The computer-based testing center will no longer provide calculators to students who may have forgotten their devices at home.
Rising costs that resulted from a growing number of stolen devices prompted the decision, said David O’Brien, assistant director of computing for the Office of Assessment & Evaluation.
He said the testing center paid for the calculators and couldn’t afford to have students walk off with the calculators.
“We can’t afford to spend $500, $600 per semester,” O’Brien said.
Students would be forced to wait if there weren’t any calculators available, which threw off the testing schedule and caused students to wait to take their tests, O’Brien said.
He said the new policy started after spring break.
O’Brien said the office won’t offer a grace period because they notified students of the change weeks in advance and asked teachers to e-mail their students.
“It’s going to be like a regular math class,” O’Brien said. “Students will be responsible for bringing their own calculators.”
But many students hadn’t heard about the policy change.
Natural resource and ecology management sophomore Eric Alexander said he didn’t know about the testing center’s new policy but said he wasn’t affected by it because he hasn’t used one of the office’s calculators before.
“You should be responsible to bring your own calculator,” he said, comparing the new policy to a normal math class, which requires students to bring their own calculators.
Biology senior Adrien Amyx said she hadn’t heard about the new policy and didn’t see why the center would discontinue its calculator service.
“I’ve always brought my own, but I could see where it would be problem for students who forgot it at home,” Amyx said.
Industrial engineering junior Katelyn Cockrell said she wouldn’t use one of the testing center’s calculators because she feels more comfortable with her own, but she was unaware of the new policy.
“I had no clue about it until just now,” Cockrell said.
 
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Contact Kevin Thibodeaux at [email protected]