Spring 2019 Dates - Questrom Faculty

Dear Faculty Colleagues,

Welcome back (or, if you’re new to the Questrom family, welcome aboard)! What follows is a memo containing important information regarding the Spring 2019 semester: dates, international student check-in, etc. Should you have any questions or concerns, please respond to this email or call me at 353-9106. Or, feel free to stop by the new Questrom Registrar’s Office (QRO), Room 150, just to the left of the main stairs on the first floor. This is the new location of Becky DiMattia, Grace Uygun (as of 1/29 when she returns from maternity leave), and Emily Goldstein. I’m next door in 150A. We encourage visitors!

1. YOUR CLASS MEETING TIME AND LOCATION

I strongly encourage you to consult the University Class Schedule to review your finalized class meeting time and location. The University Registrar’s Office did not finalize classrooms until just before Christmas. You should consult the Link (www.bu.edu/link/ – click “Faculty” and “Class Lists”). Should this not work, you may consult the general University Class Schedule (choose “SPRG 2019” and “QST” – contact me with questions) to verify your location and time.

Spring 2019 marks our fifth semester on the university block schedule, so I believe we’ve hit a groove, but just as a reminder:

Some undergraduate courses are on a Monday/Wednesday/Friday (50 minutes per session) offering pattern.
Other courses that were listed on the schedule as meeting twice weekly for 90 minutes, but with an implied dismissal time 10 minutes prior, will now be listed as 75 minutes with the expectation that they will meet for that entire period. To emphasize, the time listed on the class schedule is now the actual meeting time!
In most cases, there is a built-in 15 minute passing time between classes, rather than the previous (implied) 10 minutes.
Evening courses now begin at 6:30 and let out at 9:15.
The afternoon sections of the undergraduate Cross-Functional Core will begin at 12:20 (MWF) and 12:30 (TR).

2. SPRING 2019 – IMPORTANT DATES

Please read through this relevant calendar information including Registrar’s Office semester dates and class meeting dates by course meeting pattern. Please remember that faculty members are expected to make allowances for any student who must miss class due to religious observance; if you have questions regarding this policy or a specific holiday observance, please ask us. See below for a list of religious holidays.

While I encourage you to review the links listed above for the important information they contain, here is a quick overview:

Standard calendar

January 22: Classes begin
February 18: Holiday
February 19: Substitute Monday schedule
March 9-17: Spring Break
April 15: Holiday
April 17: Substitute Monday schedule
May 2: Last day of class
May 7-11: Final exams
Questrom Commencement Ceremonies: May 17

MBA-specific dates

Mod 3: January 22-March 7
Mod 4: March 18-May 2
Concentrated Core Session 1: Monday (January 28-March 18), Thursday (January 24-March 7)
Concentrated Core Session 2: Monday (March 25-May 6), Thursday (March 21-May 2)

Dates of Interest

Dean Reiser’s Birthday: February 20
Red Sox home opener: April 9

3. SPRING 2019 CLASS LIST AVAILABLE ON FACULTY LINK

You can view and download your class list on the Faculty Link. Please let me know if you have trouble accessing the Faculty Link.

4. FINAL EXAM SCHEDULE

In most cases, Becky DiMattia recently sent you an e-mail about the final exam schedule. Please respond to that e-mail as quickly as possible so that we can move along with the final exam scheduling process. The final exam period is May 7-11. The final exam schedule will be finalized and published in February. The Registrar’s Office provides a grid setting the final exam times and dates according to where courses fall in the class schedule. Deviating from the grid increases the likelihood that a faculty member will have to schedule make-up exams for students who have conflicting exam times.

Any student needing to make travel plans before the final exam schedule is published should plan to travel on the evening of May 11, as travel plans are not considered a valid reason for a final exam to be rescheduled!

5. CHECK-IN FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

The U.S. federal government requires all continuing international students to physically check in at their respective program office during the first week of each semester, and new international students must check in at the International Students and Scholars Office at 888 Commonwealth Avenue. Please make an announcement during your first two class meetings.

6. RELIGIOUS HOLIDAYS

The following is a list of religious holidays from the Marsh Chapel website:

Sundown April 19-April 27: Passover
April 19: Good Friday
April 21: Easter

A full multi-faith list of holidays may be found here.

The following notes, including a link to the University’s Policy on Religious Observance, is also provided on the Marsh Chapel website:

Weekly observances vary (i.e. Friday/Saturday for Judaism; Sunday for Christianity; Friday for Islam). The Jewish Sabbath and Holy days begin at sundown. Passover is not a synagogue-based holiday, but a home-based holiday (hence the significance of home and travel time). The intent of the University Policy on Religious Observance is that the student need not face a conflict or choice between academic performance and religious observance. These dates and notes were assembled by the University Chaplains, meeting with the Dean of the Chapel. Dean Hill is happy to speak directly with faculty, staff, students and others, as the need arises.

If you are facing any tricky situations regarding student absence and religious observance, I encourage you to contact Dean Reiser in the UDC or Dean Phillips in the Grad Center.

Wishing you a wonderful spring semester!

Norm