2008 Woodie Awards
Academic probation policy revised
Jacob Bersch
Issue date: 9/23/04 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
Lakeland College has made some changes in the Good Academic Standing policy. The most prominent change is the new "academic probation" policy set up by Dr. Tim Fulop, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the college. Before understanding the new policy, one must know the former policy.
The old policy stated that students needed to hold a 2.0 cumulative GPA in order to graduate from Lakeland College. If your cumulative GPA fell below a 2.0 at the end of any semester, you were given a warning, which kindly reminded you of your GPA. You were given three semesters with a GPA below the 2.0 mark before you were suspended from the college for a semester.
The low GPA for three semesters added with a semester off put a large gap between students and graduation. If there was no improvement in the students GPA after a semester off, the student would be dismissed from the college.
When Tim Fulop became the academic dean, he introduced a new plan of dealing with students who failed to meet the academic expectations of the school. The new system intervenes sooner based on the student's semester GPA instead of their cumulative GPA.
The GPA standards differ depending on what year the student is. In terms of semester GPA, freshmen need to obtain a 1.60 or higher; sophomores need a 1.80 or higher; and both juniors and seniors must have a 2.0 or higher.
If a student fails to meet these requirements, they are put on academic probation for the following semester. While on probation students are limited to 14 semester hours and are required to meet with Paul White, the director of the Hayssen Academic Resource Center, to go over the conditions of their probation and to set up tutoring schedules. They must enroll in a class called Learning Skills Development as well, which will help students build the following skills: study techniques, note taking, time management, and test taking strategies.
If students finish probation with a semester GPA which exceeds the minimum, they are considered full-time students.
However, if they do not meet their class required GPA, they will be suspended from the college. The suspension can be appealed by the student, in which case Dr. Fulop would make a decision based on the student's circumstances.
If the appeal goes through, the student will remain on probation. If the appeal does not go through, the student is suspended for one semester.
Upon return, they are immediately put on probation. Second time probation students do not follow the same course of action and will get helped in areas specific with their needs. If the second probation does not meet the minimal academic standards, the next step is dismissal, which also can be appealed.
The changes are a vast improvement; going from ignoring the students' needs to helping students. For those interested, this information can be found on pages 29-30 in your student handbook.
The old policy stated that students needed to hold a 2.0 cumulative GPA in order to graduate from Lakeland College. If your cumulative GPA fell below a 2.0 at the end of any semester, you were given a warning, which kindly reminded you of your GPA. You were given three semesters with a GPA below the 2.0 mark before you were suspended from the college for a semester.
The low GPA for three semesters added with a semester off put a large gap between students and graduation. If there was no improvement in the students GPA after a semester off, the student would be dismissed from the college.
When Tim Fulop became the academic dean, he introduced a new plan of dealing with students who failed to meet the academic expectations of the school. The new system intervenes sooner based on the student's semester GPA instead of their cumulative GPA.
The GPA standards differ depending on what year the student is. In terms of semester GPA, freshmen need to obtain a 1.60 or higher; sophomores need a 1.80 or higher; and both juniors and seniors must have a 2.0 or higher.
If a student fails to meet these requirements, they are put on academic probation for the following semester. While on probation students are limited to 14 semester hours and are required to meet with Paul White, the director of the Hayssen Academic Resource Center, to go over the conditions of their probation and to set up tutoring schedules. They must enroll in a class called Learning Skills Development as well, which will help students build the following skills: study techniques, note taking, time management, and test taking strategies.
If students finish probation with a semester GPA which exceeds the minimum, they are considered full-time students.
However, if they do not meet their class required GPA, they will be suspended from the college. The suspension can be appealed by the student, in which case Dr. Fulop would make a decision based on the student's circumstances.
If the appeal goes through, the student will remain on probation. If the appeal does not go through, the student is suspended for one semester.
Upon return, they are immediately put on probation. Second time probation students do not follow the same course of action and will get helped in areas specific with their needs. If the second probation does not meet the minimal academic standards, the next step is dismissal, which also can be appealed.
The changes are a vast improvement; going from ignoring the students' needs to helping students. For those interested, this information can be found on pages 29-30 in your student handbook.