New in 2009
Bright Futures and Withdrawals

Important Change effective FALL 2009: According to news stories in the Tallahassee Democrat, a law passed by the Florida Legislature passed and signed by Governor Crist has changed the rules for "Bright Futures" scholarships so there is now a financial penalty for withdrawing from a class. If you have a Bright Futures scholarship and withdraw from a class after the first week of class, you will be required to pay back the tuition for the class you drop. Along with the possible effects mentioned at the bottom of this page, this makes it all the more important that you only attempt classes when you are prepared to pass them on the first attempt.

Science and Math
Lecture/Lab Withdrawal Policies

October 25, 2004 Memo from Dr. Frank Brown, Dean of the Division of Science and Mathematics:

This is a clarification of a policy concerning administrative withdrawals and student withdrawals from classes that have co-requisite classes.

If a student withraws or is administratively withdrawn from a class that has a co-requisite class, that student will be automatically withdrawn from the co-requisite class unless permission has been given by the dean of the Science and Mathematics Division. This permission will be entered into the mainframe computer.

To receive permission to remain in a co-requisite class, the instructor must send me an email stating that the student has permission to remain in the co-requisite course. Additionally, the student must come to the SM Division office to receive the over-ride.

Implications for Physics 2048 and 2049

You cannot withdraw from MAC2311 without withdrawing from PHY2048, and you cannot withdraw from either PHY2048 or PHY2049 without withdrawing from the lab UNLESS you obtain an override from the Dean allowing you to stay in the lab. Similarly, you need special permission to drop the lab and stay in lecture.

If you wish to withdraw from the lecture course and stay in the lab, an option that I strongly encourage you to pursue if you have been in lecture until the middle of the semester, you must follow a specific procedure:

1. See your lab instructor about your plans to withdraw from lecture and seek permission to stay in the lab. This is preferred over asking the lecture instructor, which is your other option, because we want the lab instructor to know you are dropping lecture and verify that you have a good chance of passing the lab without lecture.
   
   
2. Whoever approves your request will send an e-mail to the Dean recommending that you be given an override to stay in the lab.
   
   
3. You must then make an appointment to see the Dean (through the receptionist in the main office, SM250, or by e-mail) and meet with him to have the override approved and placed in the computer.
   
   
4. You must then submit your withdrawal form to Enrollment Services.

It is still possible to get a grade in the lab after you have been withdrawn, but only if the lab instructor submits a grade change form and that change is approved by the Dean. I strongly recommend that you follow the procedure above since there is no guarantee that a W or AW grade in the lab will be changed.

If you withdraw from the lab, you may not stay in the lecture course.
Knowledge gained in the lab is considered essential to discussions in lecture in both PHY2048 and PHY2049. Exceptions to this are rare and require special documentation and approval, usually after consulting with me.

This policy has been enforced by the staff in Enrollment Services for all courses in our division since Fall 2004.

Impact on PHY2048 students

Calculus I:
You must have passed MAC2311 or be currently enrolled in it to take PHY2048 because we use calculus as the course progresses. If you are taking MAC2311 and drop it, you must drop PHY2048. A withdrawal from MAC2311 should automatically trigger a W from PHY2048 and PHY2048L. See below for what you need to do to stay in the lab if you need to drop both lecture courses. Only vary rare exceptions (ones where the student has a high A average in physics) have been approved for PHY2048. (You can, of course, drop PHY2048 and stay in MAC2311.)

PHY2048L:
As stated in my syllabus, if you have attended and kept up in the lecture course through midterm (which I define as the middle of the term, about day 35 or 36), I think you know enough physics to be allowed to stay in the lab. There is no change in my policy on this matter, just a change in procedure. (The new procedure guarantees that there is a record in the computer saying why you could stay in the lab.)

Administrative Withdrawals:
Because of the changes in the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering admissions policies, I now rarely submit an AW grade in PHY2048. (See below for details.) This clarification of TCC policy should not change what happens for students who are administratively withdrawn from my classes.

Impact on PHY2049 students

PHY2049L:
As stated in my syllabus, if you have attended and kept up in the lecture course through the middle of the semester, preferrably through the material on AC circuits that is normally covered by day 45, I recommend that you stay in the lab.

Administrative Withdrawals:
In the rare case where I submit an AW, it will be before the date the first exam is given. This clarification of TCC policy should not change what happens for students who are administratively withdrawn from my classes.

Academic Alert on Withdrawals

Special Academic Alert for future engineers: Some Engineering schools will count withdrawals when deciding to reject any student who needs three or more attempts to pass physics or other required core courses (such as calculus). The ones I know about are only concerned with the lecture course, but those are only a handful of the many schools you might choose to attend. Be sure you know the current requirements of all Engineering schools you might attend, and watch for any changes in their policies. Do not take any math or science class lightly and make the most of any attempt.

OUR OLD ACADEMIC ALERT:
The same college-level course may only be taken twice at the in-state rate. If you enroll for a third time, Florida Law requires that you pay the out-of-state tuition rate. This took effect in Fall 1997. A student whose name is on the official roll after the date to receive a refund is considered enrolled. This means that a "grade" of W or AW counts as taking the class. Students taking a class for the third time may not withdraw from the course. Fourth attempts are allowed only after a successful academic appeal through the office of the VP for Academic Affairs. See Catalog for details.

My standard policy on Administrative Withdrawals

The following paragraph appears in my course syllabi.

ATTENDANCE:
Because of the complexity of the material you are learning, regular attendance and regular preparation are especially important in this class. Every day matters. You are expected to attend all classes. (See the TCC Catalog for details.) I will administratively withdraw any student who is absent for the first two weeks of the semester, as determined by turning in a student information sheet. I will NOT drop anyone else because of poor attendance. If you cannot complete the semester, it is entirely your responsibility to withdraw from the course by [the deadline given in the TCC calendar for the current semester] or you will likely earn an F.
If you withdraw from this course, I strongly suggest that you stay in the lab but you need the lab instructor's permission followed by an override from the Dean of Science and Math to do so.

Details (announced in class, published on the web):
There is no separate attendance grade. I do not check attendance, except as required for financial aid, once a student has turned in the "information" sheet handed out with the syllabus on the first day of class. I usually call the names of students who have not done so, but there is no guarantee that I will do so after the first two days when students can add the class. It is your responsibility to get a syllabus and turn in the information sheet. If I don't get one within the first two weeks of class (normally the first 9 or 10 days of a daytime class, 5 or 6 sessions of the night class, or the third meeting of the lab), I will ALWAYS submit an AW grade. The only situation where I will reinstate a student would be one where there is clear documentation of the extenuating circumstances and that the student has kept up with the class by earning at least a "C" grade on Exam 1 during the third week of class.

New in 2009
Bright Futures and Withdrawals

Important Change effective FALL 2009: According to news stories in the Tallahassee Democrat, a law passed by the Florida Legislature passed and signed by Governor Crist has changed the rules for "Bright Futures" scholarships so there is now a financial penalty for withdrawing from a class. If you have a Bright Futures scholarship and withdraw from a class after the first week of class, you will be required to pay back the tuition for the class you drop. Along with the possible effects mentioned at the bottom of this page, this makes it all the more important that you only attempt classes when you are prepared to pass them on the first attempt.

Contact me if you have any questions.