2008 Woodie Awards
The Daily OrangeSU changes calendar for 2009-10 year
By Stephanie Musat
Posted: 5/7/08, 8:16 PM EST Section: News
For the 2009-10 academic year, fall semester classes will end a day later, pushing reading days and final examinations to the Monday of that week, rather than Friday of the previous week.
This is the only change for that year's academic calendar, which was released Tuesday by the Academic Calendar Committee (ACC).
"Some faculty feel strongly that we shouldn't have days off, especially in the beginning of the semester," said Maureen Breed, university registrar and chair of the ACC. "It takes away from the learning process."
The schedules for spring and summer 2010 are unchanged from previous calendars.
These changes are a result of two religious holidays - Eid Ul-Fitr Sept. 21 and Yom Kippur Sept. 28 - which fall on two consecutive Mondays in September, requiring changes for the end of the fall semester.
Fall classes will end Mon., Dec. 14, instead of the previous Friday. One-half of a reading day will be eliminated.
The morning of Dec. 15 will be a reading period, with examinations scheduled for that afternoon.
The last final examinations will fall on Mon., Dec. 21 instead of the previous Friday.
Breed is the chair of the 11-person committee which has been working with the 2009-10 calendar since last October.
The committee met with the Chancellor's Cabinet, the Dean's Council and the Academic Coordinating Committee before receiving feedback from university faculty and students. After assessing input, the committee developed the calendar and submitted its final report to Vice Chancellor and Provost Eric Spina, who reviewed and approved the final calendar.
"Whenever we can make things better for people, we're definitely interested in that, it's just that can't be the driving force," Breed said. "We have to make sure it works for the whole university."
In January, the ACC asked students for feedback on the academic calendar. The committee looked at the suggestions and tried to incorporate student concerns into the calendar.
Some of the suggestions were to extend Thanksgiving Break to a week and to start classes after Labor Day, but theses changes have not been instituted on the calendar.
sdmusat@syr.edu
This is the only change for that year's academic calendar, which was released Tuesday by the Academic Calendar Committee (ACC).
"Some faculty feel strongly that we shouldn't have days off, especially in the beginning of the semester," said Maureen Breed, university registrar and chair of the ACC. "It takes away from the learning process."
The schedules for spring and summer 2010 are unchanged from previous calendars.
These changes are a result of two religious holidays - Eid Ul-Fitr Sept. 21 and Yom Kippur Sept. 28 - which fall on two consecutive Mondays in September, requiring changes for the end of the fall semester.
Fall classes will end Mon., Dec. 14, instead of the previous Friday. One-half of a reading day will be eliminated.
The morning of Dec. 15 will be a reading period, with examinations scheduled for that afternoon.
The last final examinations will fall on Mon., Dec. 21 instead of the previous Friday.
Breed is the chair of the 11-person committee which has been working with the 2009-10 calendar since last October.
The committee met with the Chancellor's Cabinet, the Dean's Council and the Academic Coordinating Committee before receiving feedback from university faculty and students. After assessing input, the committee developed the calendar and submitted its final report to Vice Chancellor and Provost Eric Spina, who reviewed and approved the final calendar.
"Whenever we can make things better for people, we're definitely interested in that, it's just that can't be the driving force," Breed said. "We have to make sure it works for the whole university."
In January, the ACC asked students for feedback on the academic calendar. The committee looked at the suggestions and tried to incorporate student concerns into the calendar.
Some of the suggestions were to extend Thanksgiving Break to a week and to start classes after Labor Day, but theses changes have not been instituted on the calendar.
sdmusat@syr.edu
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Alecia Constantine
posted 6/11/08 @ 11:22 AM EST
I wish they would change the Spring semester dates, too! I don't like commencement weekend the same as mother's day. It's a real pain for all the administrative and faculty to not be able to spend a day with family, and I can't go to my friends graduations here since I want to be with my family back home to celebrate mom on her day. (Continued…)
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