want to designate to enter the electronic approvals. The designees could be different for each function.
   
   
2. When a department chair designates the department’s program assistant or a faculty member with the authority to electronically approve students’ requests, the electronic approval system will accept the authorization of either the chair or the designee(s). Normally, a department would want at least one other individual in addition to the chair with the ability to electronically approve students’ request for permissions so that the approval process isn’t dependent on the availability of a single person.
   
   
3. Once the department chair designates one or more individuals to electronically approve students’ requests, those individuals will be able to continue to grant such approvals for the specific functions identified by the chair until the chair removes their designation or revises the specific functions they were designated to approve. In other words, department chairs will identify their “department chair authority” designee(s) now and may not have to change their designee(s) again until there is staff turnover.
   
   
4. Department chairs and/or their designees can also designate staff, instructors, and/or others to electronically approve students’ requests in specific sections of courses. However, since those authorizations are by course and section, they will need to be updated each term. Those designations are made on the specific “Auth Fac/Staff” screens.