THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY,OCTOBER 26,2010
WWW.KANSAN.COM
VOLUME 123 ISSUE 47
TRICKY TREATS
Beware Halloween sweet tooth
CAMPUS
CLAS hold pauses enrollment for seniors
BY ANGELIQUE MCNAUGHTON
amcnaughton@kansan.com
When Zach Zastrow went to enroll in classes for the spring semester, he had a hold on his account from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. He tried to find information about it, but anything he found was too vague.
Zastrow is one of 2700 seniors who had a hold placed on their accounts on Sept. 28. Students who were given the hold have completed 90 hours or more, excluding the hours they are currently taking. Students who are graduating this semester and have applied for graduation did not receive a hold. This is the first year the college is placing this particular hold.
"So far it hasn't been a great experience and I've missed my enrollment by a few days," said Zastrow, a senior from Overland Park. "A lot of classes I'm trying to get into, you have to get permission codes for them and they're small classes and competitive."
Kim McNeley, assistant dean for student academic services for the college, said she felt the hold was the best way to catch students' attention if their graduation plans were not on track.
The holds are the college's attempt to assess and communicate students' progress and status to ensure a timely graduation. The effort is part of the University's overall
"We just want to make sure you are making those last, final decisions," McNeley
slions, McNeiley said.
up to 24 percent of students were denied graduation because they didn't meet the degree requirements. McNeley said the number is still at about 18 percent despite increased communication efforts through e-mail to encourage students to do an early audit the se-
goal to increase graduation rates. It's also the college's response to the overwhelmingly high percent of students being denied graduation over the last several years.
"We've had really disappointing graduation numbers," McNeley said.
McNeley said that in the past,
"We just want to make sure you are making those last, final decisions."
KIM MCNELEY CLAS assistant dean
mester before graduation.
Administrators have said they hope the status check with graduation advisers will lower those numbers.
Students who received the hold were sent an e-mail notifying them of an academic notice available at the kyou portal. Students then are required to complete a survey as the first step in getting the hold re-
"If we're sharing in this responsibil
ity, we can't keep doing the same thing and expecting a different outcome," McNeyle said.
If there are any hours that didn't transfer or numbers that don't match up, students will be alerted that they may not graduate as expected.
Out of about 2700 holds, 1300 students have responded. McNeyley said 400 of those students have needed appointments with graduation advisors.
A few weeks ago, Josh Finnicum received the notification for the hold and said it hasn't really affected his enrollment.
moved. The survey walks students through a review of their ARTS form.
"Overall, it's not bad," Finnicum said. "It's just kind of a pain in the ass and more to deal with."
Finnicum, a senior from Omaha, Neb., did have to make an appointment to get the hold removed.
Lauren McEnaney, a graduate advisor, said she hasn't heard of any problems and most of the students she has met with have been appreciative.
SEE HOLD ON PAGE 3A
SPANISH | 6A
The class could be an option for students looking to learn Spanish without majoring in the language.
Church offers Spanish class
NUTRITION]3A Healthy options for coffee
INDEX
Prepared correctly, coffee can have a lower calorie count
Classifieds...8A
Crossword...4A
Cryptoquips...4A
Opinion...5A
Sports...10A
Sudoku...4A
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