The House Study Committee on Assessing the Semester and Quarter Systems at USG and TCSG Institutions, chaired by State Representative Shaw Blackmon (R-Bonaire), will hold its first meeting on Tuesday, August 20, 2024, at 10 a.m. at the Bishop Field House in Statesboro.
The study committee was created following the passage of House Resolution 1384 earlier this year. The committee is charged with undertaking an assessment of “the conditions, needs, issues, and problems related to the quarter and semester programs and recommend any action or legislation which the committee deems necessary or appropriate.
The University System of Georgia moved from quarters to semester in 1999 and the Technical College System of Georgia moved from quarters to semesters in 2011.
Lawmakers now think it would be beneficial “to examine respective advantages and disadvantages of semesters and quarters for institutions of the University System of Georgia and the Technical College System of Georgia and whether the anticipated benefits of converting to the semester system have been realized.”
From the resolution:
- with the conversion from the quarter system to the semester system, certain benefits were anticipated. Among these were alignment of curricula within and across systems to facilitate transfer of courses, increased administrative efficiencies, and reduced administrative costs;
- because the conversion from the quarter system to the semester system has resulted in longer terms with more classes and fewer graduation cycles, some question whether semesters are the better option for students or for workforce development
The meeting will be live-streamed here.
