Chair of the College Curriculum Committee (CCC), Dr. Julie Blase, joked that the switch to semesters is waking her up at 4:30 in the morning, but some do have genuine concerns about the transition. Are these legitimate? The administration and professors have put in countless hours to make this as smooth a transition as possible.  Although much of the work has been done, the students also must do their part …

There remains a lingering community perception that the administration has ignored the voices of the students and faculty at times, and has made and delivered some policy decisions unilaterally. Why does this perception persist, and how can we as a community address and correct it?

Tiger teams hope to submit proposals regarding both new general education requirements and a new daily schedule under the semester system for faculty and administration approval by the end of the academic year. The proposals will signal a major benchmark, though not the end, in a year-long process involving students, faculty and staff, which began last summer at the administration’s behest. If approved, both proposals would be instated in the 2011-2012 academic year, coinciding with the college’s move to semesters.

Principia will delay implementation of the semester system by a year, College President Jonathan Palmer announced last week. The delay signals a shift in the pace of the college’s conversion to semesters.

The statement came on the heels of a visit by semester conversion consultant Coleen Pantalone, who met with faculty, staff, and administration before Week 8 to analyze the College’s process and progress.

Faculty members had previously expressed hesitation about the speed of the transition, questioning if the 2010 conversion target was achievable. After Pantalone’s visit, Palmer said he agrees.

“What has been reported to me is that there has been a general sigh of relief,” said Palmer. “It seemed to make more sense to do it, that 2010 was a push … in fact, everything would have had to go right to make it to 2010.”

“It delays the benefits,” Palmer cautioned. “I don’t think it weakens it, but it delays it, so we’re paying an opportunity cost by not making the transition sooner.”

The general education revamp committee is in administrative limbo, waiting for approval of a proposal that they say cannot work.
In light of budget cuts and potential faculty reductions, the reformative measure could be approved and forwarded to the next checkpoint, or it could be postponed indefinitely or denied.

while the administration’s language has met our expectations, its actions, even in these early days, have not. It is time for Principia’s administration to put its emphasis on partnership into practice. The students are waiting.

As Principia continues work on a bi-campus semester conversion, some College faculty members are still apprehensive about the speed and transparency of the decision-making process.

The year began on a note of change for Principia as well as for the nation as faculty and students reacted to the news of a coming switch from the current academic quarter system to the more common semester system. The controversial decision, which was announced in a budget email in December while students and faculty were off campus for Christmas break, will affect certain majors more than others, and has received strong reactions from supporters and detractors alike.

We are pleased to report that the close of this quarter marks the end of a productive ten weeks for your Student Government. If this quarter has gone by half as fast for you as it has for us, you might have missed what we have been up to, so here’s a quick update.