Following discussion with program coordinators, certificate directors, and directors of graduate study, as well as with department heads and associate deans, we now have a process for coordinators to request a course release in lieu of salary supplement.
Please view the document for details. Questions can be directed to department heads.
Starting in spring 2026, UGA will implement a new class schedule designed to improve consistency and reduce conflicts for students and faculty. The semester begins on Monday, Jan. 12, and classes will now follow new time formats including 55-minute sessions on MWF and 80-minute sessions for MW, WF, and TR courses. This change aims to create more uniform start and end times across campus. Classes will also begin later in the morning, with start times for 55-minute blocks on MWF beginning at 8:40 a.m. and 80-minute blocks beginning at 8:15 a.m. Class start times can be found on the Office of the Registrar website.
Spring 2026 drop/add runs through Friday, Jan. 16, and the first major break comes with spring break from March 9-13. Classes resume on Monday, March 16, and the semester concludes on Monday, April 27, followed by exams through Tuesday, May 5. Commencement ceremonies will take place May 7-8, marking the end of the first term on the new schedule.
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The Mary Frances Early College of Education invites all students, faculty, and staff to participate in the Spirit of Thanksgiving Food Drive from Monday, Nov. 17-Tuesday, Nov. 25. Please donate non-perishable food items at the following locations:
The Food Bank provided us with a list of the most requested items:
This list provides food items currently on sale. Please do not donate expired food or food in glass jars.
Please use this form if you prefer to make a monetary donation. Thank you in advance for your contributions!
UGA Transportation & Parking Services’ (TPS) annual Operation Safe Drive will be held on Thursday, Nov. 20. Operation Safe Drive helps drivers prepare for safe travels during the holidays by providing free vehicle inspections by TPS mechanics—all at no cost.
Join us for a retirement celebration in honor of Anne McDonald on Friday, Dec. 5. Come enjoy cake and refreshments, and help us wish Anne well as she begins her next chapter!
Please be mindful of the policies below for final examinations, assignments, and assessments during the final weeks of the semester.
Final examination policy
A final examination schedule is produced each semester by the Office of the Vice President for Instruction. No time and date departures from the examination schedule should occur without prior approval of the dean of the school or college and the vice president for instruction. Similar advance approval also must be obtained to administer standardized, departmental “mass” examinations to groups of students enrolled in the same course.
Although there are special courses where a final examination of the regular type may not be appropriate, each student must be provided the opportunity to stand for a final examination as part of the completion of a full instructional term. Each instructor has the authority to design and administer the final examination in whatever manner is appropriate. Additionally, the instructor has the authority to structure the course syllabus and content so that the final examination may be a summative evaluation of the entire term’s work or a portion of the term’s work. Take-home exams are permissible as long as the exams are not due earlier than the final examination time slot as assigned by the University.
Final examination schedule conflicts
With the consent of the academic department, the individual faculty instructor has authority to manage students who have conflicts with the final examination schedule. A student with three final examinations scheduled within a twenty-four (24) hour period or two examinations at the same time may petition to reschedule one exam to a different time or day. If one of the conflicting final examinations is a mass exam, then it will be rescheduled for that student. The instructions for rescheduling are located on the Office of the Registrar website.
Policy on mandatory assignments, tests, and quizzes on Reading Day and the final instructional day of a course
UGA Experiential Learning has reached out to the Office of Clinical Practice to facilitate nominations for the confidential Ready to Thrive Scholarship. The Ready to Thrive Scholarship is a need-based scholarship program that is open to undergraduate students with demonstrated financial need who are pursuing approved experiential learning activities required for their major (practicum, clinical practice) during the spring 2026 semester. You are uniquely situated to identify candidates who could benefit from this scholarship. Please consider making a nomination through the online survey.
Please do not disclose nominations to the students with whom you are working.
For more information, please contact Anna Hiers in the Office of Clinical Practice at ahiers@uga.edu or 706-542-9836.
Due to several scheduling conflicts, our November Staff Representative Group (SRG) meeting will be held on Friday, Nov. 21. There will be no meeting on the regularly scheduled date of Monday, Nov. 17.
All staff are welcome to attend SRG meetings! If you have questions, please email coesrg@uga.edu.
IRB office hours
For virtual attendance, please register. For in-person attendance, stop by Tucker Hall Room 124—no registration required.
Your happiness and self-fulfillment might have a direct impact on how creative you are, according to new research from the University of Georgia.
Researchers from the UGA Mary Frances Early College of Education found that positive emotions can translate to increased engagement in creative activities like drawing, writing and playing music.
This study suggests that day-to-day emotions are more influential than personality when it comes to engaging with creative actions. And that creativity may also improve well-being.
“When people are more creative, they tend to feel better. But at the same time, when they feel positive emotions, they tend to be more creative,” said Sakhavat Mammadov, lead author of the study and an associate professor in the Department of Educational Psychology. “Positivity was a robust predictor of not only today’s creativity but tomorrow’s creativity as well.”