York’s first Fall Reading Week, which starts on the Oct. 10 Thanksgiving weekend and runs to Oct. 16, aims to give students a break – but don’t book a vacation just yet. This will be a reading week with a purpose, especially for students who may be looking for assistance before their academic year gets away from them.
In a perfect world, every student will have made the transition into university with no trouble – they’re on time with all their assignments, sure of their major and course selections, and looking forward to some of the college social events on tap for the week.
Right: There will be plenty of reasons to be on campus during Fall Reading Week
In the real world, however, there will be some students feeling overwhelmed by the workload, unsure of their courses or feeling a bit left out of the scene and wondering what to do about it. The short answer is to head over to the new Fall Reading Week Web site to check out the events being planned to help them feel more confident. There’s even a special Q-&-A checklist to help students assess how they’re doing, which includes links to sites about academic advising, study skills, careers and campus social activities.
Norma Sue Fisher-Stitt, York’s associate vice-president, academic learning initiatives, says the most important thing is for students to take advantage of this new respite in the schedule and to make the necessary adjustments to their work habits early in the year. “For many students, university is a different learning environment. They’re not used to the number of hours university work requires,” says Fisher-Stitt. “We want to provide as many opportunities as we can for them to learn how to adjust and make their year successful.”
All departments and services will be open during the week to assist students. Students who want to meet with faculty members should check with their department offices for hours and availability.
Even students who are on top of their game – like upper-year students who have “been there, done that” – should drop into the site to learn what’s planned for them and, if nothing else, how they could win a $500 credit on their YU-card just for becoming a Fall Reading Week Facebook fan.
To get the word out, York has launched the Fall Reading Week - Early Help for Greater Success campaign to explain what the week is about and the activities being offered. The primary focus of the week will be Wednesday and Thursday, Oct. 14 and 15, when a series of workshops and seminars are being held in locations around the Keele and Glendon campuses. The lineup includes sessions of interest to both undergraduate and graduate students, such as research and writing workshops, follow-up academic orientation and lessons in career planning and job search strategies.
There are a number of events being held by Sport York during the week, including games for both the men’s and women’s soccer Lions on Oct. 14 at Keele campus. For a full list of games during Fall Reading Week, visit the Sport York Web site.
“We want to create a culture around the Fall Reading Week that’s about learning and staying connected to York,” says Fisher-Stitt. “We want people to know it’s worth being on campus during reading week.”
For a full list of events, visit the Fall Reading Week Web site. It’s updated daily, so be sure to return regularly to check for new additions.