The Attendance Based Fee Schedule allows you to define, manage, and modify all of the attendance based fees for your school. These fees are the foundation for your attendance based billing processes and will be the source for all fee information when you:
assign attendance based fees to a student. These fees can be used for drop in students or those who stay longer than a set number of hours in any given day.
charge a portion of the tuition to a primary guardian and/or a 3rd party subsidy based on the student's attendance (student is present that day, so charge the appropriate 3rd party and primary guardian for their portion of the tuition)
assign early drop off fees (child checks into the school before their regularly scheduled start time)
assign late pickup fees (child is picked up after their regularly scheduled departure time)
If you do not have any attendance based fees, then you can bypass this chapter.
If you have Attendance Based Fees that are subsidized by a third party such as a local or state agency, then you must first enter the Third Party Sponsor information into SchoolLeader. Third Party Sponsor information is discussed in Chapter 3.7 Setting Up Family Functions, Third Party Sponsors.
To access the Attendance Based Fee Schedule, click on Accounting, then Accounts Receivable, then A/R Rules, then Edit Attendance Based Fee Schedule.
To add a fee, type in the next available row designated with an '*'. You MUST complete one row before moving on to the next row.
To change a fee, type over the selected Fee Description.
To delete a fee, click in the 'gray area' of the row you want to delete. The row will become 'highlighted'. Now click on the Delete key on your keyboard.
If you accidentally 'blank out' a fee and you can't close this window, click on the ESC key on your keyboard.
Once you are done, you can click on the 'X' in the upper right hand corner of the Fee Schedule window to close this window.
The Attendance Based Fee Schedule offers a lot of flexibility on how to bill attendance based hours. Many of the columns work in conjunction with other columns. Let's discuss each column in detail.
Enter a description of your fee. This description will be displayed in SchoolLeaders dropdown boxes and are for your benefit. The description should be clear, concise, and descriptive to you and your staff. Your customers will not see this text. Many schools set up at least 3 attendance based fees:
one for early drop off (the child arrives before the their regularly scheduled time)
one for late pickup (the child is picked up after their regularly scheduled departure time)
at least one attendance based fee for drop in children, or those children who are paid by a 3rd party subsidy based on attendance
If this fee is to be paid by a 3rd party sponsor, then click on the down arrow and select the appropriate 3rd party (double click on the 3rd party name). If there is no 3rd party associated with this fee, then leave the 3rd party id set to 0.
As a rule, all Fees defined in this table must be associated with an existing A/R subaccount. The associated subaccount is used to capture revenue by each individual subaccount. Click on the down arrow in this column, and select the appropriate A/R Account (double click on the A/R Account).
This is the charge that is charged to the primary guardian when the student is first checked in. This charge can also be referred to as a 'drop off' charge. It is posted regardless of how long the child attends that day. It is only charged once per day. If your school has a minimum dollar amount that must be charged to the Primary Guardian for drop off children, then enter that amount here.
This field works the same as the above item, except, it is billed to the 3rd Party Sponsor (if any). For example, if the 3rd party pays $25/day for every day that the child is present, then enter $25 in this column. You will need to create a new fee description for each different fee charged to the third party.
Enter the amount of your incremental fee. For example, if you charge $10/hr for each hour the child is present, enter $10 in this column.
This field works the same as the above field, except, it is billed to the 3rd Party Sponsor (if any)
Enter the number of minutes that reflects when to start your incremental billing. If you allow a 5 minute grace period, then enter 5. If you want incremental billing to apply immediately then enter 1. This column is also used for schools that apply charges after a child has been present for more than a certain amount of time.
For example, if a child is present for more than 10 hours in a given day, and you would like to bill for the additional time, then enter 600 (for 600 minutes) in this column. SchoolLeader will track the child's check in time, and then start this additional billing after 600 minutes (or 10 hours) have passed. If the child stays for 11 hours that day, they will be charged their normal rate plus an additional 60 minute charge.
This number defines the length of each increment. For example, if you want to charge incremental fees every 15 minutes then enter 15 here. If you have an Incremental Fee Primary defined, then you must have a value in the Incremental Fee Charged Every column.
Use this column if you want to limit the incremental charges based on minutes. For example, you may only want to charge a maximum fee for up to 6 hours. If the student stays longer than 6 hours then there are no extra charges. In this situation you would enter 360 (for 60 minutes times 6 hours).
Use this column if you want to limit the attendance charge to the primary guardian based on a dollar amount. For example, you may only want to charge a maximum daily fee for up to $50. If the student's attendance charges are more than $50, SchoolLeader will only bill the primary guardian $50. In this situation you would enter $50.
Use this column if you want to limit the attendance charge to the 3rd party subsidy based on a dollar amount. For example, you may only want to charge a maximum daily fee for up to $25. If the student's attendance charges are more than $25, SchoolLeader will only bill the 3rd party subsidy $25. In this situation you would enter $25.
This check box is used to determine whether or not you want to prorate the attendance based fee or charge the full amount as soon as the next increment is reached. For example, if your hourly drop in rate is $12/hr, then;
leave this box unchecked to charge the guardian in full increments. Example: If your increments are 60 minutes and a child stays at your center for 1 hour and 5 minutes, then they will be charged for 2 hours
Check the Prorate Partial Increment box if you want to charge the guardian only for the portion of the increment they actually used. Example; If you charge $12 per hour and a child stays at your center for 1 hour and 5 minutes, the guardian will be charged $13 ($12 for the first 60 minutes + $1 for the next 5 minutes).
Example 1: Subsidized Tuition Based On Actual Attendance
(Note: Before defining an attendance based rule that is associated with a third party sponsor such as a state or local agency, you must first enter the Third Party Sponsor information into SchoolLeader. Third Party Sponsor Folders are discussed in Third Party Sponsors chapter in the "Family Functions" section
A student's tuition is subsidized by a state agency. The agency will reimburse you only for the days that the student attends your school. Since reimbursement is based on attendance, then you must enter the fee in the Attendance Based Fee Schedule.
The student's daily tuition is $18.00 per day. For each day that the student attends your school, the agency will pay $15.00, and the student's primary guardian will pay $3.00.
To access the Attendance Based Fee Schedule, click on Accounting, then Accounts Receivable, then A/R Rules, then Attendance Based Fee Schedule.
enter the Fee Description, such as Tuition for Mary Green
select the Third Party ID by clicking on the down arrow, and then double clicking on the 3rd party sponsor.
select the Posting Account by clicking on the down arrow, and then double clicking on the A/R Subaccount (e.g. 175-Subsidy).
enter the Initial Fee (Primary). Enter the daily amount that will be paid by the Primary Guardian (typically referred to as the co-pay). In this example you would enter $3.00
enter the Initial Fee (3rd Party). Enter the daily amount that will be paid by the Third Party Sponsor). In this example you would enter $15.00.
all of the other columns in the Attendance Based Fee Schedule associated with Incremental Fees will remain set to 0 (ignore these columns).
un-check the box for Prorate Partial Amount.
Example 2: Charge a Late Pickup Fee
You want to charge a Late Pickup Fee to any Primary Guardian who picks up their child after their scheduled departure time . The fee will be $15 for the first minute that they are late.
enter the Fee Description, such as Late Pickup Fee
ignore the Third Party ID column
select the Posting Account by clicking on the down arrow, and then double clicking on the A/R Subaccount (e.g. 200-Late Pickup Fees).
enter the Initial Fee (Primary). Enter the amount that you initially want to charge for the Late Pickup. In this example, you would enter $15.00.
ignore the Initial Fee (3rd Party).
all of the other columns in the Attendance Based Fee Schedule associated with Incremental Fees will remain set to 0 (ignore these columns).
un-check the box for Prorate Partial Amount.
un-check the box for Prorate Partial Amount.
Example 3: Charge an Early Drop Off Fee
You want to charge an early drop off Fee to any Primary Guardian who drops off their child before their scheduled arrival time. The fee will be $10 per early drop off, regardless of how many minutes early they arrive. Many times a school will use the Early Drop Off Fee for early morning care before the actual pre-school program begins.
enter the Fee Description, such as Early Drop Off Fee.
ignore the Third Party ID column
select the Posting Account by clicking on the down arrow, and then double clicking on the A/R Subaccount (e.g. 250-Early Drop Off Fees).
enter the Initial Fee (Primary). Enter the amount that you initially want to charge for the Early Drop Off. In this example, you would enter $10.00.
ignore the Initial Fee (3rd Party).
all of the other columns in the Attendance Based Fee Schedule associated with Incremental Fees will remain set to 0 (ignore these columns).
un-check the box for Prorate Partial Amount.