(a) Upon notice from a student required to participate in required military service, an institution shall excuse a student from attending classes or engaging in other required activities, including examinations.
(b) A student shall not be penalized for an absence which is excused under this subsection and shall be allowed to complete an assignment or take an examination from which the student is excused within a reasonable time after the absence.
(c) Each institution shall adopt a policy under this subsection which includes:
  (1) the retention of a student's course work completed during the portion of the course prior to the student being called to required military service;
  (2) the course syllabus or other instructional plan, so that the student will be able to complete the course without prejudice and under the same course requirements that were in effect when the student enrolled in the course;
  (3) a definition of a reasonable time after the absence for the completion of assignments and examinations;
  (4) procedures for failure of a student to satisfactorily complete the assignment or examination within a reasonable time after the absence; and
  (5) an institutional dispute resolution process regarding the policy.
(d) The maximum period for which a student may be excused under this section shall be no more than 25% (twenty-five percent) of the total number of class meetings or the contact hour equivalent (not including the final examination period) for the specific course or courses in which the student is currently enrolled at the beginning of the period of required military service.
(e) Institutions are directed to develop and publish policies and procedures to ensure that students enrolled in distance learning, self-paced, correspondence, and other asynchronous courses receive equivalent consideration for the purposes of determining acceptable duration of excused absences and time limits for the completion of course work following an excused absence under this section.

Source Note: The provisions of this §4.8 adopted to be effective May 22, 2019, 44 TexReg 2451; amended to be effective November 11, 2021, 46 TexReg 7598