The Banner system for student information was temporarily suspended this morning after a midnight purge dropped 2,400 students from classes because of human error.
Dr. Thomas Cleary, vice chancellor for planning, performance and information systems, said the IT employee responsible for the mistake was "deeply devastated" over the incident.
Cleary explained that the long-standing IT employee didn't extend the drop date from last night to Sept. 2, which caused the 2,400 students to be incorrectly dropped from all their courses.
The purge date was supposed to be moved to Sept. 2 because registration was extended this week, Cleary said during a phone interview today.
He said students who were incorrectly dropped should continue to attend class and they will be re-registered no later than Monday. They have until Sept. 2 to pay.
Cleary said the center for student information at 8300 Pat Booker Road has a list of the students affected by the early purge and will reverse the drop.
This incident was the latest in a string of missteps and mass registration confusion during the first week of the fall semester.
Students lined up at the district's five colleges this week trying to fix registration errors after being dropped for nonpayment. Some were overcharged as out-of-state and international students when they qualified for the in-district rate.
Some problems could not be fixed online on the new student services portal, ACES, under the Banner system and forced students to come to the campus to seek help, often by crisscrossing campus going from department to department.
Thousands were dropped this week because college departments canceled courses that did not have 80 percent of capacity, which in turn affected students' financial aid eligibility.
The Banner system recognized a change in eligibility and dropped students from all of their courses for nonpayment after a series of online purges.
Many students were faced with three-peat tuition rates after trying to re-register for a course despite never taking the class previously.
Additionally, students inadvertently registered for classes at colleges other than their home college. In some cases, their schedules listed classrooms in buildings at Northeast Lakeview College but identified the campus as San Antonio College.
President Robert Zeigler said during a phone interview Tuesday that faculty and staff were being pulled from their regular job duties to assist with registration.
Students interviewed said many times staff at the colleges did not have a clear answer to their questions and they were being told conflicting answers.
At the Aug. 10 Buildings, Grounds and Sites Selection Committee meeting, presidents expressed unease with the new Banner system and ACES portal that handles all student services online.
At the meeting, Palo Alto College President Ana "Cha" Guzman said feedback she received from faculty and staff indicated that Banner preparation training was not of the quality it should have been.
Frustrated students are finally getting into classes this week, sometimes traveling to multiple colleges in the district just to maintain financial aid eligibility and stay on track with degree plans.
Registration for Flex 2,14-week classes or Start 2 courses was expected to resume by Monday, Cleary said.
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