College Withdrawal, Medical Withdrawal, Emergency Medical Withdrawal or Immediate Mental Health Assessment 

College Withdrawal, Medical Withdrawal, Emergency Medical Withdrawal or Immediate Mental Health Assessment  

Policy Statement:

Mohawk Valley Community College is committed to an environment that supports the academic success and health of our students.  A College Withdrawal, Medical Withdrawal, Emergency Medical Withdrawal, or Immediate Mental Health Assessment are designations/requirements that are assigned by the College as required due to personal/medical reasons that may be deemed necessary for the long-term health and wellness of the student.

College Withdrawal:

Students who feel that it is necessary to withdraw from the College must notify their Student Support Advisor https://www.mvcc.edu/advisement/index.php. An exit interview is required to constitute official withdrawal. Grades will then be assigned for official withdrawals from the College on the same basis as for official withdrawal from a course. The student initiates a College withdrawal.

Medical Withdrawal from College: 

  • A student may initiate a separation from the College for medical reasons by requesting to withdraw from all classes.
  • The student initiates a Medical Withdrawal.  This process will mirror that of the standard withdrawal process https://www.mvcc.edu/records-registration/pdf/withdrawalform.pdf  from the College.  When possible, students will meet with their Student Support Advisor (SSA), indicating ‘medical’ as the reason on the withdrawal form.  If the student is unable to talk or meet with any College representative, a parent, guardian, or other authorized proxy may make the same request on behalf of the student.   The student will be withdrawn from classes and medical documentation will be reviewed prior to the decision.   

Emergency Medical Withdrawal (EMW):

  • An Emergency Medical Withdrawal is initiated by the College and deemed necessary due to medical reasons that require specialized or long-term care for the health and wellness of the student.
  • A student may be placed on an Emergency Medical Withdrawal when his/her/their behavior poses an egregious physical, emotional, or psychological threat to the health, safety, or well-being of the student and others within the College community as determined by a designated College employee authorized to make such an assessment. This will be initiated by the Vice President Student Affairs (VPSA) or his/her designee, following an incident or a report and preliminary investigation opened by any, but not limited to the following: BERT, the Counseling Department, Office of Judicial Affairs Community Standards, Dean of the Rome Campus, Office of Student Life or the Department of Public Safety.  These reports will have drawn to a conclusion that the student is currently experiencing a physical, emotional, or psychological condition that requires withdrawal with assessment.     
  • A student on an Emergency Medical Withdrawal, while still matriculated at the College, will have a hold on their account.  Students will be asked to provide medical documentation to support their return to the College.  The documentation will be reviewed when received and within the timeframe established in procedures.    If the student is cleared, they will be returned to the College with all the rights and responsibilities of any student.    If the student is not cleared for return, the student will be informed of the additional steps necessary and any pertinent timeframe that applies.  (See procedures)

Immediate Mental Health Assessment:

A student who is exhibiting concerning but not egregious behavior may necessitate an Immediate Mental Health Assessment as a condition of continuing their student status. This will be initiated by the Vice President Student Affairs (VPSA) or his/her designee, following a report of an unanticipated incident or a report and preliminary investigation opened by any of the following: BERT, the Counseling Department, Office of Judicial Affairs Community Standards, Dean of the Rome Campus, Office of Student and Residence Life or the Department of Public Safety. This process does not remove the student from the College.  It does require that the mental health assessment is conducted within five business days. If the assessment makes a recommendation for a medical leave, the student will be made aware that they may initiate a medical withdrawal.   If they decline, the College may proceed with an administrative withdrawal.  (See procedures)

Procedures:

An on-campus incident will be managed initially by first responders (e.g., Department of Public Safety, Residence Life, emergency medical responders, etc.) to ensure the immediate safety of the individual(s) involved and the campus community.  After the incident is secured, the mental health, substance abuse or other emergency will be managed in partnership with the College, the student, and in some cases the student’s medical, mental health or substance abuse practitioner, the parent/official guardian, as necessary or appropriate, and in compliance with FERPA regulations.

Policy violations that occur during a mental health, substance abuse or any other unanticipated emergency may be subject to judicial or criminal proceedings that may occur concurrently with this policy or may follow upon resolution of the emergency.

The steps that are taken in the event of an Emergency Medical Withdrawal or Immediate Mental Health Assessment include:

Step 1: 

A letter is presented to the student:

  • When possible, in person;
  • When possible, emailed by way of the College’s judicial software system;
  • By alternative delivery method if no other avenues are identified.

The content of the letter will address the reasons for the emergency medical withdrawal/immediate mental health assessment. The letter will preschedule a follow-up meeting for five (5) business days hence. The student is notified that if the requested documentation is not provided or is incomplete, an Emergency Medical Withdrawal, a Medical Withdrawal or an Administrative Withdrawal may be pursued or maintained which depends on the initial course of action that was taken.      

Step 2: 

Immediate mental health assessments may be completed by one of the College’s Licensed Mental Health Practitioners where no conflict of interest exists.   Students may also choose to have the mental health assessment conducted by an outside mental health clinician at their own expense.   The timelines are not adjusted if the student makes this choice.  

If the student is an international student or any other special population that requires specific additional accommodations, the College will take those steps as appropriate and/or necessary.

Step 3: 

A follow up meeting with the Vice President of Student Affairs or his/her designee to review required documentation will occur on or before the fifth business day, unless waived by the student.  The review will determine compliance with the requested information. 

If all information has been received and satisfactorily addresses the concerns, the student will be cleared to continue with his/her academic career. If the documentation is incomplete or does not satisfactorily address the concerns an extension may be granted upon approval of the VPSA or designee.

If the documentation is not received within the timeframe established or indicates that the student should not be returned to the College, the student will remain on the Emergency Medical Withdrawal for a designated period of time and a Vice President of Student Affairs (VPSA) hold will be placed on his/her/their account alerting the College to outstanding documentation needs.  The student is formally notified of this. 

If the Emergency Medical Withdrawal occurs prior to the census date, no grades will be posted on the student’s transcript.  If the Emergency Medical Withdrawal occurs after the census date all courses will be noted as “W” on the student’s transcript.    

If an Emergency Medical Withdrawal is initiated, it automatically applies to the College and Residence Halls.  There may be occasion where a student is permitted to return to the College but not the Residence Halls.  These individual nuances will be clearly communicated to the student and all pertinent College employees.

Step 4: 

In the event a student is placed on an Emergency Medical Withdrawal or an Administrative Withdrawal from either the College or the Residence Halls, the student has the right to request an independent review of the case to the College President. This must occur in writing and be received by the President within five (5) business days of the date of the letter communicating the Emergency Medical Withdrawal. The President will appoint a College official to act as an independent reviewer (not a hearing).  A final decision will be rendered within five (5) additional business days and communicated in writing to the student.

The College reserves the right to review student charges and fees generated by the student attending classes at Mohawk Valley Community College. Any changes, adjustments and/or refunds will be processed in accordance with the College’s refund policies.  If the student is receiving any financial aid, including grants, and/or student loans, payment of funds will be pro-rated in accordance with Federal and NY State regulations.