Establish “participation” in all of your classes

For in-person classes and hybrid classes, physically attending class is the simplest way to establish “participation” because it presents the opportunity for academically-related interaction between faculty and student. For classes that are exclusively online, however, merely logging into class without active participation DOES NOT establish “participation.” Here are some actions that meet the requirement for in-person, hybrid and online classes:

• • “Participation” includes, but is not limited to:
    1. Attending a synchronous class, lecture, recitation, or field or laboratory activity, physically or online, where there is opportunity for interaction between the instructor and students;
    2. Submitting an academic assignment;
       • NOTE: If your class is set up to use the Laulima Engagement Tool, submitting the Week 1 Assignment will meet this participation requirement.
    3. Taking an assessment or an exam;
    4. Participating in an interactive tutorial, webinar, or other interactive computer-assisted instruction;
    5. Participating in a study group, group project, or an online discussion that is assigned by the institution;
    6. Interacting with an instructor about academic affairs

Watch for any notification of non-participation and respond accordingly

Students reported as non-participating in one or more of their classes, will: (1) be notified by email to their official @hawaii.edu address and  (2) in STAR, see a temporary “X” grade assigned for the class. Some campuses may also send text messages to students who have been marked as non-participating. The identified class(es) and, if applicable, dependent classes (e.g. co-requisites) will eventually be dropped from the student’s schedule. Students should contact their instructor immediately if they were mistakenly marked as non-participating. Students receiving services/benefits based on enrollment (e.g. financial aid, military benefits, student employment) should contact the appropriate office to understand how they may be affected.

Students NOT reported as non-participating (i.e. no email notification received and no “X” grades assigned) do not need to take any further action and should continue to focus on their studies.

Reapply for admission if you did not participate in ANY of your classes

Students who are dropped from all of their classes for non-participation will need to reapply for admission to register for classes in the subsequent semester.  They should contact the Records/Registrars Office at their home campus for further details.

“Participation verification” is the term used to document when a student has participated in an academically related activity in a course by the late registration deadline.

• “Participation” includes, but is not limited to:
  1. Attending a synchronous class, lecture, recitation, or field or laboratory activity, physically or online, where there is opportunity for interaction between the instructor and students;
  2. Submitting an academic assignment;
  3. Taking an assessment or an exam;
  4. Participating in an interactive tutorial, webinar, or other interactive computer-assisted instruction;
  5. Participating in a study group, group project, or an online discussion that is assigned by the institution;
  6. Interacting with an instructor about academic affairs
• “Participation” does not include activities where a student may be present, but not academically engaged, such as—
  1. Living in institutional housing;
  2. Participating in the institution’s meal plan;
  3. Logging into an online class or tutorial without any further participation;
  4. Participating in academic counseling or advisement

• Campuses are required by federal regulations to verify the participation of students in their classes. In accordance with Executive Policy 7.209, all students in the University of Hawai’i system are required to establish “participation” to ensure that they are not dropped from their class(es).

• If you know beforehand that you will be unable to participate in the first few days of class, please contact your instructor(s) ahead of time. 

• If you have been identified as non-participating, you should receive an email notifying you of your status. You will also see a temporary “X” grade assigned to your class in your STAR account. This “X” will remain until you are administratively disenrolled from your class. 

• If you participated in class and were mistakenly marked as non-participating (“X” grade is assigned) or have already been disenrolled, click on the campus below where your class is offered. The process to request reinstatement varies by campus. If you are requesting to be reinstated in more than one class and the campus requires you to complete an online form, you must submit one form per class. This request will first be routed to your instructor so they can verify your participation status. You will be notified by email once your request has been approved/denied. 

• If you are receiving some type of financial aid (i.e. Pell Grant, scholarships, veterans benefits, etc.), contact that office directly. If you are a student employee, contact your supervisor. To understand the impact this may have on your academic journey, please schedule an appointment with your academic advisor. Also, if you have been disenrolled from ALL of your classes, you will need to reapply for admission should you wish to register for classes in the following semester.  Contact the Registrars/Records Office at your home campus for further details. 

• There are different types of dependencies that can exist between classes. These include corequisites where Class A must be taken in the same semester as Class B. This is a common requirement for science lecture and lab classes. When a student is disenrolled from Class A due to non-participation, the student is now ineligible to remain in Class B because they no longer meet the corequisite requirement. The student must then also be disenrolled from Class B, regardless of whether they established participation in that class.  

• There are different types of dependencies that can exist between classes. These include prerequisite courses where a class offered in the first half of the semester (ex. Class C) must be completed in order to take a class offered in the second half of the same semester (ex. Class D). When a student is disenrolled from Class C due to non-participation, the student is now ineligible to remain in Class D because they no longer meet the prerequisite requirement. The student must then also be disenrolled from Class D, even though it has not yet started.

• Should you have additional questions, please contact your Academic Advisor.