This morning, BYU-Idaho announced that it will be requiring all students to earn a minor in marriage preparation in the wake of declining marriage rates at the University. President Alvin F. Meredith released a statement explaining the change. 

“One goal that Sister Meredith and I have is to find ways to facilitate a more positive culture around dating and marriage," President Meredith said. “As I heard President Oaks’ message this last General Conference, I began to wonder if we could do more. That’s when we started to talk with the Marriage and Family Studies and Religion Departments about the possibility of expanding the size of their marriage prep classes to make earning this minor possible.” 

Students will now be required to take all three of these classes to earn this minor: 

• Marriage Skills
• Dating and Prep for Marriage
• Preparing for Eternal Marriage 

Some students are excited about the addition to their course load. Sara Jonsen is from England, and she’s majoring in marriage and family studies. She feels the addition of this required minor will help more guys develop the courage to ask girls out.

“So many guys are just being bloody chickens,” Jonsen said. “I’m excited for these blokes to get on it and take me out on more dates! I’ve had so many guy friends talk about how scared they are to approach my friends. I hope these classes can help ease the tension so we can start having fun with it.”

Others have not reacted to this news with as much enthusiasm. Marc Juliano, a psychology major from Denver, Colorado, has reservations. 

“I just feel like this is one more way for the school to put pressure on us to get married,” Juliano said. “Too many people get engaged after dating for like three months. It’s just not a smart way to do things. I believe in waiting at least six months before I even think about marriage.” 

“We don’t want anyone to feel more pressure to get married too early,” President Meredith said. “The decision to require students to attend one marriage prep class was made with the idea that these classes would help students get more comfortable with dating. Many students approach serious dating unprepared, and we want to give everyone the chance to catch up.”