Wednesday, 5/7/97 New Bruin Card to provide various expanded
services Starting in Fall Quarter, one card will replace previous
system
By Frances Lee Daily Bruin Staff For many students, their Bruin
identification cards may have been the first item they possessed
which was emblazoned with the UCLA logo. To those who have grown
attached to these identification cards that they may have carried
with them for two, three or four years, be prepared – a new one is
on its way. Starting in the Fall Quarter, the existing ID cards
will be replaced by a new, improved and expanded campus one-card
system. Called Bruin Card, incoming freshmen for the 1997-98 school
year will be among the first recipients and users of the new
system. The Bruin Card system will integrate or replace several
existing campus card systems of the Associated Students of UCLA
(ASUCLA), residence halls, Business Enterprises and the library,
among others. In addition, the new Bruin Card will not only replace
students’ current identification cards but their paper registration
cards as well. The Bruin Card will be used for "access to an array
of campus services," said Susan Abeles, assistant vice chancellor
of finance, including dorm access, residence hall meal services,
library circulation and copy functions and parking. "All students
will need a Bruin Card to transact business on campus and will have
access to increased functionality immediately," she added. It will
replace the existing identification cards of the rest of the
student body in phases, tentatively scheduled to be done by the end
of Fall Quarter, according to Stephen Duim, the information systems
director for the finance department in business enterprises. In
addition, faculty and staff will also receive Bruin Cards.
Returning students will be required to get the new identification
cards. Since Business Enterprises, which is in charge of the
project, is switching to a digital picture system, students will
need to have their pictures retaken for the new cards. "While it
means that continuing students will have to be re-carded, we are
looking at ways in which to make this as painless as possible,"
Abeles said. In an effort to reduce the disruption caused by long
lines for pictures, Business Enterprises is currently working on
"creative ways" to "make sure we don’t cause those kinds of
problems," Duim said. "We want people to be positive and optimistic
about this system." The one-card system was first proposed to the
university eight years ago. With technological advances making the
concept viable, "(the campus) began to actively plan a one-card
program about two years ago," said Abeles. "The maturation of the
one-card industry played a significant role in moving the project
forward," she added. Duim explained why the Bruin Card was
originally created. "Because we had all these disparate systems –
there are different cards for everything – what we wanted to do was
try and consolidate all those card systems and add value (to the
Bruin Card)," Duim said. "Added value" includes having a calling
card feature and a residential hall long-distance option on the
card. ATM capability is in the planning stages. Presently, students
can use their cards for Bruin Gold and library functions. With the
new Bruin Card, students who deposit money into their accounts
would also be able to use their cards for vending machines.
Although ASUCLA has taken a large role in spearheading the one-
card project, the university decided that "because the Bruin Card
will be a campuswide program, a decision was made to have a campus
department manage the program," Abeles said. As for the cost of the
new system, Abeles said that eventually the system would be
"self-supporting." The initial funding for the program came from
the campus partners who worked with Business Enterprises on the
project, including ASUCLA, the residence halls and parking
services. Telecommunications giant AT&T is being contracted to
provide the hardware and software for the system, and will likely
be providing the calling card and long-distance option, according
to Abeles. Several universities throughout the country have
successfully implemented the one card system, including Florida
State, Duke and Arizona State. At Florida State, students are able
to access a wide variety of services using their FSUCard, including
banking, ordering transcripts and having financial aid disbursed
directly into their FSUCard account. Previous Daily Bruin stories
OneCard would integrate various campus card systems, February 5,
1997