Ashley Thompson
Published: Friday, September 26, 2008
The ATM on the Pensacola campus recently ran out of cash, so any students using their PJC OneCards were unable to access their money.
Jackie Padilla, PJC comptroller, said that was the first time the situation had occurred.
While the exact cause of the shortage is unknown, it is suspected that a communication error is to blame. Every semester, the Bursar’s office at PJC notifies the card company, Higher One, about the approximate amount of money it intends to disperse due to refunds and financial aid. Then the corresponding amount is sent to the ATM.
Rob Makowski, a Higher One representative, said in a statement, “Higher One and PJC work very closely to identify major refund dates and anticipated amounts so that we can productively manage cash flow through the machine and schedule fills.”
Federal law states that schools must give students access to their financial aid, so Higher One offered a refund for any transactions fees up to $3.50 per day to students who tried to access their OneAccounts at an off-campus bank or ATM. For students to receive the refund, they must request credit by logging on to www.PJCOneCard.com and clicking the “EasyLink” button. Students can also call the 1-800 number located on the back of the PJC OneCard. An e-mail detailing the refund information was sent to every student’s Pirate Mail account.
The Pensacola campus ATM was the only one that was out of service at PJC. Padilla said very few complaints were made regarding the problem, and the machine is now up and running again.