By André Green/se news editor

The Bookstore topped the list of concerns when SE Campus students met with faculty and administrators during two student forums last week.

President Judith Carrier welcomed students and thanked them for their participation.
“ This is our chance to hear from you,” she said.

The students were broken into six groups and instructed to write any questions they had on a provided board. The faculty and administrators rotated every 15 minutes to give every group equal time.

Jimmy Boudrin, a night student, asked why the bookstore’s hours of operation did not include Saturdays.

Anna Caesar, Follett textbook manager, said because there are not many Saturday classes, there isn’t a benefit to opening the store.

“ Usually, when there is nothing going on, the air and heat aren’t even on,” she said. “It basically comes down to money.”

Danchees Ingram had concerns about Follett as well.

When she purchased her textbooks, she was given incorrect material not once, but twice.

Getting a refund was not an issue for her, Ingram said. But getting the correct course material was.

Ingram said she had opened the books, but had problems returning the items because of Follett’s return policy. 

She felt she was wrongly penalized because she did not use the books even though she opened them.

“ I wasn’t asking for my money back,” she said. “I just wanted to exchange them because I was given the wrong ones to begin with.

“ I had to return my books two times and was never offered a refund.”

Caesar said that students who have the same problem should seek a store manager to assist them.

“ That shouldn’t be a problem,” she said. “[Students should] come and find one of the managers, and we will fix it as long as you have a receipt.”

Students also expressed concern about book prices and availability.

Cathy Kemper, interim vice president of instruction, said the district is looking at alternative ways to save student’s time, money and grief regarding textbooks.

“ We are looking at adopting the same books for all campuses to help with textbook prices and availability,” she said.

Sarah Abredraboh, student and recruiter for Six Flags Over Texas, said she wanted to know what could be done regarding ad placement.

She often places employment material in the Bistro but wants to put it in other places throughout the school but cannot because of student activity’s advertisement rules.

“ You must meet an agenda with student services in order to post your information,” she said. “Working for Six Flags makes it hard to change the information to fit what student services want. There should be more places, other than the Bistro, to place information.”

Boudrin said he noticed older people, including himself, who are not big on soft drinks or energy drinks. He asked why there was not a place for students to get coffee after hours.

“ I am taking 16 hours, and I work a full time job,” he said. “I stopped drinking energy drinks and soda, so I’m left with only coffee.”

Rusty Fox, vice president for student developmental services and forum moderator, said the coffee situation was something that could be simple to rectify.

Fox and Peak said student organizations could use the situation as a fundraising opportunity that would be beneficial to everyone.

“ That’s something we might be able to work on as soon as next week,” Fox said.

Other student questions ranged from the availability of fast food on campus to extended library hours.

Fox said some solutions could come soon while others may take some time.

“ We revisit some of these issues every year,” he said. “We are always looking for ways to address the students’ needs and concerns.”