[tylerc102]

It sounds like the biggest problem is cash flow. That you don't have a mentor with (or at least willing to use for any number of reasons) a credit card for the larger purchases. For us, this was more key than whether we were using ASB or a 501(c)3.

We've been dealing with an ASB at our school for four years, and we've been able to get by just fine. Yes there is a process, but most of the time that is fine.

We have an Open PO that covers a large category (tools & parts, marketing supplies & food) that provides for a quick reimbursement (well within the span of a credit card billing period). Because the PO has already been approved, we don't need to worry about potentially getting denied on the purchase.

For larger purchases that we don't want to cover, we just play the system and get a check in advanced (because for large purchases, you should have been planning it out and giving yourself plenty of time .. right?). Then you have a nice check that can either be made out to a mentor who will then in turn pay the vendor, or written directly to the vendor.

If you still are interested in trying to make ASB work, let me know and we can give you all the tips we've learned using it. The simplicity of having someone else do it has really paid dividends for our team because of our limited number of mentors.