EDITORIAL: "One Day More?"

Fall Break '92 was a dayFall Break '92 was a dayto remember -- becauseFall Break '92 was a dayto remember -- becauseit should have been twoFall Break '92 was a dayto remember -- becauseit should have been twodays to remember.Fall Break '92 was a dayto remember -- becauseit should have been twodays to remember.__________________________ Better question: Did you notice Fall Break this year, period? Many students are wandering around asking themselves, "Is that it? Is that all there is to it?" This year's one day, concatenated Fall Break was the result of a late Labor Day holiday, which fell on September 7 this year. The fall semester traditionally begins the Thursday after Labor Day, so the University was forced to squeeze the fall semester into the cramped space between September 10 and December 23. The same situation occurred in 1987, and the University fixed it the exact same way. We'd known about this year's compressed break since last fall, when the University designed this year's calendar. We braced for the shortened holiday, but it still seemed so short. It was only a one-day difference, but it had a profound effect on people's travel plans all the same. Many students who normally return home did not have time to make the trip this year. Others had to curtail day trips and excursions because of the shorter break. And students who wanted to use the extra time to catch up on homework are no doubt still trying to catch up. Fall Break is one of the few "sanity breaks" students get during this semester. Obviously, Thanksgiving Break and Fall Break put together can't compare with Spring Break. In fact, after the University added Fall Break to the calendar in 1984, one official said it resulted in a "lowered demand for counseling services." The number of students seeking help during October 1984 was down 34 percent from 1983, and the numbers for November and December were down 22 percent. The next time this little scheduling snafu crops up, the University should break its tradition of starting classes the Thursday after Labor Day, instead of gutting Fall Break. Start classes on the Wednesday after Labor Day, or even on Tuesday. Expand Fall Break and then throw in an extra reading day, or perhaps end the semester a day early. Sounds reasonable to us -- but maybe we should be questioning our sanity.