Independent Banker - March 2018 - 73

board and senior management. "
The key to the success of the
program, according to Marowa, was
devoting one person to work specifi -
cally with schools and students to
provide top-quality service.
" There was a huge need for
excellent service in the student loan
market, and with the help of RSLFC
to underwrite the student loans, we
have an amazing team that provides
this service, " he says.
In the beginning, growth was slow,
but TriStar is now seeing " tremendous
growth, " according to Marowa.
" Even as a small bank in Dickson,
Tennessee, we are now serving
several clients from most states, " he
says. " This diversity helps us as we
build our student loan portfolio. The
program has given us a competitive
advantage over other small lenders,
since most of them are not interested
in the student loan market. "
Opening a new market
Another bank experiencing success
with the program is The Community
Bank in Zanesville, Ohio, with assets
of $420 million. Like TriStar, it got
on board with iHELP in 2015. " We
did not offer direct student loans and
wanted to diversify the consumer
portion of our loan portfolio, " says
Eric S. Holsky, president and CEO.
The main challenge for The Community
Bank was creating the process
to book and track balances, fees and
activity on the bank's core system.
" There is a manual portion to
this process, but it is mitigated by
the reporting and support from
iHELP, " Holsky says. What also
helped, he says, was the fact that it
was a turnkey product, and the bank
received solid training for both the
product itself and the back offi ce/
administrative portion. " The portfolio
has performed well so far, and the
administrative piece has been reasonable, "
says Holsky.
For community banks, getting
involved in a program like iHELP
can be the beginning of a new market
opportunity. " The way for banks to
make the most of this is to focus on
being involved beyond just the lending
side, " says ICBA's Tweddle. " If you
are going to make student loans, try to
get the whole student relationship-
with a lifetime focus. For example, try
to get the student checking account,
help them with wealth management,
and so on. "
William Atkinson is a writer in Illinois.
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