With this new campus card, universities and colleges will now be able to offer their students access to a reloadable prepaid account to pay for everyday expenses on and, in some instances, off campus, while benefiting from the flexibility and security of a reloadable prepaid card. In the instance of off campus use, students will be able to use the SunTrust Campus Card to make purchases at millions of locations where MasterCard cards are accepted or withdraw funds without a fee from more than 2,900 SunTrust ATMs. Safer and more convenient than cash, the prepaid card will also provide students greater security and control over their finances.

"The SunTrust Campus Card program offers colleges and universities a simplified way to disburse funds while making the financial lives of their students easier," said Whitney Stewart, Senior Vice President, Senior Payment Strategy Manager, SunTrust Banks. "By linking an ID card with a MasterCard reloadable prepaid card, the SunTrust Campus Card empowers students with a convenient and safe way to pay for expenses and manage funds both on and off campus."

Students and parents can easily add funds to the cards via an online site. In addition, and in some instances, certain colleges and universities can directly load financial aid disbursements onto the SunTrust Campus Card, replacing the need for paper-based payments.

Providing Access to Funds and a Financial Education

The SunTrust Campus Card program can easily be customized, enabling participating schools to select the desired level of card functionality and the extent of financial access they wish to provide eligible students.

"The SunTrust Campus Card is an excellent example of how a choice in payments makes lives easier while empowering financial responsibility," said Ron Hynes, Group Executive, Global Prepaid Solutions, MasterCard Worldwide. "In research, we received positive feedback from administrators and students on the cononvenience, control and security of the payment options. Additionally, administrators highlighted the added benefit of enhanced efficiency for their financial disbursement programs."

As part of the program, as currently configured, SunTrust and MasterCard will launch a website for college students and faculty members targeted to teaching financial literacy and featuring budgeting tools and educational materials. Students will also have access to an online site that they can log into for account management, including setting up account alerts (email and SMS). The sites will be launched later this year.