In order to meet the Department of Education’s compliance obligations for disbursement of Title IV funds, PSU must track and document that students initiate attendance (i.e. participation in academically related activity) for each credit-bearing class in which they are registered. If there is no documented record that attendance was initiated by a student in each of their classes, PSU must review their financial aid award, recalculate eligibility and if necessary, return some or all of their financial aid.
How is attendance initiated?
To satisfy the initiation of attendance requirement, students must attend or participate in academically related activities for each class in which they are registered within the first two weeks of the term. For this purpose, class attendance/participation at Portland State University is defined as engaging in a class-related academic activity.
What are academically related activities?
For the purpose of this policy, academically related activities may include, but are not limited to one or more of the following:
- attending a scheduled class, lecture, recitation, or lab, in-person or online, where there is an opportunity for direct interaction between the instructor and students
- participating in a scheduled field placement, internship, or student-teaching experience
- submitting an assignment, taking a quiz, completing an interactive tutorial, or other digital instruction
- completing an introductory discussion post, blog, or response in Canvas
- completing a quiz or survey upon syllabus review
- participating in a study group or group project that is assigned by the instructor, if the instructor can monitor and confirm the participation
- participating in an online discussion about class-related academic matters
- contacting a faculty member to ask a question about the academic subject studied in the course after the course has started
- contacting instructor when attendance in the first few class meetings is not possible in order to discuss class material and strategies for keeping up in the class.
For the purpose of this policy, other activities that do not represent academically related activity include, but are not limited to:
- physical presence on campus alone (but not in the specific class)
- logging into an online class without active participation
- participating in counseling or academic advising
- participation in campus residence activities, a meal plan, the recreation center, or other non-academic activities
How to record Initiation of Attendance
Initiation of attendance must be recorded in the Class List & Initiation of Attendance link found on the Faculty Services tab of Banweb. This is the only way to officially record initiation of attendance to satisfy this university requirement.
- Log in to Banweb
- Navigate to the Faculty Services tab
- Select Class List & Initiation of Attendance
- Select a Term from the drop-down menu
- Select the row for your class
- Check the box in the first column on the left, labeled “Initiated Attendance” to indicate that the student has met the initiation of attendance requirement.
- The system will automatically save your selection
- If you have checked the box in error, you may unselect the box to remove the check mark
- Note, only 25 students will appear per page view by default, check for additional pages on the class list
If you do not see the heading "Intiated Attendance" in the column on left-hand side of your Class List, you may be viewing an old version of the Class List and will need to clear your browser's cache. You can read this Help Desk article to review how to clear your browser's cache.
Review all of these steps in the following slideshow
What if a student initiates attendance but then stops attending?
Leave the Initiated Attendance box checked for the student. The student may choose to drop the class, or even if they remain registered, you will later record their Last Date of Attendance when submitting grades.
What about online classes?
Faculty teaching online classes need to record initiation of attendance in the Class List & Initiation of Attendance tool. Initiation of attendance can be demonstrated by students' engagement in academically related activities. Please review examples of academically related activities above.
What about classes that meet later in the term?
- Hybrid classes: If your class does not meet until after the second week of the term, but you do have assignments or required academic activities that occur prior to your class meeting, you should record initiation of attendance based on the earliest academic activities you’ve assigned.
- Late Start classes: If your class does not begin scheduled meetings or academic activities in the first two weeks of the term, you should record initiation of attendance as soon as the class begins. As long as you have provided accurate course begin and end dates in the Schedule of Classes, the Office of Financial Aid will be aware of the late-start.
What about By-Arrangement credits?
The Initiation of Attendance box will be automatically checked for credit that is developed one-on-one between a student and faculty member via the eBy-Arrangement dashboard. The co-creative nature of initiating and approving by-arrangement credit represents academically related activity.
What if a student shows up for the first time after Week 2?
Even though we hope students attend or participate in the first two weeks of the term, we know that in certain circumstances late initiation may occur. You must check the box as soon as they do initiate attendance or participation. You are able to check the box through the seventh week of the term.
What if I make a mistake?
If you did not mark a student as initiating attendance in the Class List, but they did initiate attendance, check the box as soon as you are alerted of the mistake. If you erroneously marked a student as initiating attendance, uncheck the box as soon as you find the mistake. Our records will record when the box is checked or unchecked and by whom. This data will help the Office of Financial Aid to resolve any issues for students.
What about waitlisted students?
If students on your waitlist attend class or participate in academically related activities, check the box to show they initiated attendance. If you give them permission to register, the initiation of attendance checkmark will follow them to their registered status.
Support and Feedback
For questions about the Class List & Initiation of Attendance tool, contact the Office of the Registrar at registrar@pdx.edu or by phone at 503-725-3220.
For questions related to the financial aid implications of Initiation of Attendance, contact the Office of Financial Aid & Scholarships at askfa@pdx.edu or by phone at 503-725-3461.
For general feedback, please submit this form.