By SHANNON O. WELLS
In her report to Faculty Assembly at its April 4 meeting, Senate Council President Robin Kear addressed notable changes from recent years in the recently approved 2024-25 academic calendar that the University Times reported on March 22.
Concerns have been raised about calendar changes between Thanksgiving and Christmas. The addition of a two-day fall break in October added two days of classes after Thanksgiving break. Therefore, finals this fall start Dec. 11, 10 days after students return from break. Finals end on Dec. 17, grades are due Dec. 19, and winter recess starts Monday, Dec. 23.
“So that's really a ‘squish,’” Kear said.
Kear noted that Vice Provost Amanda Godley explained to the committee the “many competing pressures and … stakeholders involved in the Calendar Committee. … Every possible scenario for the end of the fall term was discussed,” Kear said.
“It’s a good reminder for all of us that even after grades are handed in by faculty, there is work done by staff, and they need time for that as well. And with the winter break starting the next Monday, the 23rd, they need time before that.”
She urged everyone to “take a look at the end of the fall term now … as a consideration for beginning your fall classes and thinking about how you might want to structure the end of your teaching in the fall,” Kear said.
Tom Songer, assistant professor in the School of Public Health, thanked the University Times for publicizing what he called this “drastic change from the traditional fall calendar in multiple ways,” including the two-day October holiday for students and classes held remotely on Election Day. “So it's just not the (calendar) change.”
“We need more than one message going off to the faculty about this change in the fall calendar,” he added. “Most of the faculty have no idea.”
Kear urged Faculty Assembly members as “elected representatives for your areas to please publicize this now, before May, before people really start leaving for the summer,” she said. “And to talk about what would be most helpful for the end of your term. I don’t want it to be a surprise to anyone.”
In other news, Kear encouraged everyone to take part in the General Education Task Force listening sessions held through April 22.
“This is a chance to get feedback. If you feel that there's not enough time in your session … please fill in the survey” on the General Education Task Force website, she said. “This is really the listening period to hear what faculty think, positively, and how they think it might impact their students, potentially.”
John Stoner, who is on the task force, shared that Belkys Torres, associate vice provost for Inclusive Excellence in Education, said while faculty response has been decent, student response has “really been lacking, so they really would love faculty to find ways to get students,” he said.
“One of the challenges we noted … was that students are term-limited and (are) less motivated to worry about what GenED might look like for a cohort that isn't them,” Stoner said. He asked faculty to encourage students in their respective units to participate.
Torres also has indicated she’s willing to tailor presentations “and come to you if you can sort of wrangle a group of students together,” he said.
Shannon O. Wells is a writer for the University Times. Reach him at shannonw@pitt.edu.
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