[Counselor_Educ] FW: Semester Calendar

    Tracy Leinbaugh leinbaug at ohio.edu
    Wed Jan 13 09:36:54 EST 2010 
    Just to keep you in the loop.

 

Tracy Leinbaugh, PhD, NCC, PCC-S

Associate Professor 

Chair, Department of Counseling and Higher Education

205 McCracken Hall

Ohio University

Athens, OH 45701

 

Phone: 740-593-0846

E-mail:  <mailto: leinbaug at ohio.edu 
> leinbaug at ohio.edu 
Show, by your actions, that you choose peace over war, freedom over
oppression, voice over silence, service over self-interest, respect over
advantage, cooperation over competition, action over passivity, diversity
over uniformity, and justice over all.  

 

From: Executive Vice President and Provost Benoit [mailto: provost at ohio.edu 
]
On Behalf Of Executive Vice President and Provost Benoit
Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 9:25 AM
To: faculty-list-2 at ohio.edu 
Subject: Semester Calendar

 

Dear Colleagues:

In response to faculty concerns about the semester calendar, Faculty Senate
Executive Committee and the deans met over break to discuss alternative
calendars.  Faculty Senate Executive Committee indicated that faculty
believed that the calendar recommendation adopted at the end of the Spring
Quarter 2009 did not allow for extended time in the summer to work on
teaching, research, and creative activity.  

In the spring, the deans recommended to Provost Krendl a calendar that
consisted of fifteen weeks of instruction, one week of final exams, and a
four-week break between fall and spring semesters.  The Provost accepted
their recommendation.  

At the request of the Faculty Senate Executive Committee, the deans and I
agreed to revisit the calendar decision.  We did so in light of information
gathered from the academic calendars of Ohio University's presidential
peers* and with the benefit of having more knowledge about what the other
Ohio universities involved in semester transitions planned to do.  

All of the ten presidential peers have calendars that provide for the
conclusion of their spring semesters in early May.  The ending of the
regular academic year in early May grants faculty at those institutions the
opportunity to have the longest possible summer to pursue scholarship and
pedagogical development.  An early May semester conclusion also allows
students to have extended summer internship, education abroad, and
employment opportunities. Although discussions are continuing at the other
Ohio universities transitioning to semesters, it is clear that they are
moving in the direction of a fourteen-week semester with one week for final
examinations.   

After careful consideration of the academic advantages of a fourteen-week
semester and what is likely to be the norm for Ohio universities moving to
semesters, the deans recommended to me that the university adopt a semester
calendar that consists of fourteen weeks of instruction and one week of
examinations.  

When it comes to the length of the break between semesters, there is a great
deal of variability in what Ohio institutions are discussing and what exists
at the presidential peers.  Much of that difference relates to whether there
is a mid-term break during the Fall Semester.  

The Quarters to Semester Transition Team, which developed the guiding
principles for the semester transition process in AY 2008-2009, collected
input from the campus community on a draft academic calendar.  The sentiment
was strong for having a four-week break.  Academic schools and departments
wanted the opportunity to offer four-week courses and education abroad
experiences; undergraduate students and graduate students preferred a longer
break in order to take advantage of educational opportunities or to have a
longer period of time to work; staff expressed a preference for four weeks
to have time to prepare their offices and campus facilities for the spring
semester.  

Taking all of these factors into account, the deans did not recommend a
mid-term break, which would have lengthened fall semester.  They instead
recommended a brief hiatus for Thanksgiving and four-week break between
semesters.  

I have accepted the recommendation of the deans for an academic calendar
that consists of fourteen-week semesters with an additional week for final
examinations and a four-week break between semesters.  

My decision was based in large part upon the following facts: 

-- The fact that instructional time will remain the same as in a
fifteen-week semester with the addition of approximately five minutes to
each class session.

-- The fact there will be greater time in the summer for students to pursue
educational opportunities and employment.

-- The fact that faculty will have enhanced opportunities to work on their
research, creative activity, and pedagogy.

-- The fact that the fourteen-week calendar is the norm for our peer
institutions and most likely will be the option that other Ohio institutions
transitioning to semesters choose.

-- The fact that undergraduate students, graduate students, staff, and a
number of departments and schools prefer the four-week break.

The deans and I understand that there are compelling arguments for a
fifteen-week calendar, but after careful consideration of both options I
believe that moving to a fourteen-week semester calendar is the best
decision for the whole university. 

I would like to thank Faculty Senate Executive Committee for the assistance
that they provided in the discussions that took place with the deans.  

Sincerely,

Pam Benoit
Executive Vice President and Provost


*Presidential peers include: Indiana University; University of North
Carolina-Chapel Hill; University of Delaware: Washington State University;
University of New Hampshire; Clemson University; University of Connecticut;
Auburn University; University of Missouri-Columbia; University of Tennessee.


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