St. John's News

St. John’s administrators work tirelessly to ensure that our students are provided with a quality, affordable education that embodies our Vincentian mission. In an effort to give new and prospective students, their parents and friends, as well as our returning students, a glimpse into the responsibilities, challenges and concerns of St. John’s leadership, we’re presenting a series of interviews with those who make a St. John’s education the stimulating, student-centered and rewarding experience that it is.

In our latest interview Jorge Rodriguez, Associate Vice President of Financial Services, spoke about St. John’s Mission-driven financial aid policies and the new tools he’s using to provide students with the best possible financial aid package.

We spoke with him during his busiest period: the week before the fall semester began.

Q.: Vice President Rodriguez, what makes this the busiest time of the year for your office?

A.: The fall semester is always our most challenging time, but also one of the most rewarding for us in the Office of Student Financial Services because we’re in the midst of assisting our new and continuing students in enrolling at St. John's University.

Before St. John’s students can enroll in their classes, their tuition for the semester must be paid. A large percentage of our students are dependent on student loans and grants of one type or another to pay that tuition. This fall, the process has been especially difficult for both the students and our office, due to the recent upheaval in the student loan industry. The fact that some of the student lenders have actually closed their doors without giving any notice to anyone left some students without adequate financing for their college education.  We understand how our students are being impacted, and we’ll continue to be extremely flexible and sensitive in providing extra time so that they can locate another lender.

Q.:  How many students does your office service at the beginning of the academic year? Does that change for the second semester?

A.: For the 2007-2008 academic year, we’ll process financial aid for over 16,600 students, or 95 percent of our total undergraduate and graduate enrollment. Over the course of the year, more than 17,000 visitors come to the Office of Financial Services, which includes both the Office of Financial Aid and the Bursar’s Office. The fall semester, and especially August, is always our busiest time since some students are still finalizing their financial arrangements. The spring semester is always calmer since most students have already completed their financial aid process for the year.

Q.: Can you provide some data on the amount of financial aid distributed through your office?

A.: St. John’s students received more than $358 million from federal, state and University sources in 2007. Federal financial aid has been stagnant over the past two years but in the currently approved reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (effective 2009-2010), the federal government has pledged to increase the Federal Pell Grant from its current maximum of $4,731 to $6,000 per year. (The Pell grant is for the neediest of students, as determined by the information provided on the FAFSA—
Free Application for Federal Student Aid—form). This increase is great news for our students since more than 40 percent of the entering undergraduate class fall into this category.

On the other hand, New York State Governor David Paterson is proposing a 6 percent cut across all programs, financial aid included. If his proposal becomes law, over 5,500 of our students who live in New York State will be negatively impacted. That’s why I’m asking all of our New York students, parents, and others interested in preserving equal access to higher education to write to their representatives in Albany and demand that financial aid be left untouched.

Q.: Are there any new programs coming along that might also help students financially?

A.: Last year, we saw the creation of two new federal programs for which many of our students qualified: the Academic Competitive Grant and the National Smart Grant.  This year, I am very pleased to report, the federal government created another new grant, the TEACH Grant, which is geared towards future teachers in specific majors, as determined and classified by the State as high need areas.

The TEACH grant provides $4,000 per year, with a maximum amount of $16,000 for undergraduate and $8,000 for graduate course work. In return, the student must teach for four years in a high-need school, again determined by the State. This money is available this year, and it is our intent to award these funds over and above a student’s already determined financial aid package!

The TEACH grant is so complicated to administer that the federal government has not mandated that colleges and universities participate. Nevertheless, because the TEACH grant will definitely help many of our students and because it’s part of our Vincentian mission to provide a quality education to those who could not otherwise afford it, St. John’s chose to participate. In the next few weeks, we will begin to reach out to freshmen, sophomores and juniors who appear to meet the eligibility criteria for the TEACH grant to provide information about the grant and its requirements. 

Q.:  In his Presidential Summit in May, St. John’s President Fr. Donald Harrington, C.M., called on each of us to serve students in an extraordinary manner. Could you discuss the services you provide to students?

A.: Servicing our students has always been the primary goal in the Office of Financial Services. We continue to strive to meet our students’ needs in numerous ways. One initiative we took last year was to combine the offices of Financial Aid and Bursar, so that students would only need to visit one office to get all of their answers on financial aid and payment. By the end of this calendar year, the newly consolidated Office of Financial Services will move to a new location in Bent Hall, across from Carnesecca Arena, where we will be better able to assist all of our students and their families. To provide better service to students, we will also be extending our hours to 8:30 a.m. - 7 p.m., Monday-Thursday once we have relocated. On Fridays, we will be open from 8:30 a.m.- 3 p.m.

Q.: Swipe technology. What have you learned as a result of its use in your area?

A.: We use the swipe card technology to determine why our students are visiting us, and how we can improve on service. I understand that many students and parents prefer to have a one-on-one appointment, and we will always be happy to meet with students, but our goal is to provide students with the ability to handle all of their financial aid and make all payments via the web.

Q.: What other technologies have facilitated the Financial Aid process?

A.: Our financial aid process is pretty much totally automated. The financial aid application is web-based and is transmitted electronically. Students can also download and complete all necessary documents and make all payments via the web.

In addition, we are now imaging all documents mailed to us and posting them electronically to the student’s account. This provides us with immediate viewing capabilities and expedites the process as we can review a particular document at any time without having to search through paper files. We are always reviewing our processes to see where we can improve and make life easier for everyone.

Q.: Is there any other information you’d like students to know?

A.: I’d like to remind all our financial aid applicants that every May a new financial aid application must be completed. It’s also important that they plan early in order to ensure that they’re prepared for the upcoming year.