Kevin Marshall's America
Jeff Pearlman is a writer and author of such books as The Bad Guys Won. If you follow me on Google Reader or follow my weekly link roundup (Blogorama), you’ll see his name pop up quite often.
Recently he shared a story about his sister-in-law, who goes to CUNY’s Baruch College. During Finals week, she contracted what sounds like The Christmas Contagion. Rather than stay home, she opted to tough it out and take the exam.
In the middle of taking the exam, she began vomiting in the classroom. Let me repeat: Vomiting in the classroom.
She went home and didn’t complete the test. A few days later she called her teacher to ask if she can take a makeup.
“You have to wait until the end of next semester,” she was told.
What?
“No exceptions.”
My sister-in-law called the dean, various other offices, etc. All said the same—she’d have to wait.
Outrageous.
Something similar happened to a friend of mine, except his illness was a bit more serious. We were in a class together when his health took a very bad turn that had him hospitalized for two weeks. Without disclosing too many details, complications had arisen due to a long-term condition and there was a stretch where things weren’t looking good.
After being released from the hospital and returning to campus, my friend approached this professor and asked to speak to him about an assignment that he missed handing in, yet still completed from his hospital bed. The professor, rather than asking to speak to him after class, proceeded to tell him in front of the entire room the same thing this Baruch College Professor told Jeff Pearlman’s sister-in-law:
“Sorry, there’s no exceptions.”
Mind you, he and the entire class were aware of the situation.
Fresh off a traumatic experience that had left him shaken, my friend left the room to get some air. The professor, seeing the shocked reaction of the class to his curtness and complete bumbling of the situation, ran off after him with a look of regret and concern.
When he caught up to my friend outside, he told him he was sorry and that he still couldn’t make an exception.
My friend had to go to the the professor’s superiors – something my friend loathes doing – and eventually got them to strongly suggest the professor reconsider.
He did. Which is good, but it shouldn’t have had to go that far. Thankfully this professor was the exception, as Siena College had (and I presume still has_ no shortage of people with good sense and common decency.
The point, though, is that there are far too many people like this out there: people that won’t make exceptions not because they can’t, but because they won’t. Why? Because analyzing a situation, considering circumstances, and deciding whether or not an exception should be made requires people to think critically and do work. Sometimes, they might even have to go outside their comfort zone with a superior and/or subordinate. Most people would rather be left to menial tasks and never go beyond their basic job descriptions.
So, “no exceptions.”
Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed and there was a happy ending in my friend’s case. I never learned what happened to that professor, though I did learn in the aftermath that the sabbatical he had taken the year prior was suggested after he accidentally CC’ed his students on a rather provocative (re: dirty talk) e-mail to a female companion.
If someone at Baruch College is reading this: c’mon, folks. You’re teaching what’re supposed to be great minds and, potentially, future leaders in their field. Try being better people here.
Share it!
5 Responses to No Exceptions in College…Not Even for Vomiting
Leave a Reply
STALK ME
Let’s admit the other side of the coin, though, Kev: In most cases at Siena College, you’re allowed to get away with murder. Don’t get me started on the lax policies the players for the basketball teams got around (including actually taking exams in a few of my classes).
Even I pushed the policies there, and when I got to RPI for grad school, where (at the time), it was a very “no exceptions” attitude, I had a rude awakening.
But I definitely understand your point; it is nice to know that professors have hearts and treat you on an individual basis, and, for what people pay for an education, every case should be considered on an individual basis.
One semester I came down with a very serious case of bronchitis. It was highly contagious and I was ordered quarantined which lasted about 2 weeks. In that time, my teacher had a tragedy occur in her family (lost her parents in a plane crash) and had left for the semester. She (understandably) neglected to inform her replacement that I had a major paper – 75% of my grade – extension. When I returned I handed the paper in to the replacement prof and explained the situation. No prob. Flash forward to grades coming home: F. I had to drive back to the school during summer break to meet with the head of the department just to clear it up. I got it fixed (A) but it took some convincing.
Always and everywhere, arbitrary bureaucratic dictates are anti-human.
I’ve been a teaching assistant for a few different courses, so I’ve worked directly with professors in their classrooms in different departments at RPI.
I am sure some professors do the “no exceptions policy” because they are too lazy to deal with their students. But from my experience, the no exceptions has to do more with the high possibility of rude and self-righteous peers of the student needing additional “exceptions”. Unfortunately, in some cases, if you budge a centimeter, you’ll be assaulted with a barrage of other excuses and favor-asking. And don’t underestimate how snotty students can get with this sort of thing. Some are willing to get the Dean involved, their parents involved, on and on. And when you have possibly hundreds of other students between various courses you teach, where do you make time for dealing with that kind of crap? Don’t get me started on how hard it is to fail a student in a class, in most cases, even if they 100% academically deserve a failing grade.
Also, if she waited days after the final to ask for a retake, the grades for the course may have already been due to the registrar’s office. At my school, if the professor gave her let’s say a C in the course for an unfinished final, and the grade due date passed, he would not be able to go in and change that (after she took the retake) until the next semester anyway.
The one part of the story that does seem kind of dumb is that he was unwilling to give her the test sooner than the next general final. I don’t think the professor is necessary obligated to give her a retake based on her convenience, but I think he could have arranged something a bit better.
I will always be thankful for the “exceptions” Siena College allowed for me during my senior year. My mother had died and I broke my ankle all within the same year. The administration and professors did every thing they could financially and emotionally to make sure I had the best senior year I could possibly have with as little stress as possible. A lot of these fell into the category of “exceptions” but to me they were a much needed kindness.