Exams to be Held on Saturday

If you were counting on a few extra “dead” days to study for exams or spending Saturday, Dec. 11 watching cartoons, you’re out of luck – the academic calendar includes exams on that Saturday and no break days between the last day of class and the beginning of exams.

Dr. David Johnson, USA vice president for Academic Affairs, said this was the optimal way to accommodate two changes to the calendar: the two-day fall break in October and starting classes a week later in August.

“It all began with the request for fall break and to start the fall semester a week later to avoid the oppressive heat of August,” Johnson said.

According to the published academic calendar, the last day of classes will be Thursday, Dec. 9, and exams are scheduled on Friday, Dec. 10; Saturday, Dec. 11; Monday, Dec. 13; and Tuesday Dec. 14. Exams for Monday, Wednesday, Friday classes at 8 a.m., 1 p.m., 2:30 p.m., and 4:40 p.m. are scheduled for Saturday.

“In short, [the changes] are intended to get grades in prior to the end of the calendar year, so the registrar can clear students for graduation and have transcripts finalized,” Johnson said, “so students can sit for licensure exams and not be disadvantaged in the job market.”

The Deans’ Council, which is made up of the heads of the colleges on campus, approved the final academic calendar after the fall break and week-late start were proposed by the Calendar Committee.

SGA President Kim Proctor, who represents SGA on the Calendar Committee, said having exams on Saturday was never discussed during Calendar Committee meetings, and she attended every meeting.

“I’m not happy with the exam schedule,” Proctor said, “and I don’t like that there wasn’t a lot of student involvement in the decision. It wasn’t brought up in the Calendar Committee, and if it would have been, I would have been against it.”

Proctor, who fought for fall break when she was an SGA senator, didn’t want the changes blamed just on adding a fall break.

“The administration pushed the week-late start,” Proctor said. “There are other options we could have done instead of [Saturday exams and no dead days].”

Johnson said Academic Affairs looked at all the different possibilities before deciding on this schedule.

“We decided that there was no more effective way to accommodate our three goals: having a fall break, starting a week later, and getting grades in on time,” Johnson said.

SGA invited the registrar to its meeting on July 12, which will be held in the Student Center ballroom at 8 p.m., to discuss the changes to the calendar, but Johnson said it has been finalized and cannot be changed.

“It’s already been published,” Johnson said. “We can only re-evaluate it for next year.”

Proctor encouraged students to voice their opinions, so the calendar can be changed next year.

But the news isn’t all bad, Proctor said.

“The new calendar will benefit students by having more days between Thanksgiving break and the beginning of exams,” Proctor said.

Classes will resume after Thanksgiving on Nov. 29, and the last day of classes is Dec. 9, meaning there will be nine class days between the end of Thanksgiving and the beginning of exams instead of two.

For spring 2011, classes will end Friday, May 6, and exams will begin Monday, May 9.