 "Photo: Brittany Summerhill")
As a response to the CSU budget crisis, SSU's 2010 summer session will be returning to the self-supported School of Extended Education, after two years of reliance on state funding.
For the past two years, SSU and other schools in the California State University (CSU) system had followed a state funded year round schooling system that included a summer session. Self-supported education is not a new concept; prior to this, SSU had actually been following a self-supported system identical to the one being put in place this summer.
A shrinking budget made it increasingly difficult to provide the necessary number of summer session classes, stimulating CSU Chancellor Charles Reed's decision to revert back to the self supported model.
"The reality is, last summer, the state funding started drying up at a dramatic rate, so what they could offer state side was so limited," said Mark Merickel, dean of the School of Extended Education. "It was impossible to deliver a good body of classes."
Faculty, and students were extremely happy with the model when it was running under self-support," said Merickel. "When SSU was running the [state funded] year round system, I would say it was a model that didn't work well."
In an attempt to eliminate the negative impact that dwindling state funds would have on summer education, the switch to a self-supported term hopes to bring a variety of perks to students and faculty alike.
Without reliance on a state budget, students can now expect to have a wider selection of summer course curriculum, and teachers will be able to have more flexibility in when, how and what courses they offer.
"We allow schools and academic departments to offer a lot more than they could otherwise. We ask them to use the summer as if it were spring or fall," said Beverly Yahn, registrar for the School of Extended Education. "Students will have more choices for classes, it's easier for us to run more sections than the regular session would."
The School of Extended Education plans on running three terms, each being three weeks in length, similar to the sessions currently offered in January and August. Six and 12 week sessions will also be available for students and teachers this summer.
Self-support simply means the cost of summer session will not be paid for by state funding, but by student tuition fees instead. Despite the lack of state funding to offset costs, Merickel insists that this does not necessarily mean students will have to pay more.
"In small credit numbers, it comes very close to the amount that you would pay on the state side," he said.
While the state-funded system front-loaded fees for enrolling students, the School of Extended Education works differently in that students will simply pay per each unit taken. For students taking a lighter class load over the summer, ideally around six units, this translates to a cost remaining very close to last summer's model.
Students who plan on enrolling for a larger number of units however, might come to find that Extended Education fees come out more expensive, as the cost per unit adds up to exceed that of the traditionally front-loaded fees.
"Also, out-of-state students will save money because they will not have to pay any of the usual additional fees," added Yahn.
According to a memorandum send out by Provost Ochoa, "One enhanced feature of the three-week summer sessions is that students will be able to stay in their campus housing for three or more additional weeks after spring term."
With summer courses in the accelerated format similar to that of all intersession courses, and the ability to still live on campus, Yahn pointed out that students can earn a term's worth of credits, while not having to pay for a conventional term's worth of housing.
"Overall, it really helps students accelerate their progress towards graduation," said Barbara Brooks, summer term director for the School of Extended Education. But the perks may extend even beyond class variety and schedule flexibility; Merickel mentioned his hope to create more campus culture during the summer session as well.
"When you start cutting back budget, and running a limited number of classes, there's not going to be anything around those classes that feels like much of a community," said Merickel. "Our intention, with the number of classes we have, is to put on activities and events to help it feel more like a really rich campus."
Course proposals are being released for approval within the next couple of weeks, and registration could begin as early as February.
"The move back I think is being looking at very favorably, because people know that it works," said Merickel. "Next summer, it's our goal to go out and find out what are those courses students need to get. This isn't just a summer enrichment program, this is us helping students achieve their goals."
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