Director Of Student Financial Services

About ACU

ACU is affiliated with the fellowship of the Church of Christ. All applicants must be professing Christians and willing to support the Christian mission and purpose of Abilene Christian University while employed by the university.

Title of Position Director of Student Financial Services Posting Location Abilene, Texas Department Student Financial Services Employee Class Exempt Full-time Basic Responsibilities

• Coordinate, evaluate, and implement effective awarding strategies for new students to meet enrollment and fiscal goals while promoting affordability.
• Analyze current student enrollment and implement financial strategies to improve retention while promoting affordability.
• Manage and evaluate the primary functions involved with the awarding, processing, and interpretation of all federal, state, and institutional aid programs.
• Manage and evaluate the billing and student accounts function to maximize cash flow and reduce student receivables/outstanding balances and barriers to registration.
• Oversee departmental activities including budgets, personnel, facilities, equipment modifications, form revisions, etc.
• Maintain reporting and compliance requirements according to federal and state regulations.
• Coordinate all financial aid and student billing communication workflow with student support teams across the university.

Essential Duties

• Coordinate, evaluate, and implement effective awarding strategies for new students to meet enrollment and fiscal goals while promoting affordability.

• Work with both Abilene and Dallas enrollment teams to develop recruitment strategies with the effective use of financial aid.

• Responsible for the evaluation, monitoring, and reporting of strategies during the recruitment cycle to the system financial management team. Reporting should be coordinated with the Abilene and Dallas enrollment teams.

• Data utilized for monitoring is to be approved and evaluated by the Director and the SFS team.

• Understand the financial goals and budgets of the University as related to tuition revenue and discount rates resulting in net tuition revenue.

• Responsible for reporting strategies against the goals as well as mid-cycle adjustments that may be needed or trends indicating a diversion from strategy and goals.

• Cross-check and evaluation of consultant reports to ensure data accuracy and understanding.

• Analyze current student enrollment and implement financial strategies to improve retention while promoting affordability.

• Work with senior leadership, enrollment, and institutional reporting to develop retention reports identifying at-risk students.

• Develop and present effective awarding strategies focused on retention to meet the overall enrollment and retention goals of the University and maximize the net tuition revenue.

• Manage and evaluate the primary functions involved with the awarding, processing, and interpretation of all federal, state, and institutional aid programs.

• Involve staff in the ongoing development and refinement of effective and efficient processes to award and deliver financial aid to students.

• Development of and building of award packaging criteria within the awarding system (Banner)

• Understanding the processing constraints for various parts of term while meeting student needs for funding.

• Timely processing of FAFSA data to coordinate timely award packages.

• Evaluation and support of federal and state award processing including loans and need-related grants.

• Assess workflow and adjust personnel as needed to meet deadlines and handle peak operating periods while delivering exceptional customer service.

• Endowed scholarship awarding according to University and departmental goals for student success and retention.

• Manage the billing and student accounts receivable functions to maximize cash flow and reduce receivables.

• Work closely with team members in managing the collection efforts, particularly the more difficult accounts where options are limited.

• Review payment plans and procedures for all students on an annual basis and make changes as needed.

• Communicate with parents/students on various methods and options for paying off the balance on their account.

• Design systems that accommodate the diversity of programs and delivery formats for campus modalities

• Regular evaluation of Student holds and impact on student success.

• Oversee departmental activities including budgets, personnel, facilities, equipment modifications, form revisions, etc.

• Set deadlines and timelines on certain activities and prioritize the critical jobs in the data entry, awarding, and processing (loans) areas.

• Delegate other departmental activities to key employees and ensure follow-up.

• Coordination and evaluation of processes with the team and IT support to identify efficiencies through automation.

• Maintain reporting and compliance requirements according to federal and state regulations.

• Communicate changes in policy, rules, and regulations to all staff members and campus support teams.

• Read trade journals and Department of Education information frequently to stay abreast of changes in regulations and their effect on the SFS operations.

• Coordinate and understand federal and state regulatory reporting requirements for annual external audits, Department of Education Reports (FISAP, ECAR), The Coordinating Board, and other federal and state reporting agencies.

• Ensure all team members are familiar with the regulations related to their respective areas of responsibility.

• Coordinate all financial aid and student billing communication workflow with student support teams across the university.

• Coordinate communications with each campus' support teams to ensure timely and proper cadence of information.

• Providing financial aid and billing information updates for student events such as student visits, NSO, etc.

• Develop and maintain regular training for admissions, enrollment, and Wildcat Central financial aid and billing support teams.

• Responsible for developing and evaluating the communication strategy for unforeseen events affecting new and continuing students across all campuses.

• Facilitate regular meetings with campus teams and combined financial aid/billing support teams.

Professional Development Requirements

• Skills
• Organizational skills for managing several processes and activities.
• Strong communication skills.
• Finance or accounting background.
• Strong understanding of business processes
• Training Modules Required
• Computer operations (Word, Excel, PowerPoint),
• Financial aid training programs, conferences, etc.
• Basic management courses.

Qualifications

• Professional
• Bachelor's Degree in an appropriate field of study preferred.
• Financial aid/higher education experience preferred.
• Strong analytical skills
• Public relations/communications background preferred.
• Demonstrate leadership ability
• Personal
• Self-motivated, resourceful, and creative.
• Professional image.
• Strong communication skills.
• Ability to interact with all levels of staff, faculty, and administration.

Physical Demands

• Ability to work long hours when necessary (weekends on occasion).
• Ability to perform computer operations for extended periods.
• Some lifting is required.

Additional Information

ACU does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, sex, disability, genetic information, national or ethnic origin in employment opportunities, in keeping with applicable state and federal law.

ACU is committed to maintaining a safe and secure campus environment and protecting the university's financial and physical assets. Therefore, Abilene Christian University conducts background checks on all candidates for employment in security sensitive positions.