For the disadvantaged students that attend Pierce College – the veterans, the first-generation college attendees, and the disabled – priority registration is one of the most important things in allowing them to attend college.
The argument over the distribution of priority registration is a heated one, and I believe the administration can come to a compromise to help not only those they consider disadvantaged, but also other students that demonstrate need of priority registration.
Currently, priority registration is only given to students who are part of Extended Opportunity Program and Services (EOPS), Special Services, Foster and Kinship Care Education (FKCE), or are eligible for Veteran’s Administration (VA) benefits.
This is fair, considering that the students participating in these programs have conditions that are far out of the ordinary for the majority of the Pierce population.
These conditions make attending school difficult, if not impossible, under normal circumstances.
The students in these programs are also a minority within the Pierce community, which prevents the advantage of priority registration from significantly affecting the availability of classes for the rest of the student population.
In fact, these students face the same issues that plague the majority of Pierce students, including inability to get necessary math, science and English classes, as well as registration procrastination.
For the students who don’t qualify for priority registration at Pierce, all they have is to try year after year to get the one or two classes they so desperately need to transfer and move on in college.
Other academically prepared students find those same crowded classrooms and are faced with the same issue as the nearly transferable students: the inability to get classes because of classroom shoppers.
In light of the new Three Attempts Policy announced in February, I believe the Pierce administration should make some allowances for both near-transferable students and the academically successful.
Those who would like to participate would submit documentation of their needs to the Admissions Office three months before the registration date to show their dedication to getting priority registration, allowing time for cancellation and processing.
This would enable students who really need those classes to get them, while reducing the class drop rate by reducing the chances for classroom shoppers to join and take up space.
With the increasing difficulty of paying for college, it is not fair to shunt aside disadvantaged students, but the needs of other students shouldn’t be ignored when allowances can be made to help the neediest of the majority.
