Fish for 5.5 gallon?

To answer your question about Cherry Barbs: I have a group of them (and they are beautiful), and I haven't noticed any aggession in them at all. I really dislike most other Barbs, but the Cherry's are way different. It could be interesting with the Betta though since they Cherry Barbs are so colorful and it might intrigue him - I'm not sure on that one though.

They would probably be okay in a tank that size, but they are sort of active too. Although on a last note, I Q'd mine in a 2 gallon since that was all I had open at that time, and they did just fine.

Let us know what you finally decide on. I'm glad to see you are really weighing your options.

I think if I get the permission to have the betta in the office, that I'll get some ghost shrimp for algae control and maybe just leave the betta by himself. Although, I will look into the cherry barbs some more.
And, if I don't get the permission to house the betta, I may go with the cherry barbs. I just want to make sure that is really enough room for them to be comfortable.
I appreciate all of the input.
I would like to look into some of the less common fish that were mentioned too- I'll have to see if my LFS carries any of them!
Thanks again for all of the experienced help!

Just to let you know that Glass shrimp are not good for algae control, they are mostly a scavenger and would more than likely become a snack for any fish that can fit them into their mouths.