Letter of recommendation criteria
Updated August 10.
Mr. Webber is always willing to write deserving students a letter of recommendation. However, if he declines to write you one, please see the list below. If you see yourself in any of the items below, then you know what you have to improve on in order to receive a letter of recommendation.
How NOT to receive a letter of recommendation:
Note: The clock on items 2-11 starts at the beginning of each semester in August and January. Item number 1 results in a permanent no.
- Student turns in a completed story, photo, or other creation offered for publication (not a rough draft) that shows provable evidence of plagiarism, uses false information, or is lacking in more or more areas of journalism ethics.
- Student has to be reminded to work on current assignment at least once a day, two or more times a week for 2 or more weeks.
- Student has to be reminded to put his/her phone away at the beginning of class or during class, two or more times a week for 2 or more weeks.
- Excessive absences, to mean he/she is in violation of the state's 90 percent attendance rule.
- Excessive tardies, to mean 3 or more minutes late to class two or more times a week for two or more weeks.
- Student displays a negative attitude towards class. This can include one or more of the following: doing the bare minimum to get by or is failing class (meaning he/she receives a 9-weeks grade from 75 to 0), behaves rudely towards instructor, seems uninterested or lacks enthusiasm for class or for the journalism program, gets behind on assignments and is slow to catch up, does not complete all parts of a semester's final exam, or fails to follow through with an outside-of-school day assignment or other class-related commitment.
- Student whose behavior, attendance, grades, or attitude does not improve after in-class conference with instructor.
- Student whose behavior, attendance, grades, or attitude does not improve after phone or in-person parent conference.
- Student whose behavior or attitude outside of class reflects poorly on the journalism program or the school itself.
- Student who exhibits one or more of the behaviors listed above in his/her VMT academic class, or if taking a second fine arts area, is failing or fails that class.
- Student who is failing or fails his/her VMT academic class, or if taking a second fine arts area, is failing or fails that class.