2021-22 Academic Calendar - Meeting w/ Provost Reflection

[James Gallicchio]

Hi again all,

This email has taken a while to write, because I haven't been sure what to
say about the meeting with the provost regarding next year's academic
calendar.

*The TL;DR is that nothing has changed*. But if you want to dive into a bit
more nuance, here's my major takeaways.

*0) The calendar for next year is not going to change.*

The committee had a choice: 15 week semesters with a short winter break, or
14 week semesters with a long winter break.

Many universities with similar calendars chose a short winter break this
year (see e.g. Pitt's calendar). The committee instead *chose to shorten
our semesters*, and is sticking with that decision.

*1) The provost believes moving to 14 week semesters could be beneficial to
students.*

I'm open to the idea, but I remain skeptical.

Note: I like the chairs of the calendar committee and the provost. I do
believe they are all working for students' best interest. So I am open to
their thoughts here. There are also a number of students (about 1/5 of
those surveyed) who would prefer shortened semesters, so that's a
discussion I'm willing to have.

Yet, in the 45 minutes we talked, I didn't really get a sense of what
benefits they were referring to. So I remain skeptical. I'm following up on
that question and will share any details I get.

*2) The provost acknowledged some failure to communicate this experiment
with the community.*

I explained that many faculty appeared to not know of this change as late
as April. I explained that many students, parents, and others in the
community still do not know the university is making this change.

I asked the provost to *bring attention to this experiment and take
responsibility* for the decision. However, I have yet to see any action on
this front.

*3) The provost acknowledged and took some responsibility for not doing
enough this past semester to help professors adapt to a shortened semester.*

In particular I cited a lack of leadership on the question of whether to
cut material from the standard 15 week curricula, and what material to cut.
There was some disagreement on whether it is even necessary to cut
material, but as with point 1 I am skeptical.

The provost claimed to be sending an email last week with guidance and
materials for professors to better prepare for the next year. He also said
this communication would be made available to students. *I have not seen
anything of the sort so far*.

I'm asking a few professors if they have received any resources yet, and
will also be following up with the provost.


*Summary*
The provost and calendar committee have a responsibility to explain their
decisions, and to provide leadership in a vision for change. * We cannot do
that work for them.*

*What we can **do,* is bring attention to this experiment by talking to
people in the community. *Explain to parents, friends, staff, alumni, etc.
that the administration is running this experiment.* Ensure that everyone
is expecting an explanation, since we all deserve one.

Thank you, as always, for your time and attention. It is the only reason
I'm still pushing against this door, almost three months in. Please email
me with questions, comments, and suggestions for how else to move forward.
I'll be sure to keep you all updated.

Take care,
James

-- 
*James Gallicchio*
BS Candidate | Computer Science
Carnegie Mellon University | Class of 2023
jamesgallicchio at gmail.com
US C: +1 (856) 994-5658
LinkedIn <https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-gallicchio-7769b3174/> |
Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100012337729125>
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