New schedule leaves no lunch hour

Kass Kuehl

A new schedule of class times and food service will move classes twenty minutes earlier and eliminate the dedicated lunch hour currently in use. Growing concerns over the efficiency and convenience of class start times have spurred what the Lawrence administration feels is a needed change, which will begin in fall 2003. “Because of the lunch break, classrooms sit unused for an hour in the middle of every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and the availability of classrooms is limited in other times,” said Dean of the Faculty Brian Rosenberg. Rosenberg believes that the new schedule will help to alleviate the space crunch.

The new schedule will only affect Monday, Wednesday, and Friday classes, while Tuesday and Thursday class schedules will remain the same. Class start times will be as follows: 8:10 a.m., 9:30 a.m., 10:50 a.m., 12:10 p.m., 1:30 p.m., and 2:50 p.m.

Some faculty members are concerned about the earlier start time for the first class and how it might affect attendance and tardiness. Though start times of 8:00 a.m. and 8:10 a.m. are common for many colleges around the nation, many students share this concern.

Conservatory students are troubled with the elimination of a dedicated lunch hour because many vocal and instrumental ensembles currently meet during the lunch hour. The new schedule could cause conflicts with class scheduling for those students. Rosenberg states that the faculty is working to deal with this problem and hopes to have it addressed in a timely manner.

Rosenberg said that as the Lawrence community grows, small sacrifices must be made in the interest of space and time. There will be a year and a half to prepare for this particular change, and to manage some of the problems that will inevitably accompany it.