COURTNEY CURTIS / Scroll illustration

Launching of a new academic calendar

Compiled by Courtney Curtis PEL02002@BYUI.EDU Scroll Staff

1. What is going on:
President Kim B. Clark announced several adjustments to be made in BYU-Idaho’s academic scheduling at an all-faculty meeting March 14.

The new academic calendar, which has been in the planning stages for several months, was initially proposed in late January to the executive committee of the Board of Trustees. The proposal was recently presented and was approved by the full board March 8.

“[The proposal] was received with warmth and approved with a great spirit of encouragement and welcoming,” President Clark said.

2. The changes:
The new academic calendar will include:
• Three 14-week semesters each year

• 60-minute classes with 15-minute breaks between classes

•An average of 30 students per class across campus (an increase from the current 25 students per class)

Notable changes also include the addition of a seven-week break between summer and fall semesters. Daily classes will begin at 7:45 a.m. and end at 5:30 p.m.

The new academic schedule will change graduation dates and the end of winter semester, which will fall sometime in early April rather than toward the end of the month. Calendar changes will begin January 2007.

3. Some questions addressed:
Several faculty members have questions regarding the changes that will be implemented. However, because the changes have not been planned out in detail, many questions could not be fully answered during the meeting.

“I feel very confident that we will find many answers,” President Clark said. “What we see now as problems and issues will become opportunities and blessings. They will force us to think hard about what we’re doing so we’ll see new ways to do things and it will open up opportunities we hadn’t anticipated.”

Though the many changes affect students and faculty alike, credit hours taken on by both are not expected to drastically change with implementation of the plan.

4. Primary objectives:
President Clark also classified the primary objectives of the new academic calendar in the meeting.

The objectives are to “increase the quality of instruction … and to increase the number of students we can teach and have on campus in the summer,” President Clark said.

One main goal of the overall academic plan is to create equality among the semesters.

With the change in the academic calendar, the administration feels it can create better opportunities for students.