Associate Director of Processing and Systems

Job Summary

The Office of Financial Aid encourages applications for an Associate Director of Processing and Systems ! This position is part of the Enrollment Management unit, where we support recruitment and student success efforts of the campus through the administration of financial aid programs. This full-time position reports to the Director of Financial aid and is responsible for the management of Processing and Systems, which includes technical oversight over the systems and processes required to administer all of CU Boulder’s financial aid programs. General duties include systems development, strategic planning, policy development, process improvement, project management, employee development, customer relations, and other duties as assigned. The core responsibilities of the office are to process aid and serve students and the Associate Director plays an important role in ensuring that those areas are supported with adequate resources and training. This key leadership position supports the director on technical issues and is part of the leadership team for the Office of Financial Aid. This position maintains a thorough and current solid understanding of all Title IV federal, State of Colorado, and institutional rules, regulations and procedures to ensure accurate release of information and program compliance. The position also maintains a thorough and current technical knowledge of the vendor software used by the office, including plans for upcoming changes, and how changes to the above mentioned regulations will impact the software.
The University of Colorado Boulder is committed to building a culturally diverse community of faculty, staff, and students dedicated to contributing to an inclusive campus environment. We are an Equal Opportunity employer, including veterans and individuals with disabilities.

Who We Are

The CU Boulder Office of Financial Aid is committed to helping students pay for college by building innovative programs to support access and graduation, empowering students to make healthy financial decisions, investing in the development of our staff, and engaging lawmakers and stakeholders to improve aid policy. We coordinate over $425M in grants, scholarships, work-study and loans for over 20,000 students each year. Our staff consists of 38 full-time professional employees and 50-60 student employees.

What Your Key Responsibilities Will Be

Systems Development

• Responsible for supervising all development and maintenance work for the Financial Aid Module for the Boulder campus Financial Aid Office.
• Partner with CU Boulder campus and CU system IT staff to report issues, assist with trouble-shooting, and develop IT solutions.
• Provide oversight of the querying of student financial aid data used for reporting and data analysis and coordinate with internal and external constituents to ensure that student information is handled efficiently and accurately and align with federal and state regulations, including security and privacy regulations.
• Responsible for ensuring all system development follows federal, state, and institutional rules and regulations.
• Evaluate current business processes and make recommendations for continuous improvements.
• Prioritize projects and build project plans with clear objectives, achievements, tasks and timelines.
• Test changes to the financial aid systems and evaluate effectiveness of changes to processes.
• Provide ongoing quality control over the accuracy of information processed through Campus Solutions and the campus imaging system.
• Provide usability testing of new systems and tools for users to identify issues and to assist with iterations.

Team Management

• Responsible for hiring, evaluating, training, and coaching staff. Also, set expectations for employee development for Processing and Systems staff.
• Responsible for establishing strategic goals that align with the office and campus initiatives.
• Ensure team members are supported by building strong relationships with campus partners.
• Provide leadership by fostering an environment of collaboration, teambuilding, and innovation.
• Delegate and supervise work assignments of team members.
• Identify needs, make recommendations, and implement new processes or procedures.
• Ensure procedures and processes are tested and documented.

Office Leadership

• Provide leadership as part of the OFA management team.
• Interpret regulations and ensure compliance with current rules, regulations, laws, etc., associated with the management of the federal, state, and institutional aid programs.
• Assist with office-wide strategic planning and implementation, as well as enrollment management and campus initiatives.
• Collaborate with all functional areas of the office to understand staff system needs and to determine the best business solution to tackle inefficiencies. Develop a broad knowledge of tools that are currently being used, as well as those that could be beneficial to be used by the office.
• Develop relationships with individuals in similar positions at other schools using the same software as the office in order to be able to acquire knowledge of “best in class” techniques for solving office problems.
• Lead office-wide projects by utilizing project management techniques.
• Assist the Director with technical inquiries as needed.
• Represent the Office of Financial Aid on campus initiatives.

Professional Development

• Participate in training seminars, conferences, committee meetings, etc. for professional development in the areas of Title IV financial aid.
• Attend staff meetings, retreats and other meetings as assigned.
• Collaborate with your supervisor to determine areas for professional growth and identify and request appropriate training opportunities.
• Assist in the development and implementation of Processing and Systems related trainings for all staff as needed.

What We Can Offer

The hiring pay range for this position is $95,000 to $120,000.

Benefits

The University of Colorado offers excellent benefits , including medical, dental, retirement, paid time off, tuition benefit and ECO Pass. The University of Colorado Boulder is one of the largest employers in Boulder County and offers an inspiring higher education environment. Learn more about the University of Colorado Boulder .

Be Statements
Be Dynamic. Be Resourceful. Be Boulder.

What We Require

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university is required.
• Three years of professional IT programming experience or technical financial aid administration.
• Supervisory or project management experience.
• Final candidate must successfully pass a criminal and financial background check and cannot be in default on a student loan either upon hire or while employed in this position.

What You Will Need

• A strong commitment to providing an extraordinary student experience.
• Strong leadership, supervisory, budgetary, staffing and planning skills.
• Strong technical and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to gain confidence and trust of others through honesty, authenticity, and acceptance of responsibility.
• Ability to exemplify excellence through diversity by creating a welcoming and inclusive environment that maximizes the success and inclusion of all students, staff, and faculty.
• Ability to create new and better ways for the organization to be successful.
• Ability to build partnerships and work collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives.
• Ability to communicate key and critical information in a timely fashion.
• Ability to interpret and apply federal, state, institutional, and donor rules, regulations, policies, procedures, principles, and practices.
• Confirmed understanding of a student information system or comparable systems.
• Strong digital literacy including software (Word, Excel, PowerPoint and other presentation software), email communication tools, and web-based applications.
• Knowledge of Federal Title IV financial aid programs and regulations.

What We Would Like You To Have

• A Master’s degree from an accredited institution of higher education.
• Six years of professional IT programming experience or technical financial aid administration.
• Thorough knowledge of State of Colorado financial aid regulations.
• Experience with federal financial aid data systems including NSLDS, FAA Access, and COD.
• Experience using PeopleSoft student information system.
• Experience using OnBase imaging system.
• Leadership credential or certification.
• NASFAA credentials.
• Bilingual.

Special Instructions

To apply, please submit the following materials:

1. A current resume.
2. A cover letter that specifically addresses how your background and experience align with the requirements, qualifications and responsibilities of the position.

You will not be asked to upload references at this time.

Please apply by March 2, 2021 for consideration.

Note: Application materials will not be accepted via email. For consideration, applications must be submitted through CU Boulder Jobs .

Posting Contact Information

Posting Contact Name: Boulder Campus Human Resources

Posting Contact Email: Recruiting@colorado.edu