By Emily Lapinski
Printing credits have always rolled over from semester to semester, however, this last summer the system was upgraded and credit balances were deleted. At the beginning of this semester, each student has $100 worth of Greenbucks to use for printing. Whatever is left over at the end of the semester will be voided.
Jill Albin-Hill, vice president for Information Technology, said, “This initiative is to promote sustainability and mindfulness as much as anything else and has cut down on the wasteful printing that happened in the past, saving more than 1 million pages a year.
A black and white page costs 10 cents to print; Albin-Hill said the $100 credit is plenty for most students. “With the movement of so many resources available digitally, we have also seen less than one percent of students go beyond the 1000 pages per semester.”
Some students are frustrated with this change but acknowledge that the move to be more eco-friendly. Senior Emma Hindman said: “While I completely understand Dominican wanting to be more green and less wasteful, I was upset to see $300 that I had saved up from printing over the years disappear this year. As a student, I am expected to print out not only my own assignments but often research articles. That adds up.”
Sophomore Alyssa Domico said: “I think that credits should roll over. If someone decides to conserve their credits from one semester they should be able to use them for the next. Certain classes require more printing then others so it really depends on the semester. I do agree that it challenges students to be more economical and rethink what they print.”
Albin-Hill said, “We will continue working with the Student IT Committee on technology needs across campus, including printing options such as color and mobile printing.”
lapiemil@my.dom.edu