No Friday Classes, Please!

By: Danielle Cort
Posted In: Opinion

Is it wrong to say Friday classes are a bad idea? I didn’t think so. Think about it. Friday is only a mere few hours from the bar-hopping, house-partying Thursday nights.

Classes would obviously intervene in this equation. So why is Salve proposing to have Friday classes every week beginning with the 2007-2008 school year?

From hearing of this change through the “grapevine,” as the saying goes, I’ve come to the conclusion that this change is occurring for more than one reason – with a strong hope that the new policy will force students of the university to “stick around.” If this idea is new to many of you, which I’m sure it is, you will soon understand that it is favored by few.

The repercussion to having class on Friday is bigger than people realize. Or, at least by the faculty that is working hard to make it happen. The argument of the school is that having classes scheduled for the end of the week will limit the number of students that go home or leave the campus on the weekends.

In other words, Salve doesn’t want to become a “suitcase” school. The alternative to having class on Friday would to not have class on Wednesdays. This poses an entirely separate problem.

Some of you freshman may not be too concerned. Most of you have Friday classes now. But trust me-NOT having them is worth it. It extends your weekend and allows you to relax from a long week. I’m not going to run around the idea that the main reason people really care about this change, is that it will affect their social life.

Yes, Salve is a small, private, Catholic institution. But I’m not going to hide the fact that students drink. And they go to parties. Will Friday classes limit this? I seriously doubt it. If anything, caffeine cravings will increase, making Dunkin’ Donuts’ quite happy. I mean sure, if there are no Wednesday classes, Tuesday can become the “new Thursday” – which I am almost positive would take place. However, the change affects other things.

Many people that attend Salve don’t live that far away. Occasionally, we like to go home on the weekends. It’s nice to get away sometimes. I’m under the impression that Salve thinks this will change with a Friday class. I am a little leery to agree.

Personally, I believe if people want to go home, they will. Unfortunately, waiting a bit longer is a deterrent, but not a big enough one to stop someone from doing what they want.

Ironically, when Salve is trying to hold us in, the Newport Police is pushing us out. Salve’s reputation in the town of Newport is not necessarily a positive one. Let’s be honest. We are the rich, stubborn, spoiled community within a community that spends ours days shopping, surfing, or breathing in the air of one of the most beautiful places in the world.

Not too bad of a description, but still one that resonates poorly with the local public. Don’t get me wrong, though. I love it here. I think Salve does an amazing job adhering to the needs of the students, making the university a place people want to be. And this is exactly why I think they should keep the schedule the way it is.

Part of the reason people love it here, is that they have control of their schedules and the time they spend on campus. I doubt very much that our actions should be forced.

Why have classes on Friday when years before have functioned without them? The breakup of classes during the week will alter schedules all-together and throw off many studying techniques we have acquired thus far. To not have class in the middle of the week, get used to a day off, and go back to school is, overall, a disaster.

Not only does the policy affect the students, but it affects its’ faculty. College kids aren’t the only people who need a break sometimes. Teachers are just as likely to enjoy a three-day weekend as their students are.

It’s hard to believe, but it’s very true. All-in-all, this change will cause more bad than good. I want the school to realize that as an institution that prides itself on hearing the voice of their student body, that this is not the way to make us “stick around.”

Entice us. Offer programs, trips, lectures. You got to do something educational and enjoyable that makes people sit on the lawn behind O’Hare on the weekends. Friday classes are not the way to do that.