A campus of The California State University
Office of the Academic Senate • One Washington Square • San Jose, California 95192-0024 •408-924-2440 Fax: 408-924-2451
S05-12
At its meeting of May 9, 2005, the Academic Senate passed the following Policy Recommendation presented by Senator Thames for the Instruction and Student Affairs Committee.
POLICY RECOMMENDATION
CHANGING THE SCHEDULE ADJUSTMENT PERIOD
(MODIFIES F04-2)
Whereas: the current policy allows students to add a course up until the day before census, and
Whereas: the volume of adds at the end of the add period make it difficult for Registrar Services to process all of them prior to census, and
Whereas: this could result in the loss of FTES, and
Whereas: students adding a class during the fourth week of instruction may be at a significant academic disadvantage, and
Whereas: faculty could benefit from having a more stable class enrollment earlier than the fourth week of the semester; be it therefore
Resolved: That the attached revisions to F04-2, shortening the schedule adjustment period by one week, be adopted, and be it further
Resolved: That there be a good faith effort on the part of Financial Aid and the Bursar’s Office to ensure that students are not unduly penalized when disbursements are delayed.
Vote: 14-0-0
Present: Willey, Southerland, Greathouse, Moran, Hansen, Kelly, Nguyen, Campsey, Dresser, Pour, Thames, McClory, Peck, Thompson, Evans (non-voting)
Absent: Bjerkek, Gonzales, Brada-Williams, Propas
Financial Impact: Unknown but potential for increase in FTES
Refunds, Drop Policy and the "W" Symbol
1. a) For regular state supported semesters, refund regulations for the CSU system are prescribed by the California Code of Regulations Title V, Section 41802 and applicable CSU Chancellor Executive Orders. In particular, at SJSU, the principles for refunds include the following:
i) Dates for full refunds shall be as close as possible to the first day of instruction (not the first course meeting), but shall in no case be more than five business days before the first day of instruction;
ii) Information regarding refunds shall be stated clearly and disseminated widely as early as possible so that students and departments can plan in a timely manner. For regular state supported sessions, all refund information will be posted in all versions of the Schedule of Classes where fee and payment information is publicized. The information will also be detailed on the Bursar’s website.
b) Title V, Section 41802 states that for self-support, special sessions and extension course fees, refunds shall be made in accordance with policies and procedures established by each campus. At SJSU, the refund procedures shall be established by the International and Extended Studies Office, and shall include the following:
i) Dates for full refunds for self-support, special sessions, and extension courses shall be as close as possible to the first day of instruction (not the first course meeting) for those events but shall in no case be more than five business days before the first day of instruction;
2. The consequences of dropping a course are to be determined by the following schedule:
Census Day is the 20th day of instruction.
Six instructional days before Census Day, i.e. the 14th day of instruction, is the last day for the student to add a class; this is also the last day for an instructor to drop a student who fails to attend the first scheduled class meeting and who fails to inform the instructor prior to the second class meeting of the reason for any absence and the intention to continue in the class.
Eleven instructional days before Census Day, i.e. the 9th day of instruction, is the last day to drop a class without a "W".
Exceptions to last add day: Departments will be requested to submit to the Office of Undergraduate Studies, a list of courses for which students may not be identified for enrollment prior to the 14th day of instruction. Examples of such classes are ones in which students sometimes are unable to add on time due to negotiating placements with schools, intern sites, etc. or classes which are identified two to three weeks into the semester as being needed to support a student’s success in a class in which they are already enrolled (e.g. Comm 80). UGS will determine the academic appropriateness. If deemed appropriate, UGS will give the approved list to the Bursar’s Office which will develop a procedure that is both student-friendly and faculty- friendly to add students between 14th day of instruction and census.
3. After the 9th day of instruction (eleven instructional days before Census Day), a student may withdraw from class only for "serious and compelling reasons" which shall be defined as circumstances and genuine emergencies beyond the student's control.
4. These circumstances must be documented with such evidence as death certificates (or equivalent) of immediate family members, letters from employers, or notes from doctors. Failure, or anticipated failure, or non-attendance, is not a valid reason for withdrawing from a course.
5. The Associate Vice President for Undergraduate Studies shall develop a list of acceptable circumstances and guidelines for certification of said circumstances, petition forms to be issued to all colleges (which shall include space to state the reasons for the proposed withdrawal, and the current grade the student is earning), and appropriate sanctions for those submitting fraudulent certification.
6. The President shall appoint one individual (in accordance with Executive Order 268) to administer course and university withdrawals. This individual will be responsible for distributing and receiving petitions, verifying certification, and approving withdrawal from the University. A department, school or college, (hereafter referred to as an academic unit) that wishes to be exempt from this provision may apply for an exemption for a period of three years by submitting a written statement to the Undergraduate, or if appropriate, the Graduate Studies Office, explaining how an exemption best serves its academic mission. Upon receipt, either the Associate Vice President of the Undergraduate or Graduate Studies Office shall either approve or deny the exemption request. If the exemption request is approved, the exempted academic unit’s highest ranking administrative officer shall have the authority to approve or deny late drop petitions for their courses for a period of three academic years, beginning with the semester the exemption request was granted. The highest ranking administrative officer for a department is the department chair; for a school, the highest ranking administrative officer is the program director and for a college, the highest ranking administrative officer is the dean. Within 3 working days of approving or denying a late drop petition, an academic unit shall convey the decision to the President’s appointee using electronic mail and also send to the President’s appointee the original, signed late drop petition and a copy of all other supporting materials related to the late drop petition. In the event of an approved late drop petition, upon notification by the administrative unit, the President’s appointee shall then immediately notify the appropriate administrative units of the late drop decision.
7. In the case of course withdrawals, students must first obtain the faculty member's signature. This signature indicates that the student has been advised of his/her options regarding the course. Students will be advised about the possible negative impact of the "W" on their transcript and where appropriate, be encouraged to consult with Academic Services. If a faculty member does not sign the petition, the matter will be resolved either by the President's appointee or the highest ranking administrative officer for the exempted academic unit. The President's appointee or the highest ranking administrative officer of the exempted academic unit will verify the certification that the student uses to indicate "serious and compelling" reasons for needing to withdraw before signing the petition.
8. When a "W" appears on a student's transcript, the transcript will contain a notice that withdrawals at San Jose State University are given only for circumstances beyond the student's control, and not for any other reason, including academic performance. The "W" will remain uncounted in the student's GPA, as before.
9. The option of the Incomplete remains as before.
10. A "WU" remains appropriate to assign when a student, who is enrolled on Census Day, does not successfully petition for a "W" but fails to complete course requirements, and those assignments that were completed were insufficient to make normal evaluation of academic performance possible.
ACTION BY UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT: APPROVED BY PRESIDENT DON KASSING
ON MAY 13, 2005