The War on Cash at Government School Events Continues

[Indiansreloaded]

I don't agree with high schools going cashless however I understand why they are.  Typical high school football came can have 2,000-3,000 people attend depending on the size of school and who is playing.  Some schools have less that attend and others have more attend.  But, if 2,000 people pay to enter the game at $7 each, that is $14,000 of cash.  Then add the concession stand cash of say $3,000 or more.  So the AD and/or school has to figure out a place to store perhaps $20,000 of cash until Monday when the banks open back up.  Yes, they could probably deposit it that night in a drop box or on Saturday morning.  But many AD's have to be at the school on Saturday for an event which would keep them from making the deposit.  With there being a history of AD's and other school officials putting money in their pocket, by going cashless it keeps the AD's and other school officials from stealing money.  It also makes it easier to account for all the money taken in and best thing the school doesn't have to secure $20,000 from a Friday night football game.  Now, when it comes to the winter months when there are basketball games on Friday and Saturday's, the cash deposit could be in the $30,000-40,000 range just from the weekend attendance and then add the concession money.  Another thing to consider is many schools pay students to take tickets/money at the gate and concessions, so by going cashless it eliminates student errors but it also takes away the education of how to count money.  I would prefer to pay cash but understand totally why many schools are going cashless.

[PHJIrish]

It's trends like this that make me glad I'm old!

[WestfieldRocks]

Westfield has been doing this now for several years. Buy your tickets in advance online. I believe this started here with Covid, you know, money is not clean, don't want to pass around the virus. 

[MacAttack53]

Most schools use EventLink these days—in some form or fashion. A majority use them for scheduling at this point. It’s interesting to see how schools choose to handle their surcharge for their additional services. For example, to use EventPay for officials, there is a $1 charge per transaction. Some schools eat the fee, while others pass it into the official (example: paying an official $89 for a varsity basketball game as opposed to $90). For those that use EventLink at the ticket booth there is a similar fee, normally passed onto the purchaser of a ticket. Last night, at a soccer game, I used my card to purchase concessions for the first time. A $6 purchase came to a $6.46 charge, of which I am sure that $0.46 is the EventLink fee. Wild times…but it was convenient.

Edited 4 hours ago by MacAttack53

[Muda69]

52 minutes ago, MacAttack53 said:

Most schools use EventLink these days—in some form or fashion. A majority use them for scheduling at this point. It’s interesting to see how schools choose to handle their surcharge for their additional services. For example, to use EventPay for officials, there is a $1 charge per transaction. Some schools eat the fee, while others pass it into the official (example: paying an official $89 for a varsity basketball game as opposed to $90). For those that use EventLink at the ticket booth there is a similar fee, normally passed onto the purchaser of a ticket. Last night, at a soccer game, I used my card to purchase concessions for the first time. A $6 purchase came to a $6.46 charge, of which I am sure that $0.46 is the EventLink fee. Wild times…but it was convenient.

Did you enjoy being robbed of $.46 in exchange for a false sense of "convenience"  that probably saved you what,  1 minute of time?

 

[MacAttack53]

2 hours ago, Muda69 said:

Did you enjoy being robbed of $.46 in exchange for a false sense of "convenience"  that probably saved you what,  1 minute of time?

2 hours ago, Muda69 said:

 

I didn't have any cash on hand. I hadn't really planned to attend the game, just sort of popped in on a whim when I saw buses in the parking lot--arrived after they stopped taking tickets. If I wanted a diet pop for myself and a pack of M&Ms for my kid, it was what it was. 🤷‍♂️