Issue date: 3/14/07 Section: News

Having to carry multiple credit cards and cash at school is soon to be a thing of the past.

City College Student ID cards will act as a debit card for all their campus needs such as books and food by this fall.

The new student ID system, named OneCard, will be integrated into Banner, the student information portal active in April that enables students to register online.

It will allow students or their parents to put money on the card and use it instead of cash. OneCard will be able to be used on campus at places like the bookstore, the cafeteria, vending machines and even at the printers and copiers in the Cyber Center and the Luria Library.

"It adds function ability to the average ID card," said Paul Bishop, vice president of Information Technology. "It will become more than just a bus pass."

Bishop hopes to have the card available to students as early as this coming fall semester.

"It will be nice not to have to scrounge for a dime every time I need to print something out," said student Katie Kegerreis.

"I don't know how much I will use it," said student Chelsea Holmes. However, she thinks it will be good for students who are just learning how to budget their money.



One capability of the cards is that money can be restricted to a specific area.

Students can allocate certain amounts of money to designated things. For example, if a student's parents are willing to pay for books but not meals, they can specifically transfer the desired value to the books category.

"Money can be put in a certain area and used exclusively there," said Food Service Director Mark Sullivan. The cafeteria will be one of the places where the Onecard ID can be used.

Students will also be able to see their transactions how much money was spent and where when they check their balance.

To add money to the card, all you need is the students ID number and the server web address.

"I've had a couple of parents ask me if there was some sort of meal plan to make sure their kids were eating lunch," Sullivan said. "Now there will be."

Sullivan has been anticipating this for some time and is "excited to be moving forward" with it. "It will make life easier for everybody," he said.

Students are not the only ones whose lives will be made easier by the card.

City College staff members also will be able to enjoy the benefits of the card.

"I am excited to use my staff ID card and not have to keep change in my desk to use at the vending machines," Bishop said.

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