Returning to campus after a few years of online learning has brought unexpected challenges for Delta’s students. Despite administrative efforts to balance online, hybrid, and in-person classes, the concentration of students on Tuesdays and Thursdays has stretched resources and left many students with fewer practical options for attending in-person classes on other days.
Computer science major J’son Brady described his experience with the scheduling dilemma.
“A lot of the classes I needed were Tuesday, Thursday classes and were conflicting,” said Brady. “I had to choose between my options and push the others out until next semester.”
To make matters worse, he noted that classes fill up quickly due to the limited scheduling options. “If you’re not fast enough, you could easily miss out on the class you need, and it’s getting harder to find alternatives.”
He added that if this pattern continues, it could end up delaying his projected graduation date.
Director of Marketing and Communications, Alex Breitler, shared that 25 percent of courses this fall are scheduled on Tuesdays and Thursdays, while 20 percent are held on Mondays and Wednesdays, and another 6 percent Monday/Wednesday/Friday. The remaining 49 percent are online or hybrid courses.
For comparison, he further explains that in 2019, around 30 percent of classes were Tuesday/Thursday, 20 percent were Monday/Wednesday, and 11 percent were Monday/Wednesday/Friday, with 39 percent of courses being online or hybrid.
This shift is reflected in the number of courses offered: in Fall 2019, there were 599 classes scheduled for T/Th, 406 for M/W, and 220 for MWF. By Fall 2024, those numbers dropped significantly, with only 302 T/Th classes, 247 M/W classes, and 79 MWF classes.
Regarding in-person class offerings between 2019 and 2024, Breitler noted that while the overall number of in-person classes has decreased due to the significant shift toward online learning, the distribution of class schedules has remained relatively consistent.
“There has not been a major change in the ratio of M/W, T/Th, or MWF classes. We do have somewhat more T/Th classes than M/W classes, but that was the case even before COVID, and the ratio hasn’t changed all that much,” said Breitler.
While these reports suggest minimal changes, students and staff have noticed busier conditions on Tuesdays and Thursdays compared to M/W or MWF schedules. The high concentration of students on these days has led to greater utilization of campus resources, such as the food pantry, which sees a spike in demand.
In fact, the presence of more students on Tuesdays and Thursdays seems to be straining these campus resources.
“We’ve been serving 600 students each week, with around 300 coming in on Tuesdays alone,” said Valerie Valera, student program assistant with the food pantry, in a recent Collegian article.
Despite their efforts to help fight food insecurities and inflation, signs posted on the pantry windows indicate ongoing food demand challenges. This underscores the struggle to keep up with the influx of students on Tuesdays contributing to these resource limitations.
Transitioning from the challenges faced by the college pantry, the impact of these scheduling decisions is also highlighted by alumni experiences.
Breanne Martinez, a recent Delta graduate and mother who attended pre- and post-COVID, reflects this impact.
“MWF worked better because I have kids. I went to school during their school time… Night classes were also easier because people were more inclined to watch my kids,” Martinez explained. “The point I’m making is the return of a more flexible schedule could best benefit the parent-student lifestyle.”
Breitler acknowledged these concerns, stating, “we want to do better at offering schedules that work for students — many of whom, as you pointed out, are working or raising young children and may not find our schedules to be convenient.”
He explained that the college is implementing a Strategic Enrollment Plan to improve scheduling, technology, and support services.
“That plan involves looking at the technology tools that we have, our enrollment goals, our marketing and outreach efforts, the programs that we offer, social justice and equity, and many other pieces of the puzzle to determine how we can lead to better outcomes for students,” said Breitler.
