IN LINE WITH THE FANTASTIC FIVE

BACK STORY:

Tuition for spring 2012 courses was due at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 9.

Individuals who did not make the deadline date (approximately 1,000 indviduals) were dropped from courses which opened up many previously closed courses.

At 8 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 10, in-person registration opened up and courses were available to students on a first-come first-served basis.

There are usually between 500-800 students in line. Ironically, for a day that may appear hectic to the outsider, the day runs smoothly and turns out to be a fun, successful and happy day for many of our students.

As the Associate Dean in Enrollment Services, it is my responsibility to help ensure that the 'registration' process runs smoothly. (Along with major help from Student Development, deans from various academic divisions, volunteers, cashiers, public safety and other critical departments.)

So, for fun and to gather input from our students, I like to obtain feedback directly from them. This morning, I decided to talk with the first five students in line.

(Above photo indicates the time each student arrived - the prior day.)

After sitting/sprawled on a hard cold floor and being up all night, I have to say my first impression of the Fantastic Five was very positive. They were all in great spirits, quick-witted and humored me during our interview session. When I asked each of the five if they would each be willing to be featured in the blog, they all responded positively and of course, laughed!

Our first student in line, Charlie Lisk, arrived at 1:30 p.m. - He had his sleeping bag and was in good spirits when I spoke to him. For Charlie, he needed an entire schedule because, for reasons beyond his control, at the last moment, he needed to attend SCC this semester. Charlie is taking mostly nursing pre-requisites. Charlie spent his time watching movies and sleeping. This is the second time Charlie has waited in the 'post-purge' line.

The second student in line, Morgan Bauer, arrived at 5 p.m. - Morgan needed to add chemistry and nursing classes to her schedule; the classes were previoulsy closed. Morgan was very funny and said she would never 'do this' again - but alas, here she is. This is Morgan's second time to wait in the big honkin' line. She passed the time by playing games on her phone, iPod and mingling with her fellow line buddies. Next time if Morgan does 'this' again she is going to bring more blankets.

The third student in line, Mallory Acklin, arrived at 5:30 p.m. - Mallory needed a biology course for graduation and this was her first time to wait in line. Mallory was also in good spirits and felt it was worth the wait since she needed this course for graduation. She was still not sure where she was attending after graduation - so, I named every four-year Missouri college I could think of and we talked about how cool it would be to earn a BA/BS degree here at SCC and never leave ever!!!! Joking...sort of...

The fourth student in line, 'Just Anthony,' arrived at 5:40 p.m. - 'Just' was a tad quiet but was very quick-witted and sparred with me - which is a big plus in my opinion. This is Anthony's sixth time to wait in the post-purge line! No wonder he did not want to give me his last name. (LOL!..joking). Anthony was primarily after a physical science and a history course. And since he was basically a waiting in-line expert, I asked if he had any advice for others - - stated simply, 'maybe register early.'

The fifth student in line, Alexis Crownover, arrived at 5:45 p.m. - Alexis descended from a royal family in Holland....okay...not really....but that would be really cool...Alexis had a 'not so good' schedule and she wanted to get a better schedule. Alexis is transferring to UMSL and spent her time while waiting playing on her computer. Alexis's boyfriend also sat with her the entire night. Nice guy, right? She owes him. He waited in line to keep her company.

The end of the line: Well, it was time for me to jump back to Enrollment Services to begin the registration process.

Each of the five students got the courses they needed/wanted. I do not have any hard data at this point, but I registered about a billion students that morning and quite honestly, I did not have one disgruntled student or one complaint. I did not receive one complaint from any of our awesome enrollment service assistants - so, in my humble opinion, the day went well!

Thanks again to all of the volunteers and others who help make this day a success. And thanks to our students for being cooperative and patient!