Students will no longer be able to fake a case of swine flu to avoid looming exams and research papers.
Associate Provost Bernard Mair released a memo to university deans, directors and department chairs last week explaining professors can now require students to provide medical documentation of illness if they miss exams or fail to turn in assignments during finals week.
UF spokesman Steve Orlando said documentation was not required earlier in the semester because the university wanted to make it as easy as possible for sick students to stay home.
But Orlando said the number of swine flu cases has lessened.
Orlando said he predicts some faculty members will take advantage of the opportunity to require written proof of illness, especially as students may be tempted to be dishonest as finals approach.
“For some students, the temptation may be greater toward the end of the semester,” he said.
Paul D’Anieri, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, said he does not think the policy described in the memo will have a significant impact in CLAS, the university’s largest college.
He said the policy described in the memo represents a return to the attendance policy before swine flu came along.
D’Anieri said discussions with CLAS faculty and observations of his International Relations class lead him to believe swine flu has not really affected CLAS attendance.
But the new policy could affect students.
Leah Chapman, a UF religion and political science junior, said getting a doctor’s note could be inconvenient for students who have swine flu.
Chapman said she lives off campus but doesn’t own a car.
If she contracted swine flu, she could risk spreading the disease to the people riding her bus or driving her to the doctor, she said.
Despite the decline in cases, she is still concerned about getting swine flu as she prepares for Winter Break.
“On my way home, I’m definitely stopping to get a shot,” Chapman said.
On Wednesday, the Student Health Care Center will give out 50 vaccines every 30 minutes between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., according to a press release.
