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COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — A group of students has asked the University of Missouri to strengthen a classroom policy to ensure that professors accommodate students who have to miss class for a religious holiday.
The Missouri Student Association, after meeting with Thalia Sass, president of the Jewish Student Organization at MU, presented the faculty council with a proposed change that would obligate faculty to make religious allowances.
The current rules only encourage professors to excuse students from classes, tests or activities because of religious obligations.
Student leaders say the change is needed because some students have problems with their professors without a mandate in place.
The student association proposal also recommends students provide notice to professors about possible absences toward the beginning of each semester.
Ben Vega, student association academic affairs chairman, said the measure's language was written after he and other student government members reviewed other schools' policies.
"The wording we chose is representative of the best parts of policies from all those schools," Vega said.
Faculty council members were receptive to the students' proposal, the Columbia Daily Tribune (http://bit.ly/1C5y9nr ) reported.
Nicole Monnier, academic affairs committee chairwoman for the council, said she was impressed with the students who proposed the policy change. She said her committee will work with Vega and others to develop the policy language in January.
Sass said she's proud how open to diversity the college is.
"With this bill," she said, "we're really building an understanding of struggles that religious minorities face, which is good."
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Information from: Columbia Daily Tribune, http://www.columbiatribune.com
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