Assistant Director of Financial Aid

Assistant Director of Financial Aid

The college seeks a highly skilled professional with a strong background in effectively administering financial aid services who will support Green River College's mission through work with students, staff, and faculty in a campus climate that promotes cultural diversity and student success. This is a supervisory position that is responsible for managing the daily customer service functions of the Financial Aid Office and providing support to the Director of Student Financial Aid in the administration of all aspects of the office operation. This position requires the knowledge of financial aid programs and the ability to exercise independent judgment in interpreting federal, state, and institutional regulations and the use of professional judgment (decision-making authority) in the area of student exceptions. The Assistant Director is responsible to manage outreach, financial literacy, and customer service, along with determining student eligibility, scholarship administration, and assisting with fiscal management and reporting requirements. This position requires occasional night and weekend hours for college events and office needs.

Green River College's student body is made up of approximately 41% Academic Transfer students, 34% Professional-Technical students, 15% Adult Basic Education student, and 3% Applied Bachelor degrees. Green River College has four campuses, including the main campus in Auburn, Washington, with satellite campuses in Kent, downtown Auburn, and Enumclaw. Green River programs serve high school graduates, Running Start students (dual enrollment in local high schools and the college), those seeking retraining for the workforce, international students, students learning English, and Continuing Education students. Green River's service areas are increasingly ethnically diverse, comprising African Americans, African immigrants, Asian Americans, Asians, Latinx, Native Americans, Pacific Islanders, and Middle Eastern Americans, among other communities.

We commit to be an anti-racist institution where all students, faculty, and staff receive the access, resources, and services needed to achieve their educational, career, and personal goals. Green River College makes social and economic justice, equity, and inclusion our highest priorities.

The Green River College definition of equity encompasses all identities, including but not limited to race, ethnicity, economic status, gender identity, sexual identity, disability, religion/spirituality, immigration status, age, and culture. We understand individual needs vary widely, and the effects of discrimination and historical oppression must be taken into account while aiming for equitable opportunities and outcomes for all.

Position Responsibilities

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion:

• Demonstrate understanding of the historical barriers for students (Black/African American, Indigenous, Latinx, and Pacific Islander) and commitment to student success by applying an equity lens to all duties and responsibilities.
• Maintain productive work relationships while considering multiple perspectives.
• Demonstrate awareness of others' social identities (e.g. race, gender, disability status, religion, etc.) and their relevance in the workplace.
• Resolve cross-cultural conflicts effectively.
• Articulate the department and division's commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and the reasons for its importance.
• Promote a respectful, diverse, equitable and inclusive work environment in which concerns are addressed effectively.
• Form respectful relationships with individuals and organizations representing diverse constituencies.
• Seek regular input to better understand diversity, equity and inclusion issues.
• Promotes a collaborative workplace climate that recognizes, celebrates, and rewards diversity, equity and inclusion.
• Recognizes and addresses incidents of explicit and implicit bias in the workplace.
• Holds team members accountable for problematic behavior.
• Be and remain actively involved in advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and racial justice and equity in projects and teams, to include active participation in workshops, discussions, and learning opportunities.
• Promote accessible and inclusive services, communications, and processes by identifying and addressing barriers for students with disabilities and those facing barriers.

Financial Aid Duties:

• Participate in the day-to-day operations of the Financial Aid Office, including, but not limited to, file review, awarding, disbursement of aid, and counseling students and families on the financial aid processes and procedures.
• Correspond with students, parents, agencies and staff, as necessary.
• Calculate institutional refunds and repayments.
• Analyze and evaluate students' academic progress and review academic appeals.
• Assist the Director in analyzing federal and state regulations, the development of Financial Aid program policies, and implementing appropriate policies and procedures.
• Manage and monitor compliance with financial literacy requirements in regard to financial aid and serve as advisor to campus on financial literacy initiatives.
• Schedule the workflow in the financial aid office to include systems job scheduling, tracking, awarding and disbursement of funds to students.
• Participate in opportunities to present financial aid information to the campus and community.
• Represent the college at conferences, within the community and in various organizations.
• Assist in the creation, conversion, improvement, and regular updating of documents to ensure that they meet state-mandated accessibility standards.

Supervisory/Training Duties:

• Coordinate front counter, phone, and email coverage with consideration for staff leave requests.
• Participate in the training of staff and other interested campus employees in all aspects of financial aid policies, procedures, processes and computer systems.
• Assist in the directing of the work of all staff in office, including student workers.
• Coordinate and manage office outreach (internal and external) and student communications.
• Promote and maintain exemplary customer service.
• Complete annual performance evaluations; develop individualized plans for improvement as needed.
• Assume duties of the Director in their absence.

Fiscal Management & Reporting Duties:

• Work within student management systems (ctcLink/PeopleSoft, FAM) to produce reports and maintain accurate data.
• Perform census repayment calculations, to include billing of students and report overpayment(s).
• Maintain electronic and manual record keeping and reporting systems, which include Federal and State software and web-based database systems.
• Assist the Director with reporting expenditures in current Federal and State software programs, request funds, report overpayments, complete the reconciliation process, and prepare year-end reporting, including preparation of the Unit Record and the FISAP.
• Perform related duties as required to support the goals and objectives of the department and the college.

Qualifications

Required qualifications:

• Bachelor Degree or combination of education and work experience.
• At least three years' experience administering financial aid in a higher education setting.
• Demonstrated competencies in written and verbal communications, including interpersonal skills and the ability to positively work with various offices.
• Previous experience or demonstrated competency in the areas of problem solving and managing multiple projects and deadlines. Attention to detail an absolute requirement.
• Expertise in MS Office, especially Word and Excel.
• Experience using MS SharePoint, Teams, OneDrive, and related technology.
• Familiarity with creating accessible documents in MS Word and Adobe Acrobat.
• Demonstrated experience in managing, supervising, and evaluating staff in a diverse working environment.
• Must be able to comprehend legal/regulatory language regarding complex rules and regulations.
• Demonstrated ability to work within relational databases.
• Demonstrated ability to perform work efficiently with accuracy and strong attention to detail.

Desired qualifications:

• Bilingual in one or more of the top 8 languages in service area: Spanish, Dari, Somali, Punjabi, Marshallese, Ukrainian, Vietnamese, and/or Arabic.
• Demonstrated knowledge and working familiarity with the following: ctcLink's (PeopleSoft's) Financial Aid module; FAM; Federal Student AID (FSA) EDConnect, COD, NSLDS, CPS Online.
• Demonstrable expertise using MS SharePoint, MS Teams, OneDrive, MS Word, MS Excel, and related technology.

Supplemental Information

Working Conditions:

• Must be able to sit for long periods.
• Frequent repetitive arm, hand and finger motions.
• Frequent use of computer and exposure to terminal screen.
• Work in a stressful environment