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www.insideHALTON.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, May 30, 2012 · 12 Online payment program coming to all public schools By Dominik Kurek OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Soon, students will not have to carry cash to school anymore. That's because the trustees of the Halton District School Board have given the go-ahead to expand the board's online payment program (Cashless) to all schools. Currently, the system is available at 35 Halton schools. The decision to expand the program means a staggered implementation is being done across the entire public school system in Halton. Subject to budget approval, the program is scheduled for full implementation by September 2014. Hazel Peel, a parent, volunteer and member of her children's school council, delegated to the trustees before they made their decision. Peel said she was among the families at her school that use the system. "This is a fast, convenient and easy to use system," she said, noting 87 per cent of families at her school use Cashless. Peel added the system has numerous benefits. One of them is that children no longer have to worry about carrying cash to school. The other is the countless hours it saves volunteers and staff, who otherwise would have to count cash collected. "Counting money is not something we want to do," she said. "We want to work with the children." At a school fundraising event, such as a pizza day, school volunteers end up having to spend a great portion of the day counting the money collected. With the online payment system, they no longer have to, she said. Another benefit for parents is that all transaction records are stored on the system. The school board implemented the online payment system as a pilot program at several schools, using the Cashless Schools software. Since then it has been expanded to eight high schools and 27 elementary schools. The system allows parents to make payments for school-based programs or activities online. They can pay for each individual transaction -- at a fee per transaction -- or make a deposit into the system and then use the deposited money to make each payment. There is no fee for transactions made from the deposited money and there is no fee to deposit money into the system, as long as a minimum amount is transferred. The school board does pay a fee for use of the software. The cost is 25 cents for every child at a school, if fewer than 50 per cent of the school's population uses the system. The fee goes up to 45 cents if more than half the students at a school use the system. The fee is for every child at the school and not for every child who uses the system. The implementation calls for the addition of 10-19 schools per year until all schools are included. Trustees voted unanimously on the decision. However, several raised some concerns, such as the need to lower the fees paid by both parents and the school board, and to ensure that schools continue to accept all forms of payments, so no family is excluded. Oakville trustee Kathryn Bateman-Olmstead asked staff to look for ways to find savings, such as potentially using a different software system. "I believe we are going into even harder financial times, both as a board and individually," she said. HOT SEAT PATIO EVENT TEN HOT STYLES AT HOT PRICES! 3 Featured Favourites Shown Here, Plus More In Store! $1000 SAVE $700 BONUS A. Free Gel Burner with featured patio sets! $119.99 value SAVE B. A. Madoera piece dining set $1999.99 Reg. $2999.99 A .M adoera 5 p iece d ining s et $ 1999.99 R eg. $ 2999.99 B. Balboa 4 piece conversation set $1599.99 Reg. $2299.99 C. Bungalow 3 piece bistro set $999.99 Reg. $1499.99 6" Estate Collection Annuals Reg. $5.99/ea $500 C. SAVE $2.99 3 for $15 Asiatic Lilies, Daylilies, or Coreopsis (1 Gal.) Reg. from $9.99 TERRA Natural Cedar Mulch Reg. $4.99 Featured Favourite: Danica Globe Cedar Reg. $24.99 All Cedars 30% off 3 for $20 3 for $40 OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK: Monday - Friday 8am - 8pm, Saturday & Sunday 8am - 6pm All items while quantities last, subject to availability. Category offers exclude "TERRA Essentials" $19.99 12" Planter Reg. $29.99 Sale period: May 31st - June 6th www.terragreenhouses.com Burlington Hwy #5 East of Brant St. (905) 332-3222 · Milton Britannia Rd.West ofTrafalgar (905) 876-4000 Waterdown Hwy #6 & 5th Concession E. (905) 689-1999 ·Vaughan Keele St. North of Kirby Sideroad (905) 832-6955 oakvillebeaver.com For more news, visit