Modernizing Financial Operations with AssurePay Check at Texas A&M University System

The Challenge

Managing the financial operations of Texas A&M's 22 system members was no small task. With its legacy system, Secure 32, the university faced many inefficiencies day to day. Clint Merritt, Executive Director of Financial Management Operations, noted:

“It was outdated, non-cloud-based, and required us to store and maintain everything locally. If something broke, resolving it without a technical resource became a serious roadblock.” 

Each system member maintained their own separate instance, creating fragmentation across departments. Assistant Director of IT Support Melissa Ray added:

 “We couldn’t support individual system members when their check processes failed. We had no visibility or ability to import files system-wide, which slowed down operations significantly.”

Everyday operations were particularly cumbersome. Some of the most common inefficiencies included manual check approvals and reliance on physical security dongles for printing tasks. These issues were exacerbated by a lack of centralized control, making it harder to address errors, align with standards, and respond to emergencies like COVID-19 when remote work became a necessity

The Solution

 After receiving a recommendation from Wells Fargo and Citibank, Clint’s team led the partnering of Texas A&M with TROY to implement AssurePay Check, a cloud-based centralized framework that unified all financial operations.

The implementation of AssurePay Check was smooth, aided by strong support from the TROY team. Melissa Ray highlighted its importance, stating,

 “The knowledge and responsiveness of the support team were standout features. While we spent additional time standardizing naming conventions and profiles, it was worth it to achieve consistency across system members.” 

By adopting standardized workflows and templates, Texas A&M eliminated fragmentation, making it easier to manage processes across departments.

Features like manual check approvals and reprints became seamless, improving usability and successful onboarding for all users. 

“Having everyone on one instance makes life so much easier. Training, implementation, and maintenance are now straightforward.” - Melissa Ray, Assistant Director of IT Support

The Results

The implementation of AssurePay Check resulted in immediate and far-reaching improvements in Texas A&M’s financial operations:

✅Streamlined Processes: Check processing time for eight core system members was reduced from up to 4 hours to under 2 hours daily, resulting in significant time savings.

✅Centralized Control: The unified platform allowed Clint and Melissa’s teams to oversee and manage all 22 system member operations from a single instance, giving better collaboration and support.

✅Error Reduction: Automation and standardization of templates reduced errors and increased accountability, particularly helpful for resolving issues quickly when disruptions occurred. 

✅Ease of Use: The system’s simplicity & fast turnarounds  from users across system members. Smaller campuses noticed significant improvements, while shared services for larger entities became far more efficient.

✅Cost Avoidance: By keeping all processes in-house, Texas A&M sidestepped the higher costs associated with outsourcing check printing.

Texas A&M University System’s transition to AssurePay Check demonstrates the value of forward-thinking technology in modernizing financial operations. Through improved efficiency, reduced errors, and centralized control, the university has successfully optimized payment workflows for one of the most complex and large-scale educational systems in the nation. Both Clint Merritt and Melissa Ray highlight AssurePay Check’s reliability and ease of use as key factors in its success, setting a new standard for operational excellence in higher education.

Melissa summed it up best, stating, “This system has made everything easier for us, from implementation to ongoing maintenance. It’s a solution designed to empower teams to work seamlessly across departments.”