DePaul University and PNC Bank announced today a campus banking relationship, providing comprehensive banking services with an emphasis on money management and financial accountability for DePaul’s 25,000 students. The agreement also will extend workplace banking services to the university’s more than 5,000 full- and part-time faculty and staff.

The DePaul Center was selected as the site of the bank’s first PNC-branded location in Chicago when it opens at the university’s Loop Campus in May 2010. Also in May, an electronic financial service center is scheduled to open on the Lincoln Park Campus.

PNC, through National City Bank, operates 135 branches in the Chicago area that are scheduled to convert to the PNC brand in June, vastly expanding convenience for DePaul students, faculty and staff.

PNC customers at DePaul also will have immediate access to PNC’s extensive Automated Teller Machine (ATM) network, available in 15 states and including more than 150 in Chicagoland. ATMs will be installed on the Loop and Lincoln Park campuses the week of March 22 during the university’s spring break.

DePaul and PNC share a commitment to educating college students on solid money management practices, according to Jeff Bromberek, DePaul’s director of Procurement Services. "DePaul established an office of Financial Fitness in 2006 to bring financial education to students and alumni," he said. "PNC’s presence on campus will enable students to exercise the good fiscal practices they have learned."

"PNC is excited to offer DePaul students and employees a smarter way to bank with convenient locations on campus, ATMs throughout Chicagoland and cutting-edge online banking services through our Virtual Wallet Student product," said Joseph Gregoire, president of Illinois banking at National City, now a part of PNC. "Our commitment to DePaul extends beyond traditional banking services and into unique money management solutions, so we can join the school in helping students develop successful, lifelong financial habits at school, work and home."

Brenda Williams, associate director of DePaul’s Financial Fitness Program, said, "We’re doing everything we can to help students get a great start on their financial lives. We offer unlimited, confidential financial counseling and dozens of workshops on such topics as managing college costs, saving for the future and controlling debt."

Special features of PNC’s banking program include:

• The option for students and employees to link their DePaul identification card to PNC accounts, adding ATM and purchasing functionality to campus cards used for daily business such as entering residence halls, checking out library books and accessing meal plans
• Personal banking products and services, such as free student checking and Virtual Wallet Student, an online banking tool specially designed to help university students help themselves with money management. (Click to see a series of videos illustrating how Virtual Wallet works: http://www.youtube.com/ virtualwalletbypnc)
• Branch office* and ATM locations at the Loop and Lincoln Park campuses and an ATM at the Naperville Campus
• A co-branded PNC Bank Visa Check Card for students, faculty, staff and 139,000 alumni to use at ATMs and to make purchases anywhere Visa is accepted 
• Customized Web site hosted by PNC where students and employees can complete account applications and find financial and money-management information.

Student Government Association President Dillon Goodson is pleased with the plan. "One of the great benefits of DePaul is its commitment to providing a full-service institution for students," he said. "In addition to the convenience of having branches on both campuses, on-campus banking provides an important educational component for first-time account holders and promises unique opportunities for joining together on student-run events."

DePaul Campus Branch Locations:

Full-service PNC branch*
DePaul Center, Loop Campus
1 E. Jackson Blvd. 2250 N. Sheffield Ave.
Chicago

PNC Electronic Financial Service Center
Student Center, Lincoln Park Campus
2250 N. Sheffield Ave.
Chicago


With more than 25,000 students, DePaul University is the largest Catholic university in the United States and the largest private, non-profit university in the Midwest. The university offers approximately 275 graduate and undergraduate programs of study on two Chicago campuses, four suburban campuses and three international locations. Founded in 1898, DePaul remains committed to providing a quality education through personal attention to students from a wide range of backgrounds.

PNC Bank, N.A. is a member of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (www.pnc.com), one of the nation’s largest diversified financial services organizations providing retail and business banking; residential mortgage banking; specialized services for corporations and government entities, including corporate banking, real estate finance and asset-based lending; wealth management; asset management and global fund services.

* Subject to standard regulatory approvals