This week is one of the final times Yale Law School will issue its fall semester final exams in January. In the fall, a committee of law students and faculty members created a proposal that would change the law school calendar, according to the Yale Daily News.
The proposal would align the law school calendar with the calendar that is used by the rest of the University. Final exams will be moved to the end of December so students can enjoy a stress-free break. It would also give them the opportunity to attend classes at other schools and other departments at Yale.
The proposal was approved on December 4 by the law school faculty. The calendar will change beginning with the 2015-2016 academic year.
The term will also be shortened to 13 weeks and it will now begin prior to Labor Day. Exams will be administered one week after a weeklong reading period in the month of December. The spring semester will also begin one week earlier.
The vote was a faculty majority and the policy was sustained by a poll of the student body that discovered two-thirds of the students favored the change.
Rebecca Wexler is a law student expected to graduate in 2016.
“This decision shows that the administration does not want a community that just [observes] ideals of democracy, but one that acts and lives according to those ideals,” Wexler said. “It’s almost like democracy in action.”
Akhil Amar is a professor at the law school. Amar said, “This move is a wonderful symbol of the increased interconnectivity between the College and the Law School — two of the jewels in Yale’s crown.”
Megan Barnett, the law school’s associate dean, said that there are weaknesses and strengths to the new calendar. Not all of the students surveyed were happy with the new calendar either. Those who were unhappy said they liked studying over the winter break because it allows them to take part in other campus events during the fall semester.