Bursars

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An individual responsible for managing financial matters at an educational institution, particularly handling student accounts and billing
2. A person who oversees and administers budgets and financial resources in schools, colleges, or universities to ensure fiscal responsibility
3. A financial officer within an academic setting who takes charge of funds, expenditures, and sometimes scholarship management for students

Etymology: "Bursars" is the plural of "bursar," so it names more than one person holding that office. The office itself comes from Medieval Latin "bursarius," a derivative of "bursa," meaning "purse." A bursar was, quite literally, the keeper of the purse: the person entrusted with the money of a college or school. The Latin "bursa" is also the source of English "purse," which shares that ancestry, so the link between the two words is direct rather than a matter of later coincidence. The same root gave medieval scholars a practical job title: someone who handled the common funds and disbursed them, paying for food, lodging, and upkeep. That is the sense the modern word keeps, now applied mainly to the staff who manage student fees, accounts, and billing.