Since the 2009 demise of ProfRecord, a program on the College’s website that listed professors’ grade distributions, students were left without a means to quantify statements like, “That professor’s an easy grader.”
Now, students seeking concrete proof that a professor only gives As need look no further than myedu.com.
MyEdu contains a database of grade distributions — and, according to Student Government’s Vice President of Academic Affairs Katie Cugliotta, “much more.” SG recently signed a service agreement with the website, stating that MyEdu will become SG’s official academic planning service and replacement to ProfRecord.
“This has grades. It also has commentary. It has a schedule planner,” said Cugliotta, sophomore history secondary education major. “The ProfRecord we were going to do on campus was just the grades — this is much more.”
SG representatives have been seeking an alternative to ProfRecord since it was shut down in 2009.
The service met its end due to lack of upkeep and a professor’s issue with a comment on ProfRecord’s student feedback section. According to Cugliotta, neither of these issues will crop up with MyEdu.
“They do allow commentary, but they censor the commentary so it’s (appropriate),” Cugliotta said.
The website also obtains grade distribution data itself.
“They submit an OPRA (Open Public Records Act) request … and then the commentary comes from the students,” Cugliotta said.
SG president Olaniyi Solebo, junior political science major, charged the Academic Affairs committee with finding a replacement for ProfRecord last spring.
At first, SG vice president Corey Dwyer, and former vice president of Academic Affairs Gina Lauterio, both junior political science majors, and Cugliotta searched for developers to create a program like ProfRecord that could be hosted on a different website.
SG received $800 in funding from the Student Finance Board for the project, according to Dwyer.
SG made progress on finding a developer for the new ProfRecord over the summer, but the arrangement fell through.
After Cugliotta assumed the position of vice president of Academic Affairs for the 2010-2011 academic year, Dwyer turned the project over to her committee.
SG’s pursuit of a new grade distribution site seemed to stalemate for some time, until Cugliotta received a tip that resuscitated the project.
“We were in the process of finding … a solution (when) a friend told me, ‘Have you looked at MyEdu?’” Cugliotta said.
After browsing the website, Cugliotta knew SG had its new ProfRecord.
“Instantly, as soon as I started using it, I knew it was perfect,” Cugliotta said.
She e-mailed the site’s administrators to ask if MyEdu’s services would always be free. Their response — “Yes” — came with a question: would SG like to make the website its official academic planning service?
After consulting with SG, Cugliotta decided to respond with a yes as well.
“At first, we were interested in getting the school’s backing, but then we decided to go just as the Student Government,” Cugliotta said. “(MyEdu) is separated from the school.”
Students can sign up for MyEdu at myedu.com, using their College e-mail address.
Emily Brill can be reached at brill3@tcnj.edu
