Author: Sarah Dunlap
In an effort to increase time between the last day of classes and the first day of finals, the ASOC has lobbied for an extension of reading days, which must now pass various administrative hurdles to become official. As it stands, Occidental’s calendar sets aside one day between classes and exams; however, the ASOC seeks to add two additional days. Should the Faculty Council, Dean of the College and Registrar approve, changes would not take effect until the 2008-2009 school year, because next year’s academic calendar has already been prepared.
ASOC President Matt Kuzio (senior) stressed that his information is tentative and said that the Senate has actively supported this project. It now hinges on college administrators. “It’s in the Faculty Council’s hands right now and once it goes through them it goes through the Dean of the College, then to the Registrar,” Kuzio said. “There are a lot of steps. ASOC has done its part as far as pushing for more reading days, and right now it’s just in the decision making process.”
Although the ASOC does not have the power to single-handedly change the academic calendar, multiple members have taken an active interest in this project. Many Senators recognized Max Thoman-Tedford (junior) and John Wilson (senior) as being particularly vocal. Thoman-Tedford is currently creating a list of peer institutions’ reading days policy.
“I’m currently working on compiling a list of comparison school’s finals weeks and number of reading days to propose to Dean Frank and Faculty Council President Jim Whitney,” Thoman-Tedford said.
Campus-Wide Senator Alison Dempsey (sophomore) said the movement to extend reading days originated when Senators heard that Occidental switched from trimesters to semesters in part to increase reading days-something that never happened.
“Some Senators had heard of a rumor, or knew of the fact, that among the reasons why Occidental switched from a trimester schedule to a semester schedule [. . .] was to guarantee more reading days for the students,” Dempsey said. “Yet in the end, none came, and no one was held accountable. So, an effort was made by some of my fellow Senators to get the reading days we are entitled to.”
Several students have complained about Occidental’s one reading day, and Sophomore-Class Senator Mike Myers (sophomore) said student demand played an important role in galvanizing the Senate on this issue.
“I think there was a clear demand from students for more reading days and ASOC recognized that,” Myers said. “More reading days has always been a top priority for Senate this year.”
Per the current schedule, classes end Wednesday and exams begin Friday, which Kuzio called, “an imbalance in our schedule.” Although extra reading days may be removed from breaks, he believes that one less day of vacation, particularly from the lengthy five-week winter holiday, is a minimal price that most would be willing to pay.
“Memorial Day might actually not be a three-day holiday, which is not the end of the world given it’s the week right after we start school,” Kuzio said. “There might be calendar changes but nothing significant.”
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