Academic New Year’s Eve……

Because the countdown to the fall semester might not have fireworks, but it definitely has stress.

It’s early August, which in higher ed can only mean one thing: the real show is about to begin. While most people are savoring the last stretch of summer, those of us on campus are knee-deep in a very different kind of preparation.

Think of it as Academic New Year’s Eve, less champagne, more syllabus edits, LMS logins, and “we still need to find an adjunct” conversations. The ball won’t drop, but the emails will.

Here’s what that looks like, depending on your role:

• If you’re faculty, you might be trying to remember how to make your LMS course page look a certain way, or attempting something ambitious that your platform may not even support. You’re realizing that the overhaul you swore you’d make to that one class (or three) might not happen. You’re prepping for department meetings and making peace with whatever version of the syllabus makes it out the door.  And there are some of you (I see you!) who will be in denial that the school year is starting till perhaps the weekend before the first day of class!

• If you’re staff, you’re coordinating move-ins, finalizing welcome-back programming, triple-checking advising schedules, or racing to meet print deadlines. You’re also probably fielding early messages from returning students who forgot their passwords or don’t know which building anything is in.

• If you’re in Academic Affairs or the Dean’s Office, you’re juggling new faculty orientation, fall assembly/colloquium/retreat prep, and onboarding initiatives, all while addressing under-enrolled courses, without further exacerbating overload. You’re trying to manage the ripple effects those decisions have on students, faculty workload, and your budget reality.

I’ve spent the week deep in it, prepping faculty programming, reviewing our course schedules, and working to make sure we launch the year strong (all while working on our upcoming reaffirmation). It’s a lot. But it’s also a reminder that this messy, hopeful, high-stakes scramble is what we signed up for.

So if you’re feeling behind, overwhelmed, or like everyone else is more ready than you, you’re not alone. This time of year brings out both the chaos and the camaraderie. Here’s to showing up anyway.

And if you’re still trying to decide how to start the year differently, try one small change. One new idea. One bold email. It just might set the tone.

ADDENDUM 0803/25: As my colleague, Shawn Bowers noted in my LinkedIn post sharing this blog entry, this is a very exciting time of year for most.  I realized my reflection seemed to dwell on the stressful part of this year and completely ignored the excitement around this time of year.  That oversight likely speaks volumes about where my head is currently, but I did want to add that ever since I was in K-12, the start of the school year has always been a special time for me…even through college, graduate school, and then as faculty and staff.  The start of the new academic year (again, similar to the start of the calendar year) brings a world of possibilities, and I hope you all can relish it as we approach the start of the new academic year!