Navigating the UCF Academic Calendar: Holidays, Accelerated Terms, and Emergency Preparedness
The University of Central Florida (UCF) operates on a comprehensive academic calendar that includes scheduled holidays, breaks, and, increasingly, accelerated term options. Understanding this calendar, along with university policies regarding closures and emergency procedures, is crucial for students, faculty, and staff. This article provides an overview of the UCF holiday schedule, the introduction of accelerated terms, and important information regarding campus closures and emergency preparedness.
UCF's Evolving Academic Calendar: Embracing Accelerated Terms
Beginning in the 2024-25 academic year, UCF is introducing accelerated terms designed to provide students with greater flexibility and potentially shorten the time required to earn a degree. These accelerated sessions offer additional class scheduling options to colleges within UCF. Students will be able to register for accelerated terms for the Summer and Fall 2024 semesters.
The accelerated sessions currently include:
- Winter Intersession: Dec. 16, 2024 - Jan.
- Session 1: Jan.
- Session F: Jan.
- Summer B: June 23 - Aug.
- Summer C: May 12 - Aug.
- Session 1: Aug. 18 - Nov.
- Session F: Aug. 18 - Oct.
- Session G: Oct. 13 - Dec.
UCF’s colleges have the option to offer courses during the accelerated semesters and will determine if they will offer any classes. Available courses will be listed in mySchedule Builder during the term’s registration period. Students are encouraged to check mySchedule Builder during the registration period to see what courses are available. The new accelerated sessions allow students to select courses that suit their schedules and earn their degrees in a timely fashion.
Scheduled Closures: Holidays and Other Events
The UCF campuses close for certain scheduled events, such as holidays and some late afternoons for football home games. While a comprehensive list of specific holiday closures is not provided in the initial data, it's essential to consult the official UCF academic calendar for the most up-to-date information on these dates.
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Unforeseen Closures: Hurricanes and Emergencies
Campuses may also close for unexpected events, such as a hurricane. These closures may include days before and after the hurricane’s arrival. During these closures, it is important that faculty do not require or expect students to perform homework, projects, or graded assignments during the closure time. This is true even if the closure lasts an extended period, such as after a hurricane. In the return-to-campus period after a hurricane, individual students may still require flexible due dates or assignment flexibility.
Faculty should re-examine the student learning outcomes (SLOs), as printed on the syllabus, and evaluate whether these SLOs can be achieved with less content. Allow students to access the material from reading or from third-party videos, rather than requiring them to hear it from you as a lecture. It is important not to react to flexibility requests so far in one direction that the principles of learning are sacrificed. Whenever possible, faculty should actually PLAN for unexpected closures proactively when creating the semester schedule and assignments.
Emergency Preparedness on Campus
Emergencies on campus are rare, but if one should arise during class, everyone needs to work together. Every UCF classroom contains an emergency procedure guide posted on a wall near the door. If there is a medical emergency during class, you may need to access a first-aid kit or AED (Automated External Defibrillator). To stay informed about emergency situations, you can sign up to receive UCF text alerts by going to my.ucf.edu and logging in.
Information Technology Security
Information technology policy is governed not only by the university itself, but also by state and federal laws. University faculty and staff are expected to adhere to information security guidelines regarding the handling and security of sensitive information. Additionally, as described in university policy 4-007, restricted information is not to be stored on mobile devices or on third-party internet cloud storage services. It is also important to change your password often.
CDL Support During Winter Break
CDL has always provided some limited support service during the university’s winter break. However, phone service is not available during this time.
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