User:Linda Golden/U Card

The U Card is the Official University of Minnesota photo ID card. ^[1] It is known as the "Campus Key."

Thousands of universities and colleges around the country and the world currently use a photo ID card as identification and authentication for goods and services associated with the college or university. Some believe that the college photo ID is the precursor to a national identification card that everyone will someday be required to carry.^[2]

U Card History[edit]

The U Card Program was approved by the Regents of the University of Minnesota 1994 as the "Official University of Minnesota Photo ID Card." Unlike other campus id cards, the U Card is a multi-authentication technology used with a home-grown software program designed by and maintained by the University of Minnesota OIT Department. Over 400,000 U Cards have been produced since the inception of the program using this software and we card around 30,000 students, staff and faculty annually. The first U Card was produced on March 16, 1995 ^[3]. On July 1, 1995, the U Card Office was created. In 1996, the U Card expanded its functionality to include the Gopher GOLD program. In that same year the U Card team became a member of NACCU, The National Association of Campus Card Users^[4]. The U Card website launched in 1997, and in 1998, the U Card was awarded the Best Card Design from NACCU. On May 1, 2008, the U Card upgraded to a dual technology card, meaning it has a high coercivity magnetic stripe as well as Radio Frequency ID (RFID) technology. This is known as a 'smart card'. The U Card is currently used to access a variety of services at the University of Minnesota, including the Twin Cities, Duluth, Morris, Crookston and Rochester campuses. Over 400,000 U Cards have been produced since the inception of the program using this software. Currently, around 30,000 students, staff, and faculty get their U Cards every year.

The U Card Office[edit]

The permanent home of the main U Card Office is on the ground floor of Coffman Memorial Union in room G22. There are satellite U Card Offices at the University Recreational Center and at the St. Paul Gym. The U Card Office employs 6 full-time staff members and 8 part-time student staff members. The U Card Office produces a wide variety specialty cards and badges for departments around the University such as the Academic Health Center, Campus Club membership cards, College in the Schools cards, PSEO cards, Boynton Health Service cards, and security ID badges.