Rogue Morales / The Collegian

Fresno State has recently implemented a new way for students to access their financial aid funds, hoping that this new method will provide more options for students who do not have a bank account.

Fresno State signed a contract with HigherOne, which is a company that distributes funds to students and works with colleges specifically. Though not necessarily a bank, they offer an array of financial services.

The choice to sign a contract with HigherOne came when Fresno State realized that 40 percent of students received their financial aid in the form of mailed checks, said University Controller Anthony Forestiere. Of those students, a good amount did not have a bank account and would end up getting the check cashed.

With this in mind, the university looked into five different companies and chose HigherOne because they were not solely selling financial products and were not a major bank.

“They were the best match for our needs and the best match to provide to students needs,” Forestiere said.

Over the summer, students received the HigherOne packet and card, however many students did not understand what the card meant or if they needed to sign up for it’s services.

“The misunderstanding is that people think that we’re putting the money on the card and students need to use the card,” said Forestiere. “That is not correct, students only use the card to authenticate one of the three choices.”

Forestiere feels it’s important students are aware of the different accounts with HigherOne and read everything before they sign up for something

Students who sign up for direct deposit or choose to have their funds mailed to them do not need to worry about fees, Forestiere said. These options are similar to the options Fresno State offered students in the past. The only way to develop fees with HigherOne is to sign up for one of the account options, such as the OneAccount, OneAccount Flex and the OneAccount Premier.

Fees with HigherOne depend on which account a student signs up for. The OneAccount does not have a monthly fee, however there is a fee if a student chooses to pay for something using a pin number; most likely when they pay using debit. The way to avoid this fee is to always chose the credit option and sign for the purchase.­ There is also an abandoned account fee where accounts that have no transactions made after six months will be charged up to $10 per month.

The other accounts, OneAccount Flex and the OneAccount Premier, do have a monthly fee. There are ways to avoid the fee, however, by making a minimum deposit or signed transactions each month. There are also closing fees, which occur if the account was opened and closed within 60 days.

The accounts charge a 50-cent fee for not using a HigherOne ATM location. HigherOne ATM locations include: Atrium Building-University Courtyard, University Student Union, Joyal Administration-North Admissions and Records and the Henry Madden Library.

Card replacement fees can also occur, so it is recommended to keep the HigherOne card in the event a student wants to open an account in the future.

For more information regarding the complete list of fees, please visit https://www.higheroneaccount.com/studentaccount/feeschedules.do.ww

However, accounting services were not aware that HigherOne was recently involved in a lawsuit regarding student fees and information provided in regards to fees.

Fresno State looked into the matter and spoke with HigherOne and found its response to be satisfactory, choosing to remain with the company’s services. It felt that the company has made an effort to change problems regarding student fees and the information they provide.

Many of these fees have some students up in arms against the HigherOne cards. There is even a Facebook page dedicated to voicing student dislike toward HigherOne called, Stop Fresno State Higher One Banking.

Other students, like Sesaly Williams, 21, just feel like the HigherOne move has made receiving her funds much more confusing.

“I feel like it’s kind of a scam,” Williams said.

Williams chose the OneAccount Premier account because she wanted to get her financial aid immediately, feeling it had already taken more time than it should have. However, upon finding out about the monthly fee, she cancelled her account and was charged a cancellation fee; a fee that she had not been aware would be applied when she signed up for the account.

Other students are not sure how the program will pan out, feeling it’s too new to make a decision. Roxane Courtney, 47, said that she is happy with the response time of the company though it is too early to tell if she will be completely happy with the company overall or not.

Fresno State will be hosting an open forum Wednesday Aug. 22 through Friday Aug. 24 to discuss matters involving the HigherOne cards. Students with questions involving their card are invited to join in the meeting. The forum will begin at 9 a.m. in the University Student Union, rooms 312-314.

On Wednesday and Thursday a HigherOne representative and a university representative will be in attendance. Friday’s forum will only have a university representative.