TO THE EDITOR:
Wainstein’s report on the academic scandal reveals the need for more flexible eligibility requirements for all students. The time student-athletes dedicate to their sports is not generally compatible with the ability to successfully complete a fully demanding course load while maintaining any hope of a healthy stress-level, sleep schedule or social life.
Though many students are successful in the face of tremendously demanding schedules, all students should not be required to take 12 credit hours per semester. Students are able and permitted, due to diverse reasons, to graduate early, but the many students who are unable to complete a degree in eight semesters while fully observing the honor code are not permitted to graduate late without applying for extra semesters or by starting off as part-time students (and thus being ineligible to participate in athletic programs, to qualify for financial aid and to live on-campus).
The report published yesterday tangentially mentions a few non-athletic circumstances which led students to paper classes, including being survivors of trauma and living with mental illness. To say that students took paper classes simply out of entitlement or laziness ignores the degree to which students’ diverse circumstances can decrease their ability to successfully complete full-time course loads.
If a student wishes to take a light course load, why stop them? Students should not need to prove that they are sick enough, traumatized enough, distracted enough or graduating soon enough to earn permission to reduce their course load to a level that is appropriate for them.
Maggie Owens
Senior
Linguistics, philosophy
