| March 27, 2020 Dear Homewood Undergraduate Students and Faculty, The COVID-19 crisis has challenged our scholarly community in ways that would have been difficult to imagine only a few months ago. In consultation with University leadership, faculty, students, and advising professionals, we have decided to adopt a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grading policy for all undergraduate students enrolled in ongoing Spring 2020 courses (those courses that did not end before this announcement). We hope this policy will help relieve the stresses experienced by many students and faculty who have faced significant challenges in the transition to remote teaching and learning. It will also help faculty and students in dealing with a dynamic situation in which conditions could continue to change dramatically, whether regionally or even in one’s own household. While many of us would prefer to hold on to our traditions and maintain business-as-usual for as long as possible, we believe this moment demands that we step back and address the needs of our community members who are now or will soon be facing extraordinarily challenging circumstances of many kinds. Below are details of the policy: *Undergraduate grades will be limited to S (satisfactory) or U (unsatisfactory) grades in Spring 2020 courses for all Krieger School of Arts and Sciences and Whiting School of Engineering undergraduate students. *The sole exception to S/U grading is courses completed prior to the implementation of this policy (e.g., first half-term courses, or courses taken in Term 3 of the Bloomberg School of Public Health). *S and U grades have no direct impact on a student’s overall GPA.All degree requirements that ordinarily require a letter grade, including those that would require a grade of C or higher, will be satisfied by a grade of S earned in the Spring 2020 semester. *The deadline to drop a course will be extended through 5 p.m. EDT on April 10, 2020. As a result of this change, any course withdrawals from full-term Spring 2020 courses processed previously will be converted to course drops, as long as the student maintains 12 credits for the Spring 2020 semester. Course withdrawals that were completed in the first half-semester, or the relevant term from another JHU division, will remain course withdrawals. *The deadline to withdraw from a course will be extended through 5 p.m. EDT on Monday, May 4, 2020.Students enrolled in independent academic work should talk to their research or course supervisor to discuss the parameters under which this work can continue. Students may request a reduction in the number of credits for academic work they are enrolled in, if they feel the remaining portion of the work is unmanageable under current circumstances. Additional questions are answered in this FAQ. Sincerely, |
| Ed Schlesinger Benjamin T. Rome Dean Whiting School of Engineering | Beverly Wendland James B. Knapp Dean Krieger School of Arts and Sciences |