FEST: Faculty Evaluation System

Summer 2026 · Vanderbilt University

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Overview

FEST (Faculty Evaluation System) is a desktop application built with Python and Tkinter that manages student academic records, visualizations, and campus resources. Originally developed as a monolithic script, the codebase has been refactored into a modular, object-oriented architecture with theme support, new features, and improved maintainability.

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Major Changes & Additions

1. Modular File Structure (attributed to Sofiya)

Before: Single main.py file (~1,500 lines) containing all functionality (UI, data management, authentication, and visualizations) & global variables.

We created eight distinct modules, each with a single responsibility:

• [PLACEHOLDER: TABLE EXPLAINING DIFF MODULES]

Reasoning: Separation of concerns allows independent development, testing, and debugging. Sofiya was also getting dizzy reading through the giant main.py file

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2. Theme Management & Light/Dark Mode (attributed to Sofiya)

Before: Hardcoded colors throughout the application with no way to switch themes.

After: ThemeManager class provides two palettes (dark and light) with a single toggle that refreshes the entire UI.

• Dark Mode: Deep charcoal background (#1A1A1A) with warm gold accents [PLACEHOLDER: SCREENSHOT DARK MODE]
• Light Mode: Cream/ivory background (#F5F0E8) with rich brown tones [PLACEHOLDER: SCREENSHOT LIGHT MODE]

Reasoning: Users can choose their preferred visual style. All (ideally) UI components now fetch colors dynamically via self.theme.get_color(), ensuring consistency.

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3. New Menu Options

a. Dean's List (attributed to Sofiya)

Displays students with an average GPA of 3.5 or higher across all recorded coursework. Honors are presented with medal icons (🥇🥈🥉) for the top three performers. [PLACEHOLDER: SCREENSHOT DEAN's LIST] [PLACEHOLDER: SCREENSHOT CODE SNIPPET IN OPERATIONS.PY AND DATA.PY]

b. Statistics Dashboard (attributed to Sofiya)

Comprehensive analytics including:

• Overview metrics (total students, courses, avg/max/min GPA)
• Grade distribution (A-F)
• Top 5 students with GPA rankings
• Major distribution summary
• [PLACEHOLDER: SCREENSHOT STATISTICS DASHBOARD]
• [PLACEHOLDER: SCREENSHOT CODE SNIPPET IN OPERATIONS.PY AND DATA.PY]

c. Student Organizations (attributed to Dania)

Manages campus clubs and organizations with:

• Searchable table of clubs
• Member counts and average GPAs
• Statistics card overview
• (Currently static data; future update for dynamic management)
• [PLACEHOLDER: SCREENSHOT STUDENT ORGS]

ci. Student Organizations Integration with Student ID (attributed to Jay)

Student ID cards now display organization affiliations based on the student's major:

• [PLACEHOLDER: SCREENSHOT TABLE CORRESPONDING MAJOR AND ORG]

• [PLACEHOLDER: SCREENSHOT STUDENT ID CARD WITH STUDENT ORG HIGHLIGHTED]

• (Currently static data; future update for dynamic management)

Reasoning: shows a student's campus involvement, giving a more complete student profile.

d. Tutoring Finder (attributed to Iris)

Find tutoring sessions by major:

• Dropdown selection of available majors
• Displays session details (days, times, subjects, locations)
• Styled with the application's theme system
• [PLACEHOLDER: SCREENSHOT TUTORING FINDER]

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Challenges Encountered

Version Control

• Multiple team members contributed features independently using the original monolithic file structure.
• Committing directly into main (bad practice)
• Limited time prevented full refactoring of every feature to fully integrate into new architecture

Time Constraints

• The final integration sprint was compressed, resulting in some features (e.g., Add/Edit/Delete in Student Organizations) being implemented as "Coming Soon" placeholders.
• Not all UI elements were fully migrated to use the ThemeManager for all colors, causing occasional style inconsistencies.

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Next Steps:

1. Make All Popup Windows Scrollable

Currently, only the main menu supports scrolling. Every popup (e.g., Statistics Dashboard, Student Organizations) should be wrapped in a scrollable canvas to handle content that exceeds the window height.

2. Better Integration with ThemeManager/DataManager

• ThemeManager: Ensure every widget uses self.theme.get_color() instead of hardcoded colors.
• DataManager: Move static data (club lists, tutoring data, dean's list thresholds) from methods into the DataManager for easier updates and persistence.

3. Complete "Coming Soon" Features

• Student Organizations: Add, Edit, Delete functionality
• Student Clubs: Dynamic membership tracking and enrollment
• Export Reports: PDF/CSV export for statistics and Dean's List

4. Unit Testing

Implement unit tests for each manager class to ensure reliability as the codebase grows.

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Repository Structure:

• [PLACEHOLDER: SCREENSHOT OF REPOSITORY STRUCTURE]

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Requirements:

• Python 3.10+
• matplotlib, seaborn, pandas, numpy
• Tkinter

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