Florida A&M University has decided to cancel spring break for the 2020-2021 school year. This decision, announced earlier this afternoon, comes a day after Florida State University announced its new academic calendar for the spring semester which also includes the cancellation of spring break.
In a statement released by Maurice Edington, the provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs for FAMU, said, “As a result of the impact of the global pandemic and the need to safeguard the health and safety of students, faculty and staff, Florida A&M University has modified the academic calendar for the spring 2021 semester. Spring break has been canceled.”
Edington said in the release that the spring semester will end Friday, April 23. This is a week earlier than the original plan, yet it won’t impact the number of instructional days.
FAMU’s decision was partly made because of the joint FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, a unique partnership between an HBCU and a PWI. It’s important to both institutions to maintain similar schedules.
Gerald Williams, a fourth year psychology student, wasn’t happy when he learned about the decision. “I’m a little bummed out that we’re not having spring break this spring [semester]. I feel like the break is needed for college students because nobody wants to be behind that computer screen every day. It gets stressful. A break can take away some of the stress.”
Many college students look forward to spring break as a way to take off some of the stress during the semester. Although the university has decided to take a week off at the end of the semester, some students feel like that won’t be enough to compensate for what they face during the remainder of the academic year.
Nykia Onubogu, a second year political science student, said: “I think that was a poor choice on the school’s part. I think it takes away from the free time a lot of the students look forward to. It just doesn’t seem like they trust us, but it still seems like people are going to travel and do what they want.”
Multiple universities across the nation are preparing to adjust their academic calendars to rule out the week of Spring Break, due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and safety precautions for their students.
According to the statement, classes for the spring term will start on Jan. 6. The first three days upon return from winter break will be taught remotely, but it is unclear yet if the remainder of the spring semester will be taught remotely or in person.