By Courtney Denton
Besides getting the routine course syllabus and instructor’s office hours, on the first day of class most students learned about an easier way to reach instructors by phone – direct dialing their offices.
A new telephone system, installed over the holiday break, allows callers to bypass the electronic switchboard by dialing 224 – 0 and the person’s three-digit extension number.
The direct dialing is made possible by a Northern Telecom Meridian 1 switch installed by GTE at a cost of approximately $77,000.
Pat Reed, director of purchasing, said, "the switch saves money and gives callers an other option."
Previously, when the college’s main number was busy, callers were automatically rolled down to a series of other lines provided by Ameritech to an available one where the electronic switchboard would pick up.
Reed said the installation of the new switch allowed 12 of those lines to be disconnected, resulting in a savings of about $240 a month.
The new switch also saves time for the caller by eliminating the electronic switchboard for callers that know extension numbers of the offices they are trying to reach.
"By upgrading (with this switch), we are now 2000 compliant as well as E-9-1-1 compliant as mandated by the State of Illinois," Reed added. "The analog and digital cards are now standardized which makes future equipment additions less complicated."
It is too early to tell how much the new equipment has impacted the switchboard, Reed said, especially since not everyone is aware of the change. She added that it is important to remember that the electronic switchboard is still in place and a live operator is available during class hours Monday through Friday.
1/28/99 the Apache