Memo on Missed Classtime
Posted by Bob McMath on 2/10/2009
To the faculty of the University of Arkansas:
The ice storm which struck northwest Arkansas last week was unprecedented in its impact on the University and the wider community. Cancelling classes for four days is not something that anyone took lightly, but it was essential for the safety of our students, faculty, and staff.
Several folks have asked me if we are going to make up the missed class days. The short answer is "no." We do not have the capacity to extend the semester or to cancel spring break. While some might wish to make up individual class sessions by rescheduling them at times other than the posted hours, this would violate our policy of not requiring students to participate in class activities other than at scheduled times. And as several of you have pointed out to me (including the current and incoming chairs of the Faculty Senate), trying to work around conflicts with other classes, students' work schedules, and the like would make rescheduling a nightmare.
We do have an obligation to our students and to ourselves to complete the courses which have been interrupted in the best way that we can. We have all set core learning objectives for our classes, and my suggestion is that we all think creatively about how best to achieve those objectives through focused and redoubled efforts on the part of instructors and students alike during the remaining class sessions. There may be extenuating circumstances which would absolutely require that a class or laboratory session be made up, and I am asking the academic deans to make the final decision as to whether a particular circumstance warrants an exception to this general rule.
Thank you for your consideration and your willingness to work with our students to achieve the best possible academic outcome for this semester.
Sincerely,
Bob McMath
Robert C. McMath
Interim Provost and Vice Chancellor
for Academic Affairs
University of Arkansas
479-575-5459
We want to hear from you. Please e-mail comments and feedback to Bob McMath at bmcmath@uark.edu.