UMass Pass offers an ‘Off-Campus Advantage’

By Katie Bresnahan

Every year the UMass Pass office looks for new ways to increase the functionality of the UMass Pass in order to better serve the UMass Dartmouth community.

According to Stephanie Gibson, the campus student representative for Off-Campus Advantage, “This year [the UMass Pass office has] upgraded POS terminals, added a rewards program, created a new informational website and added many off-campus businesses to the program.” Off-Campus Advantage is a company through which any member of the UMass Dartmouth community can use the “general account” on their UMass Pass to purchase goods off-campus.

There are many ways to put money into the general account, including getting it from a parent, a credit card, going to the UMass Pass office or going online to add it.

Last fall, UMD changed their list of off-campus vendors and upgraded terminals at all locations. The old terminals (similar to debit machines) were slow and inefficient. Service is much faster now.

“The Off Campus Vending Program, formerly facilitated by SA Cash, has been in place for several years but has met with varying degrees of success. Recently, SA cash was purchased by CBORD, the technology company that provides much of the software and hardware utilized by the UMass Pass and with that came the creation of Off Campus Advantage,” said Sheldon Straker, assistant director of campus services.

Some of the new off-campus locations involved in the Off-Campus Advantage include CVS, Dominos, Quiznos, D’Angelo’s Sandwich Shop, Sun Days Tanning Salon and What’s the Scoop.

Discounts differ from location to location. Most of the vendors involved with this program are based along Route 6. Some locations offer a certain percent off the normal price while others might give someone using their UMass Pass a free drink, for example.

Gibson says that all of these changes are results of student feedback. The UMass Pass office spoke to groups of students in the fall and learned that a lot of them saw no point to using their UMass Passes instead of cash or credit cards when making purchases off campus. “I think some people just don’t know that they can use [their UMass Passes] off campus,” she said. Because of this feedback, the office created an awards program to generate interest in the Off-Campus Advantage program.

According to a press release, “Points are earned for purchasing from participating off-campus locations as well as through referring friends to enroll. The points can be redeemed for prizes from partners that include iTunes, Amazon.com, and Rolling Stone Magazine. To commemorate the launch of the program, 1,000 bonus points will be rewarded to any cardholder who registers their account at umasspass.com. Additional points will be credited retroactively for all [purchases] made since last September.”

Straker says, “The RewardU! Program is intended to give back to the students and encourage them to utilize the UMass Pass as a safe and reliable way of managing their flexible spending while gaining access to a variety of services and vendor specific discounts/promotions off campus.”

Rewards offered through this program include gift certificates to Target, iTunes, Kohl’s and other locations.

The rewardU! Program was launched in January of this year and rewards students who are registered for the program at the new UMass Pass website (www.umasspass.com) whenever they use their UM Dollars at one of the off-campus vendors listed on the site. The new website is both informational and interactive.

Gibson would like students to know that there is a difference between their UM Dollars and meal plan declining balance. The meal plan declining balance is located in their food in what is referred to as “snack money” while UM Dollars are under the “general account” on their UMass Passes. When a student’s snack money runs out, he or she can still purchase goods off campus.

“UM Dollars specifically addresses the needs of the UMD students, many of which don’t live on campus. It is very convenient for students to grab a cup of coffee at Dunkin Donuts and fill up their car with gas at Mobil on their way to class,” said Gibson.

The eventual goal for this program is to expand it so that someday, if a UMass Dartmouth student visits another college or university that uses Off-Campus Advantage, he or she will be able to use their UMass Pass to buy things at or around that school.

Gibson says that she uses her UMass Pass to buy things off-campus at least two to three times each week. She uses it to get coffee at Dunkin Donuts or when she goes out with her friends. She uses it on-campus every day, either to get lunch at the Commuter Café or to buy things at the Campus Store.

She reminds, “[Off-Campus Advantage] is safe, secure, and a great alternative for a credit card since there is no chance of accruing debt… UMass Pass becomes your complete passport to the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. There is no need to carry around cash, checks, ATM cards, and credit cards.”

SIFE educates New Bedford youth

By Ashley Chard

Many students who pass through the campus center on weekday afternoons prepare themselves to be pursued by vendors and various student groups, all raising student awareness for their group’s interests. However, many were not prepared for what they found as they walked through the campus center on Valentines Day.

In an effort to give the young generation first hand lessons about how the United States economy works, the UMass Dartmouth Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) team worked with teachers at the Sgt. William H. Carney Memorial Academy, an elementary school in New Bedford, to offer the students there a chance to try their hands at free market action.

A total of 40 fourth and fifth grade students set up their own individual storefronts in the campus center last Thursday, selling products of their choice from homemade Valentine’s Day treats and cards, to bouquets and unique jewelry. Each student was given $10 seed money by the UMass Dartmouth SIFE team to learn about market economics by developing products to sell.

Each student had his or her own sales strategy and learned quickly to make deals and provide incentives when demand was low. These elementary school students forced their neighboring tables of undergraduate competitors to step up and use more aggressive sales strategies themselves. Overall, the day was a success. The students learned a lot and enjoyed taking in the bustling campus atmosphere while any member of the campus community had a chance to purchase one-of-a-kind valentines for loved ones in their lives.

During the preceding two weeks SIFE students, directed by their project leader, Gilce Gomes, visited the classrooms of Ms. Annette Morton (fourth grade) and Ms. Patricia Holmstrom (fifth grade), to help the students organize and learn about entrepreneurship and market economics. With the money they have earned each class will use half the money for a class pizza party and a donation will be made to a local charity(s) voted on by the students on behalf of the students at Carney Academy and the UMass Dartmouth SIFE team. At the end of the day, lessons were learned and goals were met by two groups of very different students.

“As a TEAM we can change the world by bringing passion and enthusiasm to what we do,” said Godwin Ariguzo, SIFE’s advisor and Sam Walton Fellow.

UMass Dartmouth senior spends summer designing for Boston firm

BOSTON, Mass. — It is the classic student essay waiting to happen: “What I Did over Summer Vacation.” But Stacey Sarber, a UMass Dartmouth senior studying Graphic Design, can offer a response that is anything but cliché. Rather than scooping ice cream or hanging out by the pool, she traveled to Boston to conduct product research, update websites, and support clients as an intern at THEREdesign, a contemporary architecture and interior design firm. The highlight of her time at THEREdesign was producing her own design concepts as part of a pro bono project to revitalize Allston Village, one of Boston’s neighborhoods. Sarber created a new logo and storefront graphic for a small Asian grocery store.

“In a way, my future as a designer was on the line this summer,” said Sarber. “As a rising senior I knew I had to get an internship. Gaining exposure to interior design practices and materials has really complimented my knowledge of graphic design. Ideally, I would like to be able to design a space visually in its entirety.”

Her full-time internship with THEREdesign was part of Boston University’s Summer Study Internship Program, which offers visiting students like Sarber a unique opportunity to complete coursework relevant to their future careers before putting their new skills and knowledge directly to work in a related internship. In total, participants earn twelve academic credits—and gain an invaluable dose of real-world experience. “I absolutely chose this program because it gave me the chance to get ahead in my classes as well as gain experience outside of the classroom,” said Sarber. “My history of graphic design course was amazing, and through my internship I gained a better idea of day-to-day operations in an actual firm.”

Sarber is one of 35 students who gathered from across the U.S. to attend the BU program. The program operates in two separate six-week phases. In the Core Phase, students take two BU courses selected from the career track of their choice. Sarber took Graphic Design and History of Graphic Design from the Graphic and Web Design track. Courses are also available in Arts and Culture, Business and Management, Film and Media Studies, International Studies, Politics and Public Policy, and Psychology and Social Policy.

“There are very few universities offering an opportunity like this,” said Assistant Dean of Summer Term Donna Shea. “Students are drawn to our program because they can take courses that are highly relevant to their majors and their career goals. And as for future employment, it is impressive to see a student who has both coursework and job experience in a specific area. This is about knowledge combined with experience, and our students gain a real advantage.”

During the Core Phase, students meet with representatives of EUSA, the firm that partners with BU to provide customized internship placement. Students work directly with EUSA to determine their goals and to identify appropriate internship opportunities. In the program’s two-year history, EUSA has placed students as interns in government offices, private companies, prominent arts organizations, and nationally-recognized non-profit groups. EUSA also holds workshops on resume-writing, interviewing, and self-assessment.

The Internship Phase constitutes the second six-weeks of the program, during which students work an average of 32 hours a week for their organization in addition to completing a third Boston University course that focuses on workplace culture and professional development.

In between work and class, students enjoy the energy of the BU campus—and its close proximity to everything the city of Boston has to offer. Program Administrator Yolanta Kovalko frequently organizes group activities, from weekend retreats in the New Hampshire woods to day outings at Fenway Park, Martha’s Vineyard, and Six Flags. “This program is about learning and internships, but it’s also about having fun,” said Kovalko. “We see it as central to the program’s vitality to foster a close-knit student community.”

“Surviving the city was one of my biggest accomplishments,” said Sarber. “I really enjoyed the contrast to the rural atmosphere at home; there’s always something to do, and people are always out and about. Fenway was only two blocks from my apartment!”

Learn more about Boston University and the Summer Study Internship Program at www.bu.edu/summer/internship.

Learn more about Boston University at www.bu.edu.