The Facts: N.C. State students will have off this Thursday and Friday for Spring Holiday. This break is meant to give students a small break before hitting the last week of classes and course finals. It also serves to allow students to celebrate Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

Our Opinion: This Spring Holiday is blatantly a break for Easter Sunday; however, by getting Thursday and Friday off students’ holiday is cut short. With careful planning, the Calendar Committee should encompass a more appropriate break for the students with Friday and Monday off.

While there is no clear justification for giving students Thursday off rather than Monday for our spring holiday, the calendar for the next three years puts students in this awkward break time. Many students celebrating Easter will be forced to travel back on Sunday evening, cutting celebratory dinners with families to return to school. For others observing the Jewish holiday of Passover, it makes them return the day before their final day of celebration. Since the Calendar Committee has the power to review this, they should revisit the dates of the spring holiday and change them to Friday through Monday.

Besides its close proximity to Easter, this break gives students the equivalent of a fall break in the spring and religious and non-religious students are thankful. If we are going to have an effective break, the committee should look at the convenience and necessity for students to have Friday and Monday off, rather than Thursday.

Though the Calendar Committee does not take into account the Jewish population at N.C. State. Their holiday planning for future academic years could encompass both Passover and Easter. According to Hillel, N.C. State’s Jewish student organization, there are roughly 250 Jewish undergraduates at our University. Their celebrations should be observed just as much as any other. This should be taken into consideration, and the committee should consider changing the calendar to conveniently fit the majority of students observing their respective holidays.

The Calendar Committee needs to hear feedback from students to place the days for breaks, namely the Spring Holiday one to fit their needs. While it is too late this year, the future academic calendars can still be changed. This committee should jump at the opportunity to meet students’ needs and convenience when planning for the academic breaks.

These changes could not only meets these needs, but relieve the stress of traveling and cutting family functions short on the weekend. By giving the break from Friday to Monday, students would have time celebrate their holidays and  to return to school. This type of consideration when planning the calendar for students should thought of, rather than carrying on the norm.