Editing Herzing Issues: Workload and Student Communication (section)

=== HU-151: Student CC'd on unresolved staff email back-and-forth and replanned his schedule off non-final messages; AVP acknowledged poor student experience ===
{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%"
! style="width:12em" | Severity
| Medium
! style="width:12em" | Status
| CONFIRMED
|-
! Issue type
| Student Looped Into Internal Back-and-Forth / Mistook Non-Final Emails for Instructions
! Date added
| 2026-06-04
|-
! Owner
| colspan="3" | Dr. Rachel Powell / Professor Troy Frazier FNP-BC / Tiffany Poyner (Ascension clinical placement coordinator)
|}
'''Finding.''' Per the tracker's evidence, in the June 4, 2026 meeting, the reporting student explained that he had been copied on an email back-and-forth between the professor (Troy Frazier), the professor's supervisor, and the Ascension clinical placement coordinator (Tiffany), and that he kept adjusting his schedule to what he believed were instructions, when in fact the staff were still working out the schedule among themselves. He stated he only realized, after reading the chain the night before and using ChatGPT to interpret the context, that the messages were internal coordination rather than directives to him. Dr. Danielle Laban acknowledged this was not a good student experience and was so confusing, and said she would share feedback with Dr. Rachel Powell that, going forward, copying students on that back-and-forth should be avoided. This documents a communication-process failure in which the student was left to infer his obligations from internal staff emails.

'''Evidence.''' The reporting student described being cc'd in email communication with the professor, his supervisor, and the clinical placement coordinator while they were still figuring out the schedule among themselves, and stated he kept adjusting to different times as he understood them from the exchange. He said he would have preferred to be told the time and days directly rather than seeing that worked out over email, and that after entering the chain into ChatGPT for context, he learned the clinical coordinator at Ascension and the professor were still figuring things out while he was being cc'd and making his own plans without realizing that context. Dr. Danielle Laban stated she would work to prevent that back-and-forth happening with students cc'd, said she did not think that was a good student experience and that overall it was confusing, and said the reporting student could share that feedback with Rachel. (Source: June 4, 2026 recorded meeting (audio and transcript). Source Group: Recorded meeting (audio plus transcript), June 4, 2026: the reporting student with Dr. Danielle Laban (AVP, identified as Speaker 3) and the ADA/Title IX coordinator referred to as Emily/Emilie (Speaker 4); provided by the reporting student.)

'''Reported statement.''' <blockquote>I am being cc'd on all these emails, making my plans not realizing [the staff were still] figuring all that out.</blockquote><blockquote>[Laban]: I do not think that is a good student experience, overall it is so confusing.</blockquote>

'''Standards.''' 34 CFR 668.14 (administrative capability): institutions must communicate clearly with students regarding their academic obligations. Copying a student on unresolved internal scheduling negotiations, such that the student mistakes draft coordination for instructions, is a communication-process failure. The AVP's acknowledgment that this is not a good student experience confirms the concern. Cross-reference {{HU|HU-148}}, {{HU|HU-149}}.

'''Impact.''' Because the reporting student could not distinguish internal coordination from directives, he repeatedly changed his plans based on non-final information, compounding the schedule instability and planning burden. The reliance on an outside tool (ChatGPT) to interpret institutional emails underscores that the communication was not clear on its face.

'''Notes.''' Tiffany identified as Tiffany Poyner, the Ascension (Via Christi St. Joseph) clinical placement coordinator referenced in {{HU|HU-135}}. Dr. Danielle Laban (AVP) committed to relay feedback to Dr. Rachel Powell to stop CC-ing students on the back-and-forth. Cross-reference: {{HU|HU-148}}, {{HU|HU-149}}, {{HU|HU-135}}. Part of the June 4, 2026 meeting group ({{HU|HU-145}} through {{HU|HU-152}}).

<span id="HU-158"></span>