Syllabus for Roster(s):
UVA Class Syllabus and Class Overview
Syllabus PC 5060
General Class Information
Instructor Name: Michael E. Giboney mg3z@virginia.edu
Subject Area and Catalog Number: Procurement and Contract Management
Year and Term: 2016 fall PC 5060
Class Title: Federal Acquisition Case Studies
Credit Type: Graduate 3 credit
Level (Graduate or Undergraduate): Graduate
Class Description:
This course provides the non-lawyer through the use of case studies a basic understanding of the principles of law found in the US Code and Federal Acquisition Regulation that govern government contracting and prepares the student for participation in federal contract law as a non-lawyer. Prerequisite: PC 5010
Required Text:
Federal Procurement Law for the Contracts Professional
By Michael E. Giboney and Peter T. McKeen - ISBN-13: 978-0-9792246-0-7; ISBN-10: 0-9792246-0-8
The text is available from either Amazon.com or the UVA Bookstore. Proceeds for orders placed with the UVA Bookstore contribute to the University for Scholarship, grant programs, rainy day funds and other departmental projects.
The text can be ordered via Amazon at:
To order the text from the UVA Bookstore, please call 1-800-759-4667 (choose option #5 when prompted).
Learning Outcomes:
In contracting apply the applicable laws, policies, regulations and procedures during all stages of government contracting. This is the complete Federal Acquisition System law course including formation, management and administration. The student will gain an understanding, valuing, respecting and participating in federal contract law. The course content has been prepared in concise, plain language for non-lawyers with a unique section on legal support furnished by the contracts manager. At the completion of the course the student will have an understanding of the essential elements of federal procurement law and the role of the contracting professional in matters involving procurement law.
Assessment Components:
Using case studies, individual required responses, group discussion required responses the course will provide the setting to improve the students’ ability to understand and implement federal law, policies and procedures. There is frequent student-instructor and student-student discussion, live and not live.
Evaluation of student performance will result from written required responses and an independently prepared final examination. The grading system will include the use of grades A, B, C, D, and F, including the use of plus (+) and minus (-) for each grade.
Final grades will be based upon the following evaluation criteria:
A. Completion of all course requirements before the end date of the course.
B. Timeliness of participation in all aspects of the course. An instructor message to an individual student urging timely progress or completion of any of the course requirements, or completion of a large amount of work at the end of the semester may result in the final grade lowered at least a whole grade. The Required Responses, participation in the Discussion feature, participation in the Live Chat feature all combined will constitute about fifty percent (50%) of the final grade. The Final Examination will constitute about fifty percent (50%) of the final grade.
Delivery Mode Expectations: Four to five scheduled synchronous online chat room discussions using assigned topics and questions. Students may submit suggested topics of particular interest.
Required Technical Resources and Technical Components:
Access UVA Collab at: https://collab.itc.virginia.edu/portal
Click on the UVa Login button.
Log in to NetBadge using your UVa Computing ID and your UVa generated Password
Once you have successfully logged in to “My Workspace” on UVaCollab, you will find your specific course site on the tabs next to “My Workspace” or under “My Active Sites”. If you do not yet have your UVa password information on obtaining one can be found at www.scps.virginia.edu.
Class Specific Information
Class Instruction and Activities:
Students are furnished in each online lesson a description of the lesson, goals and objectives, the lesson assignment, learning activities, and additional resources outside the required text and online content. The students will perform individual assignments using the assignment feature based upon the course text, and will function as a team recording collective efforts on the case studies into the discussion feature based upon the lesson content. Each individual student is required to participate by contributing to the class/team recorded results in any discussion. In addition, nearly all lessons will include required student responses using the individual assignment and discussion features. Individual and discussion required responses are not individually graded, but worked by the student under the guidance of the instructor until the teaching point is reached. This fosters student analytical abilities and confidence. All mandatory requirements are not more frequent than one per week with no fixed requirement dates except the date the final examination is due, at the course completion date. Final examinations are individually graded. Scheduled Live Chats with assigned topics will provide a total of approximately four hours. The instructor communicates with all students in each of these course features and in the case of required responses within seven days of student postings.
Class Requirements:
Students must complete all individual and discussion assignments and the final examination before the end of the course. Each individual student is required to participate by contributing to the class recorded results. Through the use of the text, online lessons, case studies, optional research links and the live chat room the course will provide the setting to improve the students’ ability to understand and implement federal procurement law. The final examination consists of short essay type questions.
Evaluation Standards and Assessments: See Assessment Components (above).
Class Schedule:
This course is web-based beginning late January 2016 and ending mid-May. Students will be expected to complete weekly reading of one Part of the text, one online lesson, one required response (Lesson Discussion and/or Individual Assignment) in a timely manner (defined in the Course Menu, Syllabus, Condensed Syllabus). There are no required dates except the end of the course.
Communication & Student Response Time:
The student UVA email address in the course Email feature must be accurate. Any course general information, needed assistance or other information regarding your progress in the course contact the instructor by email at mg3z@virginia.edu and the instructor will reply usually within one day. The course is self-paced with no specific delivery dates for assignments, with the exception of the final examination.
Assignments: All assignments using the Lesson Discussion (LD) or Individual Required Response (IRR) features (collectively, Required Responses (RRs)) are due before the end of the semester. Lesson Discussions will include instructor comments after a timely period for students’ responses. No grades will be used in this feature. Assignments as Individual Required Responses (including the final examination) will provide immediate instructor evaluation and comments as completed by the students. No grades will be used in this feature. Participation in scheduled live chats is encouraged but not mandatory.
Resources: Resource web links are furnished usually as an attachment to the online lesson. Their use are encouraged but not required.
Grading: See Evaluation Standards and Assessments The Gradebook feature will not be used.
Technical Specifications: Computer Hardware
- Minimum Operating System
- Windows 7 SP1 (Professional preferred)
- Mac OS X 10.8 or 10.9
- Minimum Processor Speed: Equivalent to an Intel Core 2 Duo (1.5 GHz)
- Minimum RAM: 4 GB
- Minimum Hard Disk Space: 150 GB of free hard disk space (after all programs are loaded)
- Networking Capability: Wireless networking (802.11g or n) and an Ethernet port
- Strongly Recommended Accessories:
- An Ethernet cable (Even if you will primarily use wireless, a wired connection is faster and more reliable for video-streaming, live online meetings and large file uploads and downloads.)
- A power surge protector
- CD/DVD drive and/or “thumb” or flash drive(s), plus a backup storage mechanism
Technical Support Contacts:
Login/Password: scpshelpdesk@virginia.edu
BbCollaborate (Elluminate) Support: scpshelpdesk@virginia.edu or http://support.blackboardcollaborate.com
U.Va. Policies
SCPS Grading Policies: Courses carrying a School of Continuing and Professional Studies subject area use the following grading system: A+, A, A-; B+, B, B-; C+, C, C-; D+, D, D-; F. S (satisfactory) and U (unsatisfactory) are used for some course offerings. For noncredit courses, the grade notation is N (no credit). Students who audit courses receive the designation AU (audit). The symbol W is used when a student officially drops a course before its completion or if the student withdraws from an academic program of the University. Please visit SCPS Grades
Attendance: Students are expected to attend all class sessions. Instructors establish attendance and participation requirements for each of their courses. Class requirements, regardless of delivery mode, are not waived due to a student's absence from class. Instructors will require students to make up any missed coursework and may deny credit to any student whose absences are excessive. Instructors must keep an attendance record for each student enrolled in the course to document attendance and participation in the class.
University Email Policies: Students are expected to check their official UVA email addresses on a frequent and consistent basis to remain informed of University communications, as certain communications may be time sensitive. Students who fail to check their email on a regular basis are responsible for any resulting consequences.
End-of-Class Evaluations: Students are expected to complete the online end-of-class evaluation. As the semester comes to a close, students will receive an email with instructions for completing this. Student feedback will be very valuable to the school, the instructor, and future students. We ask that all students please complete these evaluations in a timely manner. Please be assured that the information you submit online will be anonymous and kept confidential.
University of Virginia Honor System: All work should be pledged in the spirit of the Honor System at the University of Virginia. The instructor will indicate which assignments and activities are to be done individually and which permit collaboration. The following pledge should be written out at the end of all quizzes, examinations, individual assignments and papers: “I pledge that I have neither given nor received help a on this examination (quiz, assignment, etc.)”. The pledge must be signed by the student. For more information please visit Honor System
Special Needs: It is the policy of the University of Virginia to accommodate students with disabilities in accordance with federal and state laws. Any SCPS student with a disability who needs accommodation (e.g., in arrangements for seating, extended time for examinations, or note-taking, etc.), should contact the Student Disability Access Center (SDAC) and provide them with appropriate medical or psychological documentation of his/her condition. Once accommodations are approved, it is the student’s responsibility to follow up with the instructor about logistics and implementation of accommodations. Accommodations for test taking should be arranged at least 14 business days in advance of the date of the test(s). Students with disabilities are encouraged to contact the SDAC: 434-243-5180/Voice, 434-465-6579/Video Phone, 434-243-5188/Fax. Further policies and statements available: U.Va. Department of Student Health
For further policies and statements about student rights and responsibilities, please see U.Va Website (http://www.scps.virginia.edu/audience/students)
October 2015