ACADEMIC STANDARDS POLICY

LeMoyne-Owen students must pursue and complete courses at a rate that will allow them to earn their degree in a reasonable amount of time. Many students are able to complete the requirements for the degree in four years by earning an average of 15 credit hours in each of their eight semesters. However, some students will require more than four years to earn their degree. The College has established standards that define a minimum rate of progress toward the degree. They define the minimum number of course credit hours that must be attempted, the number that must be completed, and the cumulative grade point average that must be achieved as credit hours are accumulated. A course and its credit hours are considered to be completed if a grade of A, B, C, D or P is earned. The number of course credit hours attempted includes all courses for which one of those grades was received, plus courses where the result was a designation of WA, WD, F or I. Repeated courses are counted as attempted and completed (or not), for each attempt. However, only the most recent grade and credit hours are included when calculating the GPA.

 

Satisfactory Academic Progress

A student is considered to be in good academic standing if he or she has earned at least 70% of all attempted credit hours and has a cumulative GPA of at least a 2.0 at the end of each fall and spring semester.

 

If a student’s cumulative GPA falls below a 1.5 in any semester, the student will be automatically suspended with the right to appeal.

**LOC students must be aware of the major differences in our Academic Policies versus their eligibility to receive financial aid funds. The College has established standards that define a minimum rate of progress toward a degree. This rate also requires students to achieve a certain grade point average at the end of each year. Any student receiving state and federal financial aid must also earn at least 70% of all attempted hours. Consequently, a student could be on probation academically but not be eligible for state and federal financial aid. Students are reviewed at the end of the academic year (after spring semester). Students who do not earn at least 70% of all attempted hours will automatically be placed on probation and can continue to receive federal financial aid. At the end of the 2nd year, federal financial aid is suspended. The student can appeal this decision through the Academic Standards Honors and Selection Committee (ASHSC).

 

Full-time Students
Full-time students who meet these standards are said to be in academic good standing, having made satisfactory academic progress in their time at the College. They remain eligible for state and federal financial aid.

 

Part-time students
Part-time students are those attempting fewer than 12 credit hours in a regular semester. Part-time students lose eligibility for state and federal financial aid if they fail to maintain progress as defined under Financial Aid.

 

Note: State and federal financial aid are only available for support of the first 180 credit hours attempted by a student. These credit hours include all accepted transfer credit hours from all previously attended institutions, even those in which a student did not receive state/federal aid. As a further restriction, part-time students may receive state or federal financial aid for a maximum of twelve years.

 

ACADEMIC SUSPENSION AND DISMISSAL

 

Suspension
Students who are suspended from the College are required to spend a defined period of time, usually two regular semesters, away from the College. During this period they may be required to successfully complete activities defined by the Academic Standards, Honors and Selection Committee if they are to be considered for readmission to LeMoyne-Owen. A student who is readmitted to the College following a period of academic suspension, and who subsequently fails to achieve a C (2.0) GPA in any semester, will be dismissed from the College.

 

Appeal
An appeal can be made by a student who has been suspended or dismissed. The appeal must be presented in writing to the Academic Standards Committee and should fully describe the extenuating circumstances on which the appeal is based. The appeal should be supported by documentation. An appeal should be made as soon as possible, but no later than one month, before registration for the next semester. A meeting is scheduled for the student to meet with the committee. After the meeting, the student will be notified in writing of the committee’s decision.

 

Note: There is no appeal process for students who have reached their maximum aggregate hours of 180.

REPEATS:

Students should refer to the Academic Regulations within the undergraduate and graduate catalogs as related to how repeats are counted in the GPA calculation.

 

For the purpose of this policy, all attempted undergraduate and graduate attempted college level credit hours are included in both the Pace and Maximum Timeframe measurements, inclusive of credit hours associated with all repeated coursework. Additionally, all attempted undergraduate remedial / developmental (R&D) coursework is included in the R&D 30 attempted credit hour limitation, inclusive of credit hours associated with all repeated R&D coursework.

 

When determining a student’s enrollment status for Federal Title IV purposes, LOC may pay for repeated coursework through the above specified financial aid programs. However, LOC cannot pay for more than one repetition of a previously passed course. The Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship Program has additional rules as related to repeated coursework.

 

Additional Bachelor’s Degree:
Students who have already earned a bachelor’s degree but are working on another undergraduate degree may be eligible to receive Federal Stafford Loans at the undergraduate limit. Students must submit a written request to the Financial Aid Office.

 

A Financial Aid Counselor will allow 150% of the additional hours needed to complete an additional bachelor’s degree to the existing “overall” credit hours previously attempted for the first bachelor’s degree. This new value will establish the new Maximum Timeframe that the student can receive financial aid.

 

Teacher Licensure:

Students who have completed an undergraduate degree and are enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate program, for the sole purpose of attaining teacher licensure, may be eligible to receive Federal Stafford Loans at the undergraduate limit. Students must be enrolled at least half-time in required teacher certification coursework. Students must submit a written request and a signed copy of their Program of Study to the Financial Aid Office.

 

Financial Aid will allow 150% of the additional hours needed to complete the teacher licensure to the existing “overall” credit hours previously attempted for the first bachelor’s degree. This new value will establish the new Maximum Timeframe that the student can receive financial aid.

 

Frequency of Review

 

Qualitative Standard (GPA):

The Records Office reviews the GPA at the end of the spring semester. Students who are academically suspended from financial aid may appeal to the Academic Standards Committee. The decision of the Academic Standards Committee is final as related to this measurement.

 

Pace Standard (Percentage of Credit Hours Passed):
The Financial Aid Office reviews the completion rate at the end of the spring semester. Students who are suspended from financial aid as related to this measurement may appeal to the Academic Standards Committee.

 

Maximum Timeframe Standard:
The Financial Aid Office reviews the maximum timeframe limitation at the end of each semester (fall, spring, summer).

Notification to Students

A. Pace Standard:
1. Suspension: Undergraduate students suspended from financial aid will be sent an e-mail/letter from the Financial Aid Office. The e-mail/letter will include guidance regarding the appeal process.

 

2. Probation: Undergraduate students for whom an appeal has been approved will be notified by the Academic Standards Committee regarding the resulting status of Probation. Students who maintain eligibility for financial aid by meeting the requirements of their academic plan but whose cumulative “overall combined” Pace is less than 70% at the end of the subsequent semester(s) will be sent an e-mail/letter by the Financial Aid Office notifying them of their continued probationary status.

 

B. Maximum Timeframe Standard:
1. Undergraduate students who have 30 or less college level credit hours of remaining financial aid eligibility will be sent an e-mail/letter from the Financial Aid Office reminding them of the credit hour limitation.

Undergraduate students who have reached maximum timeframe will be sent an e-mail/letter from the Financial Aid Office notifying them of their status.