Enrollment Services Again?

Students traveling to Enrollment Services may not find the service they expect. Photo Credit / Kelly Dildine
Students traveling to Enrollment Services may not find the service they expect.
Photo Credit / Kelly Dildine

By Laura Dildine
SC Editor in Chief

In the last issue of the Stroud Courier, Vanessa Scott wrote about the unsatisfactory service of Enrollment Services. Here at the Courier, we are happy to report that Vanessa’s name miraculously managed to be changed to the correct spelling when recently examined—even though she had been told that it was impossible. However, in response to her point about Enrollment Service’s lack of grammatical accuracy, the service center sent out a letter apologizing for bad grammar using bad grammar.

For those grammatical junkies out there, the blatant error was a lack of a comma after an introductory adverb clause. As Blasia Modawar, a senior English major, pointed out, “If they’re going to waste the time, effort, and postage on something like an ‘apology’ for poor grammar, they should at least proofread to make sure that they don’t dig themselves deeper.”

After the newspaper publication last week, Zimbar staff seemed even more depressing, blunt, and unhappy than usual. Like Vanessa, when I go in there, I attempt to compensate for their lack of professional politeness and courtesy, and they are often still rude to me. I realize that not all college students are polite, helpful, or kind, but does that really mean that all of us should be treated like the plague? I hardly think so.

Another problem: many of the Pennsylvania state schools reimburse students within two weeks for monies credited to their account that exceed what they have been billed. I’ve never once received my check (in the eight semesters I’ve been here at ESU) anywhere remotely close to that deadline. It’s understandable if Enrollment Services is waiting for loan offices or the state to pay them, but a month and a half into the semester (or longer) to mail refunds to students can’t be a result of other offices’ inabilities to pay ESU, especially if other schools can manage to refund students on time.

Also, note that students can go and pick up the refund checks for weeks if they go to Enrollment Services and demand it. So, what’s the point to this hoarding of checks? Well, one plausible explanation is that the school is trying to make interest off of that money. If this were true, that kind of behavior would be just plain unacceptable.

Enrollment Services is a vital part of this school. It is what keeps this school running—but, if it can’t keep things straight, how are we the students supposed to keep everything straight? I guess that’s why every student seems to have complaints about Enrollment Services.

Now, for those students who have been sent into the depths of Enrollment services like financial counseling—where cramped offices are stacked high with papers—they realize that the people who work there know exactly what they’re doing. They are kind, helpful, fast, and accommodating. However, the face of our university, the part everyone sees, is what’s lacking.

Stephen Kane, a senior English major, stated, “I’m sorely disappointed about the front-end’s lack of professionalism and customer service. I think that aspect of Enrollment Services fails to realize that it’s representing ESU as a business that the students are paying for, not the other way around.”  Stephen continued, “As for my experiences with financial counseling, I couldn’t be more appreciative.  They really know their stuff.”

I commend Enrollment Services for trying to fix things, for making an effort at professionalism, but, if the service center can’t actually correct what it does, or at least manage a smile for students, then it’s about time the student body puts its foot down to make things better here at ESU.

Email Laura at:
lmd3517@live.esu.edu