8-25-09
Advice to Faculty on How to Handle the Anticipated Flu Season
Because of the projected early onset of the 2009-2010 flu
season and the potential for a larger than usual number of flu cases caused by
H1N1 as well as seasonal flu, this academic year may pose unique challenges to
maintaining the continuity and effectiveness of OU’s
educational activities. All students are responsible for acquiring and
demonstrating competency with the course content. To provide a common framework
for addressing the potential disruptions in class attendance caused by the flu,
we offer the following recommendations.
·
The
currently prevailing medical advice is that if you are sick, you should stay
home (“self-isolation”). If symptoms are severe you should call your physician
and follow instructions. Therefore, faculty, staff and students who become ill
are advised to stay home until they are free from fever for 24 hours without
the use of fever-reducing medicines.
·
Because
students infected with H1N1 could miss over a week of class, faculty members
are requested to be flexible in enforcing their absentee policies. Moreover, because people are being advised to
stay at home when they are sick, students may not be able to provide a doctor’s
note.
·
Faculty
members are also asked not to penalize students for missing in-class exams
while they are out with the flu. To this end, faculty members should consider
providing make-up exams, holding students harmless for missing exams or
providing alternative forms of assessment for student who are out with the flu.
·
Faculty
members who are sick should notify their department office so that students can
be notified of class cancellations or alternative instructors assigned.
·
Faculty
members are especially encouraged to use D2L as a way of communicating with
their students on-line, when either the students or the faculty member are
forced to miss class. Among other things D2L can be used to notify students of
a faculty member’s absence; post syllabi, readings and assignments; and provide
alternative assignments or exams to be done in the students’ or faculty
member’s absence.
·
For
the most current information available on 8-25-09 go here: http://www.flu.gov/plan/school/higheredguidance.html