Faculty to Discuss Calendar

The Faculty will discuss a move to bring the College calendar into line with that of the Med School and neighboring colleges at its meeting next month, although the Faculty Council, which dockets items for Faculty discussion, has not yet decided which of several alternative schedules it will endorse.

Several council members said yesterday the council leans toward a calendar proposal that would begin the fall semester a week earlier than is now planned, extend the fall teaching period by several days, keep reading period entirely after Christmas, and move Commencement up a week.

A University-wide committee of biologists originally proposed a calendar change that would start classes a week earlier and put a half of reading period on either side of the winter break, but the council and students objected to such a move.

Since the biologists submitted their proposal, the Faculty Council has considered at least six options for next year's calendar.

Student members of the Committee on Undergraduate Education (CUE)--who earlier objected to splitting reading period--favor a calendar proposal that would start and end the school year a week earlier than scheduled, but that would lengthen the winter break rather than the fall semester.

Francis M. Pipkin, associate dean of the Faculty for the Colleges, said yesterday he believes there is widespread support among faculty and students for a change that would allow undergraduates to cross-register easily at the Med School and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. At present, the College is scheduled to start next year's fall term several weeks after the other two institutions.

James Morse '78, a CUE member who recently conducted a survey showing that students opposed splitting reading period, said yesterday most student CUE members would prefer a calendar that placed final exams before Christmas, but such a change was not among the council's proposals.

The calendar alternative CUE apparently favors offers slightly fewer days of instruction in the fall semester than does the alternative the council seems to favor.

Both the Faculty Council and CUE proposals offer slightly fewer days in the spring and fall reading periods. The spring reading period now includes as many as 20 days. The fall reading period is usually closer to 11 days.

Any calendar change by the College is dependent upon the approval of a proposal before the Medical School faculty to begin its classes a week later than now planned. The Med faculty is scheduled to begin discussion of such a move early next month