Student ID cards used as bottleneck for delinquent tuition payments
16 November, 2017
category: Financial, Privilege Control
At Raleigh, North Carolina’s Shaw University, a number of students have failed to reconcile their tuition balances, and the campus card has been the bearer of bad news for some.
As reported by WRAL, students are reporting that losing access privileges to the university’s dining facility has been their first indication of the tuition delinquency. Swiping a Shaw student ID card at the dining hall now shows a “blocking” message for students that have outstanding balances. Those students are now being declined access to the cafeteria and are being instructed to report to the financial aid office instead.
In addition to revoked dining hall access, students may also be dropped from classes if the outstanding tuition balances aren’t settled. Despite the dining facility and the student ID being used as a bottleneck, university officials insist that the students in question have received ample warning of their account statuses. A number of students have since contacted WRAL claiming that they were not given warning of the deadline.
Shaw University officials released the following statement in response to the incident:
At Shaw University, we are committed to helping all of our students afford their education and we work tirelessly to ensure their needs are met. Shaw University made several attempts to contact students with outstanding balances, including sending multiple emails and making phone calls over the course of the semester with detailed instructions on how to settle their accounts.
We continue to encourage all students who are experiencing problems with their accounts to contact the offices of Financial Aid and Student Accounts for the assistance they need.
In an email to students, university officials warned students that failing to meet with a financial advisor to resolve tuition payments would also result in being asked to vacate campus residence halls, dropped from classes, and having their student ID cards deactivated.
