Fall 2021 Course Syllabus Course: BUSI-1307- Section: 71Z Personal Finance

Instructor Information
Instructor	Emily Peters
E-mail	petersem@lamarpa.edu
Phone	(409) 984-6418
Office	Location: Umphrey Industrial Technology Center - Room: 201A Hours: As needed, by appointment.
COVID 19 Information	The Lamar State College Port Arthur (LSCPA) Student Code of Conduct COVID 19 Policy requires students who have been exposed to COVID 19 or diagnosed with COVID 19 to report their condition on the COVID 19 Notification Form (available via a link on the Student Code of Conduct COVID19 webpage). This information will be provided to the Dean of Student Services. In addition, this policy requires all students to wear face coverings in compliance with the criteria included in the policy. For more information please refer to the COVID 19 link on the LSCPA website.
Course Information
Description	Personal and family accounts, budgets and budgetary control, bank accounts, charge accounts, borrowing, investing, insurance, standards of living, renting or home ownership, and wills and trust plans.
Prerequisites	None
Learning Outcomes	Define Personal Finance. Identify the key goals of sound Personal Finance actions. Analyze health, life, home and automobile insurances. Identify key goals in developing investment strategies relative to stocks and bonds. Develop goals and strategies to maximize consumer credit and credit worthiness. Identify key considerations and strategies Identify the impact of taxes on financial goals and strategies. List personal current and future financial goals. Delineate goals of retirement and estate planning. Identify sources of financial information and consumer financing. Delineate sources and strategies of education financing.
Core Objectives	Communication skills: Students will demonstrate effective written, oral and visual communication. Critical Thinking Skills: Students will engage in creative and/or innovative thinking, and/or inquiry, analysis, evaluation, synthesis of information, organizing concepts and constructing solutions. Empirical and Quantitative Skills: Students will demonstrate applications of scientific and mathematical concepts. Personal Responsibility: Students will demonstrate the ability to connect choices, actions and consequences to ethical decision-making.
Program Student Learning Outcomes
Textbooks	Textbook Purchasing Statement: A student attending Lamar State College Port Arthur is not under any obligation to purchase a textbook from the college-affiliated bookstore. The same textbook may also be available from an independent retailer, including an online retailer. Focus on Personal Finance: An Active Approach to Help You Achieve Financial Literacy, 6th edition, McGraw-Hill Education, 2019, by Kapoor | Dlabay | Hughes | Hart; ISBN 9781260140996, eBook options may also be available. McGraw-Hill Connect access NOT REQUIRED. Textbook Purchasing Statement: A student attending Lamar State College Port Arthur is not under any obligation to purchase a textbook from the college-affiliated bookstore. The same textbook may also be available from an independent retailer, including an online retailer. 3-Ring binder REQUIRED for loose-leaf textbook material
Lecture Topics Outline	Week 1 - 8/23/21: Course Introduction/Chapter 1 - Personal Financial Planning in Action Week 2 - 8/30/21: Chapter 1, continued Week 3 – 9/6/21: Chapter 2 - Money Management Skills Week 4 – 9/13/21: Chapter 3 - Taxes in Your Financial Plan Week 5 – 9/20/21: Chapter 4 - Financial Services: Savings Plans and Payment Accounts/EXAM 1 (Chapters 1-3) Week 6 – 9/27/21: Chapter 5 - Consumer Credit: Advantages, Disadvantages, Sources and Costs Week 7 – 10/4/21: Chapter 6 - Consumer Purchasing: Strategies and Wise Buying of Motor Vehicles/EXAM 2 (Chapters 4-5) Week 8 – 10/11/21: Chapter 7- Selecting and Financing Housing Week 9 – 10/18/21: EXAM 3 (Chapters 6-7) Week 10 – 10/25/21: Chapter 8 – Home and Automobile Insurance Week 11 – 11/1/21: Chapter 9 – Health and Disability Income Insurance/Chapter 10 – Financial Planning with Life Insurance Week 12 – 11/8/21: EXAM 4 (Chapters 8-10)/Start Chapters 11-14 on Investing Basics and Saving for Retirement Week 13 – 11/15/21: Chapters 11-14 on Investing Basics and Saving for Retirement, continued Week 14 – 11/22/21: Chapters 11-14 on Investing Basics and Saving for Retirement, continued/THANKSGIVING BREAK (24th-26th) Week 15 – 11/29/21: Chapters 11-14 on Investing Basics and Saving for Retirement, continued/Review for Final Week 16 – 12/6/21: CUMULATIVE FINAL EXAM, with emphasis on Chapters 11-14. ***NOTE: SCHEDULE IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE***
Major Assignments Schedule	Students can expect weekly Assignments and/or Discussions along with Quizzes on the topics above. Unless otherwise noted, these will typically be due the following week. Please check the calendar in Blackboard for specific weekly assignment/quiz due dates. Exam dates: *Exam 1 over Module 1 (Chapters 1-3) due 9/24/21. *Exam 2 over Module 2 (Chapters 4-5) due 10/11/21. *Exam 3 over Module 3 (Chapters 6-7) due 10/25/21. *Exam 4 over Module 4 (Chapters 8-10) due 11/15/21. *Exam 5 (Comprehensive Final Exam, with emphasis on Module 5/Chapters 11-14) will be posted Friday, December 3rd at 5:00pm. It will be due by Tuesday, December 7th at 11:30pm, and you may take at your convenience during that timeframe. ***NOTE: SCHEDULE/DUE DATES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE*** Changes will be announced and posted in Blackboard.
Final Exam Date	December 3, 2021 - 5:0 PM   Through  December 7, 2021 - 11:30 PM
Grading Scale	90 - 100=A    80 - 89=B    70 - 79=C     60 - 69=D    Below 59 = F
Determination of Final Grade	Exams (including Final) - 50%, Weekly Assignments/Quizzes - 50% (25% each)
Course Policies
Instructor Policies	I will not discuss your grades over the phone or by email. If you would like to discuss your grades, you must schedule a time to come to my office and discuss in person. Grade calculations displayed in Blackboard may not always be accurate. You should average your own grades using the syllabus grade calculation, and report any discrepancies to instructor. Every student MUST have a copy of the required textbooks by the second week of class. The student will still be responsible for any assignments given. Failure to have a text may result in being dropped from the class. Students are responsible for completing all assigned reading and video viewings. A failure to follow oral and/or written instructions may result in penalties. Assignments/Discussions/Quizzes: Unless specified otherwise, all assignments/discussions/quizzes are to be completed/submitted on Blackboard. No emailed work is accepted unless specifically requested by the instructor. Assignments will typically be posted weekly and due the following week by 11:30pm on night of the due date posted online. The lowest assignment grade with be dropped. Some assignments, such as commenting on the Discussion Board, may be for a completion grade only. However, failure to participate or complete may result in a penalty/deduction on another assignment or quiz. Quizzes will be given on Blackboard covering the chapter studied that week. Quizzes will often cover the key terms/vocabulary/concepts contained in the chapter. There will be no makeups for missed quizzes. Missed quizzes will receive a score of zero. The lowest quiz grade with be dropped. All Due Dates for assignments and quizzes will be listed on the Course Calendar. All assignments, quizzes, and exams must be completed and submitted before the due date. Because you have ample time to complete assignments, late work will not be accepted without specific approval of the instructor. Such approval will involve appropriate documentation suitable to the instructor to support the work being late and may still involve a penalty for lateness including up to 10-points per day. You should start early enough so that if/when you experience problems, we can work them out prior to the due date. Working with technology can be challenging. You will have problems. Websites will go down, Internet connections will not work, devices will not charge, etc. If you wait until the due date, you risk not completing your work on time. When you have technical issues, contact me early. Technical problems on the due date are NOT an excuse for turning in assignments late. Exams: You must work alone while taking the exam; however, the use of notes and the book IS permitted. Cheating on exams is not acceptable and will be subject to violations of the Academic Dishonesty policy. If you fail to complete an exam (including the Final) by the due date, you will receive a grade of zero. If you have special circumstances which require you to miss an exam, you may contact the me to see if other arrangements can be made. Requests for makeup exams or other arrangements are granted only if you have an exceptional reason for missing an exam, such as a medical emergency, or death in the family. It is your responsibility to initiate arrangements for a makeup or other arrangements. Approval should be cleared with me prior to the date of absence. If it is not possible to contact me prior to the exam, within 24 hours after missing the exam, you must email me and cite the reasons you missed the exam. The format of a makeup exam may differ from that of the regularly scheduled exam. Extra credit may be assigned at the discretion of the instructor. Reliable Internet access is required for all online courses and many traditional courses. Computer failure and lack of internet access are not acceptable excuses for missed assignments, projects, quizzes, or exams.
Attendance Policy	1.Students should check Blackboard Announcements as well as e-mail several times a week to note changes in the syllabus, updates to assignments/quizzes/exams, extra credit assignments, and/or other class information. 2. Students should notify the instructor immediately of any difficulties with internet or computer access. Regular, reliable access to BlackBoard via Internet is required for this online course. Attendance is monitored via Blackboard reports of logins and interaction with course.
Academic Honesty	Academic honesty is expected from all students, and dishonesty in any form will not be tolerated. Please consult the LSC-PA policies (Section IX, subsection A, in the Faculty Handbook) for consequences of academic dishonesty.
Facility Policies	No food or tobacco products are allowed in the classroom. Only students enrolled in the course are allowed in the classroom, except by special instructor permission. Use of electronic devices is prohibited.
Important Information
ADA Considerations	The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal anti-discrimination statute that provides comprehensive civil rights for persons with disabilities. Among other things, this legislation requires that all students with disabilities be guaranteed a learning environment that provides for reasonable accommodation of their disabilities. If you believe you have a disability requiring an accommodation, please contact the the Office for Disability Services Coordinator, Room 231, in the Madison Monroe Building. The phone number is (409) 984-6241.
MyLSCPA	Be sure to check your campus E-mail and Course Homepage using MyLSCPA campus web portal (My.LamarPA.edu). When you've logged in, click the email icon in the upper right-hand corner to check email, or click on the "My Courses" tab to get to your Course Homepage. Click the link to your course and review the information presented. It is important that you check your email and Course Homepage regularly. You can also access your grades, transcripts, and determine who your academic advisor is by using MyLSCPA.
Other
HB 2504	This syllabus is part of LSC-PA's efforts to comply with Texas House Bill 2504.
Department	Business and Industrial Technology Chair: Sheila Guillot E-mail: guillsr@lamarpa.edu Phone: (409) 984-6381 If you have a grievance, complaint, or concern about this course that has not been resolved through discussion with the Instructor, please consult the Department Chair.