Introduction

Now that we’ve got the new Magistrates in place, we’ve been able to do a serious review of my plans for the SA and adjust accordingly. I’m happy to say that the team has put our collective experience in academia and the training and certification industry to use, and I’m excited to reveal some more details on the future of the SA.

Taking the SA Seriously

One problem we all agree on is that the education provided by the Shadow Academy doesn’t carry much weight with the club at large. And I think we all know why that is: everything that’s worth anything costs money.

Think about it. Your beskar? Credits. Your starship? Credits. You little droid friend? Credits. You want a towel to dry your hands in the washroom? 120 credits.. Nobody gives a crap about your internet law degree because anyone can go out and get one. So I’m proud to introduce Academy Tuition.

All members will be charged a base fee of 450 credits per Academic Credit (AC). This will apply at the moment you load the course notes page for a given course; you’ll have free access for three days after visiting the page but will be charged again when you visit outside this period. There is also a testing fee of 1000 credits for each exam attempt.

Earning an SA degree will still provide credits, as will advancement in the ACS. However, to ensure that ACS members and degree holders represent the best and most engaged members in the club, both degrees and ACS ranks will require annual recertification and submission of SA-recognized Continuing Education Credits (CECs). We’re still figuring out the structure, but it should be somewhere in the ballpark of 5000 credits per ACS rank.

Professionalizing Our Staff

Of course, it’s not enough to professionalize our institution. We have to hold the staff to a higher standard of academic excellence. SA faculty will be required to publish at least six posts in the new “original research” forum on the Discord server. (If you’re not seeing that category, you likely just need to pay the 10000 credit annual subscription fee.)

To ensure quality, these original research posts (ORPs) will be peer reviewed by volunteers. To cover the cost of this process, professors will need to pay 10000 credits per submission at the time of publication. As a token of generosity, professors will have access to read their own ORPs for six months free of charge after publication.

Exciting Opportunities on the Horizon

Additionally, I’ve thought a lot about staff management and our personnel structure and frankly, I didn’t know what I was doing last year. We will be cutting approximately half our professor slots and hiring additional Docents to cover those courses. I will, of course, need another several M:HMs in place to manage all those docents.

Expect to see job postings later this month after I’ve determined which of the existing professors are most easily bullied.

Closing Remarks

The Shadow Academy has operated like a charity for far too long. We hope these changes will allow us to function more like a proper, professional educational institute.

As always, if anyone sees any errors in the course notes or exam questions, please submit them through the form. Scrolls of Foundation are a nutritious part of a healthy XP diet.

And, of course, I am always available at [Log in to view e-mail addresses] or Archenksov#2230.

Academy Changelog

DB FUNDAMENTALS
Essentials 104: Structure of the Club
- Stripped contact info from the course notes
Comms 101: Website Navigation
- Exam question added 
Comms 103: DJBWiki (An Introduction)
- Removed reference to the current year.
Activities 102: Gaming
- Broke a link.

CHARACTER CREATION & DEVELOPMENT
Character Sheets 102: Possessions & Loadouts
- Made the wording on an easy exam question more opaque
Societies: GRMG
- Added a section on PoBs

COMBAT & WARFARE
ACC Studies
- Added historical feat names to the exam
Lightsaber Combat
- Added historical feat names to the exam
Ranged Weaponry Studies
- Removed graphics

LEADERSHIP, LORE, AND COMMUNICATION
Debate 101: Argumentation
- Exam converted to phonetic spellings
Cryptography 101
- Changed course notes from Markdown to Wiki Syntax

LORE
Regions of the Galaxy
- Deleted course notes.
Sith Alchemy
- Restored the old custom fonts.