Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Coffee week of 10/4/12
I'll be in the Kirby food court area from 10-10:50 am on Thursday, October 4, 2012. Feel free to join me!
Calendar changes
Changes to UMD’s Academic Calendar
As many of you know there have been numerous conversations over the past year regarding changing UMD’s academic calendar. Based on feedback from governance groups and a markedly positive response to the campus-wide survey sent last spring, revised calendars for 2014-15 and 2015-16 have been drafted to reflect the following changes:
These draft academic calendars are currently under review by deans and directors, and will be sent to the wider campus community for review later this fall.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why change? What’s wrong with the calendar the way that it is?
The current calendar uses Labor Day as a starting parameter. Under this configuration finals have frequently needed to be scheduled across two weeks and on Saturdays, with no study day between the end of classes and the start of finals. When Labor Day happens to fall later in September we have had final exams scheduled as late as December 23. Faculty members have voiced concern that this degrades the integrity of the final exam. Students have found it to be extremely problematic to have a final exam immediately after the last day of class with no time in between for studying. Moving the calendar away from the arbitrary Labor Day start date solves both these issues.
What about having a fall break?
Although survey data indicated support for a fall break it would also mean moving the start of fall semester back even further in to August, as fall term is already at the minimum of 70 instructional days. We could still entertain this option if there is strong feedback in support of it.
Will moving ahead the start of spring semester have a negative effect on J-term courses?
Yes, however, while these courses are important, UMD’s J-term offerings are quite limited. The number of courses offered on campus during J-term over the past five years has ranged between two and five, with an addition three to six study abroad courses offered. The total average number of students enrolled in J-term is about 150. Any potential change to J-term would affect a very small number of courses and students. Courses now offered in J term could instead be offered in May term or look at other options.
We’ve always had a 3-week May session. Why change?
The current 3-week May session is very popular but offerings are extremely limited by the amount of available contact time. Extending May term from three weeks to four weeks will likely result in additional courses, additional enrollment, increased graduation and retention for students, and provide additional time for enhanced teaching and learning.
Won’t it be a problem for our calendars to be out of sync with the Twin Cities campus?
Morris and Crookston both start fall semester the week before Labor Day and spring semester the week before Martin Luther King Day. In addition the majority of MNSCU schools also have an earlier start and end date.
When would this go into effect?
If we maintain our current academic calendar parameters (starting after Labor Day) in 2015 we again face the issue of final exams going right up through December 23rd with no study day in between for students. Although 2015 is the most problematic year it would be possible to implement this change as early as fall 2014.
As many of you know there have been numerous conversations over the past year regarding changing UMD’s academic calendar. Based on feedback from governance groups and a markedly positive response to the campus-wide survey sent last spring, revised calendars for 2014-15 and 2015-16 have been drafted to reflect the following changes:
- Moving ahead the start and end date of fall semester by approximately one week
- Moving ahead the start and end date of spring semester by approximately one week
- Extending May term from a three-week session to a four-week session
These draft academic calendars are currently under review by deans and directors, and will be sent to the wider campus community for review later this fall.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why change? What’s wrong with the calendar the way that it is?
The current calendar uses Labor Day as a starting parameter. Under this configuration finals have frequently needed to be scheduled across two weeks and on Saturdays, with no study day between the end of classes and the start of finals. When Labor Day happens to fall later in September we have had final exams scheduled as late as December 23. Faculty members have voiced concern that this degrades the integrity of the final exam. Students have found it to be extremely problematic to have a final exam immediately after the last day of class with no time in between for studying. Moving the calendar away from the arbitrary Labor Day start date solves both these issues.
What about having a fall break?
Although survey data indicated support for a fall break it would also mean moving the start of fall semester back even further in to August, as fall term is already at the minimum of 70 instructional days. We could still entertain this option if there is strong feedback in support of it.
Will moving ahead the start of spring semester have a negative effect on J-term courses?
Yes, however, while these courses are important, UMD’s J-term offerings are quite limited. The number of courses offered on campus during J-term over the past five years has ranged between two and five, with an addition three to six study abroad courses offered. The total average number of students enrolled in J-term is about 150. Any potential change to J-term would affect a very small number of courses and students. Courses now offered in J term could instead be offered in May term or look at other options.
We’ve always had a 3-week May session. Why change?
The current 3-week May session is very popular but offerings are extremely limited by the amount of available contact time. Extending May term from three weeks to four weeks will likely result in additional courses, additional enrollment, increased graduation and retention for students, and provide additional time for enhanced teaching and learning.
Won’t it be a problem for our calendars to be out of sync with the Twin Cities campus?
Morris and Crookston both start fall semester the week before Labor Day and spring semester the week before Martin Luther King Day. In addition the majority of MNSCU schools also have an earlier start and end date.
When would this go into effect?
If we maintain our current academic calendar parameters (starting after Labor Day) in 2015 we again face the issue of final exams going right up through December 23rd with no study day in between for students. Although 2015 is the most problematic year it would be possible to implement this change as early as fall 2014.
No coffee week of 9/14/12
I'm out of town most of this week, so won't be able to meet for coffee. I'll be back next week.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Coffee (week of 9/17/12)
I'll be Solon Campus Center (the wedge) 8-9am on Thursday this week (9/20) if anyone would like to join me for discussion.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Continuing Education
We are updating the mission and vision for Continuing Education that includes a move of credit courses out of CE into the Colleges starting the summer of 2013. CE will focus on non-credit offerings that meet a mission of outreach and extension activities. They will focus on our community partnerships and community non-credit educational opportunities. The Colleges will house the credit courses at UMD year round. Deans and Department Heads have been sent information about summer 2013, so if you haven't seen that and are interested, talk with your Department Head. If you have traditionally offered a credit course through CE in the summer, you'll want to work with your College to move that course to the summer credit course request. One half of the income generated from summer courses goes to the Colleges, so this is a chance to increase revenue in your College.
Starting with Academic Year 2013-2014, all credit courses in CE will also move to the Colleges. These courses will become part of the Department's standard offerings if applicable. The money that has gone toward paying for instruction of these courses in CE will go to support the instruction of the courses in the Colleges (through course access funding or potential future tenure/tenure-track positions). We're working on the logistics of this switch with the Deans and discussions will continue through the next month or two.
Starting with Academic Year 2013-2014, all credit courses in CE will also move to the Colleges. These courses will become part of the Department's standard offerings if applicable. The money that has gone toward paying for instruction of these courses in CE will go to support the instruction of the courses in the Colleges (through course access funding or potential future tenure/tenure-track positions). We're working on the logistics of this switch with the Deans and discussions will continue through the next month or two.
Coffee (week of 9/10/12)
This week I'll be in Kirby in the food court on Monday (9/10/12) from 11am-noon in the area across from the salad bar. Feel free to come by and join me!
Monday, September 3, 2012
EVCAA coffee (week of 9/4/12)
Each week I'm setting aside an hour to have a chance to make sure I get out of Darland and have a chance to talk with faculty, staff, and students. I'll post when and where at the beginning of each week. This week I'll be in the Kirby dining area (across from the new salad bar) from 9-10 am on Wednesday. I hope some of you can join me!
A new academic year
Welcome to the new academic year! The spring and summer went by quickly and I'm looking forward to my first full academic year as EVCAA. We started discussions of many topics during the spring that we'll be picking back up this fall along with several new ones. I'll try to post on a more regular basis now. I apologize to those of you that were looking at the blog over the summer -- I was having spam problems on the site, but with the addition of an extra security level that seems to be fine. If you want to avoid the extra level of screening each time you post you may want to "join" my blog.
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