Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : Identix (IDNX) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: steve who wrote (25724)	3/30/2004 4:44:26 PM
From: steve	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 26039

New system at Blue Mountain enables students to pay for lunch with fingertip BY MICHELLE PITTMAN Staff Writer mpittman@republicanherald.com March 30, 2004 ORWIGSBURG - That jingle jangle of lunch money might soon be a thing of the past at Blue Mountain Middle School. As part of a $14.4 million construction project, the school has implemented a new biometric payment system for lunch. Instead of fumbling with coins and cash, students can prepay into an account at the main office and have their daily lunch tally deducted in the cafeteria line. There's no debit card or secret pin number, either. Students just pay with the touch of an index finger. James R. Maffeo, director of support services for the school district, said the technology works by reading different points on a student's finger, and not by using fingerprints. "It's really helped to streamline the system at lunch," he said. "And the system doesn't identify those students who are receiving free or reduced lunch, so it's not so out in the open. They can pay at the office in the morning once a week or once a month or whenever, and then just put their finger on the machine and sit down to eat." With 700 students in the middle school trying to eat lunch in three, 35-minute periods, streamlining is a top priority. Maffeo estimated that upwards of 75 percent of all students eat a school lunch every day. "Not all of the kids use the system, but I'd say about a good 65 percent do," cafeteria cashier Sally J. Magalengo said. "I've been working in the cafeteria since the beginning of the school year, and the system was implemented in January. Once we got the kinks worked out, it's been an improvement." Students simply place their finger on the pad and wait for a green "smiley face" to appear. This means that the account has been read and deducted. If the machine can't properly read the points, a red "sad face" comes up instead, and the students are prompted to try again. The cashier can see the student's name and account information, and can tell the students when they are close to emptying the account. "We have the envelopes to prepay right here," Magalengo said. "They can drop them off here or in the office." The students seem to like the new convenience offered to them. "I think it's better than carrying around coins and money," sixth-grader Vanessa C. Kratohwi, Cressona, said. "I usually eat the school lunch, but you can get chips and iced tea in line, too. And it just comes out of the account. You don't have to worry about having enough cash." "It's a modern money system," Maffeo said. "So far, we're very happy with it." Still, not everybody sees the need for electronic fund transfers. "I don't see what the big deal is," said sixth-grader Jason Acor, Auburn. "I just get my lunch money from home and bring it in the morning. It's not like a big hassle or anything." "I know it's definitely upward of 50 percent of kids who use the system," Maffeo said. "We're not planning to make it a requirement, but it's a good alternative to cash or cards. And the parents and the kids seem to like it." schuylkill.com steve