Our Speakers

Dr. Barry W. Simmons Sr, Financial Aid Associate, Program Administrator, Pell Initiative for Virginia, barrysimmons@schev.edu

Barry and holds degrees from Elon University and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and has been at SCHEV part-time a little over two years. He is a retired Virginia Tech Assistant Provost. Simmons has over 50 years of experience in higher education at public, private and HBCU institutions and has consulted and held interim directorships for numerous institutions across the nation. He currently manages the Pell Initiative for Virginia.

Caleb McKay is the FAFSA Completion Senior Manager at SchoolHouse Connection. 

Caleb holds two bachelors degrees from Greenville University. Caleb began his career working for the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISSC), where he assisted low-income and first generation students and families through the financial aid and college admissions processes. He then moved to Colorado and worked as a Financial Aid Advisor and later a Financial Aid Coordinator at Front Range Community College, the largest community college in the state.  As a Financial Aid Coordinator, he served as the Single Point of Contact (SPOC) for Unaccompanied Homeless Youth.

Jillian Sitjar is the Director of Higher Education at SchoolHouse Connection.

Jillian has been with SHC for eight years. In her role, she works to help students transition to and through higher education by elevating best practices and removing barriers. Jillian's background is in Higher Education and Student Affairs, specifically in housing and multiculturalism. She received her bachelor's degree from Butler University and master's degree from the University of South Carolina. She has worked in higher education for over a decade and believes in the power and importance of education.  

Andrea Spry graduated from Transylvania University in 2001 with a B.A. in Business Administration and Economics.  

A first-generation college student, she was hired as a federal work study student in Transy’s Financial Aid Office.  Seeing how financial aid professionals impacted her own educational career, she fell in love with the profession and never left.  She went on to earn an M.B.A. from the University of Kentucky in 2005 and served as Associate Director of Financial Aid at Transy until 2010.  

After some time at home with her two children, she returned to the world of aid at Eastern Kentucky University in 2014, serving as Associate Director until 2022.  Andrea was thrilled to be named Director of Student Financial Aid Services at Berea College in June 2022.  She will also serve as the 2025-2026 President of the Kentucky Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (KASFAA).

Bill is currently the Head of Campus Development at College Ave Student Loans. His higher education finance experience includes management positions at Sallie Mae and JP Morgan Chase. With College Ave, he manages relationships with higher education institutions and financial affinity groups nationwide.

In addition, Bill focuses on the analytics and reporting of consumer credit within the higher education community. This role provides the opportunity to give credit education and financial awareness presentations to community, student, and industry groups. He currently holds Executive Board positions for the Southern Association of Student Financial Aid and Florida Association of Student Financial Aid.

Kaitlyn Lambert serves as the Assistant Director of Financial Aid at Laurel Ridge Community College. With nearly 13 years of experience in Financial Aid and almost 19 years of service in various roles at Laurel Ridge, Kaitlyn brings a wealth of knowledge and dedication to her work.

In and out of the office, Kaitlyn is passionate about technology and hands-on learning like plumbing and drywall. She is also a devoted wife and mother to a lively and sweet 4th grader who keeps her on her toes. In their free time, they love playing Fortnite and watching movies together. Their household is completed by a spirited husky and a mischievous cat, both of whom add to the fun and chaos.

Brad Scaggs is an Associate Principal at Kennedy and Company where he leads projects related to strategic planning, enrollment, academic programming, financial aid, retention, and technology optimization. He directs the development, implementation, and ongoing support for Kennedy and Company’s net price calculator clients as well. 

He has nearly 16 years of enrollment management experience in university settings. He has implemented initiatives to increase operational efficiency and streamline financial aid delivery, including aid leveraging. He is a Past-President of the Virginia Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (VASFAA) and board member of the Southern Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (SASFAA). Brad holds a B.A. from Roanoke College and a M.A. in Education and Human Development from the George Washington University.

Loretta Jones is a dedicated leader in higher education financial assistance, serving as the Director of Financial Assistance Development at ECPI University for nearly 25 years. With a wealth of experience in student financial aid, compliance, and program development, she has been instrumental in shaping policies and processes that support student success.A passionate advocate for professional development, Loretta currently serves as the VASFAA President-Elect for the 2024-2025 term. Her commitment to the industry and her leadership within VASFAA reflect her dedication to enhancing financial aid practices and supporting both students and professionals in the field.

Assistant Vice President, Business Development

Carrie brings over two decades of invaluable higher education experience, embodying an unyielding commitment to effecting positive change for clients and their students. Her journey has been driven by a genuine desire to confront the unique challenges faced by institutions of higher learning. 

Before joining Inceptia, she served as a Cybersecurity Grant Specialist, where her pivotal role in securing funding for critical initiatives fortified the digital infrastructure of educational institutions. Carrie's diverse skill set, coupled with her unwavering passion for higher education, propels her mission to empower schools in their pursuit of helping students succeed.

Director, Relationship Management, Sallie Mae

Nanette has over 35 years of experience in the higher education industry. Prior to joining Sallie Mae 30 years ago, she was Assistant Director of Financial Aid at the University of Lynchburg(Lynchburg College).  She currently manages the Sallie Mae business relationships in Virginia and HBCUs throughout the south. She is an active member of VASFAA previously serving on the board, several committees and received the 2017-18 VASFAA Service Award.  Nanette earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in communication from The American University and a M.B.A. from Lynchburg College. She resides in Lynchburg, VA with her husband George and puppies Bentley and Bella.

Vera Riddick serves as the Director of Student Financial Aid at Old Dominion University. With over 37 years of experience in Financial Aid and over 30 years of service in financial aid at ODU in various roles.  Vera is passion about her work and brings a wealth of knowledge and dedication to the profession. 

She is also a devoted wife to her husband of 46 years (Dwight Riddick) and mother of two wonderful children and five lovely grandchildren who are her prize. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Hampton University and a master’s degree in public administration from Old Dominion University.   Vera loves sharing time with her family, church, and working alongside her co-workers and cherish every moment.   Her motto is: “If I can help somebody along the way then my living will not be in vain”.  Her favorite scripture is Joshua 9:1, “The Lord Thy God is with her”.  

Kathleen Roebuck works at Monogram as a Regional Manager covering the SASFAA region. 

She supports schools and borrowers with the Abe, Custom Choice, Union Federal, and AAA Advantage private student loan programs. She has spent her career in the higher education arena working in both admission and financial aid offices as well as marketing products to colleges and universities. She lives in Massachusetts with her family.

Leigh Ann Hussey is the Assistant Vice President for Enrollment and Financial Aid at the University of West Georgia and is currently serving as the SASFAA President. A native of Mississippi, Leigh Ann held positions at both Itawamba Community College and Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College before venturing to Georgia for a total of over 17 years of experience in the financial aid profession. In her free time, Leigh Ann enjoys live music, college sporting events, and spoiling her pets - Truvy Willadene the dog and Carl Dean the cat.

Kevin McNamara is a Senior Account Executive at Earnest. Kevin has over 25 years of experience in higher education finance with special expertise in Graduate/Professional and International Student solutions. 

An advocate for financial literacy, Kevin has taught debt management workshops to students in the US, Ireland, and England. He is a graduate of John Carroll University with a BSBA in Marketing and earned his MBA from Auburn University. Kevin and his wife own a fried chicken restaurant in Ohio that they use to fund scholarships for students in Athens County, Ohio.

I have 25 years of law enforcement experience, having spent about half of the time in uniform patrol for a local county and the latter half in state service focusing on specialized investigations. I have been in the Criminal Investigations Unit with OSIG since 2019. I am a Certified Fraud Examiner, Certified Inspector General Investigator, and a Certified Forensic Interviewer. I have a bachelor’s degree and a post-baccalaureate graduate certificate in Criminal Justice from VCU. I have a lovely wife of 23 years and two fantastic boys, ages 19 and 15. My passion is volunteering at my local animal shelter about 40 hours a month where I focus on feral cat socialization and enrichment.   

Will Shaffner has over 42 years of experience in the student loan and higher education finance arena and currently is the Director of Business Development & Government Relations at the Higher Education Loan Authority of the State of Missouri (MOHELA), serving in this capacity since 2004. 

Mr. Shaffner participates as a member of the Executive Management Team at MOHELA and is responsible for all sales, government and external relations activity within the Authority - including school and lender channels, government relations, as well as marketing, e-commerce, public & industry relations efforts. Mr. Shaffner has represented the student loan and higher education finance industry, participating on the 2014 Negotiated Rulemaking as one of the loan servicing lead negotiators, on the 2021 Negotiated Rulemaking as alternate, and on national news and media outlets as a subject matter expert. He has presented multiple times on a variety of higher education finance topics across the country for years.

Prior to MOHELA, he worked with American Student Assistance as Director of Lender and Strategic Partnerships. He also held various sales and training positions at USA Group/SLMA from 1990 – 2001. Prior to working within the higher education finance industry, Mr. Shaffner was the Associate Director of Student Financial Aid at the University of Central Florida. He currently serves on the Missouri Scholarship & Loan Foundation board as Vice-Chair, NCHER and EFC Government Relations Committees, and on the Infinite Scholars board as Co-Chair. Mr. Shaffner holds a B.A. in Business Administration from the University of Central Florida.

I’ve worked in financial aid for almost 14 years and have been a member of VASFAA for nine years. I previously served on the Conference Committee and as a Conference Committee Co-Chair.  Currently I am serving VASFAA as a Representative-at-Large.  Outside of work I enjoy music, coffee, reading, and football. 

Robert Weinerman is the Director of Training at Iron Bridge Resources, a nationwide higher education consulting firm headquartered in Massachusetts. He has been offering tax training for financial aid officers on both federal and institutional aid programs since 2014, and took over Jim Briggs’ tax training business when Jim retired in 2015. 

Prior to his current role as a trainer, Robert worked for over a decade as a senior level financial aid officer at MIT, Babson College, and as a consultant for a number of smaller schools in the Boston, Massachusetts area, and over another decade working with parents as they worked to figure out the best way to save for college, pay for college, or repay their own student loans.

Ericka Aikens started her Financial Aid career back in 2010, and since that time has had an opportunity to serve our financial aid community in a variety of ways.  

For the past 13 years, Ericka has had the distinct honor and pleasure of serving Brightpoint Community College as a Financial Aid Counselor, an Outreach Coordinator, and is currently serving as the Coordinator for the Financial Services Help Hub – a fairly newly developed team that oversees all financial aid and student account inquiries for the college.  Ericka earned her B.S. degree in Mass Communications from the Virginia Commonwealth University and has two children whom she loves and adores (and her world revolves around), Akira (a senior) and Callen (an 8th grader). 

My name is Megan Raines and I have worked in the Virginia Community College system for almost 12 years.  I started at Reynolds Community College, and now at Brightpoint Community College. 

I have worked in financial aid for about 7 or 8 years. I am now a Financial Aid Counselor and proudly take on several roles within our department including processing G3, VGAP, Consortium Agreements, PJs, and assisting students in person and virtually.  Outside of work I love spending time with my husband and our three sons.  Two of our sons are in sports so, most of our weekends consist of cheering from the sidelines as they shine. Our oldest is 13, middle is 4, and youngest is 2.  

Mr. Lee Andes has served at the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) for over 27 years and has worked in higher education for over 35 years.  Mr. Andes’ currently has responsibility for oversight of the state’s financial aid programs and the Domicile Guidelines which are used by the institutions to determine eligibility for in-state tuition.

Lee has recently been named Director of Finance Policy & Innovation. Lee is a founding member and former President of the Virginia College Access Network (VirginiaCAN), has served as President of the National Association of State Student Grant & Aid Programs (NASSGAP), and is currently a member of the College Board’s Southern Regional Council.  

Tierney has worked at the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) for almost 17 years. 

Her primary responsibilities as Senior Associate for Financial Aid are managing the Virginia Alternative State Aid (VASA) Application and the GEAR UP Virginia Scholarship.

Dr. Takesha McMiller is a leader in higher education, currently serving as the Director of Military and Veterans Services at Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA). With over 20 years of experience in higher education and student affairs, she has held pivotal roles, including university faculty member, academic advisor, career and education counselor, program coordinator, interim associate vice president, and director. Throughout her career, Dr. McMiller has demonstrated expertise in program compliance, oversight, budget management, and personnel supervision.

At NOVA, Dr. McMiller leads one of the largest veterans’ programs in Virginia, successfully streamlining military and veteran services across six campuses. Under her leadership, NOVA has consistently been recognized as a Military Friendly School. She has also secured multiple grants, including a $466,000 award from the Department of Education to establish a Center of Excellence for Veteran Student Success, furthering initiatives that enhance support for veteran students.

Dr. McMiller's extensive background spans multiple states, where she has overseen program compliance, student retention initiatives, and student support services. Her expertise includes a broad range of student services, including work with foster care programs in California and Virginia.

She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the National Association of Veterans Program Administrators (NAVPA) and previously held leadership roles as Vice President and President of the Virginia Association of School Certifying Officials (VASCO).

Dr. McMiller holds a doctorate in Educational Leadership, an education specialist degree in Educational Leadership, and both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Mass Communications.

Shauna Crosscup began her educational journey at Wytheville Community College, earned a BBA from Roanoke College, and subsequently obtained an MBA from Radford University. She is pursuing her doctorate in higher education at Liberty University, with a focus on enhancing financial literacy among community college students.

She has 17 years of experience in financial aid, including seven as a manager at New River Community College. She currently serves her community as an Associate Professor of Business Management at NRCC and acts as a liaison with the Financial Aid Office.

Her educational and career path inspired her to engage with her students and identify the issues they face, which led to her focus on helping community college students. She balances her career with family life, being married with two children and a rescue pup.