Search for financial aid director continues

The last of four prospective applicants for the director of financial aid position was interviewed last week and the University is expected to announce its choice by the beginning of next semester.

The previous director, William Eastwood, retired over the summer after 37 years at Tufts. Associate Director Patricia Reilly, who has been serving as temporary director in the interim, said that Eastwood's retirement is "well-deserved" after his service to the University.

The search committee hired executive search firm Issacs and Miller to read the r?©sum?©s of potential replacements and schedule meetings between candidates and the University. Tufts has been searching for applicants nationally in hopes of finding an executive administrator with both experience in financial aid and expertise in technological areas.

Since the director of financial aid works very closely with the Office of Admissions, "the position is very important to Tufts" according to Wayne Bouchard, Executive Administrative Dean and head of the search committee.

The search for a new director of financial aid coincides with the search for a new dean of admissions, and the University is exploring the possibility of changing its entire financial aid system to operate by need-blind admissions.

Administrators, faculty and students say that they hope the new director will be well-versed in financial issues facing higher education.

One of the most important things is "to offer an educational environment that is rich in diversity, not only in curricular terms," Spanish professor Claudia Kaiser-Lenoir said. A faculty member on the Undergraduate Admissions and Financial Aid Committee, Kaiser-Lenoir said that she would like the new director to use his office to further the goals of the school's educational mission.

The search committee wants the new director to work towards moving away from the use of paper financial aid applications. The new director is also expected to use technology more effectively and make data more accessible.

Bouchard said the University is looking for someone "who will be plugged in nationally to where financial issues will be going on the state and federal level and be very connected with what other competitive institutions are doing in terms of financial aid."

Students still want to see need-blind financial aid as a top priority of the new director. "I would like to see somebody who could responsibly pursue need blind financial aid" without jeopardizing the University's financial aid position, said Adam Koeppel, a TCU senator and member on the Undergraduate Admissions and Financial Aid Committee.