PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — At its regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday, April 7, 2009, the faculty of Brown University took action on a proposal to eliminate observance of the Columbus Day holiday from the University's academic calendar and to designate the second Monday of October as Fall Weekend holiday. The Faculty Executive Committee released the following statement Wednesday:

Since fall 2008, faculty, staff and student committees at Brown have discussed proposals to eliminate the formal observance of Columbus Day.  At its meeting yesterday (Tuesday, April 7, 2009), the Brown faculty voted by majority to amend the Faculty Rules and Regulations to designate the second Monday of October as the Fall Weekend holiday. Modifications to the University’s academic calendar require a vote of the faculty. Following much discussion, the vote was not unanimous, reflecting the difficulty and complexity of this sensitive and symbolic issue.