In order to preserve the integrity of the College as a community and center of learning, the College requires students to withdraw for three different kinds of reasons: when students fail to act in accordance with the standards of behavior established by the Senate and set forth in the Course of Study; or when students cannot remain without endangering their own health or that of other students; or when students have failed to make satisfactory progress toward the degree.
Satisfactory progress toward the degree is defined as maintaining at least a 2.0 cumulative
A standing committee of the faculty, the Committee on Academic Standards, working in concert with the Dean
At the end of each semester, as soon as possible after grades are reported, the Committee on Academic Standards reviews the records of all students who fail to meet the standards defined above. The Dean for Academic Advising is responsible for reviewing the records of all students and reporting the names and records of deficient students to the committee. In considering each case, the committee usually examines deficiency reports from instructors and receives reports from the offices of the Dean of Students, the Dean for Academic Advising, and the Health and Counseling Center. In addition, the committee may ask for a report from the faculty advisor, as well as a written statement from the student. Tentative grades in year courses are considered by the committee. In its deliberations, the committee seeks to consider all pertinent information before making an evaluation of the student's failure to make satisfactory progress toward graduation.
(amended 11/14/2016)
Based on the review outlined above, the committee is empowered to act as it may determine. The most common actions are listed below.
Letter of Warning: A letter explaining the deficiency and possible consequences if improved performance is not achieved in the following semester or year.
Conditional Enrollment: A letter setting conditions on continued enrollment at the College. Some of the more common conditions
Advised Withdrawal: The committee may simply advise a student to withdraw from the College for a specified period of time. If the student declines this advice, the student will be placed on conditional enrollment.
Required Withdrawal: When it becomes obvious that a student will have little or no chance to graduate, or when some time away from Kenyon is clearly indicated, the student's withdrawal will be required. The committee may require withdrawal for a specific period, usually a year. The committee has the power to require withdrawal indefinitely or permanently.
(edited 5/2017)
Copies of letters concerning actions taken by the Committee on Academic Standards are placed in the students' electronic folders. Summary records of the committee's actions are maintained by the Office of Academic Advising.
Except for a required withdrawal, a note of the committee's actions is kept as a part of the student's permanent academic record, but it is confidential and not listed on the transcript with grades and course information. No indication that a student has received a letter of warning or has been placed on conditional enrollment appears on copies of the student's transcripts, which are sent from the College.
A student advised to take a leave from the College is given the opportunity to take the leave voluntarily. Doing so requires completion of a Declaration of Leave form. The permanent record and transcript copies of such students will indicate the date of the voluntary leave, with no indication of
In the case of a required withdrawal, the student's permanent record and transcript will indicate the date of the required withdrawal, with no indication of