The Office of the Registrar is constantly looking for ways to streamline and improve how we deliver and process information with our student, staff and faculty constituents. Below you will find lists of our current and recently completed projects.
Project Prioritization
The prioritization of a project is a given status grade based on factors such as impact to students, risk and need for compliance, and benefits to cost and efficiency. A project is at grade A if it meets two or more requirements for both High Urgency and High Impact. Projects at a grade B are Low Impact and High Urgency. Projects at grade C are Low Urgency but with High Impact. Finally, projects at grade D have low impact and low urgency.
Project Classification
Projects receive a classification of Sky, River, or Bloom based on whether they are initiated by the Office to improve internal processes (River), focus on broader institutional improvements affecting multiple departments (Sky), or are designed to impact the student experience or public perception of the university (Bloom).
Current Sky Projects
New Catalog Software
The redesigned University of Arizona Catalog is now available in a modern format that is both efficient and easy to navigate. The catalog contains a comprehensive listing of academic policies, program descriptions and degree requirements, and a full inventory of courses. With these elements, plus academic calendars, archived catalogs, and all other standard catalog features now housed in one unified location, users have a new level of convenience with this continuity of information.
The next phase of work on the catalog will focus on moving current curriculum management workflows into the new curriculum system and developing staff and faculty training, resource guides, and business processes. This phase of work is in collaboration with the Office of Curricular Affairs and the Graduate College.
- Priority Grade: A
- Project Approval Date: 2/25/2021
- Project Owner: Abbie Sorg
Current River Projects
Conferral Cycle Refresh to Batch Awarding of Degrees
The Office of the Registrar currently completes the process of conferring and awarding degrees manually. This has resulted in an approximate 4-8 week wait at the end of each semester for all degrees to be posted. This project will allow for automating the process for undergraduate, single-degree programs, which make up the bulk of degrees awarded.
By automating the process for these degrees, staff can target efforts towards the more complicated cases. Automation reduces manual errors and will allow for quicker and more concise communications to the student to identify what requirements have not been satisfied and options for degree and certificate awards. Most degrees will be awarded within one week after the end of the semester, and all degrees are expected to be awarded within three weeks.
- Priority Grade: A
- Project Approval Date: 9/30/2020
- Project Owner: Amanda Gluski
Streamlining Residency Classification
The current process to determine Residency Classification for Tuition Purposes is to request student information upon enrollment using the SORC (Statement of Residency Classification), which is a custom web app on a server slated to be decommissioned. Due to the Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) and legislative changes, the questions asked in the SORC need to be revised, which gives an opportunity to wholistically review not only those questions, but the overall system of how we gather and process information for residency classification. This project will create a more streamlined and transparent student experience, increasing the efficiency of the residency classification process. This project is part of the SURPASS Initiative.
Priority Grade: A
Project Approval Date: 06/13/2023
Project Owner: Maggie Ramirez
Reimagining Class Scheduling
The University process for scheduling and maintaining the Schedule of Classes relies on manual data entry by Department Schedulers during Open Scheduling and by using a Section Form during Closed Scheduling. The process has limited logic built in, has no communication with UAccess, and data entry is cumbersome for both the department scheduler and Room & Course Scheduling (RCS) staff. The goal of this project is to streamline the process of creating a Schedule of Classes for the Winter/Spring and Summer/Fall enrollment cycles. The completed process will pull information directly from UAccess, have system push information, and include built-in logic with the ability to control logic within the form.
- Priority Grade: A
- Project Approval Date: 6/3/2021
- Project Owner: Jaclyn Pryor
Practice and Policy Alignment
The Office of the Registrar is reviewing all business process guides to ensure their alignment with approved university policy and office practice.
Priority Grade: A
Project Approval Date: 08/23/2023
Project Owner: Michael Davenport
Tracking Honors: Courses, Students & Requirements
The Office of the Registrar joins with the Honors College to explore processes and reporting mechanisms that will streamline the tracking of honors courses and course sections. Additional modifications will improve the tracking of students, and their progress toward meeting honors graduation requirements.
Priority Grade: B
Project Approval Date: 09/28/2023
Project Owner: Michael Davenport
Simplify Academic Structure and Diploma Integration
Identifying ways to improve the integration of structures such as plans and programs, this project creates a collaboration with the University’s diploma vendor to simplify academic program name changes and updates as they relate to printing accurate diplomas.
Priority Grade: D
Approved Date: 07/05/2023
Project Owner: Amanda Gluski
Student Initiated Leaves and University Withdrawals
The current complete withdrawal process is being updated to a platform that improves the student experience and provides support to staff throughout the review and approval process. The new process will also support student leaves of absence or students who are leaving the university indefinitely. Students will have a more transparent and efficient process, and staff will have administrative barriers removed. This project is part of the SURPASS Initiative.
Priority Grade: B
Project Approval Date: 04/18/2023
Project Owner: Maggie Ramirez
Optimize Automated Communications
Many communications are sent to students, staff and faculty that are automatically generated in response to specific situations such as when a student withdraws from a class or applies for graduation. This project provides for an inventory of existing communications followed by content and formatting revisions to ensure information from UAccess is efficiently used to send timely and accurate information to students, faculty, and staff.
Priority Grade: C
Approval Date: 11/01/2021
Project Owner: Michael Davenport
Removing Barriers to Degree Completion Process
In preparation to apply for degree candidacy, students meet with their advisors to initiate the Degree Audit Worksheet (DAW) that identifies remaining coursework and the student’s plan to complete their final degree requirements. Currently a paper form, this project will integrate the student's degree progression information to UAccess, providing greater access and clarity to the degree conferral process.
Priority Grade: C
Project Approval Date: 08/09/2023
Project Owner: Amanda Gluski
Streamlining the General Petition Process
This comprehensive review of the General Petition process explores ways to improve the student experience and efficiency of the petition process. This project will examine current workflows and determine the viability of having one point of entry where the student can enter the petition process. Once preliminary information is gathered from the student, documents are evaluated for application requirements and then routed to the appropriate college, department, and committee for review and action. This project is part of the SURPASS Initiative.
Priority Grade: B
Project Approval Date: 10/03/2023
Project Owner: Maggie Ramirez
Second Start Application
Students returning to the University of Arizona after a three-year absence can now apply for the Second Start program through an updated eForm in UAccess Student Center. Previously, students submitted a fillable PDF via email for manual processing by the Office of the Registrar.
The new eForm is visible only to eligible students, streamlining the process by removing the need for upfront advisor review. Upon submission, automated emails to advisors and students enhance transparency and foster additional student support. This project is part of the SURPASS Initiative.
Priority Grade: C
Project Approval Date: 11/5/2024
Project Owner: Maggie Ramirez
Petition for Extension of Coursework for an Incomplete Grade
The process for students to request an extension of time to resolve coursework associated with an "I" grade will be simplified for students and instructors. This update aims to improve transparency, helping students better understand their current Incomplete grade status and how to request an extension when necessary. Key enhancements include a centralized place where students can submit their initial extension requests and a dedicated page in UAccess Student Center where students can check their "I" grade information. Faculty and reviewers will be supported with a standardized workflow to follow. This project is part of the SURPASS Initiative.
Priority Grade: C
Approved Date: 10/2024
Project Owner: Michael Davenport
Standardizing Study Abroad Enrollment and Class Setup Data
The Office of the Registrar will collaborate with campus partners to create a consistent scheduling practice for study abroad class sections that support tracking data appropriately. Class attributes will be used to identify study-abroad classes in lieu of campus location. This will help track University Credit for class sections taught by University of Arizona faculty and those sections taught by non-University of Arizona faculty.
Priority Grade: D
Project Approval Date: 10/03/2023
Project Owner: Michael Davenport
Revise PDF Forms for Accessibility
This project holistically looks at the current inventory of PDF forms, and then makes form transitions to ensure the Office of the Registrar has an up-to-date inventory of all PDF forms used by students, advisors, faculty, and staff.
Priority Grade: A
Project Approval Date: 04/23/2024
Project Owner: Kris Peabody
Core Function Coordination
Creating a centralized repository of core functions/timing/tracking and a meeting cadence to ensure coordination.
Priority Grade: B
Project Approval Date: 08/23/2023
Project Owner: Alex Underwood
Current Bloom Projects
Update Plan Table for Expanded Master’s Categories
In collaboration with the Graduate College, the Office of the Registrar will add new fields to the Plan Table in UAccess Student to better internally track and externally display information about Master’s degree programs to the public. Additional fields will include indicators for research and professional master’s programs, accelerated master’s programs, terminal master’s programs, and graduate certificates that can be stacked toward a master’s degree.
- Priority Grade: B
- Project Approval Date: 08/15/2023
- Project Owner: Abbie Sorg
Grades and the Grading System Policy Update
System improvements and communication in support of amendments made to the Grades and Grading System policy. Several substantive changes and minor clarifications to the existing policy include removing the 18-unit withdrawal maximum and eligibility restrictions on using the Pass/Fail option for undergraduates, the creation of an MG (missing grade) notation for a student transcript, and new documentation for issuing an incomplete grade.
Priority Grade: D
Project Approval Date: 10/09/2023
Project Owner: Maggie Ramirez
Multiple Use of Courses Policy
System improvements and communication in support of amendments made to the Undergraduate Use of Multiple Courses and the Undergraduate Certificate Policies. Several updates clarify existing policy language and remove restrictive language, allowing the updated policy to be inclusive of courses worth more than 3 units of credit and permitting the multiple use of course credit instead of limiting the use to two applications.
Priority Grade: D
Project Approval Date: 01/22/2023
Project Owner: Abbie Sorg
Transition of CTSrooms Website to Centrally Scheduled Classroom Website
In partnership with Classroom Technology Services (CTS), Enterprise Geographic Information System (EGIS), and Planning, Design & Construction (PDC), the Office of the Registrar is collaborating on a new, interactive map that will allow users to explore the full inventory and features of Centrally Scheduled Classrooms (CSC) available on the main campus.
Once completed, the Office of the Registrar will manage the interactive Centrally Scheduled Classrooms (CSC) inventory, with support from Classroom Technology Services (CTS) as technological equipment updates occur in classrooms.
Priority Grade: B
Project Approval Date: 01/30/2024
Project Owner: Jaclyn Pryor
Transition International Direct to Arizona Online
To enhance efficiency for both students and administrative units, the International Direct campus has been transitioned into the Arizona Online campus. As part of this transition, the International Direct campus will be dissolved, with all fall 2024 and future term classes previously coded as International Direct now designated as Arizona Online. Key campus partners, including Arizona International, Arizona Online, Bursar, Curricular Affairs, Enrollment Management, and the Office of the Registrar will collaborate to ensure a smooth transition, particularly regarding billing rates and student support services.
Priority Grade: B
Approved Date: 06/2024
Project Owner: Alex Underwood
Repeating a Course & Grade Replacement Policy Update
The Repeating a Course & Grade Replacement Policy is being reviewed for ways to enhance the structure of course repeats within the university. The policy is being reviewed to address total repeat attempts, the impact of these repeats on degree completion, and repeat rules in UAccess to ensure alignment with the revised policy. The GRO component of the policy will also be reviewed and edited as necessary. A comprehensive communication plan will be provided to the campus community to ensure everyone is informed about the changes and their implications.
Note: All policy changes must be reviewed and approved by appropriate shared governance groups. No changes to university systems or practices may change until the policy is officially approved.
Priority Grade: A
Approved Date: 06/2024
Project Owner: Michael Davenport
Completed Projects
The Office of the Registrar in collaboration with Campus Health developed a new simplified process for students to provide medical documentation to support their retroactive medical withdrawal. The new Medical Provider form allows students to have their withdrawal supported by a health provider in a way that does not share protected personal health information. The implementation of this form has allowed The Office of the Registrar to streamline the review and approval process for retroactive medical withdrawals which created a more efficient experience for students and campus partners involved in this process.
- Priority Grade: B
- Project Approval Date: 08/21/2024
- Project Completion Date 09/16/2024
- Project Owner: Maggie Ramirez
The new UAccess Student: Managing the Schedule of Classes training is a comprehensive resource that is the primary tool for onboarding new department schedulers and academic administrators who request the department scheduling UAccess provisioning. Any employee requesting new access will need to complete this training before they can schedule classes for their department.
The training is assigned in EDGE Learning with each topic broken down into manageable modules to keep content focused. The self-paced course design allows for individual sections to be paused (with progress saved) until completed. Once the training is completed, it can be revisited for reference as needed.
- Priority Grade: B
- Project Approval Date: 05/11/2021
- Project Completed Date: 01/31/2024
- Project Owner: Jaclyn Pryor
While all employees need to be well-versed in FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) compliance, instructors, faculty, and support teams who have access to student data need specific training on the procedures and responsibilities unique to their position. This new, elevated access training will help us prevent unintentional privacy breaches and ensure the appropriate use of student educational records. Importantly, failure to comply with FERPA requires federal reporting and may result in a loss of federal funding for the University.
The training will be assigned in EDGE Learning to new instructors at the beginning of each term. It should take 25-30 minutes to complete.
- Priority Grade: A
- Project Approval Date: 2/1/2023
- Project Owner: Amanda Gluski
Passed in the fall of 2022, Arizona Proposition 308 states that a qualifying non-citizen student who was physically present and attended an Arizona public, private, or home high school for a minimum of two years and graduated from this public, private, or home high school or earned a GED is eligible to receive in-state tuition regardless of immigration status or current domicile in Arizona. Additionally, state funded financial aid will not be withheld from students who are without lawful immigration status, providing they meet all other standard aid criteria.
The Office of the Registrar worked with UITS, Financial Aid, International Student Services, Admissions, Human Resources, Bursars Office, professional and graduate colleges and the access management team to remove VLP processes from existing university systems. Students are no longer required to complete VLP for residency classification or financial aid purposes as of Spring 2023. All information related to VLP has been removed from university websites and documentation.
Priority Grade: B
- Project Approval Date: 2/1/2023
- Project Completion Date: 7/15/2023
- Project Owner: Michael Davenport
Through this project an inventory of the tasks performed by student workers was completed and tasks were categorized into Customer Service or Data processing tasks. The audit framework allows for the tracking and reporting of student work volume.
Department standards were created across all units to provide consistent outcomes and the criteria students are audited on are standard across all student worker areas. Consistent expectations and trainings have been created for things such as customer service, using trellis, etc. As students excel additional higher-level work will be assigned and the student works will have a clear path to increasing complex duties.
- Priority Grade: A
- Project Approval Date: 03/02/2022
- Project Goal End Date: 01/06/2022
- Project Owner: Michael Davenport
The EDGE Learning program, UAccess Student: Enrolling Students, provides a consistent and interactive training module that takes users from student enrollment philosophy through the process of specific enrollment scenarios. The training can be accessed on-demand by campus users, and expanded resources are available on the Office of the Registrar website.
- Priority Grade: D
- Project Approval Date: 06/29/2021
- Project Completion Date: 08/01/2023
- Project Owner: Michael Davenport
While all employees need to be well-versed in FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) compliance, some employees who have access to and use large sets of student data need additional training on the procedures and responsibilities that come with having elevated access. This new, elevated access training will help us prevent unintentional privacy breaches and ensure the appropriate use of student educational records. Importantly, failure to comply with FERPA requires federal reporting and may result in a loss of federal funding for the University.
This elevated access FERPA training is one part of a larger project to modernize the FERPA training for many different University employee groups: faculty and instructors, researchers, staff, student workers, etc.
- Priority Grade: A
- Project Approval Date: 3/18/2021
- Project Completion Date 10/24/2023
- Project Owner: Amanda Gluski
The Office of the Registrar worked with University Information Technology Services (UITS) to update a set of forms previously managed and supported by the Student Affairs Systems Group (SASG). These staff-facing forms included the Campus Change, Program Add/Discontinue, Program/Plan Correction, Historical Exception to Course Repeat Policy, and Exception to Course Repeat Policy for Future Registration forms.
The new forms support a more streamlined workflow and simplify the request process for campus users and the Office of the Registrar team. Trellis cases for the repeat and CPP forms allow users to view submitted information and track the form's status. Additionally, all forms are now accessible on a single website through the Office of the Registrar, with detailed instructions on how and why to submit each form.
Priority Grade: A
Project Approval Date: 2/27/2024
Completion Date: 09/5/2024
Project Owner: Michael Davenport
The Office of the Registrar completed work with UITS and Campus Web Services to update the process for managing Dates and Deadlines. The data displayed to students and the campus community through Dates and Deadlines is accurate and accessible. The process is more sustainable and requires less manual interaction from teams to establish dates and deadlines. This work will enable future work to provide timely information to students about the dates and deadlines specific to the classes they are enrolled in so they are able to make informed decisions about their class schedule and enrollment.
Priority Grade: D
Approved Date: 11/01/2023
Completion Date: 07/30/2024
Project Owner: Michael Davenport
The Office of the Registrar has streamlined the use of dynamic (DYN) date rules in the system by reducing their number and standardizing their application for courses. This has resulted in a simpler and more efficient scheduling process for dynamically dated classes. With fewer courses being scheduled as dynamically dated, more classes now align with standard sessions, providing a more consistent experience for students in terms of class dates and deadlines.
Priority Grade: D
Approval Date: 05/02/2022
Completion Date: 07/30/2024
Project Owner: Michael Davenport
The project focus shifted from modifying the UAccess Instructor Center to improving communication and training resources for instructors. Personalized messages were sent to instructors at the beginning and end of each term, highlighting policy and procedure changes and offering reminders on best practices with links to helpful resources. The Instructor Center Information webpage was redesigned, replacing PDF guides with user-friendly webpage resources. This update included refreshed graphics and processes, setting a new design standard for a more welcoming user experience.
Priority Grade: D
Approved Date: 06/13/2023
Completion Date: 05/23/2024
Project Owner: Michael Davenport
The Office of the Registrar collaborated with UITS to implement an automatic process for generating grade rosters the day after a class ends. With this automation in place, the distribution of the grade roster is no longer impacted by external factors such as university holidays and staff availability.
Priority Grade: B
Approved Date: 10/03/2023
Completion Date: 05/23/2024
Project Owner: Maggie Ramirez
The Room & Course Scheduling team implemented a solution utilizing Human Resources data to enhance the accuracy of instructor information in UAccess. A manual review process now confirms instructors' statuses and initiates department communication to determine their eligibility for the Schedule of Classes. Despite leaving the University, instructors are not automatically removed from the system, requiring department schedulers to manage their statuses within the Instructor/Advisor Table. The RCS team now supports this process with enhanced maintenance using HR employment data. Certain instructors or advisors may remain active post-departure due to factors like committee appointments or emeritus faculty status, which are also addressed in the review process.
Priority Grade: C
Approval Date: 06/14/2022
Completion Date: 01/29/2024
Project Owner: Jaclyn Pryor
The Trellis Service Desk provides a suite of phone, live chat, and webform capabilities that help University service professionals support students and other constituents. The application is designed to help facilitate in-person and digital service case management with curated reporting and holistic views of constituent journeys – one that integrates with the rest of the Trellis CRM system. The Office of the Registrar uses chat, phone, and email in the Trellis platform.
This project created a suite of resource guides and training materials for the onboarding of the Office of the Registrar to the Trellis platform.
- Priority Grade: A
- Project Approval Date: 9/20/2021
- Project Goal End Date: 3/25/2021
- Project Owner: Michael Davenport
The Office of The Registrar removed classroom locations from the public Class Search display and class details in the Schedule of Classes. Access to classroom locations now require login with a Net-ID and password. Classroom information continues to be available on individual student's schedules, the Instructor Center, UAccess Student Center Class Search, and UAccess Student.
- Priority grade: D
- Project Approval Date: 05/02/2023
- Completion Date: 09/13/2023
- Project Owner: Jaclyn Pryor
The Office of the Registrar currently manages a process to ensure the accuracy of student records who did not attend and or participate in classes for a term. We will review and evaluate the current process to determine the appropriate way to manage student records with no attendance/participation. We plan to ensure the validity of our student’s records with a standard application for review by the Office of the Registrar.
Priority Grade: D
Approval Date: 06/14/2022
Completion Date: 07/12/2023
Project Owner: Michael Davenport
The Bachelor of General Studies (BGS) degree is being renamed and restructured as the Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies, with a new BIS degree type. Students completing this plan in 2222 or prior will be conferred with the BGS degree. Students completing in 2224 or beyond will be conferred with the BIS degree. Students graduating in the same semester will all receive the same degree type and degree name.
Scope of Project will include changes to UAccess academic structure tables to support student records changes such as new degree type, update to plan table. Student records were updated so no students are active with BGS degree by Aug 1, 2022. Communication was was given to campus stakeholders so that they understand change, and communicate with students about change.
- Priority Grade: B
- Project Approval Date: 5/4/2022
- Project Goal End Date: 10/18/2022
- Project Owner: Amanda Gluski
This project created one central phone number for all centrally scheduled classrooms as the contact point for any issues that may arise during instructional hours. A central number will allow instructors to express their concern and confirm that their concern will be triaged to the correct area for prompt resolution. Follow up will take place to be sure the problem was resolved.
- Priority Grade: A
- Project Approval Date: 03/01/2021
- Project Goal End Date: 02/17/2022
- Project Owner: Debbie Milora
The annual curriculum update process was built for managing existing plans, but needed adjustments to also function as a repository for new plans and other substantial changes. Related updates to Degree Search and Learning Outcomes were added in 2020 by Curricular Affairs, but additional functionality was needed to work smoothly for departmental submitters and internal reviewers.
- Priority Grade: B
- Project Approval Date: 4/22/2021
- Project Goal End Date: 5/23/2023
- Project Owner: Abbie Sorg
Evolving system management required that storage, retention, tracking and access to General Petition information be migrated to Trellis Service Desk. Categories and subcategories created in Trellis allow for transparency and reporting processes to determine number of petitions, outcomes and policy impacted.
- Priority Grade: D
- Project Approval Date: 9/30/2021
- Project End Date: 12/07/2021
- Project Owner: Michael Davenport
Many of the current processes and clean-up reports rely on staff to do manual enrollment updated based on known logic. This PeopleSoft modification will all for staff to update different enrollment transactions through a query across terms and students. Functions such as Add, Drop, and Normal Maintenance will be able to be updated in batch, for a better utilization of staff resources and record acuracy.
- Priority Grade: B
- Project Approval Date: 6/3/2021
- Project End Date: 3/8/2023
- Project Owner: Michael Davenport
The Office of the Registrar often receives requests from campus partners for student and university data, when usually there are more fitting units that can meet the request. This project will develop a workflow and identify resources for Office the Registrar staff to manage these data requests. Working with University Analytics and Institutional Research (UAIR), this new workflow will advance our campus partnerships, resulting in a reduction of duplicate work and a more timely access to University data providers and resources.
- Priority Grade: D
- Project Approval Date: 3/29/2022
- Project Goal End Date: 3/15/2023
- Project Owner: Cori Cashen
This project supported a true and accurate classroom schedule. The release of unused classroom resources allows for additional scheduling and room use by the campus community.
Priority Grade: C
Approval Date: 09/17/2022
Completion Date: 11/16/2023
Project Owner: Jaclyn Pryor
The Schedule of Classes now offers a Class Section Level Attribute that denotes the language of instruction if the course will be taught in a Language other than English. This attribute will only be applied to non-language courses. The use of this Class Attribute will inform students of the instructional language which helps set expectations for student success at the time of enrollment.
Priority Grade: B
Approved Date: 07/05/2023
Completion Date: 11/16/2023
Project Owner: Jaclyn Pryor