Prohibition of Class Recess Due Dates

Instructors of UWM classes (whether the class is online, hybrid, or face-to-face) are prohibited from setting course due dates that occur during class recesses or on legal holidays that are listed in the UWM Academic Calendar. 

Official recesses listed in the UWM Academic Calendar currently include Fall Recess, which occurs from the Wednesday before Thanksgiving through the Sunday following Thanksgiving, and Spring Recess, which occurs for a full week Sunday through Saturday during the Spring Semester. Additionally, this prohibition will extend to any future “recesses” from classes that are listed in an upcoming approved UWM Academic Calendar.  

Legal holidays currently listed in the UWM Academic Calendar include New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Eve, or their “observed” dates as listed in the UWM Academic Calendar. Additionally, if any legal holidays are added to the UWM Academic Calendar, this prohibition will also apply to them. 

Students and instructors need recess times away to rest and recharge. Students and employees should not be expected to perform classwork on legal holidays. 

Even in face-to-face classes, due to the usage of Canvas or other electronic means for making and collecting assignments, but especially in online classes, students report frustration when instructors expect assignments, sometimes even quizzes or tests, to be collected during class recesses. 

This policy makes clear that recesses and observance of legal holidays apply to all modalities of classes.