By Charles Roberts


Last week I noticed I had not yet received any information of when I should register using the new SABRE program for fall registration. Being the nosey journalism student that I am, I decided it would be wise to look into the matter.

Upon calling the registrar’s office, I was told I had a hold on my account. However, this was no ordinary hold, it was a large one. Over the course of the fall and spring semester I had accumulated $240 worth of parking tickets. Yikes. It may sound crazy, but I am not the only one.

“There are several students who completely disregard the (parking) rules,” said Barbara Myer, assistant director for finance.

Failure to pay parking tickets and overdue library fines causes a “hold” to be placed on the delinquent student’s file. With a hold on account, students can not register for class, or, in some instances, graduate until the hold is settled.

“Seniors have been surprised many times,” Myer added, making reference to seniors who come to their last semester with a hold on file.

Transcripts of should-be graduates are held until the account is completely paid off.

A representative of the Student Accounts office said a handful of students accumulate fines similar to mine and sometimes larger every semester.

Running late to class and losing patience while looking for “student legal” parking spaces causes students to park illegally. However, these excuses do not pay the parking fine of $15. Failure to pay the fine within 10 days results in the fine doubling.

“Some students think they can park wherever they want. It’s unfortunate and completely inconsiderate to everyone on campus,” Myer added.