A pilot test of expanded summer course offerings conducted last summer with the College's School of Communication was a huge success, allowing the school to offer 26 courses rather than the 8 it had been prepared to offer. Because there were many new courses to choose from last summer, many Illinois State students chose to stay in the Twin-City area rather than move back home for the summer so that they could take courses in order to finish their degrees sooner. “The College of Arts and Sciences listened to our students and parents who demanded more summer course offerings in order to get students to degree completion faster,” said Dean Olson. “As such, we have adopted a model of funding summer school that allows us to offer courses based on the demand for them.”

The College of Arts and Sciences comprises 16 academic departments covering the sciences, social sciences, and humanities and provides half of the credit hours generated at ISU. The College, however, is not content to provide courses only for ISU students: it plans to advertise its offerings widely to attract students from the University of Illinois, Eastern Illinois University, and a range of other institutions. “We would like to be of service to any students who wish to enroll in a high-quality course during the summer,” said Associate Dean Sally Parry. “This should be particularly attractive to parents who would like to see their daughters and sons graduate in a timely fashion.”

“The Bloomington-Normal community offers a lot to do during the summer such as the Concerts on the Quad series and the Shakespeare festival,” said Dean Olson. “I think students will find the community to be a great place to spend the summer.”

The new expanded summer also benefits Illinois State faculty and the Bloomington-Normal community. In the past, many faculty members have wanted to teach in the summer, but due to limited offerings, only a few faculty members were allowed to teach. On average, a faculty member will earn an additional month's salary for teaching a summer course. More students on campus and more faculty members earning additional salary dollars will mean more money infused into the local economy. "Students win, faculty win, the University wins, and the community wins under the new model," said Dean Olson. "It is rare to come up with a policy that pleases everyone, but in this case, there really are no losers." A complete listing of College summer course offerings is available at http://www.cas.ilstu.edu/summerschool/