During the first four weeks of the semester at Valley College everyone is asked to leave their personal belongings stored with staff members before entering the bookstore. This often upsets students for various reasons.
"I personally would not feel comfortable leaving my belongings at the bookstore with strangers,”
Valley student Brenda Castillo said. “It seems like such a hassle to have to go through a check point just to purchase something whether it be big or small.”
Students feeling uneasy about leaving their belongings with a stranger often try to avoid the bookstore all together. Claudette Burns, bookstore manager, was able to see both sides of the argument.
“I have mixed feelings about it, I’m a consumer and I can understand why students do not want to leave belongings with a stranger.” Burns also stated, “Many of the staff members are trustworthy returning employees.”
The bookstore usually has two employees handling the storage table in order to avoid any confusion and have yet to see a situation with theft. Everyone is encouraged to take their valuable belongings with them. Students are also able to use lockers located inside the bookstore for only 25 cents, but many don’t. Although there might be a better way of handling the situation, this mandatory rule has been in effect for 30 years. It has been beneficial in eliminating unnecessary belongings in the bookstore that can make it crowded, as well as avoiding any possible chances of theft.
After the fourth week, “the rush” slowly passes and the Valley bookstore has to minimize staff, usually leaving them unable to store belongings for the remainder of the semester. The chances of any changes though are highly unlikely. When visiting the bookstore at the beginning of the semester everyone will have to accept the mandatory policy.
"It's not considered stereotyping when everyone has to do it. I don't like it, but I understand the reasoning," Valley student Sonia Perez said. Several campuses use this same policy for their bookstores and we are fortunate to have staff members who are willing to watch over our personal belongings because it could be worse, they could be left unattended.
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