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KENTUCKY STATE UNIVERSITY POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

POLICY TITLE: KYSU Online Course Attendance Policy

KYSU Online Course Attendance Policy VOLUME, SECTION & NUMBER: 1.3.1 ENTITIES AFFECTED: Students in online courses Faculty ADMINISTRATIVE AUTHORITY: Office of the Provost/Vice President for Academic Affairs Office of Online Education Registrar's Office Financial Aid APPROVED BY: The Office of Online Education The Kentucky State University Board of Regents

EFFECTIVE DATE: 7/1/2024

The Online Course Attendance Policy establishes requirements and procedures for students' attendance in KYSU Online courses, which are delivered in the online modality. This policy supplements Kentucky State University's attendance policies for traditional (residential), hybrid, and virtual modalities (distinct from the online modality). Regular attendance and engagement are essential for success in online courses. By following this policy, students can ensure that they remain active on the rosters of their online courses and eligible for Federal Student Aid while making progress toward their academic goals.

This policy requires students to demonstrate academic engagement with online courses regularly. Academic engagement is a critical component of distance education, as defined by the Department of Education and Federal Student Aid. It refers to a student's participation in the academic activities and

requirements of their enrolled program, including attending classes, completing assignments, taking exams, participating in discussions and other collaborative activities, and communicating regularly with instructors.

Due to the unique nature of distance education, the Department of Education and Federal Student Aid requires that institutions offering online courses establish policies and procedures to ensure that students who receive Federal Student Aid maintain regular and substantive academic engagement with their coursework. This ensures that students make progress toward their educational goals and are eligible to receive federal funding to support their education.

Since KYSU Online courses are offered in the online modality, they do not require physical attendance or synchronous meetings. This policy describes how students enrolled in an online class must become active on the course roster by attending during the first week of the course. Second, after becoming active in a course, students must maintain active attendance in the online course.

Students must exhibit academic engagement in an online course in the first week to avoid being dropped from the roster. This usually involves completing a course assignment, such as the Course Start Quiz, or engaging the instructor about the course content.1 The instructor must ensure that each student who has not participated in the course through academic engagement is marked as “inactive” on the course roster. At the end of the first week, the instructor must send the current roster to the Registrar for processing.

Students who fail to submit an assignment or engage the instructor with an assignment-related question during week one will be dropped from the course at the beginning of week two.

After course attendance is established in the first week, students must remain in regular academic engagement with the course to avoid an unsanctioned period of inactivity lasting 21 days. At any point in the course, if a student does not participate by demonstrating academic engagement for 21 days, that student should be administratively withdrawn from the course. When a student is administratively withdrawn from a course due to an unsanctioned period of inactivity lasting 21 days, it is to establish the date that the student ceased attendance. Instructors should work with their supervisors to communicate this status to the Registrar and other administrators on the 22nd day of non-attendance. The AW grade will be posted to the student's transcript.

Subject-matter experts should include notice of this policy in the course syllabus. Instructors are responsible for clearly communicating attendance and engagement requirements at the beginning of each course and monitoring student progress throughout the semester. This information should appear in course communications, such as the welcome announcement and module 1 announcement.

Instructors are responsible for notifying their supervisor and the Registrar on the 22nd day of a student's inactivity.

Per this policy, students must “attend” and remain academically engaged with their online courses. Students who cannot attend or participate in required activities due to extenuating circumstances should contact their instructors as soon as possible to make alternative arrangements.

Students who fail to meet this policy's attendance and engagement requirements may be administratively withdrawn from a course, which could affect their financial aid. They might also be subject to academic probation, suspension, or other disciplinary measures in accordance with the Catalog and Policies.

Academic Engagement: see below.

Academic Attendance: see below.

RELATED POLICIES/DOCUMENTS:

1.2.6 Course Attendance and Title IV

1.2.9 Course Withdrawal

1.2.19 Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)

34 CFR 600.2 "Academic engagement"

The Department of Education defines academic engagement as:

“Academic engagement: Active participation by a student in an instructional activity related to the student’s course of study that— (1) Is defined by the institution in accordance with any applicable requirements of its State or accrediting agency; (2) Includes, but is not limited to— (i) Attending a synchronous class, lecture, recitation, or field or laboratory activity, physically or online, where there is an opportunity for interaction between the instructor and students; (ii) Submitting an academic assignment; (iii) Taking an assessment or an exam; (iv) Participating in an interactive tutorial, webinar, or other interactive computer-assisted instruction; (v) Participating in a study group, group project, or an online discussion that is assigned by the institution; or (vi) Interacting with an instructor about academic matters; and (3) Does not include, for example— (i) Living in institutional housing; (ii) Participating in the institution’s meal plan; (iii) Logging into an online class or tutorial without any further participation; or (iv) Participating in academic counseling or advisement” (34 CFR 600.2 “Distance education”).²

The Department of Education specifies that “academic attendance” for financial aid purposes relates to the definition of “academic engagement” and entails institutional documentation of attendance policies which govern when the institution determines that a student has withdrawn:

“(7)(i) “Academic attendance” and “attendance at an academically-related activity” must include academic engagement as defined under 34 CFR 600.2. (ii) A determination of “academic attendance” or “attendance at an academically-related activity” must be made by the institution; a student’s certification of attendance that is not supported by institutional documentation is not acceptable” (34 CFR 668.22(l)(7)).3

The Department of Education provides guidance on how to track the withdrawal date for financial aid purposes at institutions that do not require attendance. This is relevant in online education for instructors tracking periods of inactivity, which could involve a student's withdrawal from the institution:

“(3) The “date of the institution’s determination that the student withdrew” for an institution that is not required to take attendance is— (i) For a student who provides notification to the institution of his or her withdrawal, the student’s withdrawal date as determined under paragraph (c) of this section or the date of notification of withdrawal, whichever is later; (ii) For a student who did not provide notification of his or her withdrawal to the institution, the date that the institution becomes aware that the student ceased attendance; (iii) For a student who does not return from an approved leave of absence, the earlier of the date of the end of the leave of absence or the date the student notifies the institution that he or she will not be returning to the institution; or (iv) For a student whose rescission is negated under paragraph (c)(2)(i)(B) of this section, the date the institution becomes aware that the student did not, or will not, complete the payment period or period of enrollment. (v) For a student who takes a leave of absence that is not approved in accordance with paragraph (d) of this section, the date that the student begins the leave of absence” (34 CFR 668.22(I)(3)).4

This policy complies with all regulations governing Federal Student Aid and academic engagement.

The Office of Online Education

DOCUMENT DATE AND VERSION:

5/25/2024 – 2024.05.25_KYSU_Online Course Attendance Policy_v3.docx