Returning from a Leave of Absence

Students may return from a voluntary leave of absence, which has not exceeded the four-semester cumulative limit, by notifying in writing the Dean of Students in the College. This notification may be by email. The notification must include a statement expressing the student’s intention to return and describing the student’s activities while on leave. The deadline for notifying the Dean of Students is at least four weeks prior to the start of the semester in which the student intends to return.

In cases where students are granted leaves of absence while on academic warning, the statement must also include an explanation of what conditions contributed to the academic difficulties and how the student will ensure that the same conditions will not be present upon the student’s return.

 Students taking a leave while on academic warning will remain on warning upon their resumption of studies. Additionally, in the first semester of resuming studies while on academic warning, students must either achieve the required minimum GPA for their classification at the time of evaluation (which may be different from when they were placed on warning) or earn at least a 2.0 term GPA in each subsequent term of warning. Otherwise, students who do not meet the GPA requirement will be suspended for one regular term and must petition to resume their studies in the College (see Warning, Suspension, and Appeals). If the suspension for an additional term results in a student exceeding the maximum four semesters of cumulative leave from the College, then the student will need to petition the Dean of Students (see below).

In cases where a student’s leave involves medical conditions, the resumption of studies is contingent upon the condition being resolved or managed successfully. Given these circumstances, it is expected that students will take suitable actions to remedy the problems necessitating the leave of absence and provide substantiating documentation to assess and assure their academic readiness and ability to participate in all aspects of the campus community. Therefore, prior to your return to Roanoke College you will need to provide a written personal statement indicating:

 ·       Explanation of the situation that necessitated the leave of absence for health reasons;

·       What actions have been taken since taking the leave of absence to resolve the impairments in functioning due to the health conditions and any other problems that contributed to the leave;

·       A description of the resources and behaviors that the student plans to use to succeed when they return to Roanoke College.

 In making an informed decision to allow a student to resume the student’s studies, the Dean of Students (or designee) will consider germane medical and other information available to them, including information provided in a timely manner by the student. The student may be asked to sign a medical records release, and to authorize direct communication between the Student Health & Counseling Services’ Director (or designee) and the student’s medical provider(s) regarding the circumstances and the student’s medical information, and to authorize the Director to share the substance of those communications with the Dean of Students or others, as appropriate. Clinicians from Student Health & Counseling Services will receive and review documentation from healthcare providers and provide a recommendation to the Dean of Students Office regarding a leave of absence for Health Reasons request.

If a student declines to authorize communications between and among the student’s provider, the Dean of Students, and Student Health & Counseling Services’ Director (or their designee) and/or declines to authorize the release of germane medical records, then the Dean of Students will make the decision after considering the available information and will do so without the benefit of information that may be directly germane to the decision.

 Additional conditions may be required of the student requesting to return, depending on the student’s medical condition (e.g. requirements for continued treatment, professional monitoring of the student’s condition by a local treatment team, etc.). In such cases, the student will be notified of the additional requirements prior to the student’s return. Students who need reasonable accommodations for a disability in conjunction with their return to enrollment should promptly contact Accessible Education Services and follow the required protocols.

Students on leave who have pending disciplinary cases will ordinarily not be permitted to resume their studies until the disciplinary case has been resolved. If the time taken to resolve the case, or any sanction imposed as part of the resolution of the disciplinary case, results in a student exceeding the maximum fours semesters of cumulative leave from the College, then the student will need to petition the Dean of Students in order to return (see below).

A student who has been withdrawn must petition the Dean of Students to return to their studies.

 The College is not obliged to approve student resumption of studies. Students who are allowed to resume their studies after an administrative withdrawal are expected to complete their studies without further interruption.

Academic Amnesty allows undergraduate students to overcome poor prior academic performance, a Roanoke College cumulative GPA of less than 2.0, when returning to Roanoke College after one full academic year of absence.

• Students who have completed the equivalent of 3 or more transferable units at another institution with a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher may apply to PARA for Academic Amnesty at the same time they apply to return to the college.

• Students who do not fulfill the above requirements may apply to PARA for Academic Amnesty before the end of the withdraw period of the first semester following their absence. These students must achieve a GPA of at least 2.0 in the semester following their absence. Applications are held until completion of the first semester and considered at the end of the semester.

• Students may request the Academic Amnesty period cover up to one continuous academic year including Summer Sessions. Academic Amnesty does not apply to individual courses.

• If Academic Amnesty is granted, all grades for that time period are excluded from GPA calculations and graduation requirements. The grades are not expunged; they remain on the transcript with a notation of Academic Amnesty.

• GPA and coursework prior to Amnesty are taken into consideration for federal Financial Aid awarding purposes.

• If the time period that is amnestied was covered by veteran’s benefits, the student must understand that the Department of Veteran’s Affairs will not pay benefits to cover repeating any courses taken to improve a non-failing grade. The student may be required to reimburse the Department of Veteran’s Affairs for benefits previously received.

• Academic Amnesty may be used only once by a student and cannot be revoked by the student after approval is granted.