Assistant Director, Financial Aid

About the Role

The Assistant Director of Financial Aid manages financial aid programs (e.g., Pell Grant, CAL Grant, and Federal Direct Loans), coordinates the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) process, and oversees aid awarding. This position specializes in day-to-day oversight of financial aid processes, trains staff, and serves as a liaison for special student populations and external agencies.

Responsibilities

• Maintain a student caseload by school(s), including:
  • Oversee reconciliation of federal Direct Loan, Pell Grant, Federal Work Study, and California State CAL Grant funding programs.
  • Work closely with the Accounting Office on annual closeout for funding programs and reconciling accounts when adjustments to federal student aid have been made.
• Needs Analysis:
  • Analyze eligibility for federal funds using Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) data.
• File verification:
  • Analyze tax transcripts and other required forms to verify eligibility for federal funds.
• Packaging:
  • Allocate federal and institutional awards in accordance with eligibility, regulation, and policy.
• Mentor and train counseling staff members on daily processes, such as verification, missing information processing, and aid adjustments.
• Oversee and coordinate Professional Judgement areas, such as Need-based Appeals and/or cost of attendance revisions, including processing changes, emergency grants, and communicating outcomes with students.
• Manage the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) process, communicate status updates with students, facilitate SAP appeal meetings, and manage changes to student records.
• Act as primary liaison for special populations, such as the Posse program.
• Manage two or more financial aid programs (CalGrant, Pell, SEOG):
  • In coordination with the Director of Financial Aid, manage and monitor financial aid program budgets and awarding.
  • Monitor funding levels and reconcile funds on a monthly, semester, and year-end basis with the Accounting Office and the U.S. Department of Education.
  • Communicate with students regarding eligibility, awarding, and disbursement issues for the financial aid program.
  • Troubleshoot financial aid program-related issues with federal and/or state agencies and/or other outside agencies and CalArts departments, as needed.
• Develop and conduct workshops or similar mechanisms for students to learn about and apply for private scholarship assistance.
• Keep abreast of current regulatory information and disseminate to CalArts staff, faculty, and students, as needed.
• Oversee and manage general or specialized financial aid workshops and outreach for students as determined by the Director of Financial Aid.
• Organize and offer a new series of financial aid workshops and webinars aimed at prospective and current students to simplify the financial aid process and assist with funding plans.
• Manage web content for all CalArts financial aid webpages, ensuring content is up-to-date and student-friendly, and coordinate with Marketing Communications to produce marketing for events and other financial aid information pieces.
• Coordinate with partner offices on campus to promote events and financial aid messaging.
• Assist with office projects or workflow as determined by the Director of Financial Aid.
• Maintain confidentiality of financial aid records and information.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience required. Master’s degree or equivalent experience preferred.
• Experience:
  • 3-5 years of progressively responsible experience in a college financial aid office, including experience with federal and institutional needs analysis, or equivalent.
  • Experience leading webinars that engage student audiences.
  • Proficiency with financial aid systems, including financial aid management tools such as PowerFAIDS, Excel, Access, etc.
• Skills/Abilities:
  • Excellent interpersonal, written, and oral communication skills.
  • Excellent presentation skills with the ability to translate complicated financial aid language into student-friendly instructions and support.
  • Ability to interact effectively with varied internal and external constituencies, demonstrating tact, diplomacy, discretion, and good judgment.
  • Ability to lead projects internally and support streamlining of student-facing projects.
  • Ability to manage and motivate a team of financial aid counselors, including student workers.
  • Ability to interpret complex student data and support decision-making in collaboration with other members of the financial aid team.
  • Ability to learn, adapt to, and use new computer systems and technology.
  • Financial and business acumen—ability to work with complex data processing, needs analysis, and aid packaging strategies.
  • Exceptional communication ability to convey complex information to a wide constituency, verbally and in writing.
  • Ability to present financial aid information to groups of students and parents.
  • Proficiency in Microsoft Office, Google, and Adobe applications.
  • Critical thinking skills.