There is only one Cultural Life Program option during the school day this November, according to Furman’s calendar. Currently, weekday programs run between 5 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. In order to make these events, many students have to rearrange their schedules instead of being able to fit in the requirements during the day.
Evening Cultural Life Programs are especially hard for commuters and working students. While commuting students are a minority, they’re not to be overlooked. Everyone has to complete the same number of Cultural Life Programs to graduate, so why are the times catered to on-campus students? Programs during the lunch hour would allow commuter students to attend events during their time on campus between classes, instead of forcing them to rearrange their schedules to be on campus at night.
Furman’s Internships site states that over 70% of Furman students complete internships while they’re pursuing their undergraduate degree. This majority doesn’t include the number of students who are employed on or off campus. Having daytime events would alleviate stress from these students as they would be able to complete the Cultural Life Program requirements alongside their classes. They could then go to their evening internships and jobs without the stress of having to make it back to campus in time to fulfill a program credit.
Having more Cultural Life Programs during the day would also protect students’ work-life balance. Students would be able to get their academic requirements done during the typical school day and have afternoons and evenings to rest and make time for non-academic activities. Programs in between classes would also free up evening time for students to participate in clubs and organizations, as they wouldn’t have to miss meetings to complete their requirements.
Ideally, there should be a daytime Cultural Life Program at least once a week. This would still be less than the amount of evening programs offered, of which there tend to be four to six each week. These programs could easily fit into lunch hour, but they should vary in day and time so that students can attend when they have a free period or aren’t at work.
One way for students to encourage Furman to provide more daytime Cultural Life Program opportunities is to show up for the ones available. If professors and organizations see a high demand for daytime events, they will hopefully start to provide more.
Students can also meet with professors and leaders of student organizations to tell them about their struggles fitting Cultural Life Programs into their schedules and request more daytime programs.
The next daytime Cultural Life Program on the calendar is Monday, Nov. 10. For more information and to support the need for more daytime events, here’s the information about the only one currently available. I hope to see you there!