Advertised this summer as "a convenient, flexible and easier-to-use alternative to cash" the new Dash card has turned out to be a big headache.
The flyer sent home to students in August tried to sell the so-called "exciting new program" rather than inform students about how the dramatic change in billing would affect their daily lives. The flyer was so confusing that some students simply chose not to read it closely or to throw it away.
The College's failure to adequately inform the student body about the ins and outs of the new system was evident at registration yesterday. Many students entered the Hopkins Center wondering if they would be able to buy film passes or subscriptions to student publications, expenses normally charged to their student ID's. In some cases, the students there to collect money for various organizations were just as baffled.
The reason students remain so confused by the Dash system is because the system is just that -- confusing. Every student now has to worry about five different accounts: one for the telephone, one for the dining hall, one for parking and library fines, one for tuition and one for "discretionary" usage.
The last one is the most mystifying.
While the new discretionary account logically includes "extras" like concert tickets and video game tokens, other sizable charges deemed necessary by some students also fall into this category, like fraternity and sorority dues. Many members of the Greek system came to Hanover unaware that such charges, formerly sent home to parents, are now their responsibility.
The fine line between "necessity" and "extra" adds to the pandemonium the new system creates. When a student makes a purchase at Topside, for example, the checker must separately ring up those items deemed essential and those deemed superfluous. While nylons and film are considered extra and come out of the discretionary account, rabbit Pez dispensers and Tender Vittles Moist Cat food are considered necessary and come out of the Declining Balance Account.
There are obviously problems with the current Dash system. Unless changes can be made to make it easier to use and less arbitrary, the program should be eliminated.
