Assistant Director, Financial Aid Systems and Digital Strategy

General summary/purpose:

The University Student Services Financial Aid team of the Johns Hopkins University (JHU), one of the world’s premier research universities, is seeking an exceptional individual to join our team as the Assistant Director of Financial Aid Systems and Digital Strategy. Reporting to the Associate Director of Financial Aid Systems and Digital Strategy, the Assistant Director is a member of the team within Financial Aid Shared Services that has the primary responsibility for the configuration and maintenance of the systems that underpin financial aid operations at JHU. This includes PowerFAIDs, NetPartner, OnBase, Salesforce, and other auxiliary applications. As a collaborative group, they work closely with the Director and are responsible for the development and implementation of policies and procedures to ensure that Office and University wide goals are successfully met.

The Assistant Director of Financial Aid Systems and Digital Strategy has the primary responsibility of supporting the Associate Director of Financial Aid Systems and Digital Strategy in the maintenance, configuration, testing, and efficient operation of PowerFAIDS desktop and eventually PowerFAIDs Cloud. This position will assist with the management of multiple instances of PowerFAIDs desktop / PowerFAIDs Cloud, and work closely with financial aid staff, University Information Systems (UIS), and University Data Warehouse (UDW) on data analysis and maintenance, and systems process development. The position will also maintain and supervise systems operations in the Associate Director’s absence.

The ideal candidate must be committed to the principles of access and diversity, providing the best customer service and student support experience to our families, and thrive in a fast-paced environment where expectations for performance and productivity are high.

This position offers the option to work remotely, but candidate must have the ability to participate in meetings, receive and make phone calls, and attend in person training and conferences, as needed.

Specific Duties & Responsibilities:

• Assist with PowerFAIDS configuration, maintenance, parameter roll forward and testing of new releases; review divisional requests for configuration and testing related to institutional aid awarding.
• Consult with University Information Systems (UIS), University Data Warehouse (UDW), divisional staff and other stakeholders to troubleshoot configuration and processing issues for PowerFAIDS, OnBase and related systems.
• Assist in coordinating and maintaining the reporting, programming, and processing jobs and process flows pertinent to all automated systems.
• Review systems reports to monitor for interface errors.
• Monitor daily processing stats and reports to ensure compliance with federal, state, and institutional requirements.
• Assist with student and other customer service contacts during peak periods and /or absence of other assigned staff.
• Serve on the PowerFAIDS Cloud implementation team and as a technical resource for financial aid staff.
• Assist with compilation of data related to annual federal, state, and institutional audits/reports.
• Regularly participate in professional development workshops and training to maintain expertise in all areas of financial aid and financial aid systems to ensure compliance with federal, state, and institutional regulations.
• Adhere to policies and procedures to ensure compliance with federal, state, and institutional regulations.
• Participate in cross-functional working groups and committees.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university.
• One year related experience including detailed knowledge and understanding of the Title IV student financial aid rules and regulations.
• Comprehensive knowledge of and technical ability to use databases and interfaces associated with the administration of federal, state, and institutional financial aid.
• Extensive knowledge of the PowerFAIDs financial aid management system, or other comparable financial aid systems, including setup, configuration, and maintenance.
• Experience with automating processes and technology/process implementation.
• Experience processing federal, state, institutional, and private financial aid.
• Excellent data analysis skills.
• Demonstrated resourcefulness and ability to work independently to problem-solve, recommend solutions, and develop ideas for improvement.

JHU Equivalency Formula: 30 undergraduate degree credits (semester hours) or 18 graduate degree credits may substitute for one year of experience. Related experience may substitute for required education on the same basis. For jobs where equivalency is permitted, up to two years of non-related college course work may be applied towards the total minimum education/experience required for the respective job.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master’s degree preferred.
• Three or more years of experience with PowerFAIDS.
• Experience with OnBase, Slate and Sharepoint.
• Understanding of and experience with relational databases.
• Proficiency with JIRA and Salesforce SCM.
• Ability to review, write and execute SQL queries.

Special Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Exceptional customer service and communication (both oral and written) skills.

• Accuracy and attention to detail in all aspects of the position.
• Demonstrated initiative, judgment, confidentiality, and discretion.
• Strong planning and organizational skills, and ability to manage competing priorities and work independently.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively across the organization with a variety of units and divisions.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, cultural responsiveness, and respect for a diverse, matrixed organization.
• Commitment to diversity and serving the needs of a diverse population.
• Proven ability to work independently and as a member of a team and exhibit resourcefulness in problem solving.
• Knowledge of data management systems and computer applications.
• Experience with student financial aid data management systems and federal software (FAA Access, EDconnect, COD, NSLDS etc.), and knowledge of financial aid reporting requirements.
• Willingness and ability to learn additional applications as needed.
• Ability to work effectively under deadlines and simultaneously manage multiple assignments.