University at Albany Joins Off-Campus Advantage’s Network of Clients

Company to Take Over Management of Existing Off-Campus Program

 Boston and Albany, NY- Off-Campus Advantage, LLC (OCA), a leading provider of off-campus payment services for universities and colleges-- formally known as SA Cash--, today announced it will begin managing University Auxiliary Services at Albany (UAS) off-campus payment program, known as “Off Podium”.  

UAS launched Off Podium in 2004 in order to allow University at Albany students and faculty members to use their discretionary debit accounts at off-campus merchants.  The program was a tremendous success, generating participation from a significant percentage of the student body and more than 20 local merchants, with dozens more interested in joining.  In order to meet the growing demand, UAS entered into an agreement with OCA to manage the program under the direction of Rachel Jones, UAS Financial Staff Associate & Off-Podium Program Manager, effective immediately.

“Although we’d grown and managed this program in-house for two years, it had reached a point at which we needed quicker and more sophisticated merchant reconciliation, more robust marketing campaigns, and a more secure and reliable technology solution which integrated with our CBORD CS Gold server,” said Jones.  “Working with OCA will allow us to provide UAlbany students a greater selection of off-campus services as well as benefit the local merchant community.”

OCA’s proven track record and unique ability to work with a school in all phases of the development of its off-campus program has attracted a number of other high profile universities, including James Madison University, recently upgrading to Central Server technology; William Paterson University, recently switching from a different provider; and the University of Kansas, who partnered with OCA to build a program from scratch.

“Our ‘a la cart’ approach allows us to customize an off-campus payment program unique to each school’s needs, said Rory Hersch, President of OCA.   “With our extensive suite of services, including our Central Server technology, we can transition an existing off-campus program to our platform with very little lead time and with minimal requirements from our university partners.”  He added, “As a graduate of UAlbany, I am excited to strengthen the already successful program.” 

###

About Off-Campus Advantage, LLC

Off-Campus Advantage, LLC, formally known as SA Cash, is an outsourcing solution that expands the functionality of the University-issued ID card by enabling merchants in the local community to accept it as a form of payment.   OCA develops and manages an off-campus merchant network and marketing program and utilizes a proprietary Central Server technology providing universities with a robust and secure solution enabling the elimination of modem banks, phone lines and other hardware on campus. By leveraging relationships with national retailers, OCA’s Loyalty solution rewards students with prizes for each dollar spent off-campus, creating a stronger revenue source for university partners. The Company can be reached online at www.offcampusadvantage.com.