Director of Scholarships

American Indian College Fund•Denver, CO

7h•$85,100 - $109,850

About The Position

The Director of Scholarships provides strategic leadership to implement and enhance the American Indian College Fund’s (College Fund) scholarship program.ming This role is responsible for independently leading and evaluating scholarship administration and its impact on Native student success. The Director serves as a key thought partner in the College Fund’s Student Success Services (SSS) leadership team, aligning College Fund scholarship initiatives with direct student support strategies to drive impact. They lead program evaluation and learning, support departmental and organizational reporting, and serve as a conduit between TCUs, funders, and internal teams to demonstrate and strengthen the effectiveness of scholarship programming. The Director also cultivates meaningful relationships across the TCU network and higher education sector to share and scale promising practices.

Requirements

At least 7 years of progressive experience in higher education, including financial aid.
Strong program evaluation and data interpretation skills, with the ability to communicate outcomes clearly and persuasively.
Demonstrated success managing programming, including marketing strategies and complex administration.
Demonstrated experience successfully managing a team.
Exceptional relationship-building and communication skills, grounded in cultural humility and collaborative leadership.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in Higher Education Administration, Public Policy, Student Affairs, or related fields.
Four or more years of director-level experience in financial aid.
Demonstrated experience working with American Indian and Alaska Native populations and/or Indigenous-serving institutions
Experience working within or in deep partnership with Tribal Colleges and Universities.

Responsibilities

Serve as a critical thought and implementation partner to the Vice President of Student Success Services
Lead the strategic design, implementation, and ongoing adaptation of scholarship programming to support Native student access to higher education and certificate or degree completion.
Ensure scholarship database system(s) support efficient scholarship administration, including user-friendly accessibility for students and TCUs, and impact reporting.
Partner with the Student Success Services leadership team to align departmental strategies across direct student support functions.
Serve as a senior advisor to TCU partners, supporting their efforts to implement scholarship administration, including recruiting and reporting, that is supportive to student access and demonstrates program accountability.
Translate program outcomes into insights to inform SSS department-wide planning, fundraising, and communications.
Oversee and continuously refine program evaluation efforts
Lead departmental reporting for scholarship programming, ensuring clear communication of program outcomes, institutional impact, and strategic learning.
Analyze qualitative and quantitative data to support internal learning, strategy development, and donor reporting.
Maintain a multi-year program development framework that supports scholar growth
Develop and disseminate strategic learning reports, case studies, and presentations for internal and external audiences.
Direct and oversee scholarship recruiting, including application processes, application scoring, donor criteria and organizational policy compliance, TCU support, scholarship program reporting, and scholarship impact tracking and analysis.
Provide financial oversight in accordance with scholarship budgets and organizational policy, including collaborative efforts with Finance and Resource Development teams.
Create and implement operational structure for effective scholarship programming administration.
Mentor scholarship team employees to ensure appropriate knowledge, skills levels, and accountability for successful program administration.
Collaborate with SSS leadership and Human Resources team to identify future needs and develop employee pathways for growth to meet these needs.
Represent the College Fund and its student success strategies in cross-sector initiatives, conferences, funder meetings, and collaborative partnerships.
Build and maintain relationships with Native serving and other scholarship providers and philanthropic partners to support Native student success.
Remain informed on national trends in student financial aid.
Serve as a thought leader and strategic contributor across College Fund departments and initiatives.
Contribute to annual planning, budgeting, and cross-functional team efforts.
Supervise and mentor assigned team members, consultants, and contractors to achieve program goals and professional growth.
Support sharing of best practices and insights across TCUs and the broader Indigenous and rural higher education ecosystem.