PR2009 Jun U2

SHELTON STATE INTRODUCES NEW HOURS

TUSCALOOSA – Shelton State Community College is changing its work schedule to four and a half days a week through the summer to help conserve energy and money.

The College will now be open Monday through Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., and 8 a.m. to noon on Friday. Each employee was recently given the opportunity to select from five different work schedules that will enable the College to adequately staff offices and to accommodate students in early morning and evening classes that meet Monday through Thursday. The schedules include: 7:30 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday with a 30-minute lunch; 8 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. with a 30-minute lunch; 8:30 a.m. – 6 p.m. with a 30-minute lunch; 7:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. with an hour lunch; and 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. with an hour lunch. The new work schedule will be implemented on June 1. Summer term classes began on May 28.

Since Shelton holds no classes on Fridays, Shelton State President Dr. Mark Heinrich says the move just makes sense for several reasons.

“Since we have no classes meeting on Fridays, we saw a negligible amount of business being transacted here on Friday afternoons,” says Heinrich. “We see this new schedule as a potential win-win on many fronts. With the variety of scheduling available to them, Shelton State employees can still work the same amount of time, yet have the benefit of closing at noon on Friday. Plus, we will still be able to meet the needs of our students. Finally, over the course of the summer it should allow us to save money, which in turn translates into more that we can do for our students.”

The Alabama Board of Education recently approved a revision to a policy that now allows college presidents the flexibility to establish alternatives to a five-day week during the current economic crisis.

For more information on Shelton State Community College, call 205-391-2211 or log on to its Web site at http://www.sheltonstate.edu/.