Presenter: Becky Budner, Senior Manager, Product Management, ECSI

The IRS is implementing one of the most significant tax reporting changes colleges and universities have faced in recent years. As the Filing Information Returns Electronically (FIRE) system is phased out and replaced by the Information Returns Intake System (IRIS), institutions will need to understand the new requirements and prepare their processes accordingly. Taking steps now can help ensure a smooth transition and a successful reporting season.

Join ECSI product leader Becky Budner for a practical discussion on what higher education institutions need to know about the transition, common readiness gaps, and strategies for staying compliant while minimizing administrative burden.

Key Takeaways

What the FIRE-to-IRIS transition means for higher education

Important timelines and reporting considerations

Steps institutions can take to prepare now

Check in at the PDG Registration & Information desk to pick up your name badge and conference materials. Conference staff are here throughout the conference to answer your questions.

Meet exhibitors with creative technology and service solutions in the Exhibit Hall. Don't forget to get your PDG passport stamped at each exhibitor table to be eligible for fun giveaways and prizes!

Presenter: Steven Selander - President, Professional Development Group III

Presenter: Dr. Sonia Lewis - The Student Loan Doctor LLC

As one of the nation’s leading student loan repayment experts, Dr. Sonia Lewis will provide higher education professionals with a practical overview of today’s rapidly changing federal student loan environment and its direct impact on colleges, universities, and student financial services offices. This session will examine recent legislative and regulatory changes, including new repayment options, forgiveness pathways, Borrower Defense developments, and compliance considerations that institutions should understand when supporting borrowers.

Attendees will leave with actionable strategies to better educate students, reduce borrower confusion, strengthen cross-campus communication, and improve the overall student financial experience. Through real-world case studies and national borrower trends, this presentation will equip bursars, student financial services professionals, and financial aid leaders with tools they can immediately implement to support student success and institutional outcomes.

Enjoy coffee and tea in the ballroom foyer while you network and visit with exhibitors on service/product offerings.

Presenter: Gregory O’Coyne - Midwestern University

As federal borrowing options continue to evolve—most notably with the phase-out of Grad and Parent PLUS for new borrowers—institutions are increasingly being called upon to play a more active role in ensuring students can finance their education. This session will explore how Midwestern University has designed and implemented institutionally sponsored loan programs to bridge funding gaps, maintain access, and support enrollment stability. Drawing on a real-world example, the discussion will cover key considerations including program structure, underwriting approaches, capital sources, risk management, and regulatory implications. Attendees will gain insight into how institutions can balance mission and financial sustainability while delivering competitive, student-centered financing solutions. The session will also highlight lessons learned, operational challenges, and strategies for scaling programs in a rapidly changing policy environment.

Presenter: John Mealy - Touchnet

With the rise of certificates, non-degree programs, and microcredentials, higher education institutions must modernize their tuition payment systems to meet the evolving needs of today’s students. While alternative credentials offer new opportunities for flexibility and revenue, many institutions still rely on systems built for traditional degree models, which often fall short. The result is a confusing, disjointed experience for students and increased pressure on staff. These gaps can delay payments, strain resources, and make it difficult to scale new offerings. 

The TouchNet platform empowers institutions to deliver a secure, streamlined billing and payment experience across all course types—from traditional degree programs to alternative credentials. With flexible options for students and automated workflows for staff, our system simplifies tuition management, reduces manual effort, and improves financial visibility. In partnership with Ellucian, we help institutions modernize tuition payment handling, unifying systems to enhance the student experience and support long-term scalability. 

Whether you’re expanding non-degree offerings or seeking to simplify your current processes, join us to learn more about building a modern tuition payment system that works for every student. As institutional needs shift and student expectations evolve, now is the time to reimagine how your systems support growth, flexibility, and long-lasting success.

Transition break between concurrent sessions.

Presenters: Chris Campbell - Inceptia and Denise Varrientos - WSU-Tech

Financial barriers should not dictate a student's academic future. This session reframes pre-collections work from a rigid debt-recovery process into a powerful mechanism for student advocacy, success, and institutional loyalty.

Attendees will discover how shifting from reactive collection tactics to proactive financial engagement directly stabilizes enrollment and drives retention. We will explore how to build a collaborative bridge between fiscal offices and admissions teams, ensuring a unified, supportive campus experience from day one. Finally, we will break down practical strategies for delivering empathetic, high-touch customer service through human-centric outreach. Participants will leave with actionable insights on how to catch financial red flags early, clear paths to graduation, and transform difficult billing conversations into supportive interventions that keep students in school.

Join your colleagues for a private reception at Degree 270 on the 14th floor.

PDG conference staff are available during this time if you have any questions.

Meet exhibitors with creative technology and service solutions in the Exhibit Hall. Don't forget to get your PDG passport stamped at each exhibitor table to be eligible for fun giveaways and prizes.

Join your colleagues for a hearty breakfast.

Presenters: Jennifer Perry, Executive Director of Revenue, University of Memphis

Linda Wilson, Sr. Growth Account Executive, Illumia

Fraud is accelerating across higher education, targeting enrollment, financial aid, and payment systems even as institutions work to protect student access and experience. This session pairs a revenue-operations perspective with a client-facing growth perspective to examine how fraud actually shows up on campus — ghost students, account takeover, payment fraud, and third-party vendor risk — and what it costs institutions financially and reputationally when it isn't caught.

Attendees will leave with a practical Prevent-Detect-Respond-Recover framework, concrete controls (MFA, identity verification, transaction monitoring, vendor governance), and the leadership questions every institution should be asking: Who owns fraud risk? Are controls tested? Are vendors monitored?

Learning Objectives

• Understand current fraud trends affecting higher education institutions

• Identify common attack vectors: ghost student fraud, account takeover, payment fraud

• Review practical, implementable fraud controls and vendor governance practices

• Strengthen institutional resilience through a cross-functional response framework

Target Audience

Higher education CFOs, bursars, and student financial services leaders; campus IT and security leaders; risk, compliance, and vendor management professionals.

Enjoy coffee and tea in the ballroom foyer while you network and visit with exhibitors on service/product offerings.

Presenter: Gregory O’Coyne - Midwestern University

This session will explore Midwestern University’s comprehensive approach to student financial wellness, including financial literacy, responsible borrowing, budgeting, debt management, and resources designed to help students make informed financial decisions throughout their education and beyond.

Presenter: Alana Bateman - Mercer University

Although the Federal Nursing Student Loan Program has existed for decades, many higher education professionals have limited exposure to its unique servicing and compliance requirements. This session will provide an overview of the program, including borrower eligibility, repayment, deferment, cancellation, disability discharge, and default management. Attendees will gain a better understanding of the regulatory requirements that distinguish Nursing Student Loans from other federal loan programs. The presentation will also highlight common servicing challenges, compliance considerations, and best practices for managing these portfolios effectively.

Transition break between concurrent sessions.

Presenter: LORI HARTUNG - ECSI

Enrollment pressures. Affordability concerns. Staffing shortages. Growing student expectations. Higher education leaders are navigating multiple challenges at once—and each one impacts institutional finances, operations, and the student experience.

Join industry expert and ECSI regional executive, Lori Hartung, to connect the dots between the trends shaping higher education today and the real-world challenges campuses face. She’ll explore how these forces are affecting student accounts, financial aid, enrollment, and student success, and discuss practical strategies institutions are using to adapt.

Key Takeaways

Understand the trends shaping higher education today—and what they mean for your institution.

See how enrollment, affordability, staffing, and student expectations are reshaping campus operations.

Learn practical strategies to improve efficiency, support student success, and protect revenue.

Enjoy lunch.

Presenters: Sandra Ott & Jennifer Newton - University of Central Arkansas

In this presentation we would like to discuss the process that our University went through to create a last dollar scholarship to assist low income students in Arkansas be able to attend college. This required coordination and cooperation through many different offices to implement. This has been in place for a few years now and is helping students complete their degrees.

Presenter: Anthony Morrone - Nevada State University

Artificial intelligence can help Student Financial Services teams improve communication, streamline routine work, support staff training, and review policies and procedures more efficiently. This session will explain key AI concepts in practical terms, including prompts, large language models, and hallucinations. Participants will learn how to write stronger prompts that produce clearer, more useful results for student emails, billing communications, procedure summaries, FAQs, and training materials. The session will also address responsible use considerations related to FERPA, GLBA, data protection, and institutional governance. Attendees will leave with practical prompt-writing strategies and responsible AI use cases they can apply in their offices.:

Enjoy coffee and tea in the ballroom foyer while you network and visit with exhibitors on service/product offerings.

Presenter: Spencer Blackwell - Meadow

With 75% of institutions reporting increases in past-due student accounts, the pressure on student accounts offices has never been higher, yet most still lack a clear, comparable way to assess where they stand. This session introduces two concrete metrics, Student A/R Exposure and Share of Allowances, derived from sector-wide analysis of institutional financial statements, giving attendees a credible baseline for evaluating portfolio health.

Registered attendees can request a custom pre-conference analysis of their institution's data so they arrive with their own A/R story already in hand (write to hello@meadowfi.com). In session, participants will apply these benchmarks interactively, explore sector-wide findings by institution size, type, and region, and practice translating data into a persuasive case for leadership. They'll leave with a clear picture of where their institution stands and a concrete plan for improving receivables outcomes.

Presenter: Jennifer Perry & Andrew Linn - University of Memphis

Student service offices often struggle under the weight of constant phone calls and overflowing emails. The University of Memphis Bursar and Financial Aid teams partnered to tackle this challenge head‑on by eliminating in‑house phone operations and retiring their email accounts in favor of a centralized call center and a comprehensive ticketing system.

This session highlights how merging calls into a single number, leveraging professional call‑center support, and implementing a ticketing platform created a fully trackable, data‑driven service model. The transformation improved response times, reduced staff interruptions, and provided actionable analytics that finally reflect the true volume and complexity of student needs.

Transition break between concurrent sessions.

Presenter: Scott Campbell - Paymentus

The Bursar’s office is the final mile of the enrollment funnel, but legacy payment systems are breaking under the weight of sophisticated cyber threats and aggressive federal regulations. Join us to learn how to navigate the new PCI DSS 4.0.1 script-monitoring mandates and CFPB scrutiny over tuition payment plans. Discover how modernizing to a Service Commerce model can absorb your IT compliance burden, eliminate predatory fee structures, and deliver a secure, frictionless financial experience that keeps students enrolled.

Presenter: Karen Reddick - National Credit Management

This session will provide a timely overview of the regulatory and legislative developments affecting higher education collections, along with practical best practices for managing student accounts in today’s evolving compliance environment.

Attendees will explore key federal and state requirements impacting institutional receivables and collection activities, including student debt collection practices, transcript and registration holds, credit reporting, consumer protections, third-party collection agency oversight, and emerging regulatory trends. The session will also examine how institutions can adapt policies and procedures to remain compliant while effectively managing outstanding student debt.

Beyond compliance, the discussion will focus on student-centered collection strategies that encourage engagement and resolution. Topics will include early intervention, effective communication, payment arrangements, financial wellness, account segmentation, internal versus external collection strategies, and working effectively with third-party service providers.

Attendees will leave with practical strategies to help their institutions reduce risk, improve collections, strengthen compliance, and support students in resolving outstanding financial obligations.

PDG conference staff are available during this time if you have any questions.

Meet exhibitors with creative technology and service solutions in the Exhibit Hall. Don't forget to get your PDG passport stamped at each exhibitor table to be eligible for fun giveaways.

Join your colleagues for a hearty breakfast.

Presenter: Lori Hartung - ECSI

What happens in Washington doesn't stay stays in Washington.  It ripples across campuses nationwide.

Federal policy decisions create ripple effects that extend well beyond Washington, influencing institutional operations, student financing, enrollment strategies, and the ability of colleges and universities to serve their students and communities.

Join COHEAO Past President Lori Hartung for a timely and engaging update on the latest developments from Congress, the U.S. Department of Education, federal agencies, and the courts. This session will go beyond the headlines to examine the policy and regulatory changes higher education leaders need to understand today.

More importantly, we'll trace the ripple effects from Washington to campus, exploring how these developments may impact institutional operations, student financing, compliance responsibilities, and strategic decision-making in the months ahead.

Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding not only of what is happening in Washington, but also why it matters, how it may affect their institutions, and what higher education leaders should be watching next.

Enjoy coffee and tea in the ballroom foyer while you network and visit with exhibitors on service/product offerings.

Presenters: Jason Williams - U.S. Department of Education, Office of Inspector General

Student Financial Services professionals including Financial Aid, Bursar, Cashier, Student Accounts, and Enrollment staff serve as the first line of defense against fraud targeting federal student aid programs. Every day, these professionals are uniquely positioned to identify suspicious activity, prevent financial losses, and protect students from identity theft and exploitation. This engaging and practical presentation, delivered by the U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General (ED OIG), will provide attendees with an understanding of today’s evolving fraud threats affecting higher education, including identity theft, synthetic identities, “ghost student” fraud, and organized financial aid fraud schemes.

Presenter: Karen Reddick - National Credit Management

This presentation explores best practices for effectively selecting, managing, and evaluating external collection agencies and service partners within higher education. Attendees will learn how to build strong, transparent partnerships that support institutional goals while maintaining compliance, protecting the student experience, and maximizing recovery performance.

The session will address key areas including vendor selection and due diligence, contract and fee structures, account placement strategies, communication expectations, compliance oversight, performance measurement and reporting, reconciliation, technology and data security, and ongoing vendor evaluation. It will also examine how institutions can establish meaningful performance standards and use data to determine whether their external partners are delivering value.

Attendees will leave with practical strategies for creating a successful third-party management framework that promotes accountability, compliance, transparency, strong recoveries, and a positive student experience.

Facilitator: