Provost Brian Jersky announced in a campus email that Long Beach State students with grade concerns now have the option to withdraw from any courses.
“In lieu of offering credit/no credit, we have created the following option to alleviate some of the burdens you are facing,” Jersky wrote. “This option has been introduced to hopefully reduce the increased stress and anxiety you may be encountering and to help those who may be struggling.”
In order to be considered for this option, any interested students must start the process by this Monday, Dec. 14 at 8 a.m. and upload an explanation to their student center on MyCSULB. Students who choose to withdraw from a course must retake it, however, and students with too many withdrawals may face consequences “for lack of satisfactory academic progress.”
According to the email, “normally only catastrophic withdrawals are allowed during the final three weeks of the semester” and require medical documentation, though CSULB is making this accommodation “to hopefully reduce the increased stress and anxiety…and to help those who may be struggling.”
This comes after a student petition with nearly 19,000 signatures as of Dec. 11 was brought to the attention of campus officials requesting to be given C/NC. Soon after, Jersky announced that he would not be offering this option.
In response, CSULB Students United, a student group, has organized a drive-thru protest to take place in lot E1 Saturday, Dec. 12 at 2 p.m. to protest the administration’s decision.