Higher One launches new website to dispell rumors at Portland State
As reported in last month’s issue of CR80News, Higher One has been under fire from a vocal group of students at Portland State University. As reported, much of the information circulating among the students is inaccurate. The company has launched a new web site dedicated to setting the record straight.
Higher One successfully launches Onecard services at four client schools and new web site
www.TheTruthAboutHigherOne.com Addresses Misinformation and Provides the Facts About Higher One OneCards and Refund Disbursement Services
NEW HAVEN, CT, November 29, 2004 Higher One is proud to announce the successful launch of four new University clients and a new web site, www.thetruthabouthigherone.com, designed to address misinformation and
provide the facts about Higher One’s services. Implementations at Georgia Perimeter College, Columbus State University, Portland State University and Southern Oregon University went according to schedule and all four programs will be fully launched by December 15th. An increasing number of Universities across the country are using Higher One’s OneDisbursesm to distribute financial aid. To date, there are more than 200,000 students carrying Higher One OneCards on seventeen campuses across the country.
“We are proud to announce that the launches at our four newest University clients are going smoothly and that the new cards are being well received,” said Dean Hatton, President & CEO, Higher One. “At Higher One, we feel strongly that it is vital that students be enabled to make informed decisions, so we are also launching a new web site to directly address misinformation, provide the facts about our services and give everyone the opportunity to read what students who are currently using the cards have to say.”
The new web site will include detailed factual information about Higher One’s services including a FACT vs. RUMOR page, a summary of Higher One’s privacy policy and a page dedicated exclusively to feedback from University students with actual experience using the card on their campuses.
“The feedback we‚ve received so far from the Student Government and student body at Georgia Perimeter has been outstanding; they are very pleased with the range of services available and the new choices they now have for receiving their financial aid refunds,” added Sean Glass, Chief Marketing Officer. “We are also pleased to say that activation rates at Portland State University are in line with what we‚ve seen with our other clients – already hundreds of PSU student have chosen to open the free OneAccount – and many more are exercising the choice we enable by selecting exactly how they want to receive their financial aid refunds.”
At Universities that have had Higher One‚s program for more than one year, an average 54.7 percent of students at are using OneAccounts Higher One’s proprietary online banking/debit checking accounts that offer students a suite of financial services and the MasterCard debit feature of the OneCards. Electronic financial aid disbursements continue to grow by replacing paper checks and ACH. Since September 2002, Higher One has processed over $354 million in refund disbursements comprising more than 237,000 individual payments.
In a recent customer satisfaction survey, over 93% of current OneAccount holders were extremely satisfied, very satisfied or satisfied with the fact that the OneAccount has no monthly fee or minimum balance requirement, 90% were extremely satisfied, very satisfied or satisfied with the free, easy-to-read online statement and 86% reported they were extremely satisfied, very satisfied or satisfied that their financial aid refunds could be deposited directly to their OneAccount.
“It was easy to activate and I’ll have immediate access to my financial aid. I have done my own research and know that Higher One will not sell my account information,” said Cristianna Tadina, Senior at Portland State University (Social Sciences/Sociology).
Higher One has become the standard of service for American higher education institutions looking for the most efficient, student-centric, and cost-effective way of disbursing financial refunds. It currently serves 17 public and private university clients.
#
About Higher One
With an exclusive focus on higher education, Higher One offers an
innovative approach to student financial services focusing on making the financial interactions between the university, the student, and their family easier. The company does this through patent pending products and services.
· OneDisburseSM enables the institution to create drastic cost
avoidance and increases service in the financial disbursements process
compared to disbursing via paper check or ACH direct deposit.
· OneFinanceSM enables the institution to offer a suite of financial
services, including a free checking account with unique features designed for students, as a benefit of enrollment or employment at the institution.
Higher education institutions use Higher One’s solutions to create
significant cost avoidance, streamline business processes, increase revenue opportunities, improve the student experience, and strengthen campus community. The company is led by a team of executives with backgrounds in higher education, finance, banking, and entrepreneurship. Higher One’s customers represent a community of over 200,000 students and include distinguished public and private institutions such as the first higher education institution to win the prestigious Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award.www.higherone.com
For more information visit www.thetruthabouthigherone.com. Banking services are provided through an agreement with Horizon Capital Bank, member FDIC.
