Smart scheduling leads to smart construction planning

University Business, July, 2004

At Texas Christian University, enrollment has jumped from about 6,500 students four years ago to more than 8,000 currently (an increase of more than 23%), which had the school scrambling to build additional facilities.

However, new structures take time-usually anywhere from two years to five years-to plan, fund, and build. "It's not just increases to the student body. You also have to increase the number of faculty, and with those two factors, we were losing one to two classrooms a year as we grew," says Registrar Patrick Miller. In addition, with the construction of each new building comes the increased cost of maintaining, staffing, and heating and cooling the structure.

Already faced with an overcrowding problem, the university decided to construct two new buildings, which combined would give it another 14 classrooms. Because these buildings would not be complete for a number of years, the problem officials faced was what to do in the interim.

Cost Savings

TCU turned to Astra Schedule [www.astraschedule.com], an academic scheduling software program, and has been able to find enough space to accommodate the overcrowding until the new buildings are completed, saving tens of thousands of dollars in the process.

"We avoided the need for portables or temporary classrooms," Miller says. "Without Astra Schedule, we would have definitely been in portables at least two years ago."

Astra Schedule is able to look at such factors as enrollment trends, student demand, and campus space utilization and deliver an academic schedule that maximizes the amount of available space on campus, getting the most out of the existing space at the institution.

"When we select a product, we are actually looking for a vendor with which we can establish a long term partnership. As a partner, they make our concerns and problems their own and seek solutions" says Miller. Astra Schedule has helped over 300 colleges and universities like Texas Christian University solve their academic scheduling challenges.