Section 1640-01-19-.11 - PERSONAL OR MEDICAL LEAVE OF ABSENCE(1) A student may be granted a medical or personal leave of absence from attendance at an eligible postsecondary institution, which may include failure to enroll within sixteen (16) months of graduation, a break in continuous enrollment, or unapproved changes of enrollment from full-time to part-time or part-time to less than part-time, and receive or resume receiving an award upon resumption of the student's attendance at an eligible postsecondary institution if all other applicable eligibility criteria are met. Each eligible postsecondary institution shall adopt procedures for considering student requests for leaves of absence. Allowable medical or personal reasons include, but are not limited to, illness of the student, illness or death of an immediate family member, pregnancy, extreme financial hardship of the student or student's immediate family, fulfillment of a religious commitment encouraged of members of that faith, fulfillment of required military service, a student's participation in an internship or co-op program that is required or encouraged as part of the academic program in which the student is enrolled, or other extraordinary circumstances beyond the student's control where attendance by the student creates a substantial hardship. In the event an institution denies a student's request for a medical or personal leave of absence, the student may appeal the decision in accordance with these rules.Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1640-01-19-.11
Original rule filed December 29, 2003; effective April 29, 2004. Public necessity rule filed October 4, 2005; effective through March 18, 2006. Public necessity rules 1640-01-19-.01 through 1640-01-19-.26 filed October 4, 2005, expired on March 18, 2006. On March 19, 2006, rules 1640-01-19-.01 through 1640-01-19-.26 reverted to rules in effect on October 3, 2005. Repeal and new rule filed November 9, 2005; effective March 30, 2006. Public necessity rule filed November 30, 2006; expired May 14, 2007. Amendment filed November 30, 2006; effective March 30, 2007. Public necessity rule filed November 20, 2007; effective through May 3, 2008. Repeal and new rule filed November 20, 2007; effective March 28, 2008. Amendment filed January 30, 2009; effective May 29, 2009. Amendment filed December 19, 2014; effective March 19, 2015. Amendments filed October 31, 2018; effective January 29, 2019. Amendments filed January 29, 2020; effective April 28, 2020. Amendments filed April 27, 2021; effective July 26, 2021. Amendments filed August 7, 2023; effective 11/5/2023.Authority: T.C.A. §§ 49-4-201, 49-4-204, 49-4-902, 49-4-903, 49-4-913, 49-4-919, and 49-4-924.