Documents

I don't have a copy of my original request because I submitted a paper version and didn't make a copy. However, I requested a copy of the contract between U.S. Bank and WSU for the CourgarCard and have included a couple pictures of the documents I received. The contract was long, so I included one of the most important pieces I received. Sorry for the poor picture quality.

CougarCard and U.S. Bank: a profitable partnership

After two and a half years, the CougarCard Center has received $230,000 for its relationship with U.S. Bank. Next June, the total will increase by another $90,000.

This lucrative relationship, however, took time. University officials were approached before about adding banking features to the CougarCard, but they had strict requirements for potential partners, said Craig Howard, director of administrative services information systems.

THE DEAL

Officials wanted a card that could be available on demand. They wanted a card that was debit, not credit, and a program that was opt-in, not opt-out. Howard said officials also wanted a relationship with a bank that had a “brick-and-mortar presence” for students.

“For years, there were financial incentives for the card center to form a banking relationship, but service to students outweighed financial (considerations),” he said.

In spring 2006, U.S. Bank told WSU it could meet the requirements in nine months, Howard said. WSU sent out a request during the fall seeking a banking relationship for the CougarCard and sent it to all nearby banks and credit unions. U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo responded.

University officials chose U.S. Bank in January 2007, Howard said.

Howard warned the bank that, “WSU isn’t easy, and the negotiations are going to be rigorous.” It took six months to negotiate the contract.

THE CONTRACT

The more students who use the CougarCard Maxx, the more money the university receives: up to $330,000 a year if the card reaches 70 percent use, according to the contract obtained through a public records request.

U.S. Bank has 51 other partnerships with universities. Contract language for each university is similar, but the amount each university receives varies, said Angela Ralston, U.S. Bank campus banking operations manager.

“We go into these partnerships for mutual benefit,” she said. “The bank is looking to gain new customers. This is a way for us to gain new customers, treat them right and retain them.”

In the end, U.S. Bank agreed to a $155,000 signing bonus, with yearly royalty payments based upon percent use. This was in addition to $30,000 a year in “soft dollars” – money used for marketing the card. The royalty payments were $37,500 in 2008 and 2009, but they will increase to $90,000 next year because percent use passed 20 percent in August. This moved WSU into a higher paying bracket.

The “soft dollars” are split between paying for extra U.S. Bank staff during Alive! and for marketing, Howard said. The marketing money is used for advertising and also for sponsoring campus events, such as the All Campus Picnic and ASWSU’s Cougar Quarterly.

“Our next goal for fiscal year 2011 is reaching 30 percent (penetration),” Howard said.

Thirty percent use would provide the CougarCard Center with a $130,000 royalty payment.

All of the money, except the soft dollars, goes to the CougarCard Center.

FOLLOWING THE DOLLARS

Howard said the CougarCard Center is self-sustaining and operates day to day off charges to customers.

Before the relationship with U.S. Bank, every four to five years, the center needed a $100,000 to $125,000 state supplement to pay for maintenance and hardware and software upgrades.

Now with U.S. Bank’s payments, the state money can be directed to other areas of the university, Howard said. The signing bonus helped pay off the center’s debt. Next year, the center needs to replace and upgrade the card printing system, in addition to other system upgrades.

Howard said the center is going to “hoard” as much as it can because the contract lasts eight years, 10 at most.

And after that, it’s impossible to know what will happen.

THE STUDENTS

Freshman animal science major Shauna Harth said the convenience of the CougarCard Maxx was too much to pass up. She got the card during Alive!.

“I didn’t have a debit card, and it was the simplest way for my family,” she said. “I enjoy it. It’s simple, and it’s all around campus.”

Almost one in four incoming students made the same choice. Howard said 23 percent of new students during the Alive! chose to get the Maxx card, as did 14 percent of transfer students.

Katherine Termath, a sophomore pre-pharmacy major, chose the card during Alive! because she wanted to have a bank account in Pullman. Termath said she was also pulled in by the offer of a free blanket for joining.

“It’s just that it’s pretty convenient,” she said. “I always have my CougarCard with me.”

BREAKOUT - THE MAXX CARD
In June 2007, the university unveiled a new CougarCard that allowed students to access their U.S. Bank checking accounts, use ATMs and make some PIN-based purchases. But the card also forced WSU and U.S. Bank to share some student information.

“We didn’t like that,” Howard said. “We negotiated with U.S. Bank and Visa to create a revolutionary card.”

Again, the university had certain requirements, Howard said. The card needed to be flat, without the raised numbers that debit cards usually have. It also needed two separate strips so no student information would be shared between the university and bank. He said at the time Visa had never issued a flat card or a card with two strips.

“We heard ‘No’ from Visa consistently, but in the end we got our way” he said.

The current CougarCard Maxx was released in January 2009.

Sources:
Craig Howard - (509) 592-0206, howard@wsu.edu
Angela Ralstron - (612) 303-0731
Shauna Harth - (425) 367-8532, shauna_harth@wsu.edu
Katherine Termath - (509) 290-4259, ktermath@wsu.edu

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Beat update

Spokane is looking at new options for mass transportation. Options might include streetcars or electric trolleys. Story from the Spokesman here.

I thought this column from the Spokesman was also interesting. It detailed the columnist's daily bus rides. It caught my attention because I rode the bus around town to get a sense of the atmosphere for my Pullman transit story. That experience was fairly tame, but I have heard a lot of stories that the bus can get interesting, especially on late weekend nights.

Document story proposal

I requested the contract between WSU and U.S. Bank for the CougarCard Maxx for my public records request. Using these documents, I want to write a story about the money involved in the partnership including how much money WSU recieves and what happens to that money. I also want to include the development of the contract, essentially where the idea for the partnership came from.