For one year, three months and 29 days, Debbie Cooney has been on the firing line of controlled choice. When anxious parents turn in their child's application, she is the worker across the counter.
She has sifted through hundreds of documents, input a mountain of data and calmed thousands of fears.
Cooney, 48, is one of seven full-time customer service representatives at the St. Petersburg Family Education and Information Center. Now, as the application deadline for the 2004-05 school year looms, she talks with Times staff writer Donna Winchester about her job.
Have you ever felt like just walking away?
Actually, no. I really like my job. I get frustrated sometimes, but I like the people contact. I like that there is so much to do. It's a very nonboring job.
What hours do you work?
There have been some really long days. The longest lasted until 10:45 p.m.
What kind of training did you receive?
We had group trainings before we actually opened the centers. We learned how to handle angry customers, things like that.
What do you like best?
There is nothing better than parents who get into a school they didn't think they would possibly get into. They feel like they won the lottery, and in some ways, they have.
What frame of mind are most parents in?
This week, the majority of them were impatient and frustrated because of the long wait. The most common emotion we see in parents all year long is worry. They don't understand what they're getting into.
What is the average amount of time you spend with a parent?
Those coming in who just need an ID number, those are very fast. But there have been parents who have come in with nine children. You can figure that family will take about two hours of a customer service rep's time.
Why are parents picking the particular schools they're choosing?
About 60 percent of the parents I talk to choose for proximity. The rest like what the school has to offer.
What questions do you hear most often from parents?
They want us to answer the mind reading-type questions. The ones I hear the most are, "How can I get into the school I want?" and "What are my odds?"
What seems to be parents' biggest misunderstanding?
They can't understand the attendance areas. They say, "This is choice. I should be able to pick any school I want."
How do you calm irate parents?
First, I let them vent for a couple of minutes because that's what they need to do. Then I say, "Okay, let's see what we can do to fix this."
Have you had any especially tense moments?
It's very easy to feel threatened when a parent goes off the wall. We do have a panic button that's linked to the police department, the fire department and campus police. We've never had to use it, but we have had parents threaten us. Parents walk out saying things like, "I'm going to kill you." We report that. We've also had parents escorted off of the campus.
Which three things would you most like to tell parents?
First, I would say come prepared with all the paperwork you need. The second thing is come with patience. The third thing I would suggest is bring a sense of humor.
Why do you think so many people have a hard time comprehending choice?
We have certain rules, but there are always things that are changing. Parents need to understand that. When a parent says, "But that's not what you told me last week," there's a good possibility that something has happened that has changed the rules since last week.
