Recommending withdraw... while suffering from withdrawl

Seeing his name on the roster at the beginning of the semester was a surprise. This was his third time in the same class. He passed the class the first time (with a "D"), then repeated the class the following semester... and failed. (The most recent grade counts.) That was a year ago.

After the second week of the class, he attended for the first time. He never mentioned that he missed the first two weeks. Maybe he just figured the we both knew that he was not in class, so what was the point of discussing something that we already knew? His presence was as obvious as his absence; he answered nearly every question that was asked, provided some excellent comments to the class discussions and overall was a tremendously positive addition to the room. Being in the class for the third time must make the answers a little easier.

It is now over six weeks into the semester and that single class during the second week is the only time that he attended class. His attendance was an issue in previous semesters, but never this bad...

When he finally contacted me, his reason confirmed some lingering suspicions... drugs and alcohol. He gave a long, tear-filled explaination of his problems, the counciling that he was seeking and the desire to get "back on track."

When it is "too little, too late"? This was a student that wanted to remain in the class after missing over half of the semester... and, he wanted to miss the rest of the semester to move home, away from the drinking atmosphere of a campus environment. Sometimes you have to get life back on track first, before you can move forward. His request conjured an image of a derailed train trying to move forward without creating more damage. The suggestion to withdraw completely from the university, continue working toward a sober lifestyle, then return when better able to handle the pressures of college coursework without falling into the trap of drugs and alcohol was met with a more extreme upset reaction that I would have ever expected.

It was difficult to recommend a complete withdraw. The student needed to get his life together, but there is always the concern that he will never be able to return to college...