Talking Turkey About Faculty Initiated Withdrawals (FIWs)
Are there any MORE questions?
Q: I have a friend who doesn’t believe in filling out Faculty Initiated Withdrawals. She believes that withdrawal is the student’s responsibility.
A: There is nothing wrong with that approach. It states in the college catalog that withdrawal is the student’s responsibility. No one is obligated to withdraw a student.
Q: Then why does your office keep sending her notes telling her that you are missing a grade for this student who never attended her class? It’s like you are trying to force her to fill out a faculty withdrawal. You are tormenting her with all these missing course reminders. It’s abusive and inhumane.
A: No one is torturing anyone. If a student registers for a course, they need to receive a grade for the course. They do not need to attend the course, ever. They do not need to withdraw from the course. They do not need to BE withdrawn from the course. But they DO need to have a grade. That is the closure of the semester and students should not have official transcripts with missing grades on them.
Q: But what if they never attended? My friend does not want to give an “F” to someone she has never met.
A: I understand her reluctance to do that. But if she will not give an “F” she must withdraw the student. She can’t have it both ways. She cannot announce that she does not do faculty initiated withdrawals AND she does not grade students who have never attended. It must be one or the other.
Q: But if the student never attended…
A: Listen. If you buy a dress at Bon-Ton and you pay for it, does the salesperson from Bon-Ton come to your house to make sure you wear it?
Q: Not usually…
A: Same thing with registering and paying for a course. Anyone who appears on your latest attendance roster or 107 screen is registered for and has paid for your course. Who knows why they never attended but they have bought a product and they need the merchandise, which, in this case, is a grade.
It’s the R&R Office’s responsibility to make sure every student is graded for every course for which they are registered. We will pester and annoy until we have those grades!
One more thing—be sure to turn in your Faculty Initiated Withdrawal forms by Wednesday, November 23.
Q: But I have more questions…
A: Yeah. Yeah. Tomorrow.
Deborah Benjamin
Registration and Records
11/18/2005 |