The Thursday Night Football Game Committee was formed as a special committee this semester to investigate necessary changes to the Fall 2011 schedule to accommodate the Thursday night, on-campus football game with Louisiana State University. Faculty Senate President Hart Bailey chaired the committee, which had as members Dr. Walter Diehl, Dr. Peter Ryan, Mr. Thomas Sellers, Mr. Butch Stokes, Mr. Scott Strickin, and Ms. Mary Vaughn. The committee's report has been accepted, and the changes have been approved by President Keenum. In addition to the accepted recommendations below, there also is an approved action for the working hours of staff on Thursday, Sept. 15, which is item (2) below.
Listed below are the approved actions that will be taken to accommodate the Thursday night game:
1. Cancellation of Classes on Thursday, September 15. No classes on the Starkville campus will meet on Thursday, Sept. 15. Classes will meet on Friday, Sept. 16 as scheduled.
2. Early Dismissal of Staff on Thursday, Sept. 15. All non-essential staff will be released at noon on Thursday, Sept. 15 in anticipation of the mass influx of fans to campus in the afternoon. Staff members should check with their supervisors to determine if their services will be needed in the afternoon.
3. Scheduling of Fall Break. Fall break will consist of the first two days of the week of Thanksgiving: Monday, Nov. 21, and Tuesday, Nov. 22. Thus, there will be no classes for students during the week of Thanksgiving. The university will be open November 21, 22 and 23.
4. Last Day of Class. The last day of class in the Fall 2011 semester will be Friday, Dec. 2. This will give a full week of classes after returning from Thanksgiving. Final exams will begin on Monday, Dec. 5 and extend through Friday, Dec. 9. Commencement will be on Friday, Dec. 9 at 7 p.m.