Classroom attendance on the Monday after Super Bowl Sunday isamong the lowest of the school year, according to data gathered bythe Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) at theUniversity of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).
The CIRP reported fewer students attend class after the SuperBowl than on the day before any large holiday.
"Students tend to treat the classroom like an open house," saidMartha Brown,
biology professor at The University of Memphis. "They show uplate, leave early or just don't show up at all, depending on what'sgoing on around them, and I think Monday's lack of attendance canbe attributed to a combination of the rain and the Super Bowl."
Linda Dodge, a U of M sophomore, opted to stay home Monday andrelax after a busy Sunday evening.
"I'm tired and really didn't feel like going to class today,"she said Monday. "I was up late last night watching the game, and Ijust wanted to stay in and sleep."
Ammar Sakkan, U of M junior engineering major, said decidingwhether or not to go to school Monday was tough.
"I really didn't feel like it because we stayed out and had alot of fun last night," he said. "And when I got to school, myclasses weren't full at all, which made me wish I'd stayedhome."
Another student at The U of M, who asked to remain anonymous,said she had planned to skip class Monday and told her professor inadvance that she had a doctor's appointment.
"Luckily, he didn't ask for a doctor's note," she said. "I justwanted to drink as much as I wanted Sunday and deal with thehangover in my bed, not in class."
Some professors prepare for the low attendance levels and rewardstudents who make it to class.
"My professor made us write our names on a piece of paper andturn it in for a quiz grade," said Sakkan. "He said it would be ahefty blow to the people who were absent."
Other students agree that the Super Bowl is an occasion worthmissing class.
"I don't have class on Mondays," said Reginald Wilson, a seniorEnglish major. "But if I did, I would make allowances. The SuperBowl only comes once a year."
