Board weighs online payment options for school fees; CFO recommends Vanco integration with PowerSchool
September 11, 2025 | Newington School District, School Districts, Connecticut
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Newington’s chief financial officer presented options Sept. 10 for an online payment system to let families pay fees, purchase tickets and make donations online. The student representative had urged added online payment capability earlier in the meeting.
CFO Lynn Beauvoir told the board she reviewed three platforms: 99Pledges (a fundraising/crowdfunding provider), Lutus (ticketing/marketing) and Vanco Education’s RevTrack web store. She said Vanco was the only vendor she found that integrates directly with the district’s student information system, PowerSchool, allowing payments to appear in the PowerSchool portal and to be tied to student accounts. Vanco’s platform accepts credit cards, ACH and electronic checks, Beauvoir said, and has a $29.95 monthly district fee (about $360 per year) plus transaction fees she listed as 4.3 percent for credit cards and 3.49 percent for ACH; Vanco Events also charges an additional $0.75 per ticket.
Other vendors had different pricing: 99Pledges has no annual fee and charges about 3.49 percent plus $0.49 per donation (credit cards and PayPal), and Lutus showed fees around 5 percent plus $0.75 per transaction for ticketing. Beauvoir said the district’s PowerSchool database manager had previously researched Vanco and supported its functionality.
Board members welcomed an online payment option but raised questions about the percentage fees and equity for lower‑income families. “That 4.3 percent fee seems high for larger transactions,” Board Member Amy Peters said; other members suggested parents could be given the choice to absorb transaction fees or to continue paying by cash or check at the school office. Several board members asked the CFO to explore whether transaction fees could be reduced and whether vendor fees typically can be negotiated.
IT impacts appeared limited: the CFO said the vendors manage the payment platforms and that school IT staff would not be asked to host or maintain the payment systems. The board asked the CFO to gather further pricing details, potential negotiation levers and to advise whether the district would cover fees centrally or pass convenience fees to payers. The board also discussed using a parent poll to gauge demand and acceptability of transaction fees.
No vendor was selected at the meeting; the board directed staff to return with further analysis and community input.
CFO Lynn Beauvoir told the board she reviewed three platforms: 99Pledges (a fundraising/crowdfunding provider), Lutus (ticketing/marketing) and Vanco Education’s RevTrack web store. She said Vanco was the only vendor she found that integrates directly with the district’s student information system, PowerSchool, allowing payments to appear in the PowerSchool portal and to be tied to student accounts. Vanco’s platform accepts credit cards, ACH and electronic checks, Beauvoir said, and has a $29.95 monthly district fee (about $360 per year) plus transaction fees she listed as 4.3 percent for credit cards and 3.49 percent for ACH; Vanco Events also charges an additional $0.75 per ticket.
Other vendors had different pricing: 99Pledges has no annual fee and charges about 3.49 percent plus $0.49 per donation (credit cards and PayPal), and Lutus showed fees around 5 percent plus $0.75 per transaction for ticketing. Beauvoir said the district’s PowerSchool database manager had previously researched Vanco and supported its functionality.
Board members welcomed an online payment option but raised questions about the percentage fees and equity for lower‑income families. “That 4.3 percent fee seems high for larger transactions,” Board Member Amy Peters said; other members suggested parents could be given the choice to absorb transaction fees or to continue paying by cash or check at the school office. Several board members asked the CFO to explore whether transaction fees could be reduced and whether vendor fees typically can be negotiated.
IT impacts appeared limited: the CFO said the vendors manage the payment platforms and that school IT staff would not be asked to host or maintain the payment systems. The board asked the CFO to gather further pricing details, potential negotiation levers and to advise whether the district would cover fees centrally or pass convenience fees to payers. The board also discussed using a parent poll to gauge demand and acceptability of transaction fees.
No vendor was selected at the meeting; the board directed staff to return with further analysis and community input.
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