This petition is a call to action for Carroll University to do as other universities across the country have done─to revise academic and grading policies for the Spring and Summer 2020 semesters of online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as reverse student dismissals that occurred during this time.

A Carroll University physical therapy student, Lyn-Le Wien, has been greatly affected by the university's unchanged policies amidst the transition to online learning during this historic time. She was previously on academic probation due to extenuating family health circumstances and faced significant learning challenges while adapting to the transition to online learning, placing her in a position of academic dismissal. Throughout the last 2 years, she has had multiple changes in her academic advisor with no notice of who the replacement was. While her GPA meets the DPT program requirements, current course grade and academic probation/dismissal policies do not account for the circumstances that have resulted from COVID-19. Despite two attempts at an appeal, her extenuating circumstances were not acknowledged. Throughout the appeals process, there was a clear lack of support, breakdown in communication, lack of written guidelines, and oversight of her situation. She has an outstanding academic record and even received a clinical placement at Children's Wisconsin through a competitive application process against her peers and PT students from other universities. However, she will no longer get to represent Carroll on this clinical. She has excelled in her academics for the last 5 years at Carroll, only to be dismissed due to challenging times during a health crisis that has shaken the whole world.

The life-changing circumstances due to the coronavirus pandemic have instigated policy change throughout institutions of higher learning in the United States and abroad. These institutions have released updated academic and grading policies which prevent the dismissal of a student based on their academic performance during the Spring 2020 semester. The list of institutions that have made these policy changes for both undergraduate and graduate students in the wake of the pandemic is extensive and includes highly respected universities such as University of Iowa, University of Illinois, Northern Illinois University, Central Michigan University, and Purdue University. Other universities have also adopted this policy, including University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Nichols College, University of North Alabama, Lander University, Washburn University, Coe College, Cleveland State University, University of Nevada, University of South Carolina, SUNY Cortland, Augustana College, George Mason University, just to name a few. Even the University of Wisconsin school system made changes to their grading policies to reflect the ongoing changes and challenges resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Why do I care? I care because all universities should stand by their students amidst both personal challenges and worldwide crises. Every administrator and staff member has conveyed that their hands are tied in the situation, but that is simply not true. People have the power to take action and the obligation to stand by their students and fight for them. She may be just one student, but that makes this failure in the system all the more significant. If this one student falls through the cracks, who is to say that future students won't. Students want to attend a university that demonstrates progress and adaptation in their response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The truth stands that if not for extenuating family health circumstances and the changes in learning due to COVID-19, Lyn-Le Wien would not have been dismissed from the PT program. During these unprecedented times, I think about and reflect back on the Carroll University Ethos of respect, integrity, and stewardship, and call on you to ask yourself if these values are reflected in your response to this student. I am calling upon Carroll University to do as other universities across the country have done─to revise academic and grading policies for the Spring and Summer 2020 semesters of online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as reverse student dismissals that occurred during this time. Thank you for your time and consideration.

***As the current academic policy stands, if a student is dismissed and then accepted again upon re-application to the program in 1 year, the student has to start back at year 1. That means that Lyn, a student in her last semester of PT classes, would begin at day 1. That policy is being reviewed right now, but you can help make the change!***

Please consider signing this petition, calling for action from the Carroll University administration. Also, please copy/paste the four paragraphs above and email with the Subject: Call for Academic Policy Change and Reversal of PT Student Dismissal to President Gnadinger (cgnading@carrollu.edu), the Dean of Health Sciences (tpahnke@carrollu.edu), and the provost (mblegen@carrollu.edu). Please share and send it on!