Janne Perona/columnist

Today, on our fourth day of classes, UA students are finally getting into a routine. We have found our classes, we have our syllabi and some have even started lectures. Yet our Sun Devil and Lumberjack peers will be stepping into class for the first time today. As it happens, our academic calendars are very different, as those of you with siblings or friends at ASU and NAU already know.

Starting school only three days before a three-day weekend poses two major problems: Monday-only classes are behind, and a Monday holiday three days after school begins means it is not much of a break from school.

Students in Monday-only classes miss two weeks of classes and are two weeks behind Wednesday- or Friday-only classes; this can make students in these classes feel frustrated and sometimes very behind.

The schedule is an even bigger pain for students with Monday labs. Because of the difference, students must attend make-up labs. The chemistry department schedules make-up labs for cancelled sections on a different day of the week, so the potential is ripe for conflicts with classes and work.

The problems are only present because the Faculty Senate guidelines haven't been updated in 20 years.

"Technically they are not forcing any of us to come on (that day); it's just going to be an even bigger hassle to figure out when to do the make-up if we don't," said Emily Orologio, a molecular and cellular biology sophomore.

There are other problems with the Monday holiday. Students generally use a three-day weekend as a break from the school routine, and a "holiday" three days after school starts doesn't serve that purpose. The proximity of the break to the beginning of classes also makes going home to Phoenix or other cities not worth the price of gas (or the time) to get there and back.

These problems exist because of the process of formulating the academic calendar. The calendar is generated by the Office of Curriculum and Registration and sent to constituents on campus for suggestions. Then a final draft is sent to the Faculty Senate for approval, and the Arizona Board of Regents for the final OK. All three universities must have their calendars approved by the board of regents.

The board of regents sets general guidelines for the academic calendar, though the individual universities can make more stringent guidelines if they choose. At the UA, the Faculty Senate makes those guidelines, which include how many days of school there are in each semester, how many contact hours professors must have and a range of dates between which the last day of the semester must fall.

These guidelines have been in place for more than 20 years, meaning the academic calendar rarely changes from year to year. In fact, the UA has begun the spring semester on a Wednesday since before Martin Luther King Day was instituted as a holiday in Arizona in 1992.

The Associated Students of the University of Arizona has suggested calendar changes in the past (such as making Thanksgiving break a full week), but the Faculty Senate has never approved those changes.

The problems of beginning before the Martin Luther King holiday are only present because the Faculty Senate guidelines have not been updated in 20 years. If the Faculty Senate updated the guidelines, not only would these problems be solved, but the UA would be more closely aligned with the other state schools' schedules. Perhaps a better idea would be to start after Martin Luther King Day and have a holiday later in the semester - perhaps Presidents' Day in late February.

Whatever the change, something must be done. Until these guidelines are updated, we Wildcats will simply have to try and find some sort of pride in having three more days of school than our Sun Devil and Lumberjack brethren.

Janne Perona is a criminal justice administration sophomore. She can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.