Contacts.xml

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<concept id="contacts">
  <title>Contacts and Roles</title>

  <shortdesc></shortdesc>
  <prolog>
    <author type="creator">Graduate Program Committee</author>
    <copyright>
      <copyryear year="2014"/>
      <copyrholder>CS Department</copyrholder>
    </copyright>
  </prolog>
  <conbody>

    <p>All details of the graduate programs are the purview of the
    <b>Graduate Program Committee</b> (GPC). GPC is a a standing
    committee in the department with participation from faculty
    members along with a graduate student representative. The
    committee meets regularly and deliberates about all graduate
    program related matters. Every year new members are elected into
    GPC and the duration of their terms varies according to the size
    of the committee and other departmental responsibilities. The
    committee is chaired by the <b>Graduate Director</b> (GD), which
    in our department is the same person as the <b>Associate
    Department Head for Graduate Studies</b> (AGS). The department
    also has an <b>Associate Department Head for Undergraduate
    Studies</b> (AUS) who also interacts with graduate students in
    certain affairs.</p>

    <p>Other personnel play significant role in the day to day operations of the graduate program. The graduate coordinator (GC), initial academic advisor (IAA), academic and research advisor (ARA), and graduate director (AGS) are the key contacts for all matters of graduate studies in Computer Science.</p>

    <p>The <b>Graduate Coordinator</b> (GC) oversees all day-to-day aspects of the graduate program and serves as an important focal point of contact for all graduate students. The GC’s primary responsibility is to respond to questions from students and to keep record of all the different milestones for our graduate degrees. The GC's office is in the main office in the KWII building.</p>

    <p>The <b>Initial Academic Advisor</b> (IAA) serves as the initial academic advisor to all incoming students till they find a research advisor. This person plays a significant role in the first year of studies for most graduate students. By the end of their first year, students should have identified an advisor.</p>

    <p>The <b>Academic and Research Advisor</b> (ARA) is responsible for advising a student regarding maters of academic and research progress. The ARA must do a yearly evaluation of each of his/her students and discuss this evaluation with the Graduate Program Committee on Green Thursday. The ARA must be a full-time Virginia Tech faculty position with either a regular, emeritus, or courtesy appointment in the Department of Computer Science, and hold a Ph.D. or equivalent terminal degree. It is the student's responsibility to select an ARA for their work. We do not assign ARA to students.</p>

    <p>The <b>Graduate Director</b> (GD) addresses program administration related issues, such as design, implementation, and evolution of graduate degrees and approvals of programs of study. In CS, the Graduate Director is the same person as the AGS. The AGS is the chair of the GPC. The AGS also works closely with the department head to make decisions pertaining to course registrations and financial assistance administered by the department (such as teaching assistantships and fellowships). The GC, IAA, and AGS work closely to cover all aspects pertaining to the successful functioning of the graduate program.</p>

    <p>As of this writing, the following people occupy the positions
    mentioned above:</p>

    <ul>
      <li>GD/AGS is Dr. Cliff Shaffer (540-231-4354, Torgersen 2000,
      shaffer@vt.edu, <xref href="http://people.cs.vt.edu/shaffer"
      format="html" scope="external"/>).</li> 
      <li>AUS is Dr. Cal Ribbens (540-231-6262, ribbens@vt.edu, <xref
      href="http://www.cs.vt.edu/user/ribbens" format="html"
      scope="external"/>).</li>
      <li>GC is Ms. Sharon Kinder-Potter (540-231-6932, KWII 1105,
      skpotter@vt.edu).</li>
      <li>IAA is Dr. Cliff Shaffer (540-231-4354, Torgersen 2000,
      shaffer@vt.edu, <xref href="http://people.cs.vt.edu/shaffer"
      format="html" scope="external"/>).</li>
    </ul>

  </conbody>
</concept>