Syracuse University reinstated classes for this year’s SU Showcase. After five years of canceling classes for the annual event, this year, SU Showcase will be a regular instruction day.

Vice Chancellor and Provost Eric Spina sent an e-mail to the university community Friday announcing the change and detailing additional plans for this year’s SU Showcase, which will be held Monday, April 19.

SU’s official academic calendar listed no classes on Tuesday, April 27 for SU Showcase. The calendar changed as of Friday, Spina said.

‘We decided that given the primary objective of SU Showcase to really highlight academic accomplishments that there would be a way to do it with classes in session that could better underline that purpose,’ Spina said. ‘There were an awful lot of things going on that weren’t focused on the central academic message highlighting academic achievement.’

SU Showcase used to be titled MayFest until spring when the university attempted to distance its day of academic activities from the popular Euclid Avenue block party. Controversy surrounded the name change last year prompting students, neighbors and university administrators to gather to discuss the future of the event.

Students overwhelmingly argued the university was infringing on a campus tradition, while neighbors campaigned to put an end to the day of partying. The university insisted its tradition of showcasing academic work would remain.

This year SU Showcase’s theme will be sustainability, a nod to the 40th anniversary of Earth Day and SU’s commitment to become carbon neutral by 2040, as outlined in the university’s climate action plan.

Spina said the SU Showcase planning committee has a long way to go to plan the event. But as of now details include a ‘Teach in Tent’ on the Quad featuring presentations and information on nearby activities.

Plans are not being made for any sort of large-scale performance, the e-mail said.

But Spina was not referring to University Union’s annual block party in the e-mail. The end of the year concert put on by University Union will still be held and is tentatively scheduled for a week after SU Showcase, said Drew Sullivan, director of performing arts for UU.

As of 7 p.m. Friday, a Facebook group titled ‘Operation Rescue MayFest,’ had 540 members. SU’s Student Association posted on the group, informing members that it will hold an open meeting Monday at 7:30 p.m. in Maxwell Auditorium to hear student concerns and discuss the change.

Spina said he wanted to alert the university to the decision early but that plans for the actual event are still in development.

‘We will be working with folks across campus, faculty, students and staff to figure out the best way to reinforce the academic nature of the day,’ Spina said. ‘This is not the end of the conversation, it really is the beginning.’

jmterrus@syr.edu

Published on October 23, 2009 at 12:00 pm