CHALLENGE
Camden County College is one of the three largest community colleges in New Jersey,ranking among the top 100 nationwide in terms of associate’s degree graduates. During a record enrollment year in 2009, coupled with staff transitions and shortages, the college wanted to enhance efficiency and effectiveness for its financial aid program.

SOLUTION
FAS was selected to work with the college’s financial aid office to help improve student service while enhancing enrollment and accountability. Working on site, experienced FAS consultants first assisted with verification so the staff could work on other service priorities. They helped maximize the capabilities of the student information system for loan processing to improve efficiency and eliminate duplication of work, and also assisted with loan reconciliation through remote processing. An FAS consultant was asked to serve as interim financial aid director, providing positive leadership to the staff and helping troubleshoot and resolve technical challenges.

RESULTS
By reaching out to FAS, the financial aid services office at Camden County College enhanced the quality of student service and improved relationships with other campus offices including the business office, advisement center and office of records and registration. “FAS served as a ready resource to fulfill our immediate needs,” said Vice President for Enrollment and Student Services Sharon Wedington. “They helped us operate more effectively and efficiently during a leadership transition. Working with FAS has been a very positive experience — they were ‘user friendly’ and very responsive to our questions and concerns.”