Office of the Assemblies

Dear Anuli,

 

As you know, Cat conveyed to me Student Assembly Resolution 52: Amending Leave of Absence Policies. There are a few points that I’ve asked Provost Kotlikoff to clarify and his response is below.

 

Sincerely,

 

Martha Pollack

 

 

Martha E. Pollack

President, Cornell University

300 Day Hall

Ithaca, NY 14853

Tel: 607-255-5201

 

 

Dear Anuli,

 

Thank you for the opportunity to provide additional information on our Leave of Absence Policies.

 

First, the purpose of the involuntary leave of absence policy is to use it when there is an actual or threatened disruption to the university community, as we need to protect the educational environment for all students. Our policy articulates a standard that treats similarly situated disabled and non-disabled students the same. The criteria for invoking an involuntary leave – behavior disruptive of the university’s learning environment and whether the behavior poses a direct threat to the safety of individual members of the university community or the university community as a whole – apply expressly to behavior, regardless of the cause, and carefully do not identify mental illness or other disability as a reason for removal. Additionally, the policy specifically provides that consideration will be given to accommodations that may reasonably be provided that will mitigate the need for an involuntary leave and allow the student to remain enrolled. This framework has been endorsed by the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights.  Students are also informed of the option of taking a personal leave or medical leave before any decision is made administratively to invoke the involuntary LOA policy.

 

Second, there was much work done recently to make changes to the health leave of absence policy, including engagement with the Student Assembly and a Student Assembly representative participating on the HLOA Advisory Group. Among those changes was an extension of the deadline to request a health leave to the last day of the term.

 

Lastly, there are Title IV financial aid implications to the incomplete/withdrawal proposal in the Resolution that are not feasible. The academic record must be an accurate reflection of actual academic activity. In addition, financial aid disbursements must match the academic activity on the transcript.

 

I encourage the Student Assembly to connect Andrea Kiely, Health Leaves of Absence Coordinator, as an avenue for discussing improvements to the Health Leave of Absence Policy, to understand the purpose behind the existing policy, and understand the impacts of changes.

 

Sincerely,

 

Mike Kotlikoff

 

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Michael I. Kotlikoff, V.M.D., Ph.D.
Provost and Professor of 
    Molecular Physiology
300 Day Hall
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY  14853
607-255-2364