Wilkes University
 Case Study

From Conflicts to Clarity: Wilkes University uses Event Scheduling to Eliminate 85% of Double Bookings and Errors

Institutional Overview
Location

Pennsylvania

STUDENTS

SIS

Ellucian Banner

The Impact

85% Reduction in Double Bookings

Smarter Room Matching with Real-Time Visibility

Seamless Scheduling Through SIS Integration

The Challenge

Conflicting Bookings Led to Confusion and Inefficiencies in Event Scheduling

Before implementing Coursedog, Wilkes University faced frequent and disruptive scheduling conflicts. Their previous system lacked visibility into room functionality  and availability, leading to double-booked events, overlapping classes, and significant logistical challenges. These issues made it difficult to plan effectively and ensure a smooth academic experience.  Poor integration with their SIS made it difficult to coordinate course schedules and room reservations effectively, adding another layer of complexity to the process. The tipping point came when they mistakenly scheduled an event for both the biology department and the President’s office in the same space—highlighting the urgent need for a more reliable scheduling system. Wilkes University turned to Coursedog to regain control, eliminate conflicts, and ensure real-time event scheduling.

"Before Coursedog we had scheduling conflicts, room reservation conflicts, courses that were in rooms that had other people in them, and our previous system did not play well with our SIS.I think the tipping point was when we double booked an event for the biology department and the President's office, and that took some explaining, so that was one of the major reasons why we switched and went to Coursedog." - Joseph Kultys, Associate Registrar

The Solution

Effortless Scheduling: Eliminating Conflicts and Optimizing Campus Spaces

By implementing Coursedog’s Event Scheduling solution, Wilkes University gained a centralized platform with real-time room availability across academic and non-academic events, automated conflict detection, and seamless SIS integration.  Staff can now request, edit, and approve events in one place—simplifying logistics and reducing the risk of conflicts. With Coursedog, Wilkes University has eliminated up to 85% of double bookings, helping ensure students and faculty always have access to the right, optimal spaces without last-minute disruptions.

"We look at the schedule and we can find a room that's available. We don't have that worry, especially during final exam seasons, that we're double booking rooms or will have scheduling conflicts… there’s no more of that. One of the most quantifiable improvements that we have with Coursedog is that we spend less time trying to find available rooms for our classes. It's easier to schedule the classes and it's easier for us to book outside events because we know what's available. We can find rooms that are more appropriate to what their needs are." - Joseph Kultys, Associate Registrar

The University now relies on Coursedog's conflict reports to proactively resolve issues before schedules go live. Now, faculty have greater visibility into room usage, students can can feel confident their spaces will be available and conflict-free, and staff no longer have to double-check or untangle scheduling errors. With Coursedog, Wilkes University has full confidence in a smooth, conflict-free scheduling process—freeing up time and energy to focus on enhancing the student and faculty experience instead of troubleshooting errors.

"After implementing Coursedog we had no more double bookings - we were thrilled. We rely on the conflict reports because that helps us if we do have any issues that we have to iron out before the schedule goes to print or online. It's easier for us to find rooms that are available, it communicates well with our SIS, and it's easier for us to book rooms and outside events." - Joseph Kultys, Associate Registrar

The Right Space, Every Time: Matching Rooms to Event Needs

Coursedog makes it easier to match faculty and students with the right classrooms—ensuring spaces align with availability, layout, technology needs, and departmental preferences. Staff can quickly find available rooms and assign faculty to rooms that make the most logistical sense for their schedule. This improves convenience for faculty, reduces disruptions, and helps students access properly equipped learning spaces. Coursedog allows Wilkes to have visibility across academic and event scheduling to make decisions like keeping faculty in their home departments or in the same room for back-to-back classes so students experience a more organized and predictable schedule.

"Faculty and students have both benefited from Coursedog’s Event Scheduling because it's easier for us to find classrooms that are more appropriate for both the faculty and the student needs. It's easier for us to find available rooms when we have to and if faculty needs a bigger room or a room with different facilities, it is easier for us to find them. It's also easier for us to have faculty in their home departments because some of them have buildings that they belong to and they want to be in, so we can find them rooms. We can also schedule faculty who do back-to-back sessions and sections of courses in the same room. Compared to our last vendor, the biggest benefit is that we have no more double bookings. We absolutely love that." - Joseph Kultys, Associate Registrar

An added benefit of Coursedog is its ability to integrate photos of each room on campus, allowing Wilkes University to visualize room layouts and features. This makes it easier to select the most suitable spaces based on specific needs, ensuring that classrooms and event spaces align with faculty and student requirements.

"One of the biggest benefits is that we can upload pictures of the rooms, so when faculty call and tell us they want rooms that have movable desks and chairs or they want tables and chairs, we can easily look at those pictures and say, ‘that's the room we can put them in.' "- Joseph Kultys, Associate Registrar

Looking Ahead

Wilkes University Plans to Embrace Coursedog for Smarter Scheduling

Following their success with Event Scheduling, Wilkes University hopes to expand into academic scheduling with Coursedog. Their goal is to give departments greater ownership of their schedules while building a cohesive, fully integrated scheduling system that works across the entire campus.

"The people using it in our office have had a great user-friendly experience. We also love the friendly and responsive customer service reps that we worked with since the beginning. We would want to use Coursedog in the future to become even more of a user partner with them to get their master scheduling system online so that we can transfer the responsibility of the schedule to the individual departments instead of housing all of that in our office." - Joseph Kultys, Associate Registrar

Before Coursedog we had scheduling conflicts, room reservation conflicts, courses that were in rooms that had other people in them, and our previous system did not play well with our SIS.I think the tipping point was when we double booked an event for the biology department and the President's office, and that took some explaining, so that was one of the major reasons why we switched and went to Coursedog.
Joseph Kultys
,
Associate Registrar
Wilkes University

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