A-Senate chair on delaying calendar vote: 'We wanted to give departments time to think'
Central Michigan University's Academic Senate postponed voting on the proposed academic calendar change until Jan. 29 at Tuesday's meeting.
"We didn't take any action on it because we wanted to give departments time to think about what they wanted to do," A-Senate Chairman Jim McDonald said.
If A-Senate turns down the proposed calendar changes, the academic calendar will either remain the same or the proposed changes will be reformed, McDonald said.
"It was an A-Senate committee that proposed (the changes)," McDonald said. "The Senate has the ability to take back their proposal. If the A-Senate turns down the changes, the administration will still have to talk about it because it's a bargaining issue."
Matt Serra, executive director of faculty and personnel services, believes A-Senate has the ability to vote down the proposed changes.
"If A-Senate supports the proposed calendar, then CMU and (the) CMU Faculty Association will continue to discuss it as required by Letter of Agreement No. 9," Serra said via email. "If A-Senate does not support the proposed calendar, then it is my understanding that the matter ends there."
Student Government Association President and Macomb junior Justin Gawronski has been at the forefront of the SGA's opposition to the new calendar.
"A lot of the resistance came from a lack of knowledge about the impacts of this change," Gawronski said via email. "That is why, instead of outright withdrawing support of the change, the A-Senate motion that was presented was to collect that data that everyone deserved to hear. Now that we have that information, the overwhelming opposition to the change speaks for itself. I feel that if it isn't broken, why are we trying to fix it?"
Gawronski said he doesn't see how A-Senate can approve the proposed changes.
"Financially and academically, this change is irresponsible," he said.
Gawronski said the conversation should end if A-Senate turns down the proposed changes.
"The need for a fall break was mentioned multiple times in the Provost's report, and I think that proposal is something I would like to have a conversation about," Gawronski said.
