The Saint

Story by News Editor Zoebelle Bean

In the past year, Aquinas College has seen several staffing and faculty changes. This has included over 30 staff and faculty members leaving Aquinas since March in one manner or another, as well as little to no new hires to fill these empty positions. Not only that, but the English department expects to see a significant overturn as several English professors begin to consider retirement.

These staffing changes have not been communicated broadly to the entire Aquinas campus and most of the changes have been communicated directly via LinkedIn to a few students instead.

These staffing changes have resulted in pressure on academics, as well as cutbacks and limitations to course offerings. With fewer faculty members available, students have been reassigned to new advisors in their respective departments to accommodate the change.

While the reasoning behind staff and faculty members leaving is not entirely known, students can be reassured with the knowledge that several changes have been implemented to ensure academics remain the number one priority for undergraduates. These changes include the test run of the block model this year as well as instituting the four-credit model for all classes. The four-credit model will help students graduate with the ideal number of credits, making sure every student gets at least 12 credits every semester. It eases the pressure off of students because it lessens the possibility of a student taking too many classes to get to a maximum of 18 credits in a semester.

Not only that, but the block model is in the works. This model is being tested to verify practicality for the entire Aquinas campus. If the block model were to be implemented, classes would be run individually for three weeks each, from 9:00 am-12:00 pm every day, and a student would take four three-week classes each semester, resulting in the same amount of credits as the average student achieves currently with the four-credit model. More information will be published in the following month on this subject.

Regardless of these changes, Aquinas appears to remain committed to making smart, purposeful changes for the greater good of the entire community. The monthly letters from the president will continue to keep the Aquinas community informed and safe, and hopefully the community will receive more information regarding staffing changes in the coming months.