Adjunct Professors
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| Megan Bahlke | Gena Boling, FAAC® | Lee Bray, FAAC® |
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| Amanda Buchanan, FAAC® | Keri Gilbert, FAAC® | Jen Lada |
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| Ashley Munro, FAAC® | Traci Spagnoli-Rego, FAAC® |
Megan Bahlke is currently working as a financial aid analyst at Mid Michigan College. With a total of nine years of experience in the field of financial aid, she has worked in all areas of grants, loans, Pell Grants, satisfactory academic progress, verification, and professional judgment. She has worked in various types of institutions, including private, public and community college. She holds a master's degree in organizational leadership from Northwood University and has been a part of NASFAA, MISFAA, and MASFAA for nine years. She regularly participates in webinars and credentials to keep updated with the latest federal regulations. Apart from work, she and her husband enjoy life with their three dogs and two cats, traveling to national parks, kayaking, and hiking. Family means the world to her and even though she doesn't have children of her own, she has two amazing nieces to spoil.
Gena Boling, FAAC®, is the associate vice provost for enrollment at Cornell University and serves as the university's chief enrollment compliance officer. With more than 20 years of experience in higher education, Gena leads a team focused on compliance program management which serves as a partner to multiple institutional offices with assigned compliance responsibilities for Title IV of the HEA and GLBA. Before stepping into her current role, Gena served as a financial aid administrator in the Midwest, focusing on the areas of Title IV compliance and technology solutions. She regularly draws on her past life in student affairs to force everyone to do icebreakers and ensure student-friendly compliance initiatives. Gena holds 17 NASFAA Credentials and enjoys brainstorming innovative ideas for navigating the compliance landscape in higher education.
Lee Bray, FAAC®
Lee Bray currently serves as the director of financial aid at Pitt Community College. Lee completed her bachelor’s degree at Millersville University in business management where she started her financial aid career as a Federal Work-Study student. She has since worked in the capacity of financial aid counselor, assistant director and eventually director for the past 16 years. Lee has been a member of NCASFAA for six years and currently serves on the executive board as secretary. She is also an active member of NASFAA and serves as financial aid and scholarship chair for NC3DSPA. Originally from Pennsylvania, Lee enjoys the warm weather down south, kayaking, camping, golfing and going to the beach.
Amanda Buchanan began her career in financial aid by accident in 2008, joining the staff at Coastal Carolina Community College. She fell in love with the work and immediately recognized the impact of financial aid and scholarships on a student's college experience and beyond. Over the last 16 years, Amanda has had the opportunity to work in the North Carolina Community College and University of North Carolina Systems, as well as serving on the NCASFAA Board, and being active in both SASFAA and NASFAA. She earned her FAAC® designation in 2020 and is a member of the 100+ Club. Amanda currently serves as the director of financial services, overseeing the financial aid and business offices at McDowell Technical Community College in Marion, NC. She holds a bachelor's degree in leadership in the public sector from NC State University, a master's degreeArts in executive leadership from Liberty University, and a certificate in community college instruction from East Carolina University. She resides in western North Carolina with her husband and two sons.
Keri, director of financial aid at Stephens College, started her career in financial aid at the University of Missouri-Columbia and rapidly discovered her passion for helping students navigate the complex world of paying for college. She has a deep love for advocacy and has visited with legislators in Jefferson City and Washington, D.C. to fight for program funding and initiatives to simplify the financial aid process. Keri’s passion and dedication to students and their success is infectious, and she has received numerous awards for her committee efforts and individual contributions at both the state and regional level. Keri is a Certified Financial Aid Administrator (FAAC®) and has earned all 17 NASFAA credentials. In addition to her work with Stephens, Keri serves on the executive board of the Missouri Association of Student Financial Aid Personnel and the Midwest Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.
Jen Lada is a Coordinator of Processing at the University of Colorado, where she is responsible for performing the R2T4 calculations along with managing the Pell Grant program. She also oversees a team responsible for managing the Direct Loan and Alternative Loan programs. With over 18 years of experience in financial aid administration, she has spent time in both advising and processing roles, and enjoys the challenges administering financial aid presents.
Prior to joining the University of Colorado, Jen worked as the Assistant Director of Financial Services for the online programs at Mount St. Mary’s University where she was responsible for all aspects of the financial aid needs from student contact to policy creation. Before that, she worked at a variety of both public, and for-profit institutions gaining a unique perspective on the industry by being exposed to a wide range of student populations and institutional policies.
Outside of work, Jen enjoys watching horror movies, traveling, and spending quality time with her husband Jeff and her rescue pup Asher.
Ashley Munro is the director of financial aid at University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF). She has worked in financial aid since 2005. Her main responsibilities include return of Title IV funds, Federal Work Study, state and athletic aid, professional judgment, and verification for the UAF's rural campuses. Training and presenting in financial aid is one of her favorite aspects of the job. She loves meeting new financial aid administrators and learning from each other. She has been a volunteer with WASFAA and NASFAA for many years. Ashley also just fulfilled her lifetime goal of going camping on the ice in Antarctica.
Bio coming soon!
