CHAMPAIGN – The cashier's office at Parkland College will be open on a Saturday for the first time ever after a power outage wiped out the Friday business day.

With classes starting Monday, student services at Parkland College were not available all Friday because of the outage that began on Thursday night.

Power was restored late Friday afternoon, but the outage prevented network computer systems from restoring function to the service departments, said Patty Lehn, director of marketing and public relations.

From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. today, Admissions and Records, Counseling and Advising, Financial Aid, the cashier and the bookstore will be open.

"We'd planned for some of those services to be open from 9 a.m. to noon. But this is the first time in history for the cashier's office," Lehn said.

Lehn also said that many of the functions could be performed online, including signing up for classes and paying tuition and fees.

"While this unfortunate incident was beyond our control today, we're pleased to offer extended Saturday services to those students needing assistance in these areas," said Linda Hamman Moore, vice president for student services.

AmerenIP crews were on campus starting just after midnight until power was restored. No cause has been determined for the short that resulted in the outage, Lehn said.

The outage won't affect the start of classes Monday, Lehn said.