• ACADEMIC STRUGGLES
• ABSENCES (Undergraduate)
• DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR
• ILLNESSES/UNUSUAL CIRCUMSTANCES
  
• HONOR CODE INFRACTIONS
  
• FERPA REFRESHER
• PARENTAL RELEASE (Undergraduate)
• DEFERRED EXAMS (Undergraduate)
• RESCHEDULED FINAL EXAMS (Undergraduate)
• RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATIONS
• LETTERS
• FACULTY SUPPORT

ACADEMIC STRUGGLES
Members of the faculty may interact with students who are concerned about their academic performance. Our office has professional staff members who work with students on developing effective study skills, habits, and strategies. Consider referring students who you identify as needing additional academic assistance.

ABSENCES (Undergraduate)
Because regular class attendance is crucial to academic success, we encourage you to notify us, as well as the student, any time a student’s attendance becomes unsatisfactory to the extent that his or her course performance is affected adversely. When we receive notice of such absences, we initiate a procedure to locate the student within 24 hours to discuss the academic and personal issues affecting the student.

Our office provides assistance to students experiencing unexpected or difficult circumstances with both direct support, including study skills assistance and disability services, as well as referrals to other appropriate resources, such as the academic adviser, the Counseling Center, the Health Center, and Career Services. Our goal is to provide feedback to the professor within 72 hours after initiating the procedure to locate the student.

DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR
The definition of disruptive conduct contained within the Student Handbook includes "conduct which obstructs or disrupts a normal function." Therefore, generally, if a student is disrupting your class to the point that you find it difficult to teach or students are finding it reasonably difficult to learn, then disruptive behavior may be occurring.

Most inappropriate behaviors can be handled by you at the time of the disruption. However, some may require consultation, College judicial action, or immediate emergency response. Click here to link to a PDF brochure outlining how to manage and respond to disruptive behavior in the classroom.

ILLNESSES/UNUSUAL CIRCUMSTANCES
As part of your course attendance policy, you can require students to present medical information documenting their illness before agreeing to accept late assignments or to reschedule missed quizzes and tests. Should the student miss several days, either consecutively or as a pattern of poor attendance, please refer him/her to the Dean of Students Office. We will work with the student to obtain adequate medical care for serious or chronic conditions and keep you informed of physician recommendations or academic accommodations made necessary by the illness.

HONOR CODE INFRACTIONS
The basis of an honor system is each student's acceptance of the responsibility to act honorably and to uphold this code of honorable conduct. Students must also reject dishonorable conduct in others. Accordingly, if an honor system is to be effective, students and all College community members must report suspected violations of the Honor Code by students. Click here for the two sections of the Honor Code most necessary to be familiar with in the case of suspicion of a breach of honor.

FERPA REFRESHER
(Family Education Rights & Privacy Act)
FERPA exists to allow all current and former students to have the right to personally review information contained within their educational records and to request amendments of that information. Also, FERPA protects information contained within educational records from being shared with inappropriate third parties. Educational records are defined as those records that are directly related to a student AND that are maintained by an educational agency or institution or by a party acting for the agency or institution.

Information can be released using the following guidelines:

• to those who have a "legitiate educational interest";
• to those whom the eligible student releases the records;
• to a parent if the student is financially dependent upon the parent and proof thereof is provided by the student or the parent (see Parental Release below);
• or if the information is contained within Directory Information**:

  • Student’s Name
  • Address
  • Telephone
  • Dates of Birth
  • Dates of Attendance
  • Honors or Special Recognition
  • Current Enrollment Status
  • Current Classification
  • Previous Schools Attended and Degrees Awarded
  • Degree(s) Earned
  • Date Degree was Earned
  • Field(s) of Concentration
  • Height and Weight of members of athletic teams

** Students may prohibit release of directory information by filing a written request with the Office of the University Registrar. Nothing regarding a student may be shared if there is a directory block. See page 54 of the 2002 Course Catalog for more information.

Faculty need to be aware of the following DANGER ZONES:

Grades and Test Scores
• Posting grades or returning graded work in ways that connect confidential information to "personally identifiable" information is a violation of FERPA and needs to be avoided.

Blocked Information
• Giving out directory information about a student who has requested confidentiality is a violation. In addition, it may cause the student harm. Faculty members should always ensure that a student has not placed a block on his/her records by contacting the Registrar.

Re-disclosure
• Re-disclosing information that has been shared with you by another faculty or staff member without authorization or reason is a violation. Disclosure must follow one of the provisions of FERPA listed above.

For more information, please contact the Registrar’s or Dean of Students Office.

PARENTAL RELEASE (Undergraduate)
Student permission is required before any information can be released to parents or legal guardians. Students may give general permission to release information about academics, financial matters, or honor code/judicial affairs. This permission is on file with the Dean of Students Office. Please call us to learn if there is a release on record before you discuss information concerning a student’s academic performance including grades, notification of academic warning, academic probation, required academic withdrawal, or Judicial/Honor Code related issues.

DEFERRED EXAMS (Undergraduate)
The Office of the Dean of Students has the responsibility of managing the deferred exam process during final exam periods. Deferred exams are granted for the following common reasons (this is not a complete list): medical issues that are verified by a doctor’s statement; family emergency, such as a death; conflict with a religious holiday; confirmed automobile trouble for commuter students; or documentation of a job interview or graduate school interview that cannot be changed. Please consult our office with questions.

RESCHEDULED FINAL EXAMS (Undergraduate)
If a deferred exam has been approved, we will contact the professor to determine if a rescheduled exam is preferred. If the professor prefers to reschedule the exam, this will be approved and the student and professor will determine a mutually convenient day and time. Sometimes a student’s request is not clearly within the guidelines but has merit. If this is the case, we will contact the professor, discuss the request and together determine if an exception should be approved. The Dean’s office will never reschedule a final examination without prior discussion and approval from the affected faculty member.

RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATIONS
The College of William and Mary urges its administrators, faculty members, and staff to be sensitive to the religious holidays of organized religions. All persons should be able to participate in the essential practices of their faith without conflict with academic requirements, as long as such practices are in accordance with state and federal regulations and consistent with safety regulations of the College. The College offers the following guidelines:
• As soon as possible and no later than the end of the drop/add period, each student has the responsibility to inform his or her instructor of religious observances that are likely to conflict directly with classes and other required academic activities. Each student has the responsibility to arrange his or her course schedule to minimize conflicts. It is understood that when scheduling options exist for religious observances, the student has the responsibility to minimize conflicts.
• Based upon prior agreement between the instructor and student, a student who misses a class meeting because of a scheduling conflict with religious observances should be allowed, whenever possible, to complete without penalty the work missed because of such absences. A student who is absent from a test or presentation because of the observance of a religious holiday should be able to reschedule it without penalty. Absence from a final examination requires that the examination be rescheduled through the established process for rescheduling of final examinations by the Dean of Students. Graduate students should contact the Dean of the School or his or her designee.
• If a scheduling conflict with a student’s planned absence cannot be resolved between the instructor and the student, undergraduates should inform the Dean of Students who will follow the established procedure for a class absence. Graduate students should contact the Dean of the School or his or her designee.
• Faculty members and administrators in charge of scheduling campus-wide events should avoid conflicts with religious holidays as much as possible.

LETTERS
You may receive a letter from the Dean of Students Office confirming that a student is dealing with significant issues at the time. We may not be able to give you full information due to privacy commitments, but we invite you to dialog with us if you know of other circumstances affecting the student’s academic success.

FACULTY SUPPORT
Members of the Dean of Students Office are more than willing to assist faculty members in any way possible. Please feel free to contact the office with any questions, concerns, or comments.