Familiar technology will take on a new purpose at the college when the Advising and Counseling and Multicultural centers begin using a new paging system for students. The pagers are the same kinds most people are familiar with in restaurants that let patrons know when a table is ready. This time it will be used to let students know that they are next in line to see an advisor.
During peak times, the Advising and Counseling Center can see between 300 and 500 students each day. This can lead to long wait times for students who, so far, had to wait in the chairs outside the offices for their name or number to be called. The new system will allow students waiting to see an advisor to roam the campus and still make it back for their turn.
“It’s not going to eliminate long lines,” said Oscar Lopez, vice president for student success and enrollment management, “but it will give students an opportunity to use the wait time wisely to take care of other business.” Signal repeaters, a total of six, are going to be setup around the college so that students can easily take care of other business in the Student Services Center as well as being able to go to the library or division offices and still receive a page for their advising appointment.
With the Who’s Next software advising added last year, the staff can see if there will be an extended wait for a student and checkout a pager to that student. The software can log the pager number so the next student is called just five minutes before an advisor can see them to limit any wasted time for students. Maps will show students where they can travel around the campus in range of the pager system, with the parking areas and walking trails being out of range but the interior of the campus covered. Oscar hopes the handout, once it is developed, also will encourage students to make wise use of their time to visit other student services offices and complete business there while waiting.
Restaurants, car repair shops and some hospitals commonly use the kind of pager system as a way to contact specific individuals who are part of a larger group who are waiting. Integrated with the Who’s Next software, advising staff also can track who has a pager and put a block on the student’s record if they fail to return the item. Students can face a $40 charge for a lost pager.
The new system will roll out in the summer with the Multicultural Center using the pagers first. Both centers have their own stock of pagers in different colors and marked with the college’s logo and center name so students know where to go. The Multicultural Center has 50 green pagers that will be the first put into use. It’s likely that this office will use the system year-round. The Advising and Counseling Center will begin use of the pagers in August and plans to use the system for peak registration times only.
