Director of Financial Aid Systems

The Director of Financial Aid Systems is a high-level leadership role at Western Washington University, responsible for directing the Systems and Operations enterprises for Financial Aid. This position reports to the Executive Director of Financial Aid and provides strategic administration of student financial aid programs through the effective implementation, configuration, and management of computer software for the Financial Aid department and oversight of application processing flow, systems documentation, and staff training.

• Oversee the design, update, implementation, maintenance, testing, evaluation, and documentation of the financial aid software systems at Western, including Ellucian Banner, FA Data Warehouse, OnBase, and U.S. Department of Education software.
• Maintain an up-to-date understanding of the functions that financial aid software can provide through training and self-initiated research.
• Coordinate Ellucian Banner financial aid upgrade activities with Enterprise Application Services, Financial Aid staff members, and others.
• Perform extensive yearly financial aid systems configuration functions and process flow evaluation and implementation.
• Write detailed programming specifications for required financial aid forms and reports not provided by the Ellucian Banner or OnBase imaging systems.
• Serve as a liaison with Enterprise Application Services to test and implement desired programming.
• Determine whether the financial aid software systems meet federal and state aid regulations, with the assistance of relevant staff.
• Inform the Executive Director of major inconsistencies between regulatory requirements and what the systems provide.
• Recommend proposals for systems resolution to the ED-Fin Aid with rationale (pros/cons) for such recommendations.
• Serve as primary representative/liaison for the Financial Aid office on institution-wide and state-wide technology initiatives.
• Prepare and conduct systems training sessions for departmental staff.
• Coordinate timely documentation of policies and procedures related to using the financial aid software system, largely by departmental staff.
• Participate on relevant interdepartmental committees that address technical and data integrity issues affecting administrative and academic departments at WWU and provide input for scheduling system down time and purchase of relevant software.
• Write database queries using several report writing tools to retrieve data from the financial aid system, as well as from other modules within the Western Student System, to support awarding of aid, problem solving, and statistical reporting.
• Oversee other statistical reporting such as: Common Data Set, national college surveys, Washington Student Achievement Council requests, and requests from constituents within the WWU community.
• Work with the Financial Aid staff to identify and resolve system and process flow problems.
• Responsible for security administration for Financial Aid, including maintenance of access and security levels for all Ellucian Banner financial aid forms, OnBase financial aid access, the Washington Student Achievement Council secure website and portal, and Federal Title IV web access (COD, CPS, and NSLDS).
• Lead the Operations enterprise for Financial Aid. The Operations Team conducts the processing of 19,000+ active student financial aid applications, including student FAFSA retrieval, loading data to the Ellucian Banner financial aid system, grouping and batch processing, intake and upload of documentation to the electronic student files in the OnBase imaging system, student notifications, and systems tracking of student documentation requirements, batch packaging of financial aid awards, cancellation of funding, transmittal and receipt of Federal Direct Loan, Pell Grant, and Teach Grant records, processing PLUS Loan application matches and revisions, monitoring intersession activities, and providing Satisfactory Academic Progress monitoring support.
• Supervise the Systems and Operations Center, which includes two IT Business Analysts, the Assistant Director for Financial Aid Operations, and one Senior Financial Aid Counselor, to provide a team approach to systems cross-training, process flow analysis, and systems documentation.
• Directly supervise two IT Business Analysts, who are responsible for serving as systems backup in the absence of the Director of Financial Aid, oversee financial aid data transmissions between Financial Aid and the Department of Education servicer, Argos report writing, and data security for the Financial Aid Department.
• Directly supervise the Assistant Director for Financial Aid Operations. Indirectly maintain oversight of the Operations Team, which includes three Program Coordinators, one Program Assistant, and several student employees.
• Directly supervise one Senior Financial Aid Counselor position. This position's responsibilities include the regulatory oversight and reconciliation for the $17 million Federal Pell Grant program, $6 million private alternative loan program, $100,000 Alaska Loan program, and time-sensitive financial aid withdrawal calculations and processing for federal, state, and institutional aid programs.
• Serve as hiring authority for Systems and Operations Center and have significant responsibility in advising the Executive Director for Financial Aid as to the hiring, firing, advancement, promotion, or any other change of status of other Financial Aid employees.
• Responsible for meeting high-stakes, high-risk reporting requirements on behalf of Western Washington University, defending and justifying our continued use of millions of dollars of federal and state aid.
• Oversee the production and filing of the annual State Unit Record report, which summarizes all aid received by Western Washington University students who received any funding during the year and the Federal IPEDS Financial Aid report.
• Oversee the accurate and timely compilation and filing of the FISAP, as well as quarterly and annual reports for funds including the Washington College Grant/College Bound Scholarship/Passport to College/Washington State Bridge Grant. These reports serve as requests for supplemental funding and substantiate disbursements to eligible students.
• Create, run, resolve, and/or oversee discrepancy reports that ensure accurate delivery of aid, for example: Class level vs. Loan limits, Repeat Coursework Report, Late Starting Classes Report, Offered not Accepted Aid by Fund, and Accepted not Paid Aid by Fund.
• Oversee fund re-awarding projects and fund switching for reconciliation.
• Complete surveys including but not limited to IPEDS, the Common Data Set, U.S. News and World Report, Peterson's College Board-Big Future College, and Princeton Review.
• Serve as a member of the departmental Leadership Team, which plans and organizes department-wide work to ensure the accurate and timely delivery of financial aid to Western students.
• Collaborate with the Counseling Team and provide input for changes to review processes.
• Responsible for non-Title IV Federal emergency funding policy analysis, awarding, communications, and reporting. Maintain an up-to-date knowledge of awarding criteria associated with non-Title IV federal emergency funding and identifies students who are eligible for such funding via collaboration and systems retrievals among multiple areas, including but not limited to Financial Aid, the Registrar's Office, and Student Business Office.
• Provide clear communications to students that outline eligibility requirements and notifies students of their awards.
• Responsible for policy analysis, awarding, and communications associated with administration of Washington State Bridge Grants, disbursed to approximately 2000 low-income students annually totaling an estimated $900,000.
• Responsible for budgetary responsibility for Aid Funds: Federal Pell Grant approximately $17 million to over 3,000 students annually; Federal Direct Loan Programs approximately $40 million to over 4,500 students annually; Washington State Grant/Scholarship Programs approximately $23 million to over 4,000 students annually.
• Serve as a representative on inter-office committees and meetings not listed above, attend office and division meetings, monitor list-serve postings including but not limited to BFINAID, BPOST, BGENERAL, Ellucian E-Communities IFAP, and NASFAA, read regulatory postings, attend trainings, conferences, and webinars, and complete other special projects as assigned by the Executive Director and/or ESS leadership.

• Bachelor's Degree
• Minimum 3 years of experience with support and maintenance of a mission-critical software system, including writing systems documentation
• Demonstrated experience working within Student Affairs/Services at a college or university
• Demonstrated experience learning and applying new technology
• Proven ability to maintain confidentiality and familiarity with the privacy and protection of sensitive data
• Demonstrated relational database experience, writing data queries and reports using query tools such as MS Access and SQL Developer
• Minimum 2 years supervisory or lead experience, with demonstrated ability to effectively plan, organize, prioritize, and delegate tasks to meet deadlines
• Demonstrated ability to accurately interpret and apply regulatory guidance to systems design
• Demonstrated commitment to support a workplace culture in which diversity and differing opinions are honored, respected, and celebrated
• Excellent communication, customer service, and interpersonal skills

• Master's Degree or 5+ years of direct, mission-critical software oversight within student affairs/services office(s)
• Experience working in a college or university Financial Aid office
• Proficiency with Ellucian's Banner Financial Aid module
• Working knowledge of OnBase or other imaging software
• Proficiency with Evisions Argos Report Writer or other report writers
• Project management experience