Director of Financial Aid

Description

The Director of Financial Aid reports to the Vice President of Student Affairs and is primarily responsible for the overall operations of the Student Financial Aid program and Veterans and Military Affairs. The Director of Financial Aid is responsible for operationalizing and directing all short, intermediate, and long‑range planning for the financial aid program. The Director coordinates with other department directors the implementation of financial aid regulations, policies, and procedures related to individual departments and the college as a whole.

This position requires enthusiasm, a strong work ethic, and initiative while working collaboratively with others in the department and each campus. This position requires a background check by Human Resources and the candidate must obtain a valid Colorado Driver’s license.

• Establish and maintain a customer service environment in the financial aid office, staff, and communication
• Research, analyze, and interpret state and federal financial aid regulations; establish policies and procedures to ensure both continued compliance with regulations and the provision of exceptional customer service to a diverse population of college students and their families
• Promote the availability of financial aid funds to current and prospective students
• Certifying Official for Veteran's Educational Benefits
• Train financial aid staff, insuring their in‑depth knowledge of financial aid regulations and policies
• Create and implement annual financial aid packaging policies for multiple student cohorts
• Design, implement, and establish quality control mechanisms for all technological tools and systems used in the administration of state and federal financial aid programs, including Banner Software, Banner Web, Guarantor software, VA‑ONCE, state and federal agency proprietary software, etc.
• Administer, maintain, implement and test all upgrades to the Banner Financial Aid System and manage the financial aid system
• Ensure office and staff compliance with ethical and fair practices related to Student Loan Programs
• Create, analyze, and monitor student hold flags as they relate to awarding and disbursing financial aid funds
• Monitor and create the Banner Financial Aid rules tables and detail codes as necessary to award student financial aid in accordance with all regulatory agencies
• Research, review, implement and maintain third‑party federal and state financial aid application and processing software such as the electronic Student Aid Report and the submission and retrieval of applicant data and eligibility status
• Research, review, implement and maintain Student Loan processing software
• Perform periodic and end‑of‑year reports and reconciliations
• Provide information to external auditors
• Administer the financial aid academic review and appeals process
• Communicate financial aid eligibility and award decisions to students and their families and work with them to resolve outstanding eligibility issues
• Provide financial aid information sessions and eligibility workshops for community agencies, school systems, and other organizations within our service region
• Advise the Leadership as necessary to ensure institutional compliance with all federal, state, and local requirements
• Advise academic departments and faculty on programmatic and student financial aid eligibility issues
• Collaborate with the Enrollment Services team in designing and coordinating procedures and policies to optimize student enrollment at the college
• Collaborate with other departments in the planning and implementation of Financial Planning Workshops
• Serve as a member of the System Banner Implementation Team
• Train on the use of the Banner Financial Aid System and General Banner applications
• Supervise the timely updates and completion of the office Financial Aid Policy and Procedures Manual
• Collaborate with management staff within the Business Office to ensure timely disbursement of financial aid funds and timely student refunds
• Prepare and analyze correspondence, reports, and audits for state, federal, and third‑party agencies, including CCHE Report of Expenditures, CCHE SURD's…