About 3 in 10 Americans make zero cash purchases each week. The wallets of those who do carry cash usually contain less than $50. Parents are no exception. Paying fees in cash may delay payments and waste everyone’s time. Yet, many schools continue to accept checks and other forms of payment, despite security risks associated with these payment methods. Seventy-one percent of companies that accept checks have experienced fraud or attempted fraud, and returned checks are a common challenge. Some schools have no option for online payments, delaying payments and potentially affecting enrollment. Switching to digital payments can swiftly lower costs, improve the parents’ experience when paying school activity fees, and reduce or eliminate the costs of check processing.
Recent Posts by Paige Kummer
ActivityRight Partners with GG4L to Support Additional Integrations for K-12
ActivityRight streamlines field trips, events, and other school initiatives by solving all the problems with paper forms and cash collection. Allow parents to pay school fees and access receipts from any device. Simple software connections allocate school-generated funds into easy-to-read account codes so districts can avoid the risk of misappropriation. All payments – cash, check, or mobile – are fully auditable and able to integrate with your accounting software.
6 Benefits of Providing Cashless Payment Alternatives for School Activity Fees
Online Payment Basics
Schools that switch to digital payments should embrace a centralized digital payment system so that all funds route through the same place, regardless of how or when someone pays. A quality digital payment system can still track cash payments, so there’s no need for a piecemeal approach that cobbles together several different apps. With a single system, schools reduce the risk of security issues and lost data.
Negotiating a Refund for a Canceled School Trip
As COVID-19 wreaks havoc globally, school districts face a new challenge: negotiating and issuing mass refunds for canceled field trips. The Department of Transportation (DOT) recently issued an enforcement notice to airlines that, even during the pandemic, must offer cash refunds for canceled or rescheduled flights within or from the United States. The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development in Canada has promised students and families that reimbursement for funds they raised for school trips and other canceled events due to COVID-19 will come as well.
