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Click to see how CORE helped GVSU)
40,000+ electronic check payments every year
A better student payment experience
With expanded payment options and an online portal to make payments and print statements, GVSU is delivering a better student payment experience. Plus, with CORE connected to Banner, the payment experience is seamless, allowing students to log in to a central place rather than a separate billing platform.
Taking payments over the phone and online was an upgrade with CORE. And now, when students make payments online or over the phone, those payments are posted immediately to Banner.
DAMAR BOYD
Solution
After moving from an old legacy system to Banner, GVSU decided to make the switch to CORE—adding a modernized, student-focused payment system that would help them accept more payment options and make everything more efficient.
Challenge
Without a payment system in place, GVSU had a few challenges:
“It’s so easy to balance and reconcile payments with CORE. And if there are any problems, I’m notified right away. That’s a huge plus for me—security and risk management.”
LEEANN DALTON
Treasurer, Beaver County - Utah
When we made the switch to CORE, it definitely brought us a leap forward from where we were before.
DaMar Boyd
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Nestled near the Grand Rapids in Allendale, Michigan, Grand Valley State University (GVSU) is a public institution enrolling more than 24,000 students each year. For more than 20 years GVSU has been using CORE solutions to help them modernize the payment experience for student transactions with the university—ID fees, diploma fees, tuition, and more. Before CORE, all payments had to be made in person at a cashier window. Every transaction was managed by a university employee, a time consuming and manual process.
More than 5 payment options available
MI
How CORE Helped Grand Valley State University Add Efficiency with Online Payments
AGENCY NAME Grand Valley State University
AGENCY TYPE Public Institution
LOCATION Allendale, Michigan
DEPARTMENT Student Account Services
SOLUTIONS Online Payments, Billing Efficiency, Payment Options
Modernized statement billing for students
Expanded payment options both online and in person
Increased efficiency for university staff managing payments
Since implementing CORE, GVSU students can make payments online, in-person, or over the phone. And the breadth of payment options has also expanded to check, money order, credit card, and eCheck at the university. With CORE, students are also able to download and print out their account statements, helping them with reimbursements and 529 account regulations. Overall, CORE has helped GVSU build a better online payment experience for students and add efficiency for the billing staff, saving everyone time and ensuring secure online payment.
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TRANSFORM YOUR PAYMENT EXPERIENCE
Director of Student Account Services
University staff had no way to take payments over the phone or online. Students were required to come in person to make payments for ID fees, diploma fees, and tuition. This process was inefficient for both the students and the staff. Plus, it limited the time payments could be made—only during office hours.
No way to take payments over the phone or online
No way to print out past payments to the university
No way to take payments over the phone or online
For students that needed a copy of their past payments or their current student account information, GVSU was unable to print a complete statement or report. Without a payment system, transactions weren’t recorded in a central platform with the ability to see every payment on one report.
No way to print out past payments to the university
With CORE, GVSU now processes over 40,000 electronic check payments every year. That’s a significant reduction in time and effort for in-person payments and backend reconciliation with a system that manages the entire process automatically.
Hours of staff time saved
Student adoption of online payments has been incredible. In-person payments have significantly reduced, helping staff members redirect their time to other university tasks.
Director of Student Account Services
Today, GVSU uses CORE to see clear results like:
No way to accept payments other than cash or check
No way to accept payments other than cash or check
No way to take payments over the phone or online
No way to print out past payments to the university
Payment options were also limited for GVSU students before CORE. Payments had to be made with cash or check. Accepting payments with a debit card, credit card, eCheck, or other modern option wasn’t possible without a new payment system.
No way to accept payments other than cash or check
© Copyright 2024 CORE All rights reserved
PCI-DSS Level-1 Compliant Platform
Anywhere, anytime, any device access
Actionable reporting and insights
corebt.com
866.567.CORE (2673)
950 Warren Avenue, Suite 400,
East Providence, RI 02914
TRANSFORM YOUR PAYMENT EXPERIENCE
Payment options were also limited for GVSU students before CORE. Payments had to be made with cash or check. Accepting payments with a debit card, credit card, eCheck, or other modern option wasn’t possible without a new payment system.
NO WAY TO ACCEPT PAYMENTS OTHER THAN CASH OR CHECK
For students that needed a copy of their past payments or their current student account information, GVSU was unable to print a complete statement or report. Without a payment system, transactions weren’t recorded in a central platform with the ability to see every payment on one report.
NO WAY TO PRINT OUT PAST PAYMENTS
TO THE UNIVERSITY
Before implementing CORE, Grand Valley State University only had one way to accept payments from students—in person. “Everyone had to come in person to our cashier windows and make payments in person,” said DaMar Boyd, the Director of Student Account Services at Grand Valley State University (GVSU).
More payments options
With CORE, GVSU can now accept checks, money orders, credit cards, eChecks, and debit cards. “Requests for PayPal and Apple Pay have come in from students,” said DaMar. “And a member of our treasury office worked with CORE to get different types of card machines to accept other forms of payments like PayPal and Apple Pay.” Now, students can make payments for ID fees, diploma fees, and tuition fees with the payment option that works best for them.
Student account statements available for printing
“The ability to print statements is really important to our students,” said DaMar. Now with CORE, students can self-serve this process by accessing their account information online and printing it right from their computer. For many students, printing statements is critical to getting reimbursed from another agency or another person. 529 accounts are especially dependent on printed statements—students need to show a statement to their 529 provider detailing how much they owe.
Payments accepted over the phone and online
“Taking payments over the phone and online was an upgrade with CORE,” said DaMar. “And now, when students make payments online or over the phone, those payments are posted immediately to Banner.” This process makes it easier for staff members to keep track of each transaction and for students to make payments on time—even if that means making a payment after hours or on the weekend.
An online payment portal for students
Students now have access to an online payment portal, built just for their experience. They log in through Banner to verify their network ID and password. When they get in, they go to their student account information page. This redirects to the CORE site and gives students a few options—view their statement, set up a deferment plan, make a payment, or set up their refund direct deposit. This helps students get what they need without requiring a university staff member to walk them through each step—it’s faster and focused on a better student experience.
A customized payment system
The GVSU team needed a customized payment system. University payments aren’t always tied to a specific, unchanging date and the number of transactions varies by department and student. “CORE built our payment plan and customized it exactly how we needed it,” said DaMar. “We don’t have static billing dates or due dates—they change from month to month. CORE was able to customize it in the way that we needed.”
A payment partner
“The CORE team has been very responsive to everything that we have needed,” said DaMar. One example is the change to their processing fee—from $20 per transaction to 1% of the payment amount. “This change has likely driven more people to pay with credit cards,” said DaMar. “There’s a subset of students who are saving significantly on those fees and some that are paying a little bit more, but getting cash back on their cards. More parents are definitely opting into paying with credit cards to get those reward points.”
The 529 provider then cuts a check for the specific amount. “Students need a printed statement for substantiation of why they’re requesting those funds and asking them to be sent to Grand Valley State University,” said DaMar. “GVSU typically receives those funds in the form of a check and then we process the payments internally.”
CORE built our payment plan and customized it exactly how we needed it
DAMAR BOYD
Director of Student Account Services
The CORE team has been very responsive to everything that we have needed.
DAMAR BOYD
Director of Student Account Services
More payments options
With CORE, GVSU can now accept checks, money orders, credit cards, eChecks, and debit cards. “Requests for PayPal and Apple Pay have come in from students,” said DaMar. “And a member of our treasury office worked with CORE to get different types of card machines to accept other forms of payments like PayPal and Apple Pay.” Now, students can make payments for ID fees, diploma fees, and tuition fees with the payment option that works best for them.
Payments accepted over the phone and online
“Taking payments over the phone and online was an upgrade with CORE,” said DaMar. “And now, when students make payments online or over the phone, those payments are posted immediately to Banner.” This process makes it easier for staff members to keep track of each transaction and for students to make payments on time—even if that means making a payment after hours or on the weekend.
A customized payment system
The GVSU team needed a customized payment system. University payments aren’t always tied to a specific, unchanging date and the number of transactions varies by department and student. “CORE built our payment plan and customized it exactly how we needed it,” said DaMar. “We don’t have static billing dates or due dates—they change from month to month. CORE was able to customize it in the way that we needed.”
A payment partner
“The CORE team has been very responsive to everything that we have needed,” said DaMar. One example is the change to their processing fee—from $20 per transaction to 1% of the payment amount. “This change has likely driven more people to pay with credit cards,” said DaMar. “There’s a subset of students who are saving significantly on those fees and some that are paying a little bit more, but getting cash back on their cards. More parents are definitely opting into paying with credit cards to get those reward points.”
40,000+ electronic check payments every year
With CORE, GVSU now processes over 40,000 electronic check payments every year. That’s a significant reduction in time and effort for in-person payments and backend reconciliation with a system that manages the entire process automatically.
Hours of staff time saved
Student adoption of online payments has been incredible. In-person payments have significantly reduced, helping staff members redirect their time to other university tasks.
A better student payment experience
With expanded payment options and an online portal to make payments and print statements, GVSU is delivering a better student payment experience. Plus, with CORE connected to Banner, the payment experience is seamless, allowing students to log in to a central place rather than a separate billing platform.
No way to print out past payments to the university
(Hover to see how CORE helped GVSU)
69,000+ payments made, totaling over $160 Million
10% increase of payments since 2020
Real-time, comprehensive student payment reports
40,000+ electronic check payments processed every year
The benefits GVSU found with CORE included:
More than 5 payment options available
CORE built our payment plan and customized it exactly how we needed it
DAMAR BOYD
Director of Student Account Services
The CORE team has been very responsive to everything that we have needed.
DAMAR BOYD
Director of Student Account Services
Student account statements available for printing
“The ability to print statements is really important to our students,” said DaMar. Now with CORE, students can self-serve this process by accessing their account information online and printing it right from their computer. For many students, printing statements is critical to getting reimbursed from another agency or another person. 529 accounts are especially dependent on printed statements—students need to show a statement to their 529 provider detailing how much they owe.
“The 529 provider then cuts a check for the specific amount. “Students need a printed statement for substantiation of why they’re requesting those funds and asking them to be sent to Grand Valley State University,” said DaMar. “GVSU typically receives those funds in the form of a check and then we process the payments internally.”
An online payment portal for students
Students now have access to an online payment portal, built just for their experience. They log in through Banner to verify their network ID and password. When they get in, they go to their student account information page. This redirects to the CORE site and gives students a few options—view their statement, set up a deferment plan, make a payment, or set up their refund direct deposit. This helps students get what they need without requiring a university staff member to walk them through each step—it’s faster and focused on a better student experience.