By Margaret Hawryluk
The mysterious white walls in the Student Center atrium are actually the ground work for a campus bank.
When students return for the spring semester, they will find a campus branch of Commerce Bank, which serves the metro areas of New York, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
Catherine Hennessy, vice president of financial affairs, said the University chose Commerce Bank because it was one of the only banks that offered to fund its own construction.
She added that construction has already begun and she believes the bank will take up to four weeks to complete.
“It’s [the Student Center] going to be a more vibrant center for campus life,” Melissa Connolly, vice president of University Relations, said of the University’s decision to place the bank on the first floor of the Student Center.
Connolly said the location for the new branch, immediately to the left of the building’s entrance, was chosen because it is easily accessible by residents and commuters.
“The Student Center becomes the place for any nonacademic services on campus,” she added.
Hennessy said all administrative vice presidents were involved in selecting the bank’s highly-trafficked location.
“I’m happy that Commerce Bank is coming to the Student Center because I am from out of town and it was difficult to handle my banking from a distance,” Jennifer Gettlin, a junior marketing major, said. “With this bank on campus, it will be very easy to manage my account statements every month on my own.”
In addition to the fully-staffed bank that will include several ATMs, coin counting and free checking among other services, the University will still maintain the Chase Bank and Nassau Educator’s Federal Credit Union ATMs on campus.
“Like with our beverage selection, we are trying to offer a variety of opportunities and choices,” Hennessy said.
Although some students are glad to see more banking choices on campus, they are not happy that seating options are diminishing.
“It [seating] was already cut down with the new place put in [Mediterranean Grill] and now the bank would take so much room up,” Rob Pearsall, a junior business major, said. “The Student Center gets packed out during meal times and the bank would force people to sit and eat elsewhere. It’s annoying to have to search and search for seating, because there is insufficient seating.”
Hennessy said President Stuart Rabinowitz has authorized money to renovate the food service area to solve seating issues.
“We are aware the room in the back and the large round tables are under-utilized,” she said. “We are bringing in a food service consultant to create a suitable and attractive place to dine.”
Students, however, are feeling the effects of the future bank’s presence already.
“It should be downstairs instead of taking away from student seating in the Student Center area,” Gettlin said. “It’s way too crowded; it is very uncomfortable now.”
Hennessy, however, said a bank in the basement of the Student Center would not only be less convenient, but also less utilized as many would probably be unaware of its location.
“The bank needs to be in a 24/7 location so it is accessible and open when needed,” she said.
Hennessy said all payroll will be switched to Commerce Bank, adding that she hoped employees would use direct deposit, which would solve the problem of lost checks.
The full “menu” of banking options available is yet to be confirmed, but Connolly said everything should be settled by the start of the spring semester.
“A lot of banks charge you to have an account unless a large amount sits in your account,” Pearsall said. “My bank [Bethpage Federal Credit Union] does not do that so I suppose if they matched some of the good things mine does, I would consider it since I spend most of the time at school. The bank would be convenient.”