The Center for Care and Resilience assists students who are unable to attend class due to a death in the family, bereavement, and funeral attendance. Students are encouraged to speak with instructors before completing an absence notification request as not all instructors require an absence notification from our office. If a student is physically unable to talk with their instructor about their absence and is unable to complete this form, a family member or appropriate campus official should contact 865-974-HELP (4357) or click HERE for additional support.
We are not able to provide verification for absences that do not fall within policy, even if an instructor requires a letter from our office. Whether an absence is approved or denied is at the discretion of the instructor. If the reason for an absence does not fall within the parameters of the verification policy, the student will need to discuss this with their instructor for review.
**Please note: We do not approve or deny absences. For any absence notification not related to death in the family/ bereavement, please click here to submit.**
The request must be accompanied by formal documentation. Examples may include:
- link to the obituary/ announcement of passing
- memorial service pamphlet
- death certificate
- or other items that identify the student as related to the deceased and include date of expiration, date of service, and city/ state of the funeral/ memorial service.
Submissions that do not have required documentation will not be verified and may be reviewed on a case by case basis. Formal documentation must be uploaded with your request as a jpg or png file; iPhone .HEIC documents cannot be opened.
Submitted requests will be reviewed within 3 – 4 business days, if possible.
If a student’s absence is verified, a verification letter will be sent to their UTK email. It is the responsibility of the student to present this letter to their instructor.
The Center for Care and Resilience reserves the right to verify/deny requests based on university policy.