<p>Thanks, Omama. Can you transfer funds from a different bank account to the Alabama Credit Union account online? </p>
<p>I am driving my husband crazy with all these little details that I keep worrying about. And just this morning his sister sent a family email questioning us sending our daughter to a place with a “tornado record.” Everyone thinks we are only sending her to UA because of the large scholarship.</p>
<p>linnylu: Our credit union allows us to transfer money to my son’s Alabama Credit Union account, but I do need to go to the bank to do so. As for other banks, we have a bank that does allow us to transfer from one bank to another using the online method, but there is a $3 service charge. You may want to speak with your bank to see if this is possible.</p>
<p>As for tornadoes, do not worry about what your sister-in-law sent. One year, while living near Baltimore, we had four tornadoes in the area. My oldest son, who is now at Alabama, remembers jumping into the bath tub with blankets over him – just in case it came our way. Tornadoes happen in lots of places besides Alabama.</p>
<p>linnylu…I am constantly thinking about the details too. So I get where you are coming from! Especially when you live a significant distance from the school. It’s not like I could just drive something to him he forgets or needs. My son gets tired of answering the “why Alabama” question too. He now tells everyone that it is because thay have a lazy river…people that know him laugh, and get more info out of him. People that don’t know him well give him some of the strangest looks! I have had a few very odd calls from parents over that statement. </p>
<p>Momreads, we still have tornados in Maryland, and now earthquakes are more common. So I agree with you, weird weather events happen everywhere!</p>
<p>Side note about the SIL comments: when we moved from NJ to TN, we all received comments out the wazoo; D1 came home in tears one day because a boy had told her that she was going to turn into a hillbilly. Sigh. Honestly, we haven’t yet although I have picked up the use of y’all. </p>
<p>And during a trip back there to go to her former HS’s graduation (where the vast majority of kids go to a CC, not that there’s anything wrong with that!) when she proudly said she was going to UA for college someone (really) said to her “Aw honey, what did you do wrong?” She was fuming!</p>
<p>All this to say that people have all kinds of preconceived notions & ideas that have nothing to do with reality. Linnylu: you know that you’ve done your due diligence; you just have to smile and nod when people say ignorant things.</p>
<p>Here in Michigan, we get all kinds of funny looks when we tell people S is going to UA. The only people who seem impressed are the football fans…they LOVE the Crimson Tide (well…all except those crazy LSU people.)</p>
<p>I don’t care…I am proud and excited for my son to be attending in the fall. </p>
<p>ROLL TIDE!!!</p>
<p>me too wdaveo, me too.</p>
<p>Like many others here, we opened an account at the Alabama Credit Union. I say “we” because IIRC he was 18 and needed to be either 19 or 21 to do this on his own in Alabama. Also opened a CD there as the rates were far better than they were here locally (in Chicago) which has nothing to do with day-to-day finances but was interesting.</p>
<p>In any case, DS rarely, if ever, uses that account. He has his paychecks from his seasonal job direct deposited at his bank here into savings and transfers what he needs to checking for use on that ATM/debit card. If for some reason there is an “emergency” and he needs cash in his checking acct., which has happened only once, I can zip up to his bank 5 min. away and deposit it and it is available immediately.
Also, don’t forget you can put money on their Action Card online and it is also available immediately, for use at the Publix, laundry etc.</p>
<p>AL34…we have a wells Fargo right up the road. My son had an account with Wachovia before the change to Wells, and decided to stay with that bank because we knew it was available on/near campus. We did it for the same reason, so we can put money in the account immediately since it is so close. I doubt that he will open a credit union account. But we will see if something comes up that makes it necessary or more appropriate than the Wells account.</p>
<p>I believe that there was some sort of issue mentioned on another thread about refunds to students at the end of the year and needing certian type of account for that. I could be confusing colleges though.</p>
<p>I will have to visit our credit union to confirm, but it looks like our CU participates in the “CO-OP” network mentioned above. If so, then S will be able to get money readily (and I believe without fees) from the Ferg Center and other locations on campus. If you are currently banking at at CU, you may want to see if they are a member of the Co-OP network.</p>
<p>wdaveo, vlines, linnylu</p>
<p>I feel your pain…last week my D came home in tears, yes tears. She was so tired of her friends ‘ripping’ on Alabama, when she is so proud. Telling stupid Southern jokes, telling her she is going to turn into a ‘hick’ (really?), and her personal favorite: she got accepted because she had more than 4 teeth! Absolutely is making her crazy. She has even moved from some of her friends to a different lunch table. She is so proud of having the Presidential scholarship and of having made this choice and she does not understand why her friends are not happy for her.</p>
<p>I just telll her that people are afraid of what they don’t know. That some kids may be just a little jealous…many parents won’t let their kids go this far, or cannot afford to take them to visit. Plus it is an amazing offer…many kids did not work as hard for 4 years and don’t have the opportunities.</p>
<p>She is keeping her head up…wears 'Bama wear at least once a week…and is counting the days until she is on campus!
Roll Tide Roll!</p>
<p>Although it’s probably unlikely, I would so love from my son to be in CBHP - that would just seal the deal on the amazing opportunities that are awaiting him. With or without CBHP, UA offers so much more (with their stellar honors program) than he could have ever gotten at any of the other schools he was considering.</p>
<p>busymom,</p>
<p>Our OOS daughter had that experience too. She has gotten the last laugh, however, when her friends who are attending schools back in our home state have come to visit on game weekends. They are amazed at the size and beauty of campus. It is far from the cow pasture and backwoods they thought it would be. I think some of it is jealousy as you mentioned. I had posted and deleted my post earlier because autofill changed Saban into serbian, but I had shared how my daughter was also in tears after being told she should consider changing her graduation speech because “no one likes Alabama, no one knows who Bear Bryant is, and football isn’t really that important.” Since her graduation ceremony was one month after the devastating tornado, her speech focused on meeting life’s challenges. She used illustrations of recovery efforts and a community pulling together, which Tuscaloosa does, and inspirational quotes from Bear Bryant and Nick Saban. She said she wanted to speak from her heart and would not change it. The audience response was overwhelmingly positive and she received tremendous cheers and positive feedback. She is very proud of her choice to attend the UA and being a part of the community. She could have gone anywhere she wanted. We couldn’t be prouder of her choice. I was born and raised in Tuscaloosa, so I was thrilled! Roll Tide Roll!</p>
<p>buzymom3: So sorry that the “so called friends” made your daughter cry. It doesn’t seem like they are very good friends at all. </p>
<p>Tell her to continue to be strong and wear her colors proudly. She will find great friends at UA and great opportunities. Most non-southerners have no idea what a great university UA is and I am sure that jealousy is at play. </p>
<p>She has worked hard and has earned a terrific scholarship for herself and you are a smart mom to support her in this choice. She will excel and you will see that UA will be the right choice.</p>
<p>Roll Tide!</p>
<p>* he was 18 and needed to be either 19 or 21*</p>
<p>Yes, you do have to be 19 in Alabama to have an acct on your own. That said, I like that I’m on my kids’ accts that were opened up before they were 19.</p>
<p>However, if your child opens a credit union in your home state and the CU is an affiliated member, then your child only needs to be the age of your state’s req’ts.</p>
<p>*I just telll her that people are afraid of what they don’t know. That some kids may be just a little jealous…many parents won’t let their kids go this far, or cannot afford to take them to visit. Plus it is an amazing offer…many kids did not work as hard for 4 years and don’t have the opportunities.</p>
<p>*</p>
<p>Yep…that’s what’s going on. If they ever visited, they’d want to go, too.</p>