Card, mobile credential, payment and security
At Ohio State University, a multi-year project to modernize physical security is underway. It will replace security system software, thousands of door access readers of different makes and models, and credentials as well.
Ohio State is a perfect example that higher education has never stood still when it comes to access control. Credential formats evolve, expectations shift, and campuses must balance security and cost across thousands of doors.
Few people have witnessed the evolution of campus security as closely as Jeff Koziol, Business Development – Higher Education at Allegion.
The “AD” stands for adaptable. Rather than locking institutions into a single credential type or security system, the AD family was designed to evolve alongside campus strategies.
“I’ve been around long enough to see campuses migrate from managing doors with pin codes to managing them with mag stripe, then prox and later contactless,” Koziol says. “And now, of course, we’re in the mobile credential age.”
He estimates he has lived through five iterations of credentialing on college campuses, each bringing improved functionality but also a familiar pain point. Historically, every major shift required ripping out and replacing readers and locks across exterior doors, residence halls, offices, and academic spaces.
“Every time a campus moved from pin codes to mag, or mag to prox … or contactless … or mobile, they had to forklift all their locks,” he explains. “That is a very expensive endeavor.”
That repeated cycle of reinvestment drove Allegion to rethink how electronic locks should be designed – less as fixed hardware and more as adaptable infrastructure.
At Ohio State, the process to upgrade their offline Allegion AD250 locks to online wireless AD400 locks took several steps. Step 1: Remove the faceplate from the interior side of the door. Step 2: Add a wireless board to bring the lock online. Step 3: Remove the mag stripe module from the exterior side of the door. Step 4: Add the contactless/NFC module to the exterior side. Step 5: Update the lock's software to let it know it is now an online device.
The result of that thinking is Allegion’s AD lock platform, where “AD” stands for adaptable. Rather than locking institutions into a single credential type or security system, the AD family was designed to evolve alongside campus strategies.
The electronic lock is designed to extend access control economically, particularly in interior spaces, but they can support exterior use cases when needed.
Rather than forcing campuses into proprietary ecosystems, AD locks integrate with a wide range of access control platforms.
“They work with Lenel, Genea, CBORD, TouchNet, Software House – fill in the blank with the 50 or 60 other access control systems out there,” Koziol says.
By swapping out components and updating firmware, the lock can go from one configuration to another. You keep the physical lock, thus preserving your investment and removing the need to rip and replace.
The AD platform comes in three primary configurations:
Where ‘adaptable’ comes into play is that campuses can migrate between these configurations without replacing the lock body itself.
By swapping out interior components and updating firmware, the lock can go from one configuration to another. You keep the bulk of the physical lock, thus preserving the original investment and removing the need to rip and replace.
Few campuses better illustrate the value of adaptability than The Ohio State University.
In a NACCU webinar, Josh Bodnar, Director of Ohio State’s BuckID program, explains that when he started at the institution, the access control environment reflected years of building renovations and technology transitions.
“When I arrived in 2019, we had a mixture of electronic and other locks, especially in the residence halls,” he says.
At that time, the university had 2,300 Allegion AD250 offline locks managed through a Vanderbilt software system. They also had 2,500 Best BASIS G locks controlled via a dedicated instance of Lenel OnGuard.
A separate online security system from Transact Door Access managed the perimeter doors in residence halls and student life buildings. This system supported 400 Allegion AD400 locks.
The locks were originally installed more than a decade ago. Instead of writing off that investment, Ohio State leveraged the AD platform’s modular design to replace the ‘guts’ and extend the lifespan of the hardware.
Even with this large number of electronic locks, mechanical locks were and are still widespread. Approximately 4,000 individual locks using brass keys exist on residential suite and room doors.
Credential technology was also in transition.
When Bodnar arrived, credentials were almost exclusively magnetic stripe, but the institution has steadily moved toward contactless NFC cards with an eye toward mobile credentials.
One of the most impactful changes at Ohio State has been the upgrade of its offline AD250 locks to online AD400s. During summer 2025, all 2,300 were upgraded.
The locks were originally installed more than a decade ago as part of a major construction project. Instead of writing off that investment, Ohio State leveraged the AD platform’s modular design to replace the ‘guts’ and extend the lifespan of the hardware.
“We were able to leverage the adaptability and were hoping to get another 10 years out of that investment,” says Bodnar.
The work was done in-house rather than outsourced, saving the university $1 million in labor costs compared to hiring contractors to update the 2,300 locks.
Over the summer, Ohio State installed wireless infrastructure across eight buildings, upgraded the locks, added communication kits, and deployed new readers. While most students already had tap-enabled cards, some upper-class students required re-carding to ensure compatibility.
“That was a fun adventure for my team over the summer,” he says. “But it was a much easier lift because we could use the Mr. Potato Head nature of the lock to quickly change components.”
Crucially, the work was done in-house rather than outsourced. Bodnar estimates that decision saved the university $1 million in labor costs compared to hiring contractors to update the 2,300 locks.
When the upgrade was complete and all locks were online, Ohio State was able to shut down one of its legacy security software platforms – its Vanderbilt system.
Ohio State’s modernization extends beyond hardware to its software environment as well. The university has been migrating the student life access control system from Transact Door Access to Lenel S2. The goal is to bring all entry points managed by BuckID into a unified, online access control platform.
According to Bodnar, they moved the last readers from the old Transact system and onto Lenel S2 Netbox just before the end of 2025.
With the AD250-to-AD400 upgrade complete, Ohio State is already seeing the benefits of mobile-ready infrastructure.
Mobile support was baked into the deployment from the beginning.
We made sure the new locks were set up to read both our plastic card and our pre-deployment mobile credential. Every one of those 2,300 locks already have our mobile keys.
“At the time we installed them, we made sure that those locks were set up to read both our plastic card and our pre-deployment mobile credential,” he explains. “We have mobile keys already, so every one of those 2,300 locks already have it.”
That puts Ohio State well on the way toward its goal of making all student room doors tap- and mobile-ready.
The next phase however – replacing the remaining Best BASIS G locks with AD400s – will be more complex.
This will require taking a legacy lock off a door and installing a totally new piece of hardware. They plan to pilot the approach in a single building before scaling the effort across the remaining 2,500 doors.
Down the road, they are evaluating how best to handle older buildings that still rely on brass keys.
For new construction and major renovations, Ohio State’s direction is clear.
“Everything that gets built or gets renovated in student housing is going to have an online lock on the suite and room doors,” says Bodnar. “And right now that will be the AD400.”
Ohio State’s experience validates the original vision behind Allegion's AD platform. It has delivered on the promise of creating an access control infrastructure that adapts as campuses evolve.
For Allegion’s Koziol, Ohio State’s experience validates the original vision behind the AD platform. It has delivered on the promise of creating an access control infrastructure that adapts as campuses evolve.
The lesson for higher education is straightforward.
Technologies will continue to change and budgets will remain constrained, but institutions that plan now will be better positioned for what comes next.
Infrastructure that enables upgrading security software and credential technology without the need to rip and replace is the very definition of adaptable.
When the University of Alabama transitioned to a Mobile First credentialing model, physical student ID cards were largely eliminated. Students, however, still had an affinity for the plastic memento, and thus the UA commemorative was born.
Courtney Petrizzi, Communications Director for Finance & Operations at the University of Alabama, explains that the assumption was that mobile credentials would fully meet student expectations. After all, the new credentials were wildly successful on campus. Feedback from students, however, revealed something was missing.
Revenue from the commemorative card is now high enough to make up for the replacement card fees they lost in their transition to mobile credentials.
“Students still wanted a tangible piece of campus,” says Petrizzi. That desire wasn’t about access or technology, but about pride and connection. Graduates wanted something they could take home, show family, and keep as proof of accomplishment.
Rather than returning to mass issuance of physical IDs, UA created a graduate-only commemorative card. The card is intentionally non-functional – no access privileges, no embedded technology – serving purely as memorabilia.
“It’s literally just a piece of plastic that you carry around with you,” Petrizzi emphasizes. Eligibility is restricted to students who officially graduate, reinforcing its symbolic value. The card includes clear language stating it does not confer current student status, which was important for compliance and clarity.
UA partnered closely with Strategic Communications to design and brand the card appropriately, recognizing it as an external-facing item once students become graduates. This collaboration extended into marketing, with careful planning around messaging, timing, and visual consistency.
Launching the program required new operational processes, including shipping credentials for the first time. UA coordinated with its mailing services, legal team, and registrar to manage graduate lists, refunds, and quality assurance.
Marketing efforts spanned email campaigns, social media, digital signage with QR codes, bookstore partnerships, and word-of-mouth promotion through student leaders.
While early adoption was slower than expected, awareness has grown steadily.
According to Petrizzi, revenue from the commemorative card is now high enough to make up for the replacement card fees the card office lost in the transition to mobile credentials.
To watch the full interview, click the image at the top of this page.
TRANSCRIPT
In this episode of CampusIDNews Chats, we spoke with Courtney Petrizzi, Communications Director for Finance & Operations at the University of Alabama. She detailed the institution’s launch of a commemorative card offering for graduates that did not receive a traditional campus ID card because UA now issues mobile credentials.
Here is a transcript of what she said:
Our commemorative card started when we transitioned to Mobile First. That means none of our students get issued a physical credential unless they have an ineligible device.
We thought, Mobile Card – that's it we're done. That's all the students wanted. But then we started getting feedback that students still wanted a tangible piece of campus.
They wanted to have something that they could take home with them, show their parents, show off that they were a part of the university.
We asked the students what that would look like, because we weren't going to go back to start printing all of these physical cards again. We asked the students, why do you want this memorabilia? What's the most important thing?
They said they want to show that they graduated from the University of Alabama. That's what you hold on to when you're a graduate.
That is what we decided to tie into for the commemorative card. We wanted it to be restricted to just students who have graduated from the university. That's a point of pride for us, because anybody can say that they've gone to the University of Alabama for a semester or two or a couple of years. It's a whole different story when you say, I graduated.
And I can prove it.
You can't carry your diploma around, but you can stick that right in your pocket. You can pull it out any time and have proof that I graduated. We wanted to commend that hard work and effort.
Our commemorative card is just a piece of plastic. There is nothing attached to it. There is no technology. You can't get into the library. You can't do anything with it. It's literally just a piece of plastic that you carry around with you.
On the back of our card, we have a statement saying that this does not guarantee current UA student status.
Because we have a student who had just graduated with a bachelor's, but they turn around next semester and they're going for their master's. They can't use this card for anything.
Setting up the commemorative card was super easy for us. We went to our strategic communications office. We told them what we wanted to do, why we wanted to do it, what the commemorative card was going to be, what we wanted it to look like, how we wanted to tie it into graduation for graduating students.
They took it from there. They gave us design options. We said these are the parameters, this is what we would like to see.
But what do you, as UA STRATCOM, need as a brand to send this out into the world?
It's an external card at that point, once it becomes a student graduate. So we had to get approval from strategic communications. They helped us market it.
We had to create a marketing plan to surround that.
When are we going to announce it to students? How are we going to get the outreach to the students? What are we going to tie into?
Then we had to think about the process of shipping these cards. We have never shipped any sort of credential from our office whatsoever. So this was completely new territory.
We had to get with our mailing office. We have a USPS-based service in our student center. We had to connect with them, see what the requirements were, what we had to do to get those shipped out. What the legal components were. What if their card arrives damaged? What if they don't receive their card and they pay money for it? We need to ensure that they're getting it.
So we had to talk with our legal department, work with the registrar on the statements of what we wanted to, you know, if someone didn't receive their card or it was damaged.
We also had to put in the request for the registrar's office to receive a list once graduation applications closed.
We received a list of all the students that have applied to graduate, so then we market to them.
They can start purchasing the card. They come to our office. We validate that they're on that list.
We also received another list from the registrar's office once graduation has completed, the final grades are in, we had the final say and who graduated.
We will refund students if they didn't graduate, if they had that one course that they need to finish. We let them know, we email them, we say, hey, we noticed this. We're still here for you.
If you're adding that one class, if you have any questions, if you're going to go back through, you know, another semester, this is still going to be an option for you. But right now, we are going to refund that for you.
I'm a big marketing communications person, so I was super excited to get my hands on this one.
We wanted to start with commencement, but we couldn't nail it down. That's a little tough. The real estate is very small.
But then they raised a great point. In our bookstore, they do diploma frames and alumni sweatshirts. They do all these things and they are a partner under our Enterprise Services umbrella.
I connected with their office and they let us put an ad for free graciously in their newsletter that goes out to graduating students as well saying, hey, get your memorabilia.
Get your fun diploma frame or whatever they have that they're offering. They let us put that in their materials. That was one of our biggest touch points because everybody's looking for that really cool alumni sweatshirt, right?
So when we had that in there, it was a big pull for us.
We also do email campaigns, which is typical for our office for anything we market. We reach out to the students’ university email. We do social media pushes. Not only straight from our office, but we rely on strategic communications.
Our campus partners like the bookstore, anybody who is celebrating the students for graduation, we latch on to them. That's why we love our campus partners, they didn't even question it. They said absolutely because we want to have that cohesive communication strategy across all of our areas.
We also do digital signage, which is really big for us. We put QR codes that link students directly to the online store to purchase their card.
We have UTM parameters associated with that so we know digital signage in housing was great for this. We know students are scanning like crazy, but over here in the business school, they're not really scanning.
They’re not looking at the signage, so what can we do to reach those students specifically and help grow the awareness of it.
Of course we always rely on word of mouth too. We have some of our big influencers on campus. Our capstone men and women are student leaders. We had a couple of them purchase the card organically on their own. We did not reach out to them specifically.
They purchased one on their own and when we went to pull the card I said, hey, I know him. I know that face, so I reached out and talked with that student and said, do you mind sharing this?
Is there an avenue I'm missing? He pointed out some newsletters that go out to students that I wasn't aware of, and he told me “I'm telling everybody about it. I'm showing people because a lot of students rely on that word of mouth.”
You know, they're not going to actually do it if it comes from the university. Sometimes they want to hear like, oh, my friends got this. They're all doing this. I obviously have to do it too.
Ultimately, our results were slightly disappointing at first. I'm not going to lie.
The students told us they wanted it. They said this is a need. We are so excited. But we didn't see that traction. So we were a little confused about that separation.
What we realized is when we launched – we originally started issuing community cards in 2023 – but we went Mobile First in 2020. So there was still a year of students that had a physical credential.
They didn't really have that need anymore.
Since then, we've done more marketing to the students. We've increased our digital signage. We've increased our ads that we place in the student newspaper, and things like that.
We are seeing that uptick.
I would want to sell, if we have a graduate class of 4,000, I would sell 2,000 cards, right? That's the ultimate goal.
But it's growing and letting students know that this is now a new part of the campus experience towards the end of your time at Alabama.
As we, as we evaluate that further, we're hoping that it's going to grow.
It's successful now. In one day, we sell enough cards to cover what our previous replacement cost was.
To rephrase that, we sell the commemorative cards for $50. Our replacement card fee when we had physical credentials was $35.
When I do the math and figure out how much it was in one day's time, we're getting about 40 to 50 lost card revenues.
So for us, our alumni affairs, we adore them, but we're not partnering with them at this time.
That's why our card is called the UA graduate commemorative card, instead of like the UA alumni card.
They're not involved at this time. We are looking at the opportunities for the future to maybe get them involved, but we wanted to see what the revenue was going to be.
We wanted to understand what the labor was going to be, because when you involve another department like that, especially alumni who has their own branding, their own identity, you know, they have parameters that they want to work by.
We really wanted to control this for now because we're in cards. We know what we need. We know what's going to look good. We know how the students interact with that material.
Alumni affairs, while we love them and they know our students, they don't know this industry.
The biggest student group that we've seen that love these cards so much is our online students. They don't get the same campus experience that our on-campus students do.
They don't get to come do free stuff days. They don't get to come and get the t-shirt and the swag and all the stuff that kind of is that on-campus experience.
When we launched this our UA online sent us an email saying this is awesome. This is a great way for our students to feel connected, to validate their experience.
We wanted to celebrate those students and let them have their moment as well, and say they're a part of this just because we live 10 hours away. They're part of the university, so we wanted them to have that opportunity.
We are looking for writers – either full-time or freelance – to contribute to the campus ID, transaction system, and security industry’s leading publication. It’s fun, it’s challenging, and for the right person it’s pretty stress free.
You get is to inform your higher ed peers about technology that can help them transform their campuses.
Day to day, you plan articles and work with campus administrators and vendors. Via phone, email, and video calls, you conduct interviews to create your content. After review, you publish it online, in email newsletters, and on our social media – don’t worry we have people to show you how to do all that and you will have a graphic designer and web developer there to assist.
A strong background in higher ed, aux services, card programs, and security is equally – or more – important than journalism experience.
We travel to a select number of fun industry conferences and vendor meetings each year, but for the most part you work from home.
Creativity is key. We want you to help us grow and make CampusIDNews better.
If you are interested in freelance opportunities, we also contract writers for individual articles or a fixed number per month – say one per week or two per month, whatever works with your schedule.
Over the years, we have found that a strong background in higher ed, aux services, card programs, and security is equally – or more – important than journalism experience. Of course, you need to be a good writer, but you don’t necessarily need that experience on your resume.
If this strikes a chord with you, please shoot me an email and we can kick it around.
Best,
Chris Corum, Editor and Publisher, CampusIDNews
Campuses function like small cities, with countless departments, clubs, and organizations collecting payments for everything from event tickets to meals. According to Michael Wilson, Director of Sales at TouchNet, this complexity often leads to what he calls rogue payment points. Rogues are payment systems adopted outside of institutional oversight, and they can spell big problems for the institution.
When a campus group, club, or department takes payments in ways outside the normal institutional processes, this decreases transparency, increases the potential for fraud or mishandling of funds, and a creates a lot of work for campus treasurers.
Student clubs, for example, may use personal card readers or consumer-grade payment apps without understanding institutional requirements.
In a recent blog, Wilson says these payment points typically emerge unintentionally, as groups seek the fastest and easiest way to accept payments. However, he cautions that following the assumed path of least resistance can cost institutions in other ways, especially when convenience outweighs security, compliance, and visibility.
Wilson outlines several risks created by decentralized payment activity, starting with a lack of transparency. Student clubs, for example, may use personal card readers or consumer-grade payment apps without understanding institutional requirements. Multiply that behavior across dozens or hundreds of campus groups, and institutions quickly lose visibility into how funds are collected, stored, and transferred.
This lack of oversight also increases the risk of fraud or mishandled funds. Without standardized controls, bad actors can exploit weak points in the system, while even well-meaning staff can make costly errors.
Even a small percentage of transactions handled outside centralized systems can disproportionately increase workload and costs.
Compliance is another major concern. Rogue payment points make it difficult for institutions to meet local, state, federal, and PCI requirements. He advises campuses to inventory of payment devices, routinely inspect them, and document incident response plans.
Beyond risk, rogue payment points also create significant administrative burden. Each unique merchant setup requires its own reconciliation process, increasing labor and complexity for finance teams. Even a small percentage of transactions handled outside centralized systems can disproportionately increase workload and costs. High transaction fees from standalone payment providers further erode institutional budgets.
To combat rogue payment points, he advocates for a unified approach. “One of the best ways you can avoid the pitfalls associated with rogue payment points is to implement a unified payments platform that can work for campus organizations and merchants alike,” he writes. Centralized platforms reduce fees, streamline reconciliation, and provide consistent security and compliance across campus.
To read more, check out the full article here.
Today’s college students arrive on campus with expectations shaped by always-on technology and personalized digital experiences. Kim Pfeffer, Director of EmoryCard at Emory University, says her students expect services to be immediate, convenient, and tailored to their individual needs.
They are hyper connected, she says, and they want access to services on their own schedule, not limited by traditional business hours. At the same time, they value being recognized as individuals, with strong interests in wellness, diversity, and sustainability. For campus service providers, this creates a dual challenge: deliver seamless digital access while maintaining a human-centered approach.
At Emory, Pfeffer’s team has responded by rethinking how and where services are delivered. One key insight is that students prefer not to visit offices in person.
“Students do not like to come to our office. They would much prefer that they can get their services where they are,” Pfeffer explains.
Students do not like to come to our office. They would much prefer to get their services where they are.
To address this, EmoryCard has implemented solutions such as Fargo Connect printers in the student center, allowing students to print replacement cards on demand with remote assistance from staff.
The team also hosts spontaneous pop-up events promoted through social media, offering free replacement cards and increasing awareness in a way that feels personal and flexible. These small, creative touches help reduce friction while reinforcing a sense of connection.
From a vendor perspective, Jennifer McNeill, Director of Strategic Partnerships & Development at TouchNet, emphasized the role of partnerships in helping campuses address evolving student service delivery.
“One of the ways that we help is by having a robust network of partners that we work with,” McNeill says.
TouchNet focuses on identifying partners that support automation, sustainability, and self-service, informed by ongoing research and feedback from campuses. Together, collaboration between institutions and technology providers helps ensure that evolving student expectations translate into better, more accessible campus experiences.
To listen to the full interview, click the image at the top of this page.
TRANSCRIPT
Kim Pfeffer, Director EmoryCard, Emory University
The needs of the next generation of students are slowly adapting and changing compared to the ones of our students of today.
They're digital natives – we've all heard that said – and they have a very high expectation for things to be available to them right away and right in front of them.
They are hyper connected.
We installed Fargo Connect in our student center so students call us on a hotline, we confirm some data with them, make sure they're standing in front of the printer, and we'll deploy the card right there.
It doesn't matter where in the world someone else is, they want to be able to connect with that person. They don't want to wait, and they don't care if your business hours are eight to five. They want a full experience that is personalized to them and available at the time that they want.
But at the same time, they want you to know that they're human. They are very focused on health and wellness, diversity, global things, and sustainability. They bring a lot to the table, but they also want you to recognize them on their terms at their time.
Here are a few examples of the shift that I've seen at Emory.
Students do not like to come to our office. They would much prefer that they can get their services where they are.
One thing we have done – we installed a Fargo Connect solution in our student center.
What a student can do, because they don't want to come to our space, is call us on a hotline. We confirm some data with them, make sure they're standing in front of the printer, and we'll deploy the card right there.
That way they can run right downstairs and get their lunch or get off to their next class or what have you.
We're trying to find small ways to meet them where they are.
Another example that we do that's really fun actually, it's just a cool way to get awareness out about our office, is that we will have a pop-up and it'll be find one of the members of our team.
We don't have to advertise in advance, we don't have to plan far in advance, if we want to do it Wednesday and it's pouring rain, we can wait until Thursday when the weather's better.
And we just blast social media and it says, find this person from EmoryCard and get a free coupon for a replacement card. No questions asked.
It's these little things that feel a little bit more personal to them and meet them where they are.
Whenever we can come up with a new idea or try to find a potential new opportunity, I bring it to the people on my campus who I work with. If it's a dining solution, I'll go to dining, if it's an access or security solution, I'll go to that team.
We have partners that focus on those key areas like automation, like sustainability, or self-serve. Having those partners available to a campus makes those options available to them.
Just so that they know that I know what's out there, and so that way I can also say that I want to be involved when these things come up.
Because we all are in this for the students. We want to make the best experience for our students.
Jennifer McNeill, Director, Strategic Partnerships & Development, TouchNet:
I think one of the ways that we help is by having a robust network of partners that we work with.
We have partners that focus on those key areas like automation, like sustainability, or self-serve.
Having those partners available to a campus makes those options available to them, and we continue to grow those partners.
We do research by attending events like this, by connecting with peers, and getting feedback from our campuses as well. It helps us determine which partners we need to work with and that will help the campuses along.
Tim Nyblom, HID Global
Many colleges and universities seeking a transition to mobile access want a better experience for students, as well as their staff.
However, they often get a lot more. They’re finding that when they upgrade their technology, they also improve the overall traffic flow across campus, do a better job of securing their access, and make life easier for administrators. They’re also discovering that mobile can help meet their goals.
Mobile access on campus is becoming an expectation. Students and staff spend a significant amount of time at school, from the parking lot and housing to classrooms and the cafeteria. Therefore, a quick transition is important for getting to their next destination on time and without friction. Mobile access provides the easy convenience of using a mobile device or wearable for that next step – and they don’t even have to think about it.
With mobile, students are accessing the physical and digital spaces they need, such as buildings and parking gates, but also vending machines and event ticketing for games and activities. They can do this using something they likely have with them at all times — their mobile phones or wearables.
Schools have discovered how to make staff roles easier by using the cloud for physical credential management. Through easy integration and remote, over-the-air credentialing, schools can reduce costs and simplify processes for their administrators. Plus, automatic credentialing helps ensure no one can retain access beyond their authorized time.
Mobile is allowing colleges and universities to enhance security for students and staff, but also for their facilities — and their data. While students frequently lose or forget plastic cards, they keep track of their mobile devices and are faster to report issues, helping schools protect access to campus buildings. In addition, today’s encryption, communication protocols, and software are keeping data protected.
When campuses take PVC cards out of the picture, they help meet their sustainability goals — which are also important to students and staff. This means less plastic that needs to be manufactured, distributed and later disposed of. They’re also reducing their carbon footprint by cutting the space needed for printing and provisioning cards.
If you’re like most administrators, you’re likely to feel overwhelmed with the idea of converting your campus to mobile technology. Often, schools think they need to replace all their existing hardware, which is a misconception. The good news is that upgrading is easy and can be done in phases, and with technology that recognizes existing PVC cards as well as mobile devices. Or, you can choose to upgrade everything at the same time—it’s entirely up to you.
Mobile solutions can now be specifically tailored to your campus and meet you wherever your school is today. Advance one step at a time from PVC card to mobile app, from mobile app to mobile wallet, or from mobile wallet to fully integrated access control. You can improve your security and convenience, building by building, as your budget and resources allow.
Vanderbilt University near Nashville, Tennessee was facing challenges making sure the correct individuals were accessing campus facilities. At a time when the university was also planning a building expansion project, they wanted to upgrade to a new system for identity management and access control. The result was mobile credentialing that is currently providing flexibility and convenience, from buildings to laundry rooms. See how Vanderbilt upgraded to mobile while still keeping their existing reader infrastructure.
Click here to read the full article here.
The future for colleges and universities is mobile. And while many are already making the switch, you don’t have to do everything at once. Start with a conversation to learn more about the benefits for your school, but also what the upgrade process looks like specifically for your campus. Ask questions and request examples or case studies. With all the flexible options available, just remember that you can start small, but it’s important to start now. Learn more about Mobile Access with HID, then start a conversation with our team of experts: https://na.hidglobal.com/higher-education.
Mobile solutions can now be specifically tailored to your campus and meet you wherever your school is today. Advance one step at a time from PVC card to mobile app, from mobile app to mobile wallet, or from mobile wallet to fully integrated access control. You can improve your security and convenience, building by building, as your budget and resources allow.
In this episode of CampusIDNews Chats, AJ Jacubenta, owner of MyPhoto, discusses how his company’s student ID photo upload software has evolved since its inception in 2010.
Originally developed at the request of a university customer, MyPhoto automates and streamlines the student ID photo submission process. The current version MyPhoto 5, incorporates advanced AI-driven features to improve efficiency, security, and photo quality across campus card programs.
“Basically, it automates the student ID photo upload process,” says Jacubenta. “It eliminates the need for in-person photo sessions and reducing administrative workload for campus staff.”
He explains that the process is designed with simplicity in mind for students. Using their mobile phones, students log in with their university credentials and take a selfie, which is then automatically evaluated by the system.
Once uploaded, photos are reviewed using AI to detect poor image quality, offensive content, or other unwanted attributes, such as inappropriate clothing or text. If approved, the image is automatically rotated, cropped, and enhanced with background removal before being placed onto a sample ID card for student review.
Using facial recognition and AI, the system matches the student’s uploaded photo against a government-issued ID.
To further strengthen identity assurance, MyPhoto 5 offers optional government ID verification. This feature is particularly valuable for remote learners who may never physically visit campus.
“For students that may never step foot on campus and are remotely taking courses, the university needs to provide some way of authenticating that particular person,” Jacubenta explains. “Using facial recognition and AI, the system matches the student’s uploaded photo against a government-issued ID and cross-checks key data with university records.”
He says that they are working with third-party partners to enhance verification and validate government IDs through external sources.
Recognizing varying institutional needs, MyPhoto is available in on-premise, cloud, and private cloud deployments. This flexibility allows institutions to choose how and where data is managed.
Since launching, MyPhoto has grown to serve hundreds of customers and is now expanding beyond higher education into K-12 and corporate markets, continuing its mission to modernize ID photo capture and identity verification across multiple sectors.
To watch the full interview, click the image at the top of this page.
TRANSCRIPT
Hi, my name is AJ Jacubenta, and I'm the owner of MyPhoto.
We developed the application as a result of a request from one of our customers in 2010. Basically, it automates the student ID photo upload process.
MyPhoto 5 is the latest release and incorporates many AI features.
Typically, the way that the application works is the student takes their cell phone, logs in using their student credentials for the university, and takes a selfie. Then we run it through our system to check for a number of different categories looking for bad image quality, offensive content, or things written on their shirt – a number of things that are unwanted attributes of a photo.
If that passes that step, then the photo is automatically rotated, cropped, and the background is removed. Then that photo is superimposed on a sample card for that university.
The student can review it, and if they like what they see, they go on to the next step. It is optional, but they can upload their government ID and even a signature.
Government IDs basically take the vetting process one step further. With our software, they already have to log in. They have to have an account.
However, for students that may never step foot on campus and are remotely taking courses, the university needs to provide some way of authenticating that particular person.
We still have requests from our customers to be on-premise, especially where the data is located. That's why we offer it in three different flavors. It could be on-premise, in the cloud, or in the private cloud.
Our application allows that person to upload their government-issued ID, driver's license, passport, etc.
We use facial recognition and AI technology to match the photo that they uploaded for their student ID with their government ID. We also match certain elements of the government ID with what the university has on campus.
One of the new things that we're working with a third-party partner right now is further government ID verification.
If our customers want to take it one step further and they want a positive match, they can be assured with about 99% accuracy that the ID that was presented is not only valid, but also has been verified by an external source.
We still have requests from our customers to be on-premise, especially where the data is located. That's why we offer it in three different flavors. It could be on-premise, in the cloud, or in the private cloud.
There are many benefits to each of them. If they don't want it to manage, they can put it in the cloud. If they want to have somewhat of a management, but they don't want the hardware, they can put it into Azure or AWS. And if they want to have it on-prem –because they want the data to reside in their location – then that is an option, too.
Since we started back in 2010, we've experienced tremendous growth. We have hundreds of customers at this point.
Now we are focusing not only higher ed, but other vertical markets including K-12 and corporate accounts as well.
If you're interested, you can go to our website MyPhoto5.ai and you can simply click on “Schedule a Demo” and it'll interface with my calendar. I will be happy to give you a personalized demonstration, and you'll have everything that you need to know within an hour.
We'll follow up with a proposal and a sample agreement, and you'll be good to go.
Food waste is a massive financial challenge for the commercial foodservice industry. In 2023, the U.S. sector generated nearly $10 billion worth of unsold or uneaten food, according to Transact + CBORD. Kitchens discarded between 7% and 15% of their annual food budgets.
Higher ed dining services is a prime example as food waste is a major cost leak. With ingredient costs volatile and margins tight, campus dining is under pressure to improve forecasting accuracy and production efficiency.
StreamLine AI-powered scales give dining operators insight into production volumes and food waste.
To address this challenge, Transact + CBORD and Topanga are partnering to help commercial kitchens reduce food waste and improve operational efficiency through AI-powered production tracking.
The collaboration integrates CBORD’s popular NetMenu platform with Topanga’s StreamLine solution. Together, they are working to deliver real-time insights that enable kitchens to optimize production, cut costs, and minimize waste without disrupting existing workflows.
Waste persists, at least in part, because culinary teams lack reliable, actionable data. Manual service worksheets rely heavily on estimates, and many staff members are reluctant to adopt systems that slow down kitchen operations.
This new partnership addresses these challenges by embedding AI-driven intelligence directly into the tools kitchens already use.
CBORD’s NetMenu platform is a menu management and foodservice production solution for large-scale dining operations like higher education. It enables operators to plan menus, manage recipes and ingredients, analyze nutritional and allergen information, forecast demand, and control food costs – all from a single, centralized system.
StreamLine’s AI matches captured food items to NetMenu, creating a complete picture of production, carryover, and waste.
The integration connects NetMenu’s menu planning and recipe data with StreamLine’s compact, AI-powered smart scales. The scales automatically identify, weigh, and analyze food items throughout preparation and service, eliminating the need for manual tracking.
StreamLine’s AI matches captured food items to NetMenu recipes, ingredients, and associated costs, creating a complete picture of production, carryover, and waste.
It provides culinary teams with access to real-time dashboards and automated reports that highlight overproduction trends and optimization opportunities. Better data, enables dining leaders to adjust prep volumes, refine menus, and forecast demand more effectively. Key to success is that it does this without adding administrative or operational burden to staff.
Topanga reports that kitchens using StreamLine reduce food waste by an average of 50% within just four months of deployment. Some operations have lowered cost-per-meal by 5% in a single semester.
Vanderbilt achieved a 53% reduction in total food waste and an estimated $150,000 in food cost savings in the first year.
Vanderbilt University Dining serves as a compelling early example of the integration’s impact. After deploying the combined NetMenu and StreamLine solution in July 2024, Vanderbilt achieved a 53% reduction in total food waste and an estimated $150,000 in food cost savings in the first year.
Analysis from the Vanderbilt experience revealed that nearly 90% of recorded waste stemmed from overproduction. The solution empowered chefs to make immediate, data-driven adjustments to prep volumes and menu plans.
"What excites us about this partnership is that StreamLine doesn't ask kitchens to change their workflow – it makes their existing NetMenu data work harder,” says Chris Setcos, Senior Vice President, Partnerships and M&A at Transact + CBORD. “We're seeing operations identify six-figure savings opportunities within weeks, not months. That's the kind of transformative impact our customers need right now."
iLOQ offers mortise and deadbolt cylinders that retrofit directly into existing mechanical locks, eliminating the need for wiring, cabling, or batteries. In a recent episode of CampusIDNews Chats, Christopher Chuakay, Sales Manager at iLOQ, discusses how – with iLOQ on campus – complexity is reduced, maintenance is virtually eliminated, and deployment speed increases.
All the existing hardware can stay, and it's an easy retrofit. There are no wires, cables, infrastructure, and no need to change batteries.
“Everything is battery-free, cable-free, wire-free, so implementation is a super easy process,” says Chuakay. “Our smart locking platform lets institutions keep their existing door hardware, replace only the cylinder, and immediately enable smart access.”
A key differentiator of iLOQ’s platform is its use of NFC technology in the user’s smartphone to power the lock. This eliminates the need for batteries or a wired power source, as the lock draws the energy it needs directly from the phone during a tap.
The mobile app powers the lock, reads credentials, and grants access in seconds. This approach ensures continued access even during power outages, blackouts, or emergencies, making the system particularly resilient for campus environments.
Chuakay highlights a major higher ed use case in residence halls, where managing access at move-in and move-out is a persistent challenge. With iLOQ Manager, campuses can issue mobile credentials to students in seconds, set them to expire automatically at the end of the term, and eliminate the need for physical keys.
Beyond doors, iLOQ’s heavy-duty, IP68-rated padlocks support outdoor and extreme-temperature environments, providing audit trails for gates, sheds, and equipment cabinets.
To listen to the full interview, click the image at the top of this page.
TRANSCRIPT
Hello everybody, I'm Christopher Chuakay, one of the sales managers here at iLOQ. iLOQ is the first and only battery-free, wire-free, smart locking platform.
What we're bringing to the market here in the higher education sector are our mortise cylinders, deadbolt cylinders, and our padlocks. Everything is battery-free, cable-free, wire-free, so implementation is a super easy process.
You to take one of these mortise cylinders or a deadbolt cylinder and retrofit it into your existing key mechanical cylinder. Then, simply open your app, tap the lock, it'll locate the NFC, power it instantly, and now you can have access to your room.
Simple as that.
iLOQ padlocks are great for gates, equipment sheds, and cabinets where you want to get verification and access logs of who is tapping to open.
Most of the times, people ask us, how do you do battery-free? How do you do something without any wires or cables?
We're actually using the power of what everybody else carries around all the time, your cellphone.
So you have your app, we're going to try to open the lock, we basically tap, it's going to power the lock, read your credentials, and now we turn, and we're in.
The biggest thing that most people struggle with when implementing access control or any type of smart locking solution is the implementation.
With ours, it's a mortise or deadbolt cylinder.
All the existing hardware can stay, and it's an easy retrofit. There are no wires, cables, infrastructure, no need to change batteries after you install it, so it's really maintenance-free.
One of the interesting use cases in higher education are residence halls. The biggest thing is how do we move the students in at the start the semester and how do we move them out at the end of the semester?
With iLOQ on campus, our iLOQ Manager system, let's you set up these digital keys or mobile credentials sent for the students at the beginning of the semester. It's downloaded on their mobile device really easily, 30 seconds, and then at the end of the semester, it automatically expires.
So now, a resident can go onto their door, they can tap to unlock, they can have the freedom to just leave their dorm with just their cell phone. Now you've gone to mobile credentials.
We've also got some interesting use cases with padlocks.
These can be great for gates, equipment sheds, cabinets, things like that, where you want to get verification that someone's tapping to open. You know who was the last one in there, who was the last one to lock it up, so you've got that validation, those access logs now.
These are good for outdoor uses, so if you've got extreme temperatures like cold, wind, or rain, these will hold up to minus 40, plus 80, they're IP68 rated, it's really heavy duty stuff.
The best part about it is, again, is no maintenance. I've talked to a lot of people today that say they'll have a hurricane or a blackout where there's no power, and they can't get into their rooms because they're wired or networked.
With our system, it's literally just plug and play, leave it in there, and use your phone to actually power on the lock and the device. You'll always be able to get access.
If you're curious to learn more, visit us at iLOQ dot com, you can reach out to your local partners.
Across campuses, security teams have steadily added more systems and devices to their physical security infrastructure – cameras, access control, intrusion detection, and emergency communications. What hasn’t kept pace is how those systems are documented, maintained, and managed over time.
For example, designs live in CAD drawings, installation details are maintained elsewhere, and service history is somewhere else. Most campuses don’t have a true system of record for physical security.
SiteOwl was built to address that gap.
Openings Studio is an information management software solution for doors, frames, and hardware. SiteOwl complements ASSA ABLOY’s existing Openings Studio platform, but it extends deeper into a user’s security environment. Learn more about Openings Studio here.
In August 2025, ASSA ABLOY added SiteOwl to its portfolio of companies. The announcement described SiteOwl as a cloud-based platform focused on physical security lifecycle management.
When a device goes offline, the first step is often identifying what it is, where it’s located, and whether it’s under warranty. Teams spend time tracking down details before work can begin. Technicians often arrive without full context, leading to delays or repeat visits.
SiteOwl covers the entire physical security environment from access control and video surveillance to intrusion detection and critical communications.
Planning work presents similar challenges. Budgeting for replacements relies on estimates rather than clear lifecycle data. “These aren’t technology problems, they’re information problems,” says Su Subburaj, Chief Marketing Officer at SiteOwl. “Security teams are managing real risk, but they’re often doing it without a complete picture.”
As campuses grow and systems become more distributed, those inefficiencies become harder to manage.
SiteOwl is designed to help campuses and integrators with design, installation, project management, asset management, and planning. It is ideal for tracking warranty information, raising service tickets, and conducting preventive maintenance audits.
SiteOwl complements ASSA ABLOY’s existing Openings Studio platform, but it extends deeper into a user’s security environment.
“Openings Studio is an information management software solution for door hardware,” explains Subburaj. “Architects and the professional services team use it to specify and manage technical information about doors, frames, and hardware.”
She says SiteOwl, on the other hand, has broader application. It covers the entire physical security environment from access control and video surveillance to intrusion detection and critical communications.
SiteOwl centralizes security information and ties it to interactive digital floor plans, making it easier to understand what is installed, where it is located, and how it has evolved over time.
At Wake Forest University, a six-person security team was tasked with completing the largest security update in the university's history. The campus infrastructure included more than 25 buildings and 1,700 devices, and they were expected to complete the project in just 18 months.
A key goal was to centralize security data, streamline vendor collaboration, and provide real-time project tracking.
Wake Forest benefitted from 30% faster project timelines, 50% reduction in time spent on site walks, 25% decrease in change orders.
They were faced, however, with fragmented data stored in different spreadsheets, emails, and other formats. This was the result of decades of work with numerous different vendors.
The team knew they would need to consolidate all the security information in one place, because they couldn't do cross system upgrades without centralizing this data.
They used SiteOwl for everything from designs to installation management. It provided visibility into all their projects, and because both the vendors and the security teams were using SiteOwl, they were in lockstep to successfully complete the project.
According to a case study, project highlights include:
Integrators use SiteOwl to streamline their entire process from sales to service. Rather than using a series of disparate tools – email, AutoCAD, project management software, ticketing system – to run the project, SiteOwl provides a single place to capture information and carry it forward. Details such as device models, mounting requirements, photos, and configuration notes are documented once and remain accessible throughout the lifecycle.
“It reduces the friction that tends to happen at handoff points,” says Subburaj. “Sales, engineering, operations and service are all working from the same information instead of recreating it at each stage.”
Rather than managing a project with email, AutoCAD, project management software, and a ticketing system, SiteOwl provides a single place to capture information and carry it forward.
This continuity helps integrators reduce rework, improve accuracy during installation, and transition more smoothly into ongoing service. For their customers, that continuity translates to fewer surprises after installation and more predictable service.
For campus security teams, SiteOwl provides a clearer picture of their security infrastructure. Information that is typically scattered is brought together and tied to interactive digital floor plans. This makes it easier to understand what is installed, where it is located, and how it has evolved over time.
Just as importantly, it gives them a shared working environment with their integrators. Rather than relying on separate documents or informal knowledge, both sides reference the same information over time.
“Security teams and integrators are working toward the same outcome, but they don’t always have access to the same information,” says Subburaj. “SiteOwl gives them a common reference point throughout the lifecycle. Today, in the market, there is no other solution that provides this level of visibility.”
Security teams and integrators can identify issues and then share accurate information with technicians in the field.
The value of lifecycle management becomes most visible when something goes wrong.
On many campuses, responding to a device issue means first tracking down basic information: where the device is located, what model it is, whether it’s under warranty, and when it was last serviced. That work happens before any repair can begin and often leads to repeat visits or delays.
With a centralized view of the environment, security teams can identify the issue, share info with their integrator, and resolve problems rapidly.
With a centralized view of the environment, that context is already available. Security teams can identify the issue, share accurate information with their integrator, and resolve problems more predictably.
The same principle applies during projects. When design information, installation details, and asset data are connected, teams spend less time reconciling documents and more time executing. Quotes are more accurate, progress is easier to verify, and handoffs are clearer on both sides.
“When everyone is working from the same information, you avoid a lot of unnecessary back and forth,” says Subburaj. “It changes how teams experience both projects and service.”
ASSA ABLOY’s acquisition of SiteOwl reflects a practical view of how physical security is evolving. Organizations can use Openings Studio for specification and SiteOwl for ongoing lifecycle management. Together, they support a more consistent flow of information from planning through operations.
For SiteOwl, joining ASSA ABLOY opens doors.
Subburaj say they could not have asked for a better partner, as culture has been front and center at SiteOwl since it was founded in 2020.
“Because ASSA ABLOY shares the same growth mindset, they completely understand where we sit strategically within their portfolio of other technology products,” she says. “It gives us the opportunity to expand the scope of what we do and benefit from a vastly expanded sales channel.”
