September 29, 2006
New tuition payment policy takes effect Oct. 1
CARBONDALE, Ill. -- A change next month in tuition payment practices at Southern Illinois University Carbondale will make it easier for students to ensure they remain registered for classes in upcoming semesters, University officials said.
SIUC Bursar Jill S. Kirkpatrick said that as of Oct. 1, the office will no longer cancel class schedules for students who fail to make their initial tuition payment by the deadline. The new policy will instead prevent students from registering for the next semester until they settle outstanding bursar issues.
The change will allow better communication between the bursar's office and students while the students are still on campus as opposed to the previous policy, which often required students to settle the issues during summer or holiday breaks, Kirkpatrick said. Under the previous policy, once a student missed the deadline and the bursar's office canceled his or her classes, the student had only about a week to settle outstanding issues and regain a class schedule.
Under the new policy, students registering for spring semester will have from October until January to work with the bursar's office to settle any outstanding issues. Officials hope the change provides ample opportunity for students to resolve issues, such as those that arise with financial aid, while still obtaining a favorable class schedule.
"We've been looking at this change for a while and the University's Agility and Efficiency Task Force actually recommended this change," Kirkpatrick said. "The hope is to improve service to students and be able to better work with them while they're on campus."
For more information, call the bursar's office at 618/453-2221 or go tohttp://www.siuc.edu/~policies/policies/installm.html>http://www.siuc.edu/%7epolicies/policies/installm.html on the Web.
Cultivating a mindset of continuous improvement is among the goals of Southern at 150: Building Excellence Through Commitment, the blueprint the University is following as it approaches its 150th anniversary in 2019.