Protocol for Addressing Student Issues

Over the last several years, the Office of the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education (VPUE), in collaboration with the Office of the Vice Provost for Student Affairs (VPSA), which houses Residential Education (Res Ed), has developed a strong safety net for students coping with a range of personal and academic issues.  

Within PWR, and more widely SIS, we’ve developed the following protocol to make use of this safety net when our students come to us with problems or behave in ways that suggest that they are having difficulties.
 
From the beginning of the quarter, please be attentive to your students’ behavior, especially absences, tardiness, and missed assignments.  When this pattern begins early, it’s important that the student understand the attendance policy and your policy regarding late work (both of which should be included in your syllabus and discussed early in the quarter).  
 
If you sense a problem, please discuss it with the Associate Director of PWR sooner rather than later. Together, you and she will decide whether to alert our colleagues in Academic Advising.  
 
When the issue is more psychological or emotional, PWR administration and/or the Academic advisor will reach out to our colleagues in VPSA, primarily in Res Ed.  The first contact is usually the Residence Dean (RD), who attends to a wide range of concerns.  Residence Deans, like Undergraduate Advising Directors (UADs), work in the dorms Monday through Friday and can call students in for meetings.  (There is also an RD available by pager 24 hours a day to respond to emergency situations.)  
 
When more immediate action is called for, the Associate Director will reach out to the Resident Fellow (RF) in the student’s residence hall. 
 
Again, let the PWR Associate Director know immediately when you perceive that your students are having difficulties, whether academic or personal, in order to determine the appropriate next step.