Editing Herzing Issues: Enrollment, Registration, and Billing (section)

=== HU-098: Spring 2026 graduation and pinning ceremony emails not delivered to Florida and Tennessee graduates despite promised March 2 delivery date; students forced to use shared links and self-advocate through administrative assistant Darmesha Washington ===
{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%"
! style="width:14em" | Severity
| Medium
! Status
| CONFIRMED
|-
! Issue type
| Administrative Communication Failure
! Date added
| 2026-05-05
|-
! Owner
| colspan="3" | Commencement Team / Darmesha Washington / David Steele
|}
'''Finding.''' In February-March 2026, Herzing sent Spring 2026 commencement and pinning ceremony emails to graduates. Multiple graduates, including Student B and others in Florida and Tennessee, did not receive these emails. Handle 10 (Feb 17, 2026) noted emails went out but "some are saying they didn't get one." Student B confirmed she received neither the commencement nor pinning email. An anonymous student in their final semester (Synthesis II, Integration of Concepts, due to graduate April 2026) documented as of March 9, 2026 that they still had not received the email despite: (1) being told emails would go out February 17; (2) being told by administrative assistant Darmesha Washington that Florida/Tennessee grads would receive emails March 2; and (3) the March 2 deadline passing without delivery. The RSVP link shared in the Facebook group was characterized as "not personalized" by the reporting student, meaning students who received a forwarded link could RSVP, but students had no confirmation their self-initiated RSVP was properly recorded in the institutional system.

'''Evidence.''' Handle 10 (Feb 17, 2026): "Emails went out today around 4 pm. But some are saying they didn't get one." Student B (Feb 17, 2026): "I am some too. I never got the email but others did. Apparently there is also a separate one for the Pinning Ceremony. I did not get that either." Anonymous member (Mar 9, 2026): "Update: I was told I would get the email on March 2, never received it. Has anyone else dealt with this? Or did you all get the email now? It is incredibly frustrating!!" Student B (Mar 9, 2026): "She is the contact. She is the one that emailed me, letting me know Florida grads would receive their emails on March 2nd." Anonymous member (Mar 9, 2026): "She said that about TN graduates too. This is so frustrating. Idk why stuff with Herzing always has to have an issue. Even something as basic as graduation invitation." The reporting student (Feb 17, 2026): "Its not a personalized link," confirming students could RSVP via shared link without institutional personalization. Source Group: Herzing Direct Entry MSN Facebook Group Export (Dec 2022 to May 2026), Exhaustive Line-by-Line Review: 34,887 lines, 1,350 posts, 14,112 comments, 8 passes (Volume 7).

'''Reported statement.''' An anonymous member reported being told the email would arrive March 2 but never receiving it, calling the situation incredibly frustrating, and remarking that something as basic as a graduation invitation should not be a recurring problem for Herzing.

'''Standards.''' 34 CFR §668.14 (administrative capability): institutions must maintain functional administrative infrastructure for basic student communications. Graduation is a milestone event; failure to deliver commencement information to graduates who have completed 20 months and approximately $60,000 to $95,000 of investment demonstrates administrative disorganization at the most consequential moment of the student journey. The pattern, promised February 17, promised again March 2, still not delivered by March 9, documents repeated failed commitments by the administrative team. FERPA (20 U.S.C. §1232g): official graduation records and commencement participation should be managed through authenticated institutional channels, not student-forwarded links.

'''Impact.''' Graduates who did not receive official commencement communications may not have been properly registered for the ceremony, may not have received pinning ceremony details, and may have relied on a shared RSVP link that was not authenticated to their student record. For students who traveled significant distances for graduation (documented costs: $400 to $600 for hotel near Nashville campus), failing to receive official confirmation of ceremony details created planning uncertainty. The "Idk why stuff with Herzing always has to have an issue" characterization reflects the cumulative erosion of student trust from a pattern of administrative failures.

'''Notes.''' This issue is operationally minor in isolation but significant as part of the documented pattern of institutional communication failures: {{HU|HU-023}} (inter-departmental communication failures), {{HU|HU-045}} (faculty non-responsiveness), {{HU|HU-082}} (zero communication during grade transfer crisis), {{HU|HU-085}} (Alabama BON non-disclosure). The graduation email failure extends that pattern to the program's final moment: the ceremony itself. David Steele (dsteele@herzing.edu) is referenced as a senior escalation contact across multiple issues including {{HU|HU-082}} (grade crisis) and {{HU|HU-098}} (graduation emails), suggesting he is a recurring point of escalation for administrative failures.

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