This is the text of the memo authored by Richard Cleveland?s Committee on Alternative Scheduling.

Attachment G

Academic Senate Agenda September 14, 1995

MEMORANDUM

DATE: April 25, 1995

TO: The Academic Senate and Department Chairs

FROM: ad hoc Committee on Alternative Scheduling (R. Cleveland, C. Miller, J. Murphy)

SUBJECT: A PROPOSAL FOR FLEXIBLE SCHEDULING

The following proposal is being submitted for discussion by departments, schools, faculty and administrators as a radical change in the way we schedule our classrooms. It comes from the Academic Senate Executive Committee as a result of two years of study of the problem. It is the outcome of some surveys of student opinion, as well as the needs of the faculty and staff of the university.

Based upon student opinion, the idea emerged that the current system is too inflexible and that what was needed was a system of scheduling that could accommodate more different kinds of student demand. It is hoped that this proposal will provide the necessary flexibility.

The proposed changes will open a large number of choices where there has heretofore been only one. The increase in flexibility can be a blessing or a curse, depending on how it is used. It is the intent of those who propose these changes that the increase in flexibility be used to increase the choices and opportunities of students to obtain the courses they want and need. However, if full and unchecked use of the flexibility is allowed, then the opportunities for the students can actually decrease because of the many conflicts created by a chaotic schedule. Furthermore, it is possible that there may be no reasonable way to devise a final examination schedule.

For these reasons, it will be necessary for the university to agree upon a number of controls to prevent chaos. This package contains the proposed time frames for a schedule, a set of guidelines for the implementation of the scheduling process and a set of suggested controls to keep the system viable. It is possible that some of the controls are superfluous; it is possible that some additional controls may be necessary. We hope that the discussion of these proposals by the faculty will lead to a workable system that improves the ability of the university to serve its students.

A PLAN FOR FLEXIBLE SCHEDULING

Attachment A

Rather than thinking about how long a class meets in a given room, think about how long the room is booked. The present method either books a room for 60 minutes or for 85 minutes. The Tuesday-Thursday schedules are completely incompatible with the MWF schedules for that reason. Consider a plan wherein the classes that meet 75 minutes will book the room for 90 minutes rather than 85 minutes. While this does involve some “dead time,” it turns out that it is more efficient than the present system, and makes it possible to make the MWF and TR schedules mesh better. Here is how the classrooms would be allocated on a daily basis:

7:30-9:00

OR

7:00-8:00 / 8:00-9:00

9:00-10:30 / 10:30-12:00

OR

9:00-10:00 / 10:00-11:00 / 11:00-12:00

12:00-1:30 / 1:30?3:00

OR

12:00-1:00 / 1:00-2:00 / 2:00-3:00

3:00-4:30 / 4:30-6:00

OR

3:00-4:00 / 4:00-5:15

I have incorporated the idea of Karen Munnerlyn that classes should start at 7:30 in order to lessen the congestion of morning traffic.

The system would work in blocks of times. There are 16 different ways each classroom can be used. If a one-hour class is scheduled for 9:00, the same room should take one-hour classes at 10:00 and 11:00. The same room may have a different schedule on different days. This not only makes it possible to schedule 3-unit classes on MW or TR, but also on MT or TW or WR or RF or MWF or MWR and so on. It also creates efficiency for the 4-unit classes given in mathematics, statistics, and the foreign languages. In the present system, when such a class is given, it takes a classroom either on Tuesday or Thursday (which has been booked for 85 minutes) and conducts a 50-minute class, leaving the room unused and unusable for 35 minutes.

R. Cleveland

1) According to Karen Munnerlyn, none of the other campuses have tried any drastic revisions of the scheduling system.

2) If flexibility is desired, the this system offers 80 different ways to schedule each classroom in such a way that different schedules do not clash with one another.

Alternative Scheduling

Attachment B

The purpose of increased flexibility is to maximize the use of facilities while also increasing student retention and graduation rates. This will require optimal communication between departments, schools and other units of the university.Academic programs will be given top priority in the use of instructional space; use of instructional facilities by guest speakers, visiting scholars and community groups will be given second priority.Any scheduling system requires that departments, schools and the university solicit input from students on a regular basis regarding the types of courses and schedules that best meet their needs.It may be necessary for each department to submit a skeleton schedule two years in advance in order to guarantee a harmonious schedule with a viable schedule of final exams.

Alternative Scheduling

Attachment C

CONTROLS

The approved scheduling times must be enforced. Departments offering the two-day, 3-unit courses should do so only on a MW, WF, MF, or TR basis. Exceptions may be made with University approval only if they can be made consistent with the final examination schedule.Departments using the 75-minute periods on MW, MF and WF must schedule classes during the same time period in the same classroom during the day.Laboratory and other three-hour classes must stay with in the time blocks of the schedule (i.e., AM or PM). Two-hour and shorter duration labs may be given in early morning or later afternoon.Department must offer 30% of their major courses outside of “prime time” (i.e. outside of the 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM period).Departments that require courses from other departments must coordinate their schedules with those service units in order to minimize the number of scheduling conflicts.Departments that now serve other majors must coordinate their schedules in order to minimize the number of scheduling deficits.Multiple sessions of courses must be offered at different times of the day.