Editing Herzing Issues: Workload and Student Communication (section)

=== HU-116: Two assignments added to Clinical IV (NSG621) Week 1 mid-week after semester start; Student J alerted cohort via GroupMe Saturday; adds 175 points of graded work (100 pt Clinical Application Activity + 75 pt Clinical Application Quiz) to an already-loaded Week 1; extends HU-096 with current-semester documented instance ===
{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%"
! style="width:12em" | Severity
| High
! style="width:12em" | Status
| CONFIRMED
|-
! Issue type
| Mid-Week Assignment Addition / No Advance Notice
! Date added
| 2026-05-07
|-
! Owner
| colspan="3" | NSG621 Faculty / Program Chair / Dr. Tressler / Dr. Prashad
|}
'''Finding.''' Per the tracker's evidence, Student J posted in the Herzing MSN-DE cohort GroupMe on a Saturday alerting the cohort that two more assignments had been added to Clinical IV Week 1. The accompanying Canvas screenshot of NSG621 (Clinical IV: Role of the Acute Care Nurse) Week 1 shows the following assignments all due May 10: Unit 1: Student Professionalism Agreement (0 pts), Unit 1: Initial Preceptor Meeting Agreement (0 pts), Unit 1 Medical-Surgical Clinical Application Activity (100 pts), and Unit 1 Clinical Application Quiz (75 pts). The two newly added assignments represent 175 points of graded work dropped into Week 1 after the semester had already begun, with no advance notice to students. This is a current-semester instance of the pattern documented in {{HU|HU-096}} (14 to 19 assignments posted same day due; students failed within three days of class start; assignments added without notice). The GroupMe post received two heart reactions, indicating multiple students were affected. Student E and Student J are also discussing October 9 graduation walk dates in the same thread, confirming both are in a final or near-final semester cohort.

'''Evidence.''' GroupMe message from Student J (Saturday, May 2026, 11:57 AM). Student J shared a Canvas screenshot showing the NSG621 Unit 1 assignment list: Unit 1: Discussion - Introduction (May 6, 5 pts); Unit 1: Student Professionalism Agreement (May 10, 0 pts); Unit 1: Initial Preceptor Meeting Agreement (May 10, 0 pts); Unit 1 Medical-Surgical Clinical Application Activity (May 10, 100 pts); Unit 1 Clinical Application Quiz (May 10, 75 pts). The post received two heart reactions from cohort members. (Source Group: GroupMe, Herzing MSN-DE Cohort Chat, Saturday, May 2026; Canvas NSG621 Assignment List Screenshot provided by Student J.)

'''Reported statement.''' Student J alerted the cohort that two more assignments had been added to Clinical IV Week 1.

'''Standards.''' 34 CFR §600.2 (credit hour): course assignments must be disclosed in advance so students can plan their workload; mid-week addition of graded assignments violates reasonable notice expectations. ACEN Standard 4: curriculum must be organized and communicated clearly to students. Adding 175 points of graded assignments (100 pt plus 75 pt) to an already-running week without advance notice is inconsistent with any reasonable syllabus disclosure standard. The NSG525 (Clinical II / Med-Surg I) Week 1 quiz issues documented in {{HU|HU-112}} and the NSG621 (Clinical IV) mid-week assignment additions documented here both occur in Week 1 of the same semester (May 2026), establishing that the pattern of last-minute assignment additions spans multiple concurrent courses in the same week.

'''Impact.''' Students who planned their Week 1 workload based on the original assignment list must now absorb 175 additional points of graded work, including a 100-point Clinical Application Activity and a 75-point Clinical Application Quiz, with reduced preparation time. In a program where the three-day discussion board rule ({{HU|HU-099}}) already penalizes students for timing, and where students document 90 to 100 assignments per week ({{HU|HU-096}}), mid-week additions with May 10 deadlines give students only the remaining days of the week to complete substantial graded work. The May 10 deadline (Sunday) for all new assignments suggests an extremely compressed completion window from the Saturday alert.

'''Notes.''' Student J is also documented in {{HU|HU-086}} (open-book test-outs) and other Facebook archive entries as an active, credible cohort voice. The October 9 graduation walk date context (Student E and Student J both walking October 9) places this in the Spring 2026 semester for students in a late clinical cohort. This instance should be cross-referenced with {{HU|HU-096}} (extreme workload / last-minute posting), {{HU|HU-089}} (workload incompatibility with employment), and {{HU|HU-113}} (duplicate work same week in NSG525). All three document Week 1, same semester, same student population.

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