Holiday form deadline looms

Beginning this fall, a University policy requiring students to make a written request to miss class for religious holidays within two weeks of the beginning of the semester is being fully implemented.\nStudents who intend to miss class for a religious holiday this semester must fill out the form by Friday.\n"Most professors are aware of this and are sensitive of religious holidays," said Gerald Pugh, associate dean of faculties. "The two weeks are there to make it known to the instructor that they have a conflict at the earliest possible time, so that if an accommodation needs to be made, then it can be made. \n"If there's a problem, then there's time to work something out. If you wait until the day before, then there's not enough time to work through an appeal."\nKim Walker, associate dean of faculties, said aspects of this policy have been used for a few semesters. She said the system is supposed to help both students and faculty, and because copies of the policy and request forms are widely available, "students still have 48 hours, so they should not stress."\n"The policy was created to try and put some kind of understanding for the faculty members," Walker said. "If they see they have five people in a small course missing two months in advance, they can plan for that. It's really to help people organize and work together."\nBefore classes began this fall, Walker sent a memo to faculty citing the policy. The memo included a link to a five-year calendar of religious holidays. With the advance information, instructors were then asked to do their best to schedule around holidays.\n"You know you have certain years when all the holidays fall right around midterms and other years where they skirt them all together," Walker said. "On the Web site, we have a calendar with lots of the religious holidays because we want people to be more aware, especially with such a large international population here.\n"It is possible that someone can turn in a form for something someone's never heard of. We're trying to make everyone as aware as possible and as diversely accommodating as possible."\nThe Dean of Faculties Office also recommended that faculty include information about the policy in their syllabi. The policy was also printed in the Fall 2001 Schedule of Classes and is on the Dean of Faculties Web site.\nIf students do not feel their instructor has made a reasonable accommodation, they can go to the Dean of Faculties Office, who will then make a decision regarding the conflict. If students are still not satisfied, they can appeal to the Office of Affirmative Action within 10 business days of the Dean of Faculties' decision.\nBut Pugh said faculty members are generally understanding.\n"Fundamentally, the issue is a student with a problem who needs some assistance from the instructor," he said. "And the form is here to put them in contact with each other."\nStudents should submit a separate request "for each day and for each course. The instructor should fill in the bottom section of the form, then return the original form to the student and retain a photocopy," according to the form.\nWalker said the University has been doing its best to publicize the policy.\nJosh Stein, assistant director of the Helene G. Simon Hillel Center, said the center has also been trying to get the word out.\n"We have been doing everything on our end to publicize the new policy -- sending out e-mail reminders to our mailing list and we've really publicized the new policy at all of our events," he said.