New system creates lines, frustrations
by Connie Yu, Managing Editor

   College administration is racing to adjust and correct problems in the new network system as it confronts the challenge of a record number of students registering for the spring.
   Only four days after early registration began, more than 8,200 students, almost one-third of the college’s total enrollment last spring, have already completed their registration. And despite the recurring registration trends, such as long lines in front of the registrar, many experienced additional delays and confusions this year.
   “Undoubtedly, it’s been a very frustrating week for students,” Dr. Cathie Jackson, TCC director of admissions and records, said, “and I wish it hasn’t been.”
    Technical difficulties with the new system and students’ lack of knowledge about its changes prompted most of the problems, officials said.
    The biggest issue that irritated many students was the system’s response time, which at its worst lasted as long as 15 minutes per screen, Richard Vela, academic advisor on NE Campus, said.
    Last Tuesday, the first day of early registration, officials shut down the system at 5:30 p.m. after it was overwhelmed by more than 2,500 registration requests.
    “The reason we brought it down on Tuesday was that it just couldn’t handle the workloads,” Jackson said, “and it wasn’t getting any better despite what we could do.”
    Prior to the opening of registration, TCC officials issued warnings that system response time could be prolonged because of the complexity of the new software, but they could not come up with a realistic estimate of how it would impact students.
    “Until you start doing it,” Jackson said, “You don’t quite know it.”
    Since then, the administration has worked with the system vendor to improve the condition, and Jackson said the down time has been reduced.
    A few other technical difficulties, however, continue to hinder the registration process for some students.
    As of Friday, the system still cannot identify prerequisite courses and test completions as designed, blocking many students from registering and requiring lengthy manual overrides by registrar personnel.
     “I am up to my armpit to do just that,” Juan Torres, SE Campus registrar, said Thursday.
    Many students also were forced to go between the counseling center and the registrar because advisors still lack the security clearance to override registration blocks under the new system as their registrar colleagues can do.
    “The students should not have to run back and forth from two offices,” Jackson said, “and we are working to establish that process.”
    On the other hand, Jackson said many students were locked out of the system after repeatedly trying to register with old procedures.
    “[Some students] are simply ignoring the instructions,” she said, “and they don’t realize that the system has changed.”
    Installation of the new system came after TCC Chancellor Leonardo de la Garza’s call in 2001 for a more efficient, integrated and comprehensive administrative software system to replace Legacy, the college’s original in-house system that has evolved through the years.
    The spring registration marks the college’s first major run of the new system, recently renamed TCC Connect, after months of installation, transferring of data and testing.
   When fully installed, the system will feature functions associated with the old system as well as some new features. An improved district-wide database will allow multiple administrative areas to pull from the same records, and students will again have access to transcript requests, course drop requests and graduation petitions online.
    One new function is degree audit (degree plans), where students can do “what if” scenarios for every TCC degree.
    “This is actually a great feature that I think many students will take to,” Jackson said.
    In the meantime, the new system can be confusing and may require additional time and patience from students, officials said.
    According to Jackson, one of the biggest problems has been derived from the more complex password creation. Although she described it as a headache because it seems so convoluted, student records will be safer, she said.
   Security is also the reason printed schedules and account information do not have a student’s name or student number.
   “With any new system, there is always going to be some problems,” Torres said. “[But] everyday, it is working better. People are talking to the vendor, and they are working on it day to day.”