Ms. Simmons comes to ECG from SunGard Higher Education, where she was a Banner Functional Financial Aid Consultant providing support for implementation of the Banner Financial Aid System.  She is proficient in strategic-level consultation with institutions on policy and procedural matters to ensure maximum results from their financial aid systems, and is experienced in preparing documentation for the Banner system for institutions.

Prior to her work at SunGard, Ms. Simmons gained her knowledge and skills in the area of financial aid operations through her responsibilities as a financial aid administrator at various institutions.  Beginning at Winston-Salem State University in North Carolina and later at the Fischer Technical Institute in Virginia, she managed the verification process to ensure compliance, regulated the cost of attendance budget, and certified all loans as well as processed Federal Pell payments.

As the Assistant Director for Student Financial Services at Johnson & Wales University, Ms. Simmons supervised the daily operations of the financial aid office, trained staff and conducted workshops, authorized all batch processing of financial aid, ran reports to expedite financial aid processing, and coordinated the university's default management program.  Later at the Tidewater Community College in Norfolk, Virginia, she provided training to staff on the PeopleSoft SIS programs and performed quality assurance on the financial aid packaging process to solve any outstanding discrepancies.

Currently, Ms. Simmons is pursuing her Ph.D. in Leadership in Higher Education Administration and she is expected to graduate this year.

Education

Norfolk State University (Norfolk, Va.)
M.A. in Student Personnel Services

Winston-Salem State University (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
B.A. in History and Economics