Building a Tuition Strategy for the 2027-2028 School Year
As schools look ahead to fall board discussions, now is the time to build a thoughtful tuition strategy for 2027-2028, one that goes beyond setting a number and connects pricing decisions to financial stability, cash flow, and enrollment confidence.
This session provides a high-level framework for business office leaders and CFOs, covering tuition pricing trends, modern approaches to payment management, the role of tuition insurance in reducing financial exposure, and how to align your tuition plan with your school's long-term institutional goals.
This is a strategic conversation, not a product demonstration, featuring insights from an independent education finance consultant alongside a practical perspective from Veracross.
What You Will Learn
- Where tuition pricing is heading for 2027-2028 and how to position your school competitively
- How modern tuition management approaches reduce delinquencies, smooth cash flow, and cut down on manual follow-up
- How tuition insurance reduces financial exposure and supports enrollment confidence
- A practical framework for connecting your tuition plan to board priorities and long-term financial health
Presenters
Keith Krass
Head of Sales, Business Office, Veracross
Ari Betof
Co-Founder and Partner, Mission and Data
Is Your School's Business Office Protected Against Fraud?
Fraud targeting schools is no longer a distant risk. In 2024, 79% of organizations experienced payment fraud attacks or attempts, and school business offices, particularly accounts payable teams, are among the most frequently targeted. Business Email Compromise (BEC) alone accounted for over $2.7 billion in losses last year.
In this co-hosted session with Corpay, hear insights from a former FBI Special Agent and current fraud operations leader. You'll walk away with a clear picture of how modern fraud schemes target schools, what real attacks look like, and a practical checklist of steps you can implement immediately to protect your institution.
What You Will Learn
- The fraud schemes most commonly used to target school business offices, including BEC, vendor impersonation, and account takeover
- Real-world examples of how these attacks unfold and where schools are most exposed
- Practical, immediate steps to reduce your school's fraud risk
- How to recognize the warning signs before a fraudulent transaction goes through
Presenters
Robert Cochran
VP of Fraud and ACH Operations, Corpay
Robert Cochran leads Fraud and ACH Operations at Corpay, overseeing payment risk management across a fast-paced fintech environment. Before joining Corpay, he spent 20 years as an FBI Special Agent, retiring as Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Norfolk Field Office, leading Cyber Crime, Financial Crimes, and Transnational Organized Crime programs.
Keith Krass
Head of Sales, Business Office, Veracross
From Invoice Chaos to In Control: How Independent Schools Are Transforming Accounts Payable
If your business office has moved away from paper but still manages invoices through email threads, shared folders, and manual approval chains, you have probably noticed that your core problems did not go away. Approvals still get buried. Visibility is still limited. Audit preparation is still a scramble. And your team is still spending hours every week on tasks that should not require human hands.
In this session, independent school business office leaders will share honest, peer-to-peer stories about what changed when they implemented AP Automation through Veracross and Corpay Complete. You will hear about the specific pain points that moved them to act, how they made their decision, and the improvements they are seeing today.
We will also walk through a live demonstration of the full Veracross and Corpay Complete workflow, from purchase request to payment, so you can see what modern AP looks like in practice.
What You Will Take Away
- Recognition of the hidden inefficiencies in email-based AP workflows, even for schools that have already moved away from paper
- Peer perspective from three schools on what drove their decision and what changed
- A live look at how Veracross and Corpay automate the full cycle, from purchase request to payment
- A clearer picture of the time, cost, and fraud risk reductions that are possible
Presenters
Keith Krass
Head of Sales, Business Office, Veracross
Jerry Ruscitti
Business Director, Christian Heritage Academy
Coda Fontana
Senior Data Manager, Charles Wright Academy
"But Why?" A Business Officer's Story of Rethinking, Simplifying, and Driving Change
The summer stretch is your business office's most powerful planning window. With fewer urgent demands competing for your attention, it's the moment to make the intentional changes that pay dividends all year long.
In this Q&A session, Jared Susco, Director of Finance at The Philadelphia School, shares his own story of walking into a new role, asking "but why do we do it this way?" and using the answers to drive real, measurable change. Jared offers a candid look at what it actually takes to challenge the norms and build something better, from simple process shifts that brought a majority of families to on-time tuition payment, to identifying workflows that were manual, slow, or quietly exposing the school to unnecessary risk.
He will also address how to bring along team members who worry that process improvements threaten their role, and how to move past the "we have always done it this way" mindset without leaving people behind.
This is a practical, story-driven session for business office leaders who are ready to use the summer not just to catch their breath, but to move their school forward.
What You Will Learn
- How to identify the workflows most worth scrutinizing
- Practical techniques for uncovering manual work, bottlenecks, and risk exposure
- Real examples of simple changes that drove outsized results
- How to lead change with staff who are skeptical or hesitant
- Lessons from the field on what to tackle first and what to leave alone
Presenters
Jared Susco
Director of Finance, The Philadelphia School
Jared Susco serves as chief business officer at The Philadelphia School, with responsibility across finance, accounting, procurement, HR, compliance, and risk management. He previously served as CFO for Radiation Oncology at Penn Medicine and as Chief Finance and People Officer at Benefits Data Trust, where he led the organization through 113% revenue growth. He was recognized in 2019 as one of the Philadelphia Business Journal's top 40 CFOs in the region.
Keith Krass
Head of Sales, Business Office, Veracross