Question for College/university Instructors/professors.

Well, your husband can go to the department head and then the Dean after that, he should speak to both of them immediately. This student and his parents can't harass the class or anyone else. Especially with how universities are getting stricter on behavior due to violence and school shootings. This student can, and likely should be expelled for such behavior. But your husband can also work with him, especially if he really was out due to medical issues.

If this student shows up at class and makes ANY kind of a stink, than your husband should contact school security immediately and have him escorted out of the classroom.

I just graduated a few years ago and I was under the impression we could be expelled for such behavior. Pretty sure it was in the student handbook. Not sure at what level your husband teaches, no one read me any rules in the community college but this was university level.

Another thing, this is college!! Those are adults!! Get a restraining order! I know if I had a professor treating me like that the police would be involved!

Sounds to me like the student has a mental health problem. My duaghter has a mental health issue and she can be difficult and confrontational to people if she perceives, in her distorted way, that the other person is being mean, or angry, etc. The other person is almost never being mean - but my daughter's perceptive skills are just off kilter.

YOur professor needs to talk to the department head, provost, academic advisor or dean of students to find out what the school's policy is and then defer to that. I cann tell you that people with mental healt problems have as much difficulty as those with diabetes or cancer - and perhaps more becuase of the stigma they can't just blurt out that they're bipolar or ahve borderline personality disorder... College age is when many people initially present with psychiatric issues if they end up with them. Unfortunatley, it's really difficult to ask the student or the parents if this is the case! Which is why I suggest going to a higher level.

For my daughter I've learned that most kids with her disorder have less issues as they get older (not the case with all mental helath problems) but most people with disorders are highly intelligent and so college is a good thing except for the stresses - academic, emotional, interpersonal, etc. My DD will be in college in 2 years but she knows she will be commuting and not going full time so she can have her family support system intact.

Good luck professor husband!

He needs to escalate this to the dept. head and also dean of students. Seems to me that when this student starts, I would hold up my hand and say "we will discuss this at the end of class." If the student continues I would say "I have said we will discuss this at the end of class, if you continue, you will leave this class". If the student refuses, I would call security.

Look this is college. The rules are what they are. Your husband shouldn't quit, the student should be removed and can be for this type of behavior. Contact the Dept. Head and Dean of Students ASAP. This seems to be escalating in the wrong way!

He should go to his superior or the Dean of Students or Dean of Admissions. There has to be a higher up that he can go to. There is no reason your hubby should feel threatened in his class.

Because of recent tragic events on some college campuses, most colleges today have some sort of early alert team/response system in place for faculty to report students who they feel are a threat to others or themselves. He needs to contact the head of the department, the dean of students, and whatever his college is calling their version of this early alert team. I had to contact the team at the community college I work at because of threats made to me from a student. Eventually, this student was kicked off of campus.

Also, due to FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) laws, your husband should not be communicating with the parents. It's against the law to talk to anyone other than the student themselves. If he tells the parents about FERPA laws, they will need to back down.

I hope that helps.

wow we wouldve been thrown out of the professor's class. your husband is allowed to do that. why not throw him out then promptly go to the dean and have him withdrawn from the class?? i';m sure the school would rather your husband to work then have an agressive student threatening teachers.

i dont see why its gone on so long? has he tried anything?

The first thing I thought of when reading this was mentally unstable. I would be fearful for your husband as well as for the other students safety. This doesn't seem like your ordinary, spoiled brat, type kid to me. This guy seems like a time bomb waiting to go off. What really nailed it, for me, was other students telling your husband of his behavior towards others teachers. His own students were worried/afraid at this guys behavior? Remember that little voice inside? Remember how we are all suppose to listen to that voice? I think your husband needs to contact not only his department head, but also a psyc evaluator, dean and campus security. No one should have to be afraid of someone in their class, teacher or student. With all of the craziness that goes on, on college campuses, I would be genuinely concerned.

If the student is becoming threatening, your husband should go directly to the police--not just campus police, the village's police department. He should also document the heck out of what has been happening and been said, and go to his higher ups in the college. This behavior is VERY alarming, and it is quite possible that the student has severe mental health issues.

Do not rely on just campus police--the University of Colorado campus police were aware of the issues with the Aurora, CO theatre shooter, but did nothing.

If your husband hasn't already discussed this with his department chair, HR, ombudsman, or employee wellness he needs to do so right away. This student needs help and so does your husband.

When my son went to college, they told the parents at orientation NOT to even think of contacting professors re homework, exams, grades, etc. The relationship is between prof and student, period. They told us not to even contact them re medical info - the kids are over 18 and on their own. This was from a great school with a good relationship with parents too!

Your husband needs to contact the head of the faculty association and the dean of students immediately. Their intervention is essential, both for this student's wellbeing and for the safety of the other students who are alarmed by his behavior. Whether a counselor or medical professional gets involved is up to these experts. Your husband should absolutely have another member of the faculty or administration observing in his class, and he should not have office hours without someone else nearby (office door open at all times).

I can't believe your husband has not be informed of the resources available to him, but they are there and he must avail himself of them immediately.

The student is NOT going to call the shots here.

Unfortunately, this is becoming an all-to-common problem. At the very least, campus law enforcement should be alerted to what this student is doing. In addition, the head of the department for which your husband works should be involved and discussing this with others including the provost of the university. Document everything--dates, times, witnesses, etc. As events over the last few years have shown, this is not to be taken lightly.

I was a teacher for a while, but never a professor. But I was a college student for 6 years.

The student's agressive behavior shouldn't be tolerated.

But, as a student, I feel your husband is wrong by giving partial credit for late home work or tests. If your husband gave part of his pay back if he was late for work, or late in returning assignments, then he may have a leg to stand on. But when I was in college, the prof's that only gave partial credit fot late homework or late tests were the ones that were always late coming to class or in returning homework or papers or posting grades. What is good for the goose is good for the gander.

Good luck to you and yours.

This type of behavior from a student should not be tolerated. I teach at a local community college and have had my share of challenging students, but none this bad. If I did have one like this, we have a "referral" system in place where staff members can refer students to the counseling center. I would start there. Maybe see if a counselor can come to observe/intervene if anything does happen during a class. I think it does need to be reported - campus security? police? Is there a dean of the department or someone that your husband can talk to, to bounce ideas on how to deal with this student?

I would advise your husband to tell the student, again, that the rules are the same for everyone & that he knew this coming into class. The teacher cannot change the rules to suit everyone and to make it fair for everyone, the rules are the same for all students. If he gives in, he'll have to do it for all other students who then expect the same 'courtesy'. It's best to stick to the rules & be firm about it no matter what.

If the student continues to escalate, advise your husband to dismiss the student either entirely or until the student apologizes or starts acting accordingly then he can return to class.

There's nothing worse than a stuck up kid who thinks they're better than everyone else, including the teacher. Just advise your husband to be firm about it & don't back down. If he backs down, that just give the student the idea that he can treat anyone, especially someone like your husband who does have the authority in the classroom, with complete disrespect. If your husband still is having trouble, he can talk to the dean about the student. It's best to try to talk to someone higher up rather than just quit over one student. He DOES have the authority to dismiss this student from the classroom & lock the door so he can't get back in.

Hope this helps, good luck!!

Your husband should know how to handle this! He has a head for his department, and then there is the head of the college. There should also be a Dean of Students to talk to about this. One of the above mention people should take care of this type of situation, your husband just has to go and talk with them. And if the student really is doing this with other teacher, they will investigate and get all of their input before talking with the student and taking action. Sounds like the student is having mental imblance or something.

Ughh I had some of those students both in class as a student and when I worked in college administration. The first thing is to document every interaction with this student so there is a paper trail.
The next thing would be to contact the dean of his department. In many colleges disciplinary issues are addressed by student services or a similar department, they should be contacted as well.
Usually there will be someone from student services having a "talk" with the student explaining expectations and following up on any medical needs that may require special accomodation (getting doctors notes and such and referring the student to get the appropriate services).

Lastly if the student approaches him in an aggressive manner, yells or threatens he should call campus police. I have that situation once or twice in which I had to have students removed from our office by campus security because they got all worked up, upset and aggressive. He should not hesitate to do this, his safety and that of the other students should be paramount.

Unless the student get expelled from campus (which usually has to be pretty severe behavior in order for that to happen) many schools don't have options to remove students from certain classes... so your DH will have to stick it out and hope that the students decides to drop his class if he can't retake the midterm.
Good luck

This student sound mentally ill. I would ask the department head to come in and sit way way way in the back to observe this class for a few weeks to see what he could do differently. This student could be off his meds or having a psychotic break that often is first seen during a young adults college years. It could be the start of many mental illnesses such as Schizophrenia.

This student could present a danger to your husband too. Since he's being this aggressive in the classroom hubby needs to get him out of the class. He should have the authority to boot him. If the department head can't or won't do it then another professor such as a psych one should dress casually and come in to observe to see if they spot any reason for concern.