Jenna Greenwood received a B.A. in Sociology from the University of Colorado, at Boulder and an M.S. in Higher Education Leadership and Policy from Portland State University.

Since 2013, I’ve been supporting students as they navigate the higher education system in various different capacities. Early in my career, I did a term of service with AmeriCorps at a college access and retention nonprofit in Minnesota, where I developed an interest in helping students understand the financial aid process. I worked at the University of Oregon as a Financial Aid Counselor, where I developed a deep understanding of the financial aid system. As a Financial Aid Counselor, I advised and processed awards for a caseload of several hundred students, created and oversaw a student-run financial literacy program, and reviewed special circumstance petitions.

Currently, I work as the Program Manager for Scholarships and College Affordability at the University of Colorado-Boulder. In my current role, I provide strategic oversight and goals for the retention and engagement efforts for students who are traditionally underrepresented in engineering (women, students of color, and first-generation students).

I was a member of OASFAA (Oregon Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators) and WASFAA (Western Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators). In 2016 I was awarded the Outstanding New Professional Award at the Western Association of Student Financial aid Conference. I’ve also presented and written about the complexities of financial aid. In 2016, I presented a session called: “Eliminating Barriers in Financial Aid For Marginalized Students” at the Oregon Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators Conference. In 2018, I published a paper and presented a session called: “How Financial Aid Practices Further Marginalize Students” at the Collaborative Network for Engineering and Computing Diversity Conference.

As a College Affordability Counselor, my goal is to help students and families gain an understanding of the financial aid process so they can make informed decisions about paying for college.