No-Show Professor Gives Everyone A's, Yet Students Still Complain About Grades
George Washington University professor Venetia Orcutt allegedly never showed up to teach two courses yet gave all of her students A's. She sounds like the best professor ever! So why did her students write angry letters to the provost and get her into trouble?
Because if they failed to gripe about grades, they wouldn't be modern-day college students. Also, they were med students—who, unlike kids who major in fun, actually need to learn practical things from their instructors before they graduate. The students who ended up complaining about Orcutt had enrolled in her two "Evidence Based Medicine" courses in 2010, and those classes were required. Required for them, but not for her.
After "at least three students" wrote angry letters to the provost, Orcutt resigned from her post as chair of GWU's physician assistant department, reports WJLA. To its credit, GWU has awarded Orcutt's students credit for taking the class and is also giving them refunds. As for this year's Evidence Based Medicine students: They'll probably still get A's, but they'll have to work harder.
