Chapter 13 – Bank Reconciliations
The Bank Reconciliation module of school cash allows Treasurers to quickly perform bank reconciliations and print month-end reports for the Principal’s review and approval. Monthly reports must be reviewed and approved by the Principal and retained on campus for audit purposes. A copy of the monthly reports and a copy of the bank statement must be submitted to Accounting Services, Suite A-323 by the 20th day of the following month. If the monthly reports are not received by the 20th, a reminder email will be sent to the bookkeeper and the principal. If the monthly reports are not received by the last day of the month, a reminder email will be sent to the Principal and Area Superintendent.
Monthly reports and bank reconciliations will be reviewed by the Bookkeeper Support Team and items that need attention or correction will be addressed with the Treasurer or the Principal, as appropriate.
From the main menu, select Reconciliation. The Beginning Balance and Date reflect the information on file from the previous month’s bank reconciliation. Enter the Ending Balance and Date from the current bank statement and press CONTINUE to begin clearing transactions from School Cash Accounting.
This will bring up the bank reconciliation page. Systematically clear all the checks, deposits, direct deposits and NSF checks that appear on the bank statement, then add new transactions to record bank interest and service charges.
• Use the SEARCH button and specify Transaction Type CHECKS to display all outstanding checks on file in School Cash. Click the checkbox in the CLEAR column to clear all checks listed on the bank statement.
• Use the SEARCH button and specify Transaction Type DEPOSITS to display all the outstanding bank deposits on file in School Cash. Click the checkbox in the CLEAR column to clear the bank deposits that appear on the bank statement. All the deposit forms will appear on the screen. By checking the Multiple Reconcile checkbox, the bookkeeper will be able to clear one form and the system will automatically clear all the other forms associated with that deposit. In our example above, the entire $484.00 bank deposit
highlighted in yellow will be cleared by clicking any one of the four entries associated with Deposit #32 because we are using the Multiple Reconciling feature.
• Schools using the online payment system will use the SEARCH button and specify Transaction Type DIRECT DEPOSITS to display all the outstanding merchant deposits in School Cash. Click the checkbox in the CLEAR column to clear the direct deposit transactions that appear on the bank statement.
• Use the SEARCH button and specify Transaction Type NSF to display all the returned checks in School Cash. Click the checkbox in the CLEAR column to clear any NSF checks that appear on the bank statement. Any unrecorded NSF checks should be recorded in the NSF module, then cleared through the bank reconciliation process. Click the Finish Later button, record the NSF check, and return to the Bank Reconciliation module to clear the NSF check.
• Use the gray ADD RECORD tab to record monthly bank charges that appear on the bank statement. Use Category 7-0100.00 General Activities, Transaction Type Serv Charge, and transaction code Bank Service Charges. Enter a Description (Bank Charges – MM/YY) and the amount, using the Debit Field to record the expenditure.
• Use the gray ADD RECORD tab to record any interest that appears on the bank statement. Use Category 7-0100.00 General Activities, Transaction Type Interest, and transaction code Interest. Enter a Description (Interest Income – MM/YY) and the amount, using the Credit Field to record the revenue.
• For schools using the online payment system, use the gray ADD RECORD tab to record merchant service charges that appear on the bank statement. Use Category 7-0100.00 General Activities, Transaction Type Serv Charge, and transaction code Credit Card Fees. Enter a Description (Merchant Fees – MM/YY) and the amount, using the Debit Field to record the expenditure.
• Some schools prefer to allocate the online payment service charges back to the individual activity accounts. In those cases, use the allocation spreadsheet shown as Exhibit 13A to calculate each group’s share of the service charges, and transfer funds from those activity accounts to General Activities.
As items are cleared through the process outlined above, the system keeps a running total of the difference between the balance that appears on the bank statement and the balance that appears on the School Cash bank reconciliation. If all items shown on the bank statement have been cleared successfully, the remaining balance will be zero and the bank reconciliation is complete.
Click the blue FINISH RECONCILE button to complete the bank reconciliation and generate the following monthly reports:
• Bank Reconciliation Detail – shows all banking details for the month, including items that were cleared, items that are still outstanding, and any interest and service charges that were recorded during the bank reconciliation process.
• Overview Summary of All Categories – shows the beginning balance, transactions, and ending balances for all accounts.
• Transfer Report – shows all transfers processed during the month.
• Modifications Report – shows all transactions that were modified during the month, displaying the transaction details prior to modification and afterward, including the explanation entered by the Treasurer when the modification was processed.
After all reports print successfully, click the SIGN OFF button to finalize the bank reconciliation. Forward the monthly reports to the principal for signature. Monthly reports must be completed and copies of the signed monthly reports and bank statement must be submitted to Accounting Services by the 20th of each month.
Void Checks
Checks that have not cleared the bank can be voided in the Bank Reconciliation module of School Cash Accounting. To void a check, Select Bank Reconciliation from the Main Menu and go into the bank reconciliation module. Search for the check number by clicking on the gray SEARCH tab and enter the check number to be voided. This will select the check number for action by highlighting the check number, then click on the VOID CHECK tab to record the void in the system. The page below shows a typical void check transaction:
Enter an explanation and date, then click CONTINUE to save and post the transaction. This will reverse the original payment and restore the funds back to the original category or account.
School Cash Online Resources
Bookkeepers have three online options available to assist with Deposit processing in School Cash.
Tip Sheets – short illustrations of specific tasks – click on the Information icon at the top of the
page to get step-by-step instructions from the School Cash experts. Enter User ID SCN and Password
CASH to access the tip sheets.
Resource Center –from the main menu go to My School Information and click on the Resource Center
to see an indexed list of questions and answers from end users and video clips demonstrating specific tasks in School Cash Accounting.
User Guide - Located at the bottom of every page – Bank Reconciliations are covered in Chapter 1 of
the online user guide. Enter user ID SCN and Password CASH to access the online user guide.
