Item 2223-10: Presence and Absence Policies

On April 20, 2023, a final report was presented to and supported by UCUE. The report was forwarded to the Office of the Provost.

The Subcommittee met for the second time on Thursday, January 26 and continued its discussion on current university policy and potential revisions to the policy. There is agreement on the following:

• the university policy needs to be made available to faculty, students, and staff in a central location
• there is justification for a revision of current policies

The subcommittee also debated the utility of a class attendance portal.

On October 29, Provost Woodruff requested that the University Committee on Undergraduate Education “review existing policies [on students’ presence and absence] and consider enhancements to best support MSU students” in response to various ASMSU advocacy efforts (Attachment D on today’s agenda).

The previously quoted portion of section 4.4.5. referring to “other policies pertaining to undergraduate education” provides justification for referring this matter to UCUE, which I have done. Additionally, section 4.9.3. says that the University Committee on Student Affairs (likely to soon be called the University Committee on Student Life and Engagement) “shall advise the [Senior Vice President for Student Life on Engagement] . . . on other University policies as they affect the academic achievement of students.” Accordingly, I also referred the matter to UCSA, with UCUE designated as the lead committee.

The committee discussed the matter at its November 10, 2022 meeting. UCUE formed a subcommittee on attendance and short-term leaves to address the issue and to propose policies and resources to address attendance and short-term leaves. Members include Aaron Iturradle (ASMSU), Marissa King (RCAH), Chris Kaiser (Education), Ebony Green (APUD), Rich Enbody (Engineering), Thomas Summerhill (CSS).

Disclaimer: The above information was prepared by the Office of Academic Governance and may be incomplete, ambiguous, or inaccurate. Office of Academic Governance staff strive to provide a complete, accurate description of events, but Spartans are welcome to send editorial suggestions to the secretary for academic governance at acadgov@msu.edu.