Posted on 01/28/2022 5:57:25 AM PST by billorites
A university's new student messaging system resulted in a costly clerical error after staff members were testing out the technology.
Over the weekend, Central Michigan University mistakenly notified 58 applicants that the school had awarded them full rides and would cover their tuition and room and board plus provide an additional stipend. The same high school seniors were also told that they had been admitted to the school's honors program.
"He was absolutely over the moon when he got the message," the mother of one of the students, 17-year-old Parker Christensen, told CMU's student newspaper. "He was having an out-of-body moment. We all were just shaking with excitement."
It was a mistake. On Sunday, the students were informed that they hadn't won scholarships, after all.
But what could've ended up as huge disappointment for the aspiring college students — and a potential public relations nightmare for Central Michigan — has a happy ending. The school on Wednesday said it would still cover the full cost of the students' tuition "to make it right." In some cases, that means increasing the student's financial award so that it is equivalent to a full-ride scholarship.
Although CMU didn't specify the value of the scholarships, undergraduate tuition at the university is $12,750 per year. Full tuition for 58 students for four years amounts to nearly $3 million.
The university blamed the error on a technical failure and said in a statement to CBS MoneyWatch that staff members were testing a new messaging technology over the weekend.
"CMU staff inadvertently posted a message about the prestigious Centralis Scholar Award that was seen by students who were logged into the system at that time," according to the statement. "The message appeared to indicate the student had received the Centralis Scholarship, when in fact they had not, CMU deeply regrets the disappointment and frustration this mistake caused for students and their families," the school said in a statement.
Christensen is now set to receive a full scholarship, the Central Michigan Life reported, though it's unclear if that will include room and board.
"This is the last thing I expected to happen," he told the paper.
Michigan taxpayers could not be reached for comment.
Fire up, Chips!
“You may already have won....”
Some people need to be fired.
What needed to “be made right” outside of apologizing?
Give them $25 Amazon gift cards—not $3 million.
Those “smart folks” in charge of things now are the most stupid blunderers ever.
What a bunch of maroons.
At this stage, we should ask whose politically-connected kid(s) was part of the “mistake.”
They're not getting $3 million.
All they've offered is free tuition, which essentially costs the university zero dollars.
It costs the university exactly the same amount to run a class if there are 25 or 26 students attending. So the marginal cost for the 26th student is zero.
So the University is losing potential revenue, assuming that all 58 students make it all the way to graduation, but they're not out of pocket any money.
Notice that the University didn't offer free room and board, as the original bogus scholarship offer did? That's because there are actual out-of-pocket costs associated with room and board.
And that student will still need to pay for housing, food, books, student fees, etc.
That was going to be my post. CMU 77
Why wouldn’t a test of messaging technology just say “This is a test”? How did “you win a full scholarship” become part of a test?
That’s like testing the Emergency Broadcast System by announcing a nuke attack.
And these are supposed to be college “educators” qualified to do something???
A coupon for 1/2 off on a happy meal?
“You’re pre-approved...”
Wiki—>On the morning of Saturday, January 13, 2018, a ballistic missile alert was accidentally issued via the Emergency Alert System and Wireless Emergency Alert System over television, radio, and cellphones in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The alert stated that there was an incoming ballistic missile threat to Hawaii, advised residents to seek shelter, and concluded: "This is not a drill".
This is actually a very good analysis. Seriously, thank you for this post.
Good points.
“You’re pre-approved...”
I got that letter too!
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