Good Morning: Calendars, countdowns show campus needs a true break
Are you excited for fall break? I mean really excited? I mean truly, seriously, terribly excited? I am. But that means bad news. You see, there’s a problem with fall break. It’s too darn predictable. I’m not opposed to the idea of a break, because I need downtime as much as the next student. I’m not opposed to when the break is scheduled – just after first exams, before second papers and right around midterms – because it’s when we need some R and R the most. It just needs to be more spontaneous. Every year, I mark the same things in the calendar: the beginning and ends of my semesters, spring break and fall break. Then the countdown begins. Four weeks until fall break, three days until fall break, two classes until fall break. My hopes are so high for those two days off that they can’t fulfill the expectations and, before I know it, it’s Monday again. I know I’m not alone in this. I see others pinning calendars to the wall with big red Xs or exclamation points on Oct. 22. I see you fidgeting in your final class on Wednesday, ready to grab your keys and motor off, far away from exams, papers and probably the roommate. But then Monday comes, and all that energy, all those smiles, are gone. Fall break is intended to motivate, to improve student morale for the second half of finals, but it fails. Students lazily return to campus, fight through a pile of homework that was put off, and start the week frustrated instead of refreshed. The solution? Give us a break, just don’t tell us when it’s coming. Make it a surprise. Here’s how it could work: Fall break stays, because it’s the only time several students get to see their families. But for a single day every semester all classes will be cancelled. President Jay Moseley sends out a notification on the morning of his choice, alerting faculty, staff and students that the college is to be closed, along with a message to enjoy the time off. Sure, exams might have to be rescheduled, papers and meetings shuffled around, but the small hassle of updating syllabi is well worth the resulting boost in morale. Motivation is all about exceeding expectations. It’s far more exciting for a professor to push a paper deadline back a week than for her to schedule it that way in the first place. It’s a surprise, a reward. Imagine waking up at 7:30 a.m. to trudge to class, only to learn that you have the entire day to yourself. You don’t have the luxury of making plans or traveling long distances; instead you are given 24 hours where you can just be you. Why? Just because. And that is the best reason of all.
