Associate Director of Scholarship Compliance and Operations

Requisition Number: 62246

Location: Boulder Colorado

Employment Type: University Staff

Schedule: Full Time

Posting Close Date: 23-Feb-2025

Date Posted:

Job Summary

Scholarship Services at CU Boulder invites applications for the Associate Director of Scholarship Compliance and Operations! Scholarship Services is part of Student Financial Services, a unit within the Enrollment Management division, where we support recruitment and student success efforts of the campus by applying federal, state, institutional and private funding to maintain access to an education and ensure aid policies support enrollment, retention, and graduation goals. This full-time position reports to the Director of Scholarship Services and is responsible for the leadership of the Compliance, Operations, and Processing team.

The Associate Director of Scholarship Compliance & Operations provides strategic leadership in managing the administration, compliance, and processing of university and private scholarships. This role ensures that scholarship programs align with institutional Enrollment Management goals while maintaining compliance with federal, state, and university regulations. The Associate Director is responsible for the awarding and renewal of scholarships, collaborates with CU Advancement, private donors, auditors, and university leadership, and ensures donor funds are administered in accordance with agreements. This position is also responsible for policy enforcement, process improvements, and optimizing scholarship utilization through data-driven analysis.

This role leads the operations of the Office of Scholarship Services, supervising professional staff and student employees while fostering an innovative work environment. The Associate Director oversees scholarship fund management, ensuring accurate financial reconciliation and fund disbursement. Additionally, this position manages the Scholarship Award Management System and student information systems, driving efficiency through process automation and data integrity initiatives. With a strong understanding of Title IV federal aid, Colorado state regulations, and institutional policies, the Associate Director ensures compliance and the accurate release of scholarship information. The role also participates in professional development and represents the university in scholarship-related initiatives, contributing to the continuous improvement of scholarship administration. 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

As one of only 35 U.S. public research institutions in the Association of American Universities (AAU), CU Boulder is about realizing the positive impacts of new knowledge.

From offering dozens of exciting programs in a range of academic fields, to serving as one of the world's most dynamic research and innovation hubs, to working closely through hundreds of public outreach efforts with communities across Colorado and the world, we take pride in helping our students, faculty, staff, and partners turn new insights into productive outcomes that change lives.

What Your Key Responsibilities Will Be

Program Leadership and Management

• Lead Office of Scholarship Services operations and processing using standard processes. This team is responsible for the processing of scholarship checks, electronic fund transfers, automatic admissions scholarships, institutional department scholarships, and non-disbursing other financial aid

• Lead the campus efforts to ensure scholarship policy is well defined and compliance is enforced. Provide effective policy training and support tailored to various levels of organizational need to ensure ideal utilization.

• Act as a primary liaison for campus partners, advising on best practices for establishing, administering, and disbursing scholarship funds.

• Foster collaboration with campus partners to ensure accurate and efficient processing of scholarships with a focus on innovation.

• Develop, implement, and maintain operational procedures to enhance efficiency and effectiveness in scholarship awarding. Make recommendations for continuous improvement.

• Lead initiatives to assess and enhance scholarship utilization through data-driven analysis to achieve broader Enrollment Management goals.

• Engage with partners to develop strategies to maximize the reach and impact of scholarship awards.

• Evaluate scholarship applications, including financial need assessments, academic achievements, and other relevant criteria to support the awarding of scholarships. Manage scholarship renewal process for university scholarships.

• Consult with campus and system legal counsel as necessary to resolve concerns related to scholarship donor agreements or other matters.

• Collaborate with CU Advancement, university departments and external scholarship donors, to ensure administration of scholarships follows donor agreements and university policy, and to ensure donors are receiving proper stewardship and regular reports.

Technical and Systems Management

• Lead the team responsible for student information system integrations, collaborating with campus and CU system offices to ensure systems meet operational needs and align with the goals of the Office of Scholarship Services.

• Support strategic planning and execution of all scholarship communications generated through various systems, ensuring they are accurately reviewed and updated.

• Develop and maintain a well-documented communication schedule, collaborating with other Enrollment Management functional areas to ensure timely and effective delivery.

• Provide leadership in leveraging the document management system to optimize scholarship processing, reporting, and itemtype creation.

• Lead efforts to identify and implement strategic technology enhancements that improve processes, streamline workflows, and enhance user experience.

• Oversee the annual cycle management of the scholarship award management software, ensuring accurate data file import/export and necessary system updates.

• Maintain and distribute technical documentation, including data definitions, best practices, and user guides.

Team Leadership

• Supervise, train, motivate, evaluate, and provide leadership to a team that includes full-time professional staff and student employees.

• Foster a creative, success-oriented, and accountable environment that attracts and retains top-notch professional and student staff.

• Create and revise procedures, develop applicable workflows, and prioritize and assign appropriate tasks to full-time and student employees to meet service level agreements.

• Ensure direct reports maintain compliance with state and federal and university regulations, including compliance with advancement gift spending guidelines.

• Provide leadership to the office through maintaining accurate and thorough training resources, serving as a resource to student employees, and ensuring exceptional customer service is provided.

• Review progress, timeliness, and quality of work assigned, providing formal and informal assessments.

• Lead team meetings which highlight important topics for collaboration and collective team learning.

• Assist the Director with legal and media inquiries as needed.

Fund Management and Reconciliation

• Serve as a designated authority to award Enrollment Management scholarship funds, overseeing awarding, fund transfers, and reconciliations of select scholarships.

• Collaborate with Student Financial Services (SFS) and Enrollment Management accounting professionals to verify the accuracy of processed transactions and ensure proper fund disbursal.

• Maintain accurate financial records by pulling reports from the finance system, regularly reconciling and balancing scholarship funds.

• Lead clean-up efforts for assigned scholarship programs, ensuring accuracy and compliance throughout the year.

• Ensure Payment Authorizations are generated and fulfilled to return funds to grantors when necessary.

Professional Development and Institutional Representation

• Collaborate with immediate supervisor to determine areas for professional growth and participate in relevant training opportunities.

• Identify and request appropriate training opportunities offered by the office, the University, and through various professional associations or organizations.

• Participate in external and internal trainings, conferences, webinars, etc., related to administering aid.

• Attend staff meetings, retreats, and other meetings as assigned. May include representing the Office of Scholarship Services in Enrollment Management and campus-level initiatives.

Supervision Exercised and Received

• This position reports to the Director of Scholarships and directly supervises 2-3 FTE, with a total team of 4-5 staff.

What You Should Know

• 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.

• Hybrid work environment offered!

What We Can Offer

• The salary range is $98,000 - $105,000 per year.

Benefits

The University of Colorado offers excellent benefits (https://www.colorado.edu/jobs/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 (https://www.colorado.edu/about) .

Be Statements

Be challenged. Be visionary. Be Boulder.

What We Require

• Bachelor's Degree from an accredited college or university. An equivalent combination of education and experience may substitute.

• Four (4) plus years of financial aid or scholarship administration experience in a higher education setting.

• Experience with supervision, coaching, and leading staff. Working knowledge of a student information system and/or scholarship management software. Working knowledge of Federal Title IV financial aid programs and regulations.

What You Will Need

• A strong commitment to providing an extraordinary student experience.

• Strong leadership, supervisory, budgetary, staffing and planning skills.

• Ability to gain confidence and trust of others through honesty, authenticity, and acceptance of responsibility.

• Ability to exemplify excellence by creating a welcoming environment that maximizes the success 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.

• Strong computer skills including software (Microsoft 365 apps including SharePoint, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams or similar), email communication tools, and web-based applications.

Special Instructions

To apply, please submit the following materials:

1. A current resume.

2. A cover letter that specifically tells us how your background and experience align with the requirements, qualifications, and responsibilities of the position.

We may request references at a later time.

Please apply by February 23, 2025, for consideration.

Note: Application materials will not be accepted via email. For consideration, please apply through CU Boulder Jobs. (http://jobs.colorado.edu/)

In compliance with the Colorado Job Application Fairness Act, in any materials you submit, you may redact or remove age-identifying information such as age, date of birth, or dates of school attendance or graduation. You will not be penalized for redacting or removing this information.

To apply, visit https://jobs.colorado.edu/jobs/JobDetail/Associate-Director-of-Scholarship-Compliance-and-Operations/62246 (https://apptrkr.com/6019430)

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The University of Colorado does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, pregnancy, disability, creed, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, political affiliation, or political philosophy. All qualified individuals are encouraged to apply.