Throughout the summer, LSA senior Anthony Scaglione, who chairs Hillel's governing board, and Associate Provost Susan Lipschutz worked together to create the "New U-M Policy On Religious-Academic Conflicts." Recently, the Offices of the Provost and Vice President for Student Affairs approved the policy. It will be mailed to students in the next few weeks.
Overall, the policy states that the University will "make every reasonable effort to allow members of the University community to observe their religious holidays without academic penalty." Students must inform their instructors that they will miss class, and the two parties must decide on "a reasonable alternative opportunity to complete such academic responsibilities." However, if the faculty member can demonstrate that the student's absence would pose an "unreasonable burden on the faculty," then the instructor can deny the student's request.
The University deserves commendation for formally approving the policy. However, the vague wording takes much of the bite out of it, thereby undermining its purpose. While most faculty members easily accommodate students in these types of matters, there is no guarantee that all will. A faculty member could have a legitimate reason for not granting the student permission to make up missed work. The policy does not directly protect the student against a possible denial, thereby placing the student in an unenviable situation.
Scaglione told The Michigan Daily that if a disagreement arises, the policy dictates that the parties involved should contact the chair of the department. If the chair cannot satisfactorily solve the problem, then they should contact the college's dean. And if this proves futile, then they should talk to the Ombudsman.
However, weaving one's way through the busy and obtrusive University bureaucracy is no easy task - and an unfair burden to place on students who simply want to celebrate their religious holidays without hassle. Moreover, it could take several weeks for a dispute of this nature to be resolved - long after the holiday in question comes and passes.
Furthermore, it is unlikely that a faculty member would contact the administration - unless the student complains, then the instructor's decision will stand. Hence, the burden falls on the students' shoulders.
In the end, the policy does little to alleviate the conflict. A better, more effective policy would have included specific clauses that automatically granted students the right to make up any work they may miss on a religious holiday. As it stands now, the policy could create more conflicts than it originally planned to solve.