Spring 2009 Completion Plans for Students
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
ABOUT THE PLAN TO COMPLETE SPRING SEMESTER
It is important that students are able to receive all the content for their classes. There are plans in place to ensure that instruction. There are also back-up plans in case of additional missed days. However, some misinformation seems to be circulating in the community.
What we are doing now:
As the Red River rose to a record flood crest, our students volunteered by the thousands to help the sandbagging effort. We can never thank them enough. They missed almost ten days of instruction due to the emergency. We will make up five of those days. The make-up days are:
April 10
April 13
April 21 This is the Student Academic Conference day, but classes will also be held.
May 6 This was a study day, but classes will be held.
May 7 This was the first day of finals. Finals scheduled for this day will be held on May 14.
What our back-up plans are:
The second crest forecast has been lowered to 38-40 feet. The community’s flood protection handled higher water during the first crest. It is highly unlikely that additional days of class will be canceled. However, it is always best to have plans in place, even for unlikely events. With that caution, there are two back-up plans:
1) If we miss more days of class, but are able to return to campus and finish the semester, students would be given letter grades, which would apply to their GPAs. Faculty members would prioritize and condense instruction so that students can go on to their next semester without missing needed material. This is more difficult in certain courses and disciplines than others, but faculty would work with students to ensure their learning is not compromised.
2) The next option is the least likely to occur. If we could not return to campus and had to end the semester, there are state policies to guide us. Students would be given a grade of “PE,” which has students concerned and confused. It’s a grade given only if we can’t finish the semester. It means “pass under extraordinary circumstances.” Unlike the regular pass grade (“P”) a “PE” counts for graduation and it counts in your major. You would not be required to retake a class for which you received a PE. It would not affect your GPA, but the PE credits would count toward academic progress. However, if a student wishes to receive a letter grade for a course in which he or she received a “PE,” he or she can retake the course the next semester and pay no tuition.
We work very closely with Moorhead officials leading the effort to protect the city and we are confident that we will complete the semester and students will receive the usual letter grades.