After a nearly six-year hiatus, the founding chapter of Students Actively Moving Forward returned to campus this semester and plans to propose a university-wide bereavement policy. Bereavement policies give uniform guidelines for students, faculty, and administration on the necessary length of a temporary absence and the academic expectations upon a student’s return.
Originally established at Georgetown in 2006, AMF is a support group for students grieving the loss or illness of a loved one with 44 chapters on college campuses across the country.
Jeffrey Lin (SFS ’16), president of the board of AMF, said his own experience grieving a loss inspired him to start up the support group again [Full Disclosure: Lin is former assistant news editor for the Voice]. Additionally, he hopes to work with GUSA on creating a bereavement policy.
“We haven’t had the time yet to come up with what we would want the nature of the changes to be, but we definitely want to get student input first so we know what they’re thinking,” said Taaha Akhtar (MSB ‘16), treasurer of the board of AMF. “For now, we could say opening up the lines of communication and just having a set procedure.”
Only a few universities have a formal bereavement policy in place, among them are Purdue, Ball State, and Wisconsin at Green Bay. Purdue’s policy states that adjusted lengths of absence time for students depend on whether the departed is an immediate or extended family member, or friend. It also ensures that they have the opportunity to complete missed assignments so they earn credit for them.
Akhtar expressed how a formal bereavement policy can better address students’ accountability and allow for less confusion. “We don’t necessarily have to follow [Purdue’s], but we do want something formal in place so that everyone knows what’s expected and what’s going to happen and when students do take that leave, so they don’t come back and are surprised, because, again, we want everyone accountable for a leave of absence,” said Akhtar.
Georgetown does not currently have a formal bereavement policy mainly because personal leaves of absence are treated on a case-by-case basis. If students need to miss mid-semester classes due to a medical or personal issue, they must coordinate with professors on how to proceed with making up their work.
Associate Dean Sue Lorenson clarified in an email to the Voice that a leave of absence means a student has withdrawn from all of his or her classes for the semester, not just a temporary period of time.
“Each semester, there are students who need to miss classes for a personal or medical issue. Often, those students are able to make arrangements with their professors for making up missed work, but sometimes the scales tip and a student needs to request a leave,” Lorenson wrote .
Due to the individual nature of each situation, students have the responsibility to share their situation, request the time away, and agree upon and fulfill the expectations of professors in a timely manner. According to Akhtar, the bereavement policy would aim to alleviate students of this additional stress during the grieving process.
“Professors themselves may have different policies regarding leaves of absence. For example, the work that needs to get done, how much time it takes for an assignment to be due, or if they can give alternate assignments,” Akhtar said.
Last April, Lin had to miss a week of mid-semester classes. While Lin said that his dean was helpful in explaining his situation to his professors, he found that when he returned it was up to him to communicate concerns he had about finishing assignments. “Your dean will inform all of your professors, but I feel like once you come back from it, that’s when you really have to start working one on one with your professors,” Lin said.
Lin said that students struggle with the process of taking time away, whether it is for a week or a semester, because of the demanding academic environment. “Even though the deans and professors tell you not to worry, the pressure is never gone.”
Photo by Andrew Sullivan
