UT's faculty defines policy on student absences

1/24/2001

The University of Toledo faculty senate yesterday approved a proposed “missed classes” policy outlining excused absences and asking instructors to inform students of their attendance policies early in the course.

The proposal is intended to help avoid confusion and protect students by defining excused absences as those caused by personal emergencies, religious observances, intercollegiate athletic competitions, and several other activities, including anything approved by the instructor.

The document leaves the establishment of specific attendance policies to instructors, asking only that they inform students of their policy early on, Dr. Gerald Sherman, who worked on the proposal, said.

While there have been few problems related to the issue in the past, the need for guidelines was raised about a year ago by some student athletes who had to miss classes for competitions.

The proposal will be go to the UT administration, then the board of trustees, Dr. Sherman said.

Jeremy Heffner, a third-year UT student who is a member of the student senate, said the student group approves of the measure and has passed a similar one.

“Now we have guarantees in place that we didn't have before,” he said.