UPDATE: June 4 at 5:30 p.m.

This evening, the Office of the Provost sent a follow-up message to the student body. A vote was conducted in the Faculty Senate, and it was found that there was overwhelming support for the implementation of optional or alternative finals for students who have been involved or impacted by the protests. All faculty are being requested to make these accommodations, potentially by providing extension deadlines to their students. To make allowances for this, final grades will be due from professors a week later than usual. The University seeks to make this accommodation process as easy for students as possible.

“We commend the Faculty Senate for their vote to make finals optional and are glad that some of the Diversity Committee’s demands have been met. We hope that the University’s response to this petition signals the beginning of a much larger effort to work with students to incorporate inclusive excellence into its policies,” USG President Ryan Hyde and Vice President Dajah Brooks said in a statement. “Thank you to the Joint Council and the Diversity Committee for their hard work to write and distribute the petition and to the countless students, faculty, staff, and alumni who signed, distributed, and otherwise worked to see the demands met.”

If you are struggling during this time, please reach out to your individual professors and request accommodations.

Editor’s Note: The original version of this update incorrectly stated that the optional finals were solely an accommodation being made for black, indigenous, or students of color. 

June 3 at 11 p.m. 

On June 1, USG’s Diversity Committee spearheaded a petition to DU’s administrators calling for academic accommodations to be made for black students. On June 3rd, Corinne Lengsfeld – Interim Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor – issued a response to these demands.

With the rise of the #BlackLivesMatter movement and protests against George Floyd’s death across America, the black community has undergone tremendous emotional upheaval. Black students who attend DU are no exception to this, with many having to juggle their classes, activism and mental well-being all at the same time.

“Racial trauma does not only exist in small pockets across the nation,” The petition stated. “It manifests everywhere, including college campuses.”

To support people of color struggling right now, the petition made the following demands:

1. The implementation of optional or alternative finals for black and POC students
2. Enacting a no-failing policy for Spring Quarter 2020
3. Free medical care for students injured while protesting
4. The donation of University funds to organizations such as the Minnesota Freedom Fund and George Floyd Memorial Fund, among others
5. The release of Campus Safety internal records that pertain to race
6. A response from the University by June 3rd at 4 p.m. MDT

The change.org petition was co-signed by nine other student organizations, including the Black Student Alliance and African Students United. In the span of 40 hours after its release, the petition was so widely circulated that it gathered over 2,000 signatures. Many were actively vocal about why they signed.

“This injustice isn’t something that should be ignored due to finals,” Elyse Majeski wrote.

“As an alumna, I expect the university to stand with students,” Jessica Davidson echoed, “It is unimaginable that Black students have to focus on finals at this moment. Please offer them these extremely reasonable accommodations.”

When the 4 p.m. deadline passed earlier today, the Diversity Committee called on students to make their voices heard until the University addressed the demands. Students were provided an email template to send to their administrators, as well as instructions for a post they could make on their Instagrams.

Upon their urging, the below picture – taken from a past DU yearbook – was circulated on social media with the hashtag #duisracist.

Around 10 p.m. today, Lengsfeld sent out her initial responses to the demands:

1. The Faculty Senate will vote via a survey whether or not to offer optional or alternative finals to BIPOC students. Tomorrow afternoon, the student body will find out the results.
2. There is no “fail” option in the University’s current Pass+/Pass/No Pass grading policies for Spring Quarter. A “No Pass” will not count as a fail on a student’s transcript.
3. The Health and Counseling Center will provide free medical care for the rest of the quarter and throughout the summer
4. The University is prohibited by the IRS from donating to organizations that support political advocacy. If they cannot seek this option with the organizations the petition listed, they will help students fundraise.
5. The University currently makes severals reports that pertain to race public. Access to other data is limited due to privacy laws.

Tomorrow, after the Faculty Senate has voted on the first demand, the University will issue an updated response to the entire student body. This story will be updated as new information becomes available.