Minnesota West Policies

Chapter 5 - Administration

5.12.1 Military Service and Veterans with Disabilities

Minnesota West Community & Technical College in accordance with Minnesota State Policy 5.12 recognizes the importance to our country's national defense that is made by students who are caaled to active duty for military service or are veterans with a service-connected disability certified by the United States Department of Veteran Affairs.

Students enrolled at Minnesota West who are members of any branch of the U.S. military and who are unable to complete a semester due to having been called to active duty or are veterans with a service-connected disability shall to the extent possible be provided one of the following options:

1. The student may withdraw from one or more courses for which tuition and fees have been paid and be given a full refund of tuition and fees. The tuition and fees must be credited to the person's account at the postsecondary institution. Any refunds are subject to the requirements of the state or federal financial aid programs of origination.
   
   Students receiving financial aid who choose this option should be made aware that they may be liable for any required refunds of state or federal financial aid funds.In such a case, the student must not receive credit for the courses and must not receive a failing grade, an incomplete, or other negative annotation on the student's record, and the student's grade point average must not be altered or affected in any manner because of action under this item.
   
   
2. The student may be given a grade of incomplete in a course and complete it upon release from active duty or upon completion of medical treatment, or upon sufficient medical recovery. Course completion may be accomplished by independent study or by retaking the course without payment of tuition. Under federal financial aid policies a course that is retaken this way may not be counted toward a student's enrollment load.
   
   
3. The student may continue and complete the course for full credit. Class sessions the student misses due to performance of active military service or the veteran's medical treatment or condition must be counted as excused absences and must not be used in any way to adversely impact the student's grade or standing in the class. Any student who selects this option is not, however, automatically excused from completing assignments due during the period the student is performing active military service or receiving medical treatment or recovering from a medical condition.
   
   A letter grade or a grade of pass must be awarded only if, in the opinion of the faculty member teaching the course, the student has completed sufficient work and has demonstrated sufficient progress toward meeting course requirements to justify the grade.

Minnesota West will provide a full refund of required tuition, fees, and other institutional charges, or provide a credit in a comparable amount against future charges for students who are forced to withdraw from the college as a result of  active military service or receiving medical treatment or dealing with the student's medical condition and did not use the facilities of services for which the amounts were paid. Students who choose to withdraw will be provided an easy and flexible re-entry back into Minnesota West within two years following upon the student’s release from active duty or following completeion of medical treatment or sufficient recovery from the student's medical condition.

Approved by: Ron Wood, President
Date: July 1, 2003
History & Revision
Revision:  May 12, 2010.
Revision:  Added veterans with disabilities language. October 19, 2016.
Revised:   July 25, 2017 Minnesota State