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Administration readies for Peoplesoft
As the old is replaced by the new, students can expect positive change in administrative and registration processes
By Melissa Knowles
Staff Writer
The SMU administration's new plans for PeopleSoft will eliminate paper and the middle man in every department from registration to the financial aid office to the hassle of changing your address.
"I'm excited to talk about PeopleSoft," said John Hall, SMU Registrar. "We have invested a tremendous amount of energy in this, and we are ready to see some positive results."
Fine-tuning on the system is being completed and, as a result, several SMU offices will be closed Monday.
As of Wednesday, Oct. 4, all old Legacy systems will be shut down, and Information Technology Services will begin implementing PeopleSoft.
Other dates to look for are Oct. 9 when the faculty will be able to use the system to report mid-term grades; and Oct. 16 when students can view their registration appointment time, which replaces the "permit to register" form.
These options will be available to all students for their first two full semesters at SMU.
Students will be able to access their information from virtually any Internet-ready PC in the world with a password and user-ID.
PeopleSoft is a market leading provider of eBusiness application software for Fortune 1000-class corporations.
According to PeopleSoft, their applications put power in the hands of users, are adaptable to the ever-changing nature of modern business and are supported by the highest-quality customer service.
"Implementing PeopleSoft takes a huge burden off the administrative staff, so that we are better able to focus on providing a higher level of service to our students," said Joe Gargiulo, Project Manager for the Integrated Higher Education Project located in Umphrey Lee.
Students will also be able to view classes available, grades, add/drop classes and obtain registration appointments.
In the future, students may be able to request transcripts, view their record, view financial account information and possibly make payments.
PeopleSoft will enable every SMU student to access and update personal information, such as a billing address, without ever having to leave the dorm.
All information will be Web based. The site to look for is www.access.smu
"The Internet is a common pervasive tool of today, and we're making that available to our students," said Allen Hughes, Director of Systems at SMU.
Project Pegasus was developed in 1993 and implemented by a committee of administrators headed by George Chrisman, vice president of Business and Finance, to advance the future plans of technology on campus including the Internet.
Project Pegasus integrated six other universities, including Cornell, Northern Arizona and Houston Community College. The group met quarterly for two years and came up with PeopleSoft.
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