Incoming students who do not complete the “Step Up” training course will be dropped from their classes Thursday.

Students who have not completed the training were allowed to register for classes, but were informed that Thursday would be the last day to complete the state-mandated training.

“Step Up” is a bystander intervention course, which helps prevent domestic violence, dating violence, stalking and sexual assaults among students, according to the university’s website.

Chad Trisler, director of Student Rights and Responsibilities, said about 6,000 incoming SIU students and employees were required to complete the training this school year. He said the university could be fined a maximum of $35,000 per person who does not.

Interim Provost Susan Ford said in December there were 1,200 students who had not completed the training, but that number has since decreased.

Trisler said there are training sessions every day so there is no way to get the exact number of students who have not completed it, but that the number is well below 100.

He said if students were dropped from classes, they would have to wait a semester to reapply.

Trisler said he expects everyone to finish training by Thursday because Students Rights and Responsibilities have notified at-risk students through different channels.

He said the department sent out five emails to each of the students. A message was also on SalukiNet’s login page, and when students met with their advisers to register for spring classes, advisers should have let the students know if they have completed the course or not.

“We wanted to make sure we sent out as many notifications as possible, so students couldn’t say we didn’t warn them,” Trisler said.

University spokeswoman Rae Goldsmith said there were more than 90 training sessions for students to attend since August, and the university will continue to hold them until Thursday.

The training is broken down into two parts—a one-hour seminar where students go over basic information including protocol for reporting incidents, and an online section, which tests students afterward.

Some freshmen who have taken the course said the training was mostly common knowledge and would not take it if it was not state mandated.

JaWana Green, hearing officer for Students Rights and Responsibilities, said students who have not taken the training can go to safe.siu.edu and find more information under the “Step-Up” tab.

Remaining training sessions are to be held at 11:00 a.m. Wednesday at Guyon Auditorium and 3:00 p.m. Wednesday in the Student Services Building, rooms 150, 160 and 170. The last chance to attend training will be at 9:00 a.m. Thursday at Guyon Auditorium.