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Blackstone–Millville committee approves restart of Dean Bank school savings program
Summary
Committee members approved a district partnership with Dean Bank to restart a school savings program for elementary and middle school students that offers a youth checking product (4% on first $3,000), incentives and debit access with parental permission; staff will finalize logistics and volunteer roles.
The Blackstone–Millville Regional School Committee voted Oct. 9 to allow Dean Bank to reinstate an in‑school savings program, a district partnership the bank said had run in the community in earlier years.
Dean Bank representatives Corissa Fora (assistant branch manager, Blackstone) and Angel McClord (branch manager) presented the "Dean's List" product, describing a youth‑tailored, fee‑free account that pays a 4% rate on the first $3,000, offers incentives and can include a parent‑authorized debit card for older students. Fora said the bank runs similar programs in Franklin and Bellingham and emphasized that the program includes materials for families, a simple application returned to the school and a back‑end portal banks use to record and process deposits.
Committee members asked about grade levels served and logistics. Fora said the bank expects to run the program at both middle and elementary levels and proposed to begin at times that worked with each building (lunch‑time deposit windows were cited as a common model). The bank representative said volunteers (bank staff or community volunteers cleared through background checks) would accept deposits on scheduled days and that the program could run without ongoing heavy bank staff presence.
Kristen Donado, the district director of finance and operations, and the superintendent confirmed budgetary coverage for the existing stipend line that supports a chapter advisor; the committee noted a stipend for advisors was already budgeted and available. The committee moved to approve restarting the program; the motion passed with multiple members voting yes and two members recorded as abstaining during roll call discussion.
Next steps: bank and district staff will select start dates, finalize volunteer clearances and publish enrollment materials for families.
Quote: "This program is so successful, we added a new product to our system called the Dean's List account… it has a high yield rate of interest, which is 4% on the first $3,000," said Corissa Fora of Dean Bank during the presentation.
Implementation details and timing will be communicated to families once school staff and the bank finalize a schedule and volunteer plan.
