As Quincy University undergoes shifts at the administrative level, processes and procedures are being examined.

With the focus on preserving student experience, a particular area in need of examination involves the current Student Handbook.

As Dean of Students and Academic Success, part of Christine Tracy’s job is to oversee the Student Handbook.

“I was not part of the inception or the creation of the current student handbook, so I’ve decided that we are going to rewrite it. Since it is the Student Handbook, I think it’s important that students are a part of the process,” Tracy said.

When Tracy started in the position, she decided she wanted to design a handbook that she could comfortably enforce and that QU students could relate to and understand.

Tracy believes the Student Handbook needs to be rewritten in order to adequately support the present student body.

“I think students should have a say in what the rules are, what the policies are, and what their experience on this campus looks like,” Tracy said.

According to Tracy, the Student Handbook has not been rewritten in quite some time, so a group was formed at the beginning of the spring semester to begin the revision process.

An email went out to student leaders encouraging them to be a part of the revision efforts.

 Sophomore, Jasmine Luckett, is one of six students involved in rewriting and revising the handbook, an opportunity she believes allows her to advocate for other students’ needs.

“Currently, students are unaware of the policies in the student handbook and others clearly don’t understand them. By implementing new policy changes and having the students be involved in the decision as to what should be changed, I feel is the way to go. If the students help make the polices the issue of breaking the polices would be drastically reduced,” Luckett said.
There are currently two, revision committees that have student representation.

The area of the revision centering upon Community Standards contains one student member as well as three faculty members.

In addition, five students serve as members on the Residence Life committee, which examines policies and procedures related to residence life on Quincy’s campus.

“Having students make the polices that they, themselves, need to follow will help foster a better community. If students inquire about the policies they think need to be included in the policies then they must know that the new change is something themselves and peers can uphold,” Luckett said.

However, the accessibility of the handbook is another aspect Tracy believes can be improved.

Presently, students are not provided with a hard copy of the Student Handbook, and navigating the QU website in order to find its location proves a tedious task.

Not only that, but the actual document itself is organized in a random fashion, making reading and finding important pieces of information somewhat of a challenge.

While the Student Handbook contains policies and procedures that are regulated by federal law and cannot be changed, other areas will be revised and in some cases, completely rewritten.

“The entire student handbook will be revised. The most important part of those processes will be the Community Standards and the Residence Life processes. Some things are non-negotiable, like Title IX, because it’s a federal regulation, but other things we can talk about and say what is best for our current student body,” Tracy said.

The revision committee will continue to meet throughout the course of the spring semester. Students interested in joining the revision efforts need to speak to Christine Tracy in the Student Success Center.

Luckett encourages students to be a part of the rewriting process.

“I think that by including students in the revision process it gives them a chance to understand the administration’s view points. This then creates relationships between students and administrators. These type of relationships would aid everyone in coming to a general consensus to make a policy that is friendly for all parties,” Luckett said.