Students face circumstances that sometimes require that they drop classes for reasons that are beyond their control - whether that is a global pandemic, severe medical issues, mental health challenges, or a loss of child care.
Last year, students came to LeadMN because they were frustrated about being punished for following COVID protocols which said that they needed to quarantine if they came in contact with someone that was COVID positive. Being quarantined sometimes cause them to miss so much class time, faculty members said that they needed to drop the class because.
That caused LeadMN to propose changes to Minnesota State policies for tuition refunds. We advocated that the Chancellor make the policy more clear and inclusive for the challenges that students face. A few weeks ago, the system office released their draft policy and are seeking comment.
Subpart C. Authorized waivers that result in a refund In the event a student experiences extraordinary circumstances that necessitates their withdrawing from a course or courses beyond the allowable drop period, a petition for an appeal that includes the appropriate third party documentation should be submitted within 10 business days from the date of withdrawal. For purposes of this procedure, extraordinary circumstances include, but are not limited to, medical reasons, college or university error, an employment related condition, military duty, change in course conditions, or other significant personal circumstances.
LeadMN submitted the letter below applauding the creation of the policy and two ways that the policy could be made better: