School Fee Payments & SettleCore Clearinghouse User Guide (EduTrack)

Goal: Understand how official school receiving accounts are published, how parents pay term fees and submit payment claims, how Reconciliation Hold protects students, and how School Bursars verify and settle accounts in the SettleCore clearinghouse.

EduTrack provides a transparent, zero-custody fee tracking platform. SettleCore never pools or touches school funds; tuition and fee payments flow directly from parent bank accounts or mobile money wallets into verified school accounts, with mutual double-witness confirmation recorded in an immutable ledger.

1. Publishing Verified School Receiving Accounts (Bursar)

Before parents can pay fees to the institution, the Bursar or School Administrator must publish verified receiving accounts:

• 1
  Navigate to Payment Rails in the Bursar portal (or Settings → Payment Rails).
• 2
  Click Add Payment Rail.
• 3
  Select the account provider type: Bank Account, Mobile Money (Till / Paybill), or Digital Wallet.
• 4
  Enter the school account details: Account Name, Bank/Branch, and Account/Paybill Number.
• 5
  Click Save Rail.
• Your verified payment channels are immediately displayed on every student fee invoice and parent payment screen with 1-tap copyable details.

2. How Parents Pay School Fees (Parent Portal Workspace)

When paying student term fees, log into /parent/payments:

Step 1: Review School Receiving Accounts

• The parent dashboard displays the school's official payment channels.
• Click the 1-Tap Copy button next to the account number or paybill to avoid manual transfer errors.
• Complete the transfer through your mobile money wallet (e.g. M-Pesa) or external banking app.

Step 2: Submit a Fee Payment Claim

Immediately after your bank confirms the transfer, record your claim using the simple 4-field form:

1. 1
   Amount Paid: Enter the exact fee amount transferred.
2. 2
   Sender Name / Mobile Number: Enter the parent or sender name that initiated the payment.
3. 3
   Payment Provider: Select the provider used (e.g. M-Pesa, Equity Bank, KCB, Wire).
4. 4
   Confirmation Message / Code: Paste the reference code or confirmation SMS received from your bank.
5. 5
   Click Submit Payment Claim.

3. Instant Reconciliation Hold Protection

The moment a parent submits a fee payment claim:

• The student's fee invoice enters Reconciliation Hold (reconciliation_hold = TRUE).
• Student Protection: Late fee penalties, library borrowing suspensions, and exam clearance locks are automatically frozen.
• The invoice displays an active status banner: Pending Bursar Confirmation.
• The school bursar receives an instant in-app notification and real-time alert to match the incoming deposit.

4. Student Fee Payment History & Official Slips

• Navigate to the Payment History tab in the parent portal.
• View all previously verified and settled fee payments.
• Click View Slip on any settled payment to view, download, or print an official, timestamped school fee payment confirmation slip.

5. How Bursars Review & Settle Payments (4-Tab Clearinghouse)

School bursars manage and reconcile incoming payments from /bursar/payments:

Tab 1: Claims Queue

• Displays all incoming parent fee claims awaiting verification.
• Match Indicator: Highlights whether the claim matches verified bank statement entries (Exact Match, Partial, or Unmatched).
• 1-Tap Settle: Once the deposit is confirmed in the school's bank account, click Verify & Settle.
• The claim is settled instantly with mutual double-witness audit logging.
• The student's invoice balance is cleared.
• Any surplus payment automatically cascades across the student's older unpaid terms or credits the parent's advance fee balance.
• The parent receives an instant settlement confirmation toast and mobile push notification.

Tab 2: Direct Verification

• For direct over-the-counter bank slips or cash deposits without a prior parent claim, enter the bank deposit slip reference to clear the student invoice directly.

Tab 3: Fee Ledger

• View an immutable, append-only stream of all verified fee settlements, audit timestamps, and confirming bursar staff.

Tab 4: Payment Rails

• Manage and update the school's verified receiving bank accounts, till numbers, and paybill channels.