Campus Autonomy in Establishing their Academic Calendars

AS-2721-05/AA - September 16, 2005

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate of the California State University (CSU) strongly reaffirm the principles and policies stated in Principles and Policies: Papers of the Academic Senate of the CSU (1999) and Resolution Regarding the Academic Calendar (AS 2524-01) that campuses have the right and responsibility of controlling their academic calendars in consultation with their academic senates; and be it further

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate CSU recognize that the campuses of the California State University are 23 distinct universities, each with their distinct individual missions, environments, and populations; and be it further

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate CSU reaffirm Cornerstone’s Principle 10: The California State University campuses shall have significant autonomy in developing their own missions, identity, and programs, with institutional flexibility in meeting clearly defined system policy goals; and be it further

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate CSU recognize that individual campuses, by exercising control over their academic calendars, have the ability to provide opportunities for faculty to engage in intensive research and curricular innovation, to provide short courses for students who wish to give their full attention to a particular subject, or to offer non-traditional educational opportunities such as travel courses; and be it further

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate CSU oppose any efforts to impose a common academic calendar on all CSU campuses.

RATIONALE: Principles and Policies: Papers of the Academic Senate of the CSU (1999), Section II, Responsibilities of Academic Senates within a collective bargaining context, Campus Senate/Council Participation in Campus Governance “joint decision making and consultation between administrators and faculty is essential to the performance of the educational mission of the CSU…” and further (from subsection D) “The Academic Senates/Councils shall be consulted by the campus presidents concerning: (i) the academic calendar and policies governing the scheduling of classes…”

Each individual CSU campus has individual needs. These needs take into consideration (i) different feeder school academic calendars, (ii) different employment opportunities for students (e.g., ski resort through January or agricultural work [Northern California schools]), (iii) a general opportunity for necessary remediation or acceleration of meeting major requirements in the service of facilitating graduation, and (iv) individual educational needs and desires of students.