Psychology sophomore Lexa Lake will not be missing class anytime soon. Lake received an early warning because of irregular attendance. Although she did not believe she should have received an early warning, she will not be taking any chances in the future. 

Like Lake, many students and families have received notices in accordance with the early warning system by Feb. 17 through an email alerting a student about an issue or by a notification to the student’s parents, with the exception of students who are not claimed as dependents through Loyola’s Online Records Access.

Since fall 2011, Elizabeth Rainey, director of retention and student success, has been tracking faculty participation rates in the early warning system.

The college of social sciences as well as the college of humanities and natural sciences have consistently shown a high turnout of participation since tracking of faculty participation began in fall 2011, according to Rainey.

In comparison, some professors within the college of business have relied on midterm grades as indicators rather than using the early warning system, Rainey said.

“Faculty participation rates have been between 44 percent and 50 percent. Every semester, we strive to improve our participation rates to help students know where they stand in their classes and to identify students who might need additional support,” Rainey said.

The purpose of the early warning system is to promote communication between professors and students and to engage parents as allies in the process, Rainey said.

According to Laura Beatty, School of Mass Communication special services coordinator, the early warning system allows students sufficient amount of time to change things and to offer helpful resources and alternatives.

The university encourages professors to use the system to show and track student success and as a way to evaluate patterns. Also, the early warning system correlates with the Jesuit mission, Rainey said.

“We celebrate the access students have to faculty,” Rainey said.

According to Diane Fletcher, associate director of student records, the early warning system has been in place for over 20 years.

Many systems are available to make students aware of their standing, Rainey said. “At the end of the day the ownership is on the student.”

Lucy Dieckhaus can be reached at [email protected]