By Laura de Leon
Class instruction this semester was shortened by five minutes to accommodate scheduling needs and travel time between campus locations.
Provost Brent Snow said in an email earlier this month the change was made to implement a consistent time frame for academic scheduling. He said it was also meant to help “both faculty and students get to the next class in a timely manner —especially those professors that had to relocate and set up for the next class.”
Students have expressed concern in previous semesters that with back-to-back classes the 10- minute break was not enough time to travel between campus locations. The permanent campus is located ten miles from Brooks City-Base Campus and is being leased while two additional buildings are being constructed. Brooks campus houses the School of Business and other academic programs and program offices.
The 70-mile per hour speed limit on Highway 410 between South Zarzamora Street and South Presa Street, would calculate to about nine minutes of commuting, not accounting for slower speeds on access roads, stop lights and the time it takes students to park.
But since January students have an additional five minutes to get to class. And for those students commuting between campus locations, not having to rush to class might have meant a big relief.
Officials say the university’s development and construction of new buildings will eventually eliminate the need for students to commute between campus locations. President Maria Hernandez Ferrier has said on multiple occasions that it is important to consolidate the campus. Construction of two new buildings, Patriots’ Casa and Central Academic Building, will mean expanded class offerings at the university’s permanent campus on University Way.
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