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Upsetting and sometimes tragic events that occur locally, nationally, or internationally can divert attention away from learning and teaching. In these situations, instructors are faced not only with the challenge of coping with the events personally, but also with the task of managing the responses of their students. In response to previous tragic events, the higher education community has developed resources to help instructors address the concerns of their students. 
Whether and how to broach the subject of a tragedy is always at the instructor’s discretion. However, as a most basic response, it can be helpful to acknowledge the event in class in a humane way to help students cope and focus on their coursework. Students can find a total lack of response from their instructors frustrating and disappointing. Furthermore, many students find it unhelpful for an instructor to say that the “class has to go on” or that “there is nothing we can do” without offering additional comment. An instructor need not hold a discussion about the event in class, especially if they feel it is unrelated to the class topic, or if they feel unprepared to have such a challenging discussion. However, there are simple teaching strategies which students find helpful during times of crisis (Huston and DiPietro, 2007): 

Up to date MSU Crisis Response Resources
Offer extensions to students who request them. 
Offer to add review sessions or to revisit class information at a later date. 
Allow a minute or two of silence before proceeding with the course material. 
Give students a few minutes to write their thoughts down about the event. Instructors don’t need to collect these writings; they can simply be placeholders for students’ thoughts so that they can focus on the course material. 
Read an inspirational passage. 

Remind students of support structures on campus which are equipped to manage students in stress or shock. MSU’s office of Counseling and Psychological Services offers a walk-in service for students who need help.
Additional details shared below compiled from various sources, and these should be applied with adequate consideration to the unique needs of each course section and students.
Take time to talk as a group or class.
Consider providing an opportunity at the beginning of a class period. Often, a short time period is more effective than a whole class period. This serves the purpose of acknowledging that students may be reacting to a recent event, without pressuring students to speak. Introduce the opportunity by briefly acknowledging the tragic event and suggesting that it might be helpful to share personal reactions students may have.
Have students discuss “facts” first, then shift to emotions.
Often the discussion starts with students asking questions about what actually happened and “debating” some details. People are more comfortable discussing “facts” than feelings, so it’s best to allow this exchange for a brief period of time. After facts have been exchanged, you can try to shift the discussion toward sharing personal and emotional reactions.
Invite students to share emotional, personal responses.
You might lead off by saying something like: “Often it is helpful to share your own emotional responses and hear how others are responding. It doesn’t change the reality, but it takes away the sense of loneliness that sometimes accompanies stressful events. I would be grateful for whatever you are willing to share.”
Respect each person’s dealing with the loss.
Some will be more vocal or expressive than others with their feelings and thoughts. Everyone is affected differently and reacts differently. Some may view events at least in part from the perspective of their discipline and/or background. Be aware that the presence of someone in our classroom who is evidently from a different background or who has a different relationship to crisis events will alter the dynamics of the classroom. We must be aware that differences (such as religion or nationality) are not always obvious or visible. The challenge is to create a meaningful, educational dialogue without creating an uncomfortable situation for any student. All students must feel that it is truly safe to express their thoughts, but they must do so with reasonable courtesy and willingness to allow that there are other valuable points of view.
Allow freedom of participation.
If students feel uncomfortable during class discussion, allow them to leave. If they feel coerced into the conversation, then they are likely to withdraw from the conversation or guard closely what they say. .
Acknowledge both verbal and non-verbal communication.
In a discussion or conversation, silence can make faculty feel uncomfortable, but silence and other non-verbal behaviors can be just as vital to a productive conversation as words are. It is tempting to fill silence with variations on the question asked, but doing so can inhibit students’ abilities to think through the issue and to prepare to share their thoughts with their classmates. If students repeatedly need extremely long silences, however, faculty should invite conversation as to why students do not feel comfortable sharing with their classmates.
Be prepared for blaming.
When people are upset, they often look for someone to blame. Essentially, this is a displacement of anger. It is a way of coping. The idea is that if someone did something wrong, future tragedies can be avoided by doing things “right.” If the discussion gets “stuck” with blaming, it might be useful to say: “We have been focusing on our sense of anger and blame, and that’s not unusual. It might be useful to talk about our fears.”
It is normal for people to seek an “explanation” of why the tragedy occurred.
By understanding, we seek to reassure ourselves that a similar event could be prevented in the future. You might comment that, as intellectual beings, we always seek to understand. It is very challenging to understand “unthinkable” events. By their very natures, tragedies are especially difficult to explain. Uncertainty is particularly distressing, but sometimes is inevitable. It is better to resist the temptation to make meaning of the event. That is not one of your responsibilities and would not be helpful.
Make contact with those students who appear to be reacting in unhealthy ways.
Some examples include isolating themselves too much, using alcohol excessively, throwing themselves into academics or busy work in ways not characteristic of them, etc.
Ask a professional counselor to come and talk to your students.
Students may experience such feelings as shock, sadness, anxiety, and suffering which may be better addressed by a trained counselor. Trained professionals can accurately interpret student responses and actions, collaborate with you to identify student concerns and needs, implement referrals, and establish a follow-up course of action. In addition, the counselor can assist you to develop strategies to successfully navigate through the remainder of the academic year.
Find ways of memorializing the loss, if appropriate.
After the initial shock has worn off, it may be helpful to find a way of honoring and remembering the person in a way that is tangible and meaningful to the group.
Make accommodations as needed, for you and for the students.
Many who are directly affected by the tragedy may need temporary accommodations in their workload, in their living arrangements, in their own self-expectations. It is normal for people not to be able to function at their full capacity when trying to deal with an emotional situation. This is the time to be flexible. Adapt your syllabus for the week following the crisis to accommodate reduced workload. Modify expectations to meet current conditions and provide additional time and support for student learning.
Thank students for sharing and remind them of resources on campus.
In ending the discussion, it is useful to comment that people cope in a variety of ways. If a student would benefit from a one-on-one discussion, you can encourage him or her to make use of campus resources.
Give yourself time to reflect.
Remember that you have feelings too and thoughts about what occurred, and these thoughts and feelings should be taken seriously, not only for yourself, but also for the sake of the students with whom you may be trying to work. Some find it helpful to write down or talk out their feelings and thoughts.
Take care of yourself.
Engage in healthy behaviors to enhance your ability to cope with stress. Eating well, resting, and exercising help us handle stressful situations more effectively and deal with students and their needs.
Come back to the feelings as a group at a later time.
It is important to acknowledge the adjustments people have made. Just because everything seems to be back to normal does not mean that everyone has finished having feelings about the loss.
When in doubt, consult your department chair.
If you think a particular course topic or course activity could result in unintended responses from students, please consult your department chair on planning alternatives.
If you choose to discuss the tragedy in class, set up discussion structures that support the emotional and psychological safety of students in the class. 
 
Adapted from IUB Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning & NIU Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning with special thanks to Virginia Tech’s Cook Counseling Center, NIU’s Counseling and Student Development Center, Western Kentucky University’s Faculty Center for Excellence in Teaching, and Vanderbilt University’s Center for Teaching. 
 
References 
Huston, T. A., & DiPietro, M. (2007). In the eye of the storm: Students perceptions of helpful faculty actions following a collective tragedy. In D. R. Robertson & L. B. Nilson (Eds.) To Improve the Academy. Vol 25. Resources for faculty, instructional, and organizational development (pp. 207-224). Bolton, MA: Anker. 

Enhancing Academic Success Early, or EASE, was developed by MSU as a tool for faculty to report early signs of academic trouble – low grades, missing classes or failing to participate actively in courses. If signs of academic trouble are identified early, advisers and other Student Success Team members can swiftly take action to help the student get back on the path to success.According to Dr. Kris Renn (Professor of Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education & Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies for Student Success Research), the EASE Reports:

Confidential report on grade, attendance, or engagement
Uses Registrar’s course grade system
Alert goes to academic advisor and student
Fall 2017: over 75,000 reports on over 18,000 unique students

Advisors followed up on 80% of reports of <2.5 



The Instructor System provides instructors and academic administrators a secure interface with the Office of the Registrar and other administrative units. The system includes: Academic Dishonesty Reports, Class Lists and Graded Class Lists, Class Lists with Student Images, Email Students in a Class, Grade Reporting Form, Grade Upload, Grade Submission Summary, Enhancing Academic Success Early (EASE) Reports and Archive, and Textbook and Material Entry/Update.

As an Instructor, how do I get access?
How is one identified as an Instructor of a specific course?
Can Teaching Assistants (TA) have access?
Can Office Assistants gain access?
Can Undergraduate Assistants have access?

Photo by Andre Hunter on Unsplash

What is ungrading?“Ungrading is a practice which eliminates or greatly minimizes the use of assigned points or letter grades in a course, focusing instead on providing frequent and detailed feedback to students on their work, in relation to the course learning goals…the primary purpose of the assessment is to help students learn and improve their knowledge and skills, rather than to create a summative score that students use to compare themselves against an external credential.” (Kenyon, 2022)MAET Principles:Providing support from application to beyond graduationValuing diversity of resources, perspectives, and communitiesPromoting growth as curious learners and transformational leadersWhat is ungrading in MAET?
Why Ungrading?

Act of social justice
We are biased
Grades are problematic
Better learning

MAET Ungrading Overview

All learners begin with a 4.0
Weekly unit schedule with due dates
Learners submit creations (assignments)
Instructors provide timely, balanced, qualitative feedback
Learners iterate creations
Instructors review iterations
Learners reflect on progress
Submit final grades to MSU

How is this different from what we used to do?

Program wide ungrading (all courses)
No points for assignments 
No participation points
Gradebook has only 1 item (final grade)
Instructor communicates if student work does not meet expectations/falls below 4.0
Students reflect on learning/grade twice
Use single-point rubric for feedback

Lessons Learned and MAET Recommends
unveil and define beliefs

How do you communicate expectations?
What is sufficient? Exemplary?
What is a 4.0? 3.5? 
Can all students get a 4.0? Should they?
Who has the responsibility in student experience and student learning?

responding to students and instructors

Consistency (and iteration)
Realistic timelines (1+ year)
Regular check ins/meetings

iterate and refine

Still some anxiety over potential email that their grade dropped*
About Me

For more information, access the full slide deck (and source of this article).ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
Liz Owens Boltz - MAET Director & Instructor
Brittany Dillman - Director of Graduate Certificate Programs, GC Advisor & Instructor
Candace Robertson - Asst Director of Student Experience & Outreach, MA Advisor & Instructor
Heather Williamson - Academic Program Coordinator & Admissions

What is Hybrid Teaching and Learning?
Whether or not they think of this as “hybrid teaching,” most educators have their students do scholarly work between course meetings, such as preparing notes, completing a set of problems, drafting an essay, or reflecting on a previous project. Often this work uses digital technologies. This student work then becomes the focus of the next face-to-face (f2f) meeting (e.g. by having students take an exam, self-assess their work, give and receive feedback, conduct lab experiments, or revise their writing). While some might call these activities “homework” or “studying,” all educators recognize that well-thought out and structured learning outside the classroom can enhance the f2f experience and free up class time educators can use to provide feedback, facilitate conversations, point to resources, and model the kind disciplinary inquiry they are asking students to engage with. In short, the f2f experience better supports learning when educators provide well-designed lessons for students outside of the classroom.
 
If this is part of your practice, you are already engaged in the work of “hybrid” teaching and learning.
 
To be clear, hybrid teaching and learning: 

Includes online interaction among learners and between instructor and learners
Has significant instructor presence online throughout the course
Devotes significant classroom time to discussion and interaction between learners and instructor
Engages students in learning activities both online and in the classroom
Explicitly integrates online content and activities with in-class content and/or activities

Because “hybrid” courses substitute online work for some amount of f2f time, explicit, designed hybrid teaching and learning asks educators to be even more attuned to the work they provide students outside of the classroom. Kathryn Linder writes: 
 
Hybrid pedagogy is a method of teaching that utilizes technology to create a variety of learning environments for students. Instructors who employ hybrid pedagogies intentionally incorporate technology tools both to enhance student learning and to respond to a wide range of learning preferences. In hybrid classroom settings, face-to-face activities are often combined with technology-mediated activities so that there is more active learning in the face-to-face setting as well as more intentional guidance when students are learning outside the classroom. (11)
 
Consequently, the shift to hybrid teaching and learning requires being more mindful of the “way[s] that instructors can ensure that students are engaged with the course content by incorporating online learning communities, synchronous and asynchronous discussion, and a variety of online collaboration methods that encourage students to interact with the course materials, their instructors, and their peers in a variety of ways” (Linder 12). Thinking in terms of hybrid teaching and learning can open the opportunity for creativity regarding how to use our resources to best support our students’ engagement with the content, ourselves, and one another. 
 
At the same time, as members of the university community living through a pandemic, we are challenged to think creatively about how to use our teaching resources to support student learning. Hybrid teaching and learning, may be, depending on the context, one option to minimize risk and support learning, while still helping students benefit from key campus community resources. This short document is meant to help educators make the transition to hybrid teaching and learning. To help you imagine and design your hybrid course, we’ll provide a series of hybrid teaching “dos” and “don'ts” before supplying some examples from educators across MSU. The bibliography at the end of this document will also provide you with some additional resources to help you plan and design your course. 
Hybrid Teaching and Learning “Dos”
The following list is meant to provide you with a few starting points to help you plan your hybrid course. As you plan...

Do have clearly defined learning objectives (“After the completion of this course, students will be able to…”) and projects/tasks and assessments that move students towards the learning objectives.
Do choose course technologies that help you and your students achieve those learning objectives. 
Do scaffold your tasks, assignments, and projects. This means breaking down larger projects into smaller tasks while providing formative feedback and explaining how the smaller parts build towards the larger project. Students need and want to know why they are engaging in some task, as well as how they are doing as they complete the tasks. This will also help you to make decisions about what to do in an online space and in your face-to-face meetings.
Do give time for students to learn how to use and interact with your course technologies.
Do use your face to face meetings to practice, provide feedback, encourage collaboration among students, reflect on learning, and/or foster discussion. 
Do consider your students’ prior knowledge and experience, as well as the resources your students have available in their local learning context, such as their home, neighborhood, or community.

Hybrid Teaching and Learning “Don’ts”
The following list reflects a common set of concerns for faculty and educators as they design their hybrid courses. As you plan...

Don’t forget there are people on the other side of the technology.
Don’t forget to build community among students.
Don’t spend too much time worrying about the percentage of work done online versus face-to-face (even in f2f courses, the bulk of learning can--and often does--take place outside of the classroom). Learning objectives should guide the way: 

What do I want my student to learn? 
How will I know when students meet the learning objectives?
What activities, projects, tasks, etc. will help my students achieve those learning objectives? 
Which of those activities, projects, tasks, should be done in a f2f setting? Why? 
Which of those activities, projects, tasks, should be done in an online setting? Why? 

Don’t approach course design as though you’re simply “transitioning” some f2f components into an online environment. Rather, understand that the online component of a hybrid course deserves its own theorization and attention, as it will only increase the power of the f2f meetings. In short, well-thought out online learning can make the f2f meetings more focused on practice, feedback, revision, and active learning. 
Don’t forget about accessibility and ensuring your students have access to course materials.

Models of Hybrid Courses
The following list provides a set of models from MSU faculty across the disciplines. More examples will be added in the near future:

A first-year writing course from the Department of Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures
A sophomore and junior-level biomedical laboratory science course


A first-year general chemistry lab course in Lyman Briggs College
A series of Russian language courses
Sophomore level course for students with an interest in Communicative Sciences and Disorders, including the minor in CSD.

Resources and Further Reading
Online

Michigan State University - Community D2L site for experiential learning 


Hybrid Learning Consortium 
University of Central Florida - Blended Learning Toolkit (or BlendKit) 
Cornell - Getting Starting with Designing Hybrid Courses Online 
Penn State U - What is Hybrid Learning? 
University of Texas - Hybrid Learning and Teaching 
Northeastern University - 5 Reasons Hybrid Learning May be Right for You 
A11Y Project 

PDFs, Design Resources, and Articles

Jay McTighe and Giselle O. Martin-Kniep - Seven Strategies for Supporting Student Learning in a Remote Environment
Jay McTighe and Ronald S. Thomas - Backwards Design for Forward Action
Kathryn E. Linder -  Blended Course Design Workbook (contains useful worksheets for designing your hybrid learning course).
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1096751606000492
James Lang and Flower Darby - Small Teaching Online: Applying Learning Science in Online Classes
Angelo, T. A. A “Teacher’s Dozen”: Fourteen General, Research-based Principles for Improving Higher Learning in Our Classrooms.” AAHE Bulletin, 45(8), 3-13.
Banditvilai C. “Enhancing Students’ Language Skills through Blended Learning.” The Electronic Journal of e-Learning 14(3), 220-229.

Marisa Brandt (Lyman Briggs), Michael Ristich (Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures), Amy Ward (Human Medicine), and Arthur Ward (Lyman Briggs)
 
Contributors: Rachel Barnard (Lyman Briggs), Rachel Morris (Biomedical Laboratory Diagnostics), Shannon Donnally Spasova (Linguistics & Germanic, Slavic, Asian and African Languages), Lisa Kopf (University of Northern Iowa, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders)
 

MSU’s religious observance policy is in place to ensure that students and their instructors are free to observe cultural and religious traditions without academic penalty. This year, with Finals Week falling at a time when many religious observances are likely to be happening, it is worth reflecting on how we as educators can best build a culture of flexibility and accommodation into our teaching. Each class and each scenario will require a unique response, so blanket policy statements can only provide broad guidance; our responses when accommodation requests come in must be bounded by that guidance, but must also be responsive to the specific demands of our class and the individual needs of the students making the requests. 
MSU's religious observance policy underscores the importance of believing students' needs for accommodations without requiring them to prove their religious commitments. It's crucial for instructors to be open and encouraging towards such self-advocacy, creating a classroom atmosphere that is both welcoming and safe, while providing clear mechanisms for students to communicate with the instructor any accommodation requests that they may have.
It’s also essential to acknowledge that accommodations need to be flexible and tailored to the specific context of each class, considering factors such as course size, modality, type, timing, structure, and many others.  Instructors should be responsive to the needs of their individual students, adapting as necessary while keeping the educational objectives in focus. The goal is always to ensure an equitable learning experience, which is more easily accomplished when a class employs the principles of Universal Design for Learning. 
By being open to modifying our approaches based on the unique needs and circumstances of our students, we can create a more inclusive and supportive learning environment. This not only benefits students who require accommodations but enriches the educational experience for the entire class.

The following is extracted from https://help.d2l.msu.edu/msu-docs/other-tools-at-msu/piazza.  Please follow that link for more or updated information
Piazza is currently a supported MSU tool for faculty to efficiently manage class Q&A. Students can post questions and collaborate to edit responses to these questions. Faculty can also answer questions, endorse student answers, and edit or delete any posted content. It aims to get high-quality answers to questions, fast. Piazza is integrated into D2L as an LTI tool.
To add Piazza to your course, follow the steps below:

Select the Contenttab
Within a module, use theExisting Activities dropdown menu
Select External Learning Tools
Click on Piazza

Below are a few examples of how you might use Piazza in your D2L Course:

Ask questions!Ask questions on Piazza rather than emailing your instructor and TAs so everyone can benefit from the response.
Edit questions and answers wiki-style.Think of Piazza as a Q&A wiki for your class. Every question has a single students' answer that students can edit collectively (and a single instructors’ answer for instructors).
Add follow-up comments or further questions.To comment on a post, start a followup discussion. Mark it resolved when the issue has been addressed, and add any relevant information back to the Q&A area.
Go anonymous.Shy? No problem. If your instructor has enabled the setting, you may be able to post anonymously.
Tag your posts. It's far more convenient to find all posts about your topic when the posts are tagged. Instructors can create folders. Click on a folder, or blue tag in a post, to filter all posts that share that tag.
Format code and equations.Adding a code snippet? Click the pre or tt button in the question editor to add pre-formatted or inline teletype text. Mathematical equation? Click the Fx button to access the LaTeX editor to build a nicely formatted equation.
View and download class details and resources. Click the Course Page button in the top bar to access the class syllabus, staff contact information, office hour details, and course resources.

Advantages:

Free Q&A discussion tool that works in real-time. Ideal for large enrollments or combined discussions across sections.
Searchable, student driven, and instructor controlled. Allows for private and/or anonymous posts, linking to existing posts, and marking questions as duplicates for merging together.
Integrated into D2L, and works on desktop or mobile devices (iOS and Android).
Community managed questions and answers: Great for student-to-student collaboration, problem solving, and exploration.

Disadvantages:

Not integrated into the D2L Gradebook.
Designed to create one PiazzaQ&A discussion per course, per semester.
Community managed questions and answers: If your discussions tend to be independent activities or graded, D2L Discussions may be a better option.

Piazza prompts users to create a separate password to initiate their account. This password allows users to login to the MSU Piazza account outside of D2L and with the Piazza Mobile App.
See Piazza Quick Steps for setup and management tips.
Looking for additional help? Check out Piazza video tutorials and quick start guide at the links below:

Piazza Quick Start Guide
How-To Videos 

For further support, contact Piazza or the MSU IT Service Desk.
 

 
What is CATME? 
Teamwork and group projects are an important part of student learning. CATME is a web-based assessment tool that can be used to create more effective teams. There are two main tools within CATME that can be used to enhance teamwork: the CATME Team-Maker Survey and the CATME Peer Evaluation Survey. These pedagogical tools can be used to create more compatible teams based on demographic data and to gather feedback on student’s experience working in teams. 
 
CATME Team-Maker Survey
CATME Team-Maker Survey is a web-based tool you can use to assign students to teams based on important demographic information. Creating teams is a simple process in which the instructor identifies which characteristics (e.g. leadership style, age, major, schedule availability) they want to organize their teams around. Students complete a short survey and then the instructor can use the CATME program to quickly make teams based on student’s overall compatibility. Creating groups of a students with similar demographic information has the potential to improve and enhance teamwork. 
 
CATME Peer Evaluation Survey
CATME Peer Evaluation Survey is a web-based tool that can be used to gather feedback on how well teams are working together. This feedback is collected from a short survey in which students rate themselves and their team members on how well each person contributed to a group project. This is a quantitative survey in which students rank each person in their group from 1-5 for various types of group contributions, such as contributing to teamwork, interacting with their teammates, keeping the team on track, expecting quality work, and having knowledge/skills. Once completed, the instructor is provided with a snapshot of how well each team worked together. This feedback can be used as a useful pedagogical tool to better understand and address any issues students may have when working in teams. 
 
Where can I find more information? 

Overview of CATME 
Request instructor access to get started using CATME 
Instructor help resources  

I spoke with Kari Stone-Sewalish to discuss MSU's updated withdrawal policy and why this matters for MSU students and educators.EL: Can you tell us your name, your position at MSU, and how long you’ve been in this role?
Kari Stone-Sewalish, Assistant Director, Office of Accreditation, Assessment, Curriculum, and Compliance (AACC). I have been in this role for just over one year. I have worked at MSU for five years, having previously served as an Assistant Director in the Office of Student Support & Accountability (OSSA).
You’ve been presenting MSU’s updated withdrawal policy all over campus. To start us off, what is a withdrawal from the university?
A withdrawal from the university occurs when a student drops all their courses within a semester. This is different from a student dropping one course; students don’t withdraw from a course but from their whole semester of courses. A shorthand to consider is “withdrawal means all.”
Why does MSU need a withdrawal policy, and why does this policy matter to students?
No student starts the semester thinking they will have to leave; sometimes life just happens. Ensuring the withdrawal policy is easy to find and understand was a core goal of the redevelopment process. From a compliance standpoint, all colleges and universities that receive Title IV funds (federal financial aid) are required to have a withdrawal policy. From a student-centered perspective, MSU has a withdrawal policy to inform students of the process by which they may drop all enrollment during and after a term of instruction.
Why did you focus on improving the withdrawal process students have to follow? Why do clear processes matter to students?
We sought to improve the process to provide greater consistency of experience to students and to eventually bring the process to a student-facing platform. Clear processes matter to students because if we expect they will manage their own affairs at the university, we need to give them the best tools to do so. Withdrawing from college can be a difficult decision, likely informed by a difficult life circumstance. Making this process smoother just makes sense.
What are the key differences to know in the new withdrawal policy?
The new withdrawal policy allows students to withdraw themselves up until the Class Ends date for any reason. Additionally, students who withdraw after the Last Day to Drop with No Grade Reported will receive all “W” grades. These changes are significant and foster increased consistency of policy application across the university, as well as increased ability for students to return to MSU after a withdrawal.
Where can students find the new policy? The process?
The new policy is live in the Academic Programs Catalog and updates were made to the Office of the Registrar’s webpage about withdrawal. These updates are intended to help students gather more information about the impacts of withdrawal, prior to starting the process.
How can course instructors and other MSU educators support students thinking about a withdrawal? Who else should they contact to discuss their options?
Course instructors can refer undergraduate students to their academic advisor and graduate students to their program chair/major advisor to discuss the option to withdraw. The Office of the Registrar’s webpage about withdrawal includes additional topics that many students will want to consider before initiating a withdrawal.
What factors will students need to consider as they think about withdrawal?
Withdrawal can have differing impacts on students, depending upon several factors. It’s a big decision and we want students to be fully informed before initiating a withdrawal to avoid surprises. Withdrawal can have impacts on financial aid, immigration status, on-campus housing, student employment at MSU, and more.
How will course instructors interact with this policy?
When a student drops their course, the instructor of record may be asked to provide information about a student’s attendance in a timely manner. Course instructors play a pivotal role in MSU’s compliance with Title IV (of the Higher Education Act of 1965). When a student withdraws from MSU, the Office of Financial Aid completes a calculation to determine the amount of unearned aid that must be returned. The aid must be returned to the Department of Education within a short timeframe and instructors are essential for MSU to meet this requirement and to minimize any negative financial consequences for the student. More information on MSU’s responsibilities under Title IV can be found in the Academic Programs Catalog: Financial Aid Refund Policy.
What should course instructors tell students to do if they have more questions about withdrawals at MSU?
The best place to refer students to start the conversation about withdrawal is to their academic advisor. Academic staff and advising offices are well-positioned to support students through the withdrawal process, including discussion of returning to MSU when ready. We know that not every student who withdraws will return, but ensuring a positive “off-boarding” experience lays a strong foundation for future communication and potential reenrollment at MSU.
Thanks for agreeing to be interviewed about withdrawal! If educators have any more questions about withdrawal, what should we do?
Instructors and other campus partners with additional questions can contact Becky Marx Keogh, Senior Associate Registrar, at roreview@msu.edu.Photo by Alexandre Debiève on Unsplash