Billing books to bursar limited

IU students not on an athletic team or holding certain financial aid distinctions will not qualify to use the bursar billing option at the IU Bookstore starting in August.\nThe modified bursar service is the result of lengthy negotiations finalized between IU and T.I.S. Bookstore in March, said Mark Kuchefski, executive director of the IU Bookstore. The locally owned bookstore felt bursar billing gave the IU Bookstore an unfair business advantage since the service was implemented in 2001.\nStudents can still use bursar billing if they hold Pell Grants, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, Stafford Loans, Perkins Loans or play on an IU athletic team, according to a University statement.\nThirty percent of IU students billed books to the bursar this academic year, Kuchefski said. About one-third of IU students qualify for the five distinctions now required for bursar billing use.\nKuchefski said it might be IU athletes and the specific financial aid winners who compose the 30 percent asking for bursar billing.\n"They may not be in fact the same group, but there's a fair percentage of the student body that does fit those categories," Kuchefski said.\nBursar billing allows qualifying students to pay for their textbooks at a later date in the semester, often helping financially strapped students avoid paying for their books at the beginning of the semester.\nJunior Cody Vidinich does not receive financial aid but has always billed his textbooks to the bursar. He said he was angry when he heard he wouldn't be able to use bursar billing.\n"I thought the bursar (billing) was convenient," Vidinich said. "I definitely see T.I.S.' point, but the University's main goal should be the students rather than worrying about other businesses."\nSince bursar billing began, T.I.S. also wanted students to be able to bill books purchased from its store on Third Street, said Tim Tichenor, operations manager of T.I.S. Despite the plea, Tichenor said IU refused to offer the service to off-campus businesses.\n"We just wanted to participate, and the University just decided that was not feasible for them," Tichenor said.\nTichenor said not offering the service to off-campus businesses is contradictory because IU extends other services, like Campus Access, outside the University.\nAs a result, T.I.S. has lost $2 million in revenue in the last two years, Tichenor said. In an effort to level the playing field, Tichenor said T.I.S. talked with local representatives of the Indiana General Assembly before the agreement was reached between the two parties.\nThe modification will be officially implemented Aug. 13 and take effect for purchases for the fall semester.\nAfter IU and T.I.S.' agreement, T.I.S. will stop pursuing complete removal of bursar billing in the short term, Tichenor said.\n-- Contact Staff Writer John Rodgers at jprodger@indiana.edu.