This year, student organizations will have a way to reserve meeting places online in an attempt to streamline the process.
At the beginning of this semester, the University unveiled its new online Catalog of Meeting Places and Student Spaces system, which allows Contracted Independent Organizations and other student groups to request rooms for meetings around Grounds.
The system includes a database of over 380 different locations around Grounds and beyond, ranging from classrooms in New Cabell Hall to the basketball courts at the Dell to ballrooms at the Boar's Head Inn.
The COMPASS system was developed as a response to problems with the old system of calling or going to the offices of the various space administrators around Grounds, a system that "favored the 'haves'" at the University, according to Miles Gibson, vice president for management and budget.
"You had to know where you wanted to reserve" in the previous system, Gibson said. "People saw how this could really make their lives easier."
Stephanie Nixon, who administers the spaces in Newcomb Hall, the Student Activities Building and the Chapel, among others, praised the advantages of the COMPASS system.
"People appreciate the convenience," Nixon said, adding that the system still needs to be clearer, but so far she has received mostly "good responses."
COMPASS can be searched for spaces that meet certain criteria, such as the size of the space, type of seating in a room, the presence of audio/visual equipment and fees that might have to be paid for the use of a space. Users also can view an alphabetical list of the spaces, sorted by the building in which they are located. Each space has a short description and information about it along with a link to the administrator specific to the location, and most are accompanied by a picture. Users then have to fill out a form detailing the time and date in which the space is needed and the intended use thereof, including what audio/visual equipment is needed. The system then automatically sends an e-mail request to the facility administrator, who will then respond with whether or not the space will be available for use at the desired time.
By filling out the form, a group is not guaranteed usage of the space, however. "The system is for generating requests," said Gibson, who explained that many need to be reserved quite far in advance.
The Web site suggests that a request for the Dome Room in the Rotunda, for example, be sent a year in advance. Other places, such as classrooms, tend to be regularly available. According to Nixon, the most popular rooms are the multi-use spaces and meeting rooms, which are almost always in use during the prime usage times during the week.
"It's definitely an improvement over the old system," said third-year College student and Dance Marathon Chair Courtney Cherry, who has used the system twice. "Students often keep different hours than a typical business schedule because of classes and other activities. So it's very nice to have this."
She added that COMPASS allows a user to be in contact with an actual person during the process, which she said she finds particularly helpful.
The idea for COMPASS was created two years ago by Chris Husser, a University alumnus and former chair of the Student Information Technology Advisory Committee.
COMPASS was built in part by using programs already in use by the Registrar's office and ITC for such services as ISIS and the Course Offering Directory, and cost the University nothing extra because of this use of existing resources.
So far, the system has had "no problems, and it has run into very little resistance," Gibson said. He added that COMPASS currently is being thought of only as an interim system on the way to buying a full commercial package, but that it should be in place for a while.
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