myUH eCheck-In Helps Students at Welcome Center

This Fall, Enterprise Systems (ES) implemented myUH Enrollment Services eCheck-In, a software application designed to facilitate student interaction with staff at the service desk in the UH Welcome Center. eCheck-In provides personalized assistance to students working to resolve important administrative issues, like the arrival of scholarship and student loan funds.

The system, now in continuous use, offers important eCheck-In and queuing services, according to Sandy Frieden, Ph.D., executive director of Student Enrollment Service.

The ES application smoothes the process of getting the students together with Welcome Center staff. Here's how. Students first walk up to the service counter (myUH Enrollment Services HelpDesk) at the Welcome Center. If service counter staff cannot answer a question for a student, the student checks in for additional service on such issues as financial aid and student records. This begins the process known as eCheck-In.

Students who opt to use myUH eCheck-In are scheduled to meet with an Enrollment Services representative who provides help on issues related to academic life, such as financial aid and student records. The staff member can advise the student how long the wait will be to see the next available Enrollment Service representative.

The students keep track of their "wait status" via large screen monitors. Students’ names are listed on the screens located throughout the Welcome Center, with their name moving to the top of the screen as their turn comes to talk to a representative.

The queuing system has worked well for many students, and generated a lot of positive responses as students prepared for the Fall semester, according to Dr. Frieden.

"Very quick and very painless," one student said of the system. "Love the TV screen thing."

"The projectors were awesome," another declared.

Still another said, "I like the new system of checking in for service."

The myUH eCheck-In system was made possible through the use of PeopleSoft development tools, according to Steve Webb, director of student systems in Enterprise Systems. ES application developers Joan Lu, application developer 4, and Annie Wu, application developer 3, used Java and People Tools (Oracle's development environment) in the development of this project. Both Ms. Lu and Ms. Wu work for Mr. Webb.

Application Developer 4, Ziyan Wen, initiated this project while she worked at UH for ES. Ziyan is now at UH Clear Lake.

Curtis Wilson, user services specialist 2 at Streaming Media and Video Production Services, worked with Welcome Center management (particularly Dr. Brooke Durbin, former director of the Welcome Center) and ES personnel to provide projection services. Khalid Bhatti, application developer 4 at ES assisted Wilson in automating images displayed on screens.

The new application emerged from a true collaboration among information technology experts at UH Central and end users and personnel at UH Downtown.