When Texas Tech University’s football team plays The University of Kansas Thursday night in Lubbock, some students and faculty will take the day off to attend the 7:30 p.m. game.
Others will be working through the nationally televised contest, administering and taking tests.
Melanee Brown/The Hub@TTU
Students and faculty received an email last Thursday making them aware of the football game and the process involved to set up for it.
The email sent out last week stated campus would not be closing down, but it will instead be up to professors whether or not to have class.
Megan Stout, a senior biology major, said she not only has class on game day, she also has a test at 7 p.m.
“When hearing about the time of the test, the class reacted very poorly,” Stout said. “There were a lot of gasps and moaning in the room.”
The class professor, Douglas Pool, gave students a fair warning on the second day of class that their test was during a football game, Stout said.
Stout said she was aware that rescheduling test in the chemistry department is a difficult task to accomplish, but she believes something could have been done to get the test moved to another time.
Stout said she will have to get a pass from her professor to park in lot R01 or choose to walk from home to take her test.
According to the Texas Tech website, all cars must be out of all commuter north and commuter satellite lots by 4 p.m.. It also says after 3 p.m. no additional student permits will be allowed in satellite, RaiderPark or commuter lots.
Glenn Cummins, director of communication research, said he will be leaving campus at 3:30, when he is required to move his car from his everyday spot in lot R05.
“For me it is going to be easier to leave campus for the day and avoid the traffic,” Cummins said. “It didn’t make sense for me to move my car and walk back to the building for an hour’s worth of work, when I can go to Starbucks and work for an hour there.”
Cummins said he has been adequately informed by the university by email about how campus will operate during the Thursday game. He said he is not required to walk too far to change parking lots, but it would still be easier for him to leave.
There can be alternatives to having class on campus during a Thursday game, according to Cummins. He said he is in favor of having flipped classes, or online reading and responses.
Cummins said the exposure Texas Tech gets from being nationally televised is invaluable. He went on to say we are still an institute of higher learning, and academics needs to be prioritized as well.
Robert Giovannetti, senior associate director of external operations, said the athletics department and university have been working together for months to ensure campus runs smoothly during Thursday’s game.
Melanee Brown/The Hub@TTU
“Parking services are great at what they do,” Giovannetti said. “They had a plan in place, and made it really easy to find space for everyone on campus.”
Giovannetti said parking is the biggest component in having a Thursday game and they want everyone who needs a parking spot on campus to have one.
“If people can just be patient and not get frustrated with system, and give themselves plenty of time to be where they need to be, then everything will be fine,” Giovannetti said.
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