Sessions & Speakers

Heather Boutell is the Director of Financial Aid at Vanderbilt School of Medicine in Nashville, TN. Heather has worked in the field of financial aid for 32 years, spending the last 5 years as Director of Financial Aid at Vanderbilt School of Medicine. Heather has been active in professional organizations and served as the President of the Kentucky and the Southern Associations. She has also served on the NASFAA Board of Directors as a regional Past President, a Rep-at-Large, and a Commission Director. She is the recipient of the KASFAA and SASFAA Distinguished Service Awards and the NASFAA Regional Leadership Award. Heather is married to Steve and has two sons - Jonah, 25, and Ben, 23, who both live in Chicago. They also have an orange tabby cat, Crouton. She also loves reality TV competition shows – talk to her about Survivor, Amazing Race, Big Brother, or Top Chef!

Anthony Jones is the Executive Director of Scholarships and Financial Aid at the University of Utah. He has been in the profession for more than 30 years having served in the financial aid offices at small private, as well as regional and large public universities. He previously worked as a trainer for NASFAA and worked as a policy analyst for the U.S. Department of Education. He also served as Director of Policy Research at the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance and directed the 2011 Higher Education Regulations Study. He holds a PhD in Higher Education from the McBee Institute of Higher Education at the University of Georgia.

Patti Kohler is a higher education professional within the student financial aid industry. She currently serves as Vice President, Financial Aid at Western Governors University, a 4-year private, non-profit school, based out of Salt Lake City, Utah. Patti focuses on providing the financial means for students to achieve their academic goals, with special attention to reducing student loan indebtedness through responsible borrowing initiatives. Patti’s experience in the financial aid field provides a framework for national thought leadership, and she has served on state, regional and national committees and working groups. She previously served as the Director of Financial Aid at Utah State University, with experience in scholarships and federal aid. She currently sits on several regional and national Committees and task forces, with aim to improving the student experience. Patti earned her Master’s degree in Social Science, with an emphasis on Rural Community and International Development, and earned her Bachelor’s degree in History and Liberal Arts and Sciences, both from Utah State University.

Art Young serves as the Executive Director in the University of Arizona’s Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid (OSFA). He has a wide educational and professional background, including work and leadership experience in almost every sector of the financial aid industry (public, private, proprietary, and student lending). In a prior life, he taught high school for seven years, a foundation which continues to underscore his passion for education, access, and supporting student success. A former president of both the Rocky Mountain Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (RMASFAA) and the Utah Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (UASFAA), Art has trained and mentored colleagues and students across the country and in a variety of settings. He has served twice on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) and is proud to have earned all 17 NASFAA professional credentials and be recognized as a Certified Financial Aid Administrator®. Art received the UASFAA Outstanding Service Award in 2009, RMASFAA’s Oscar R. “Jack” Hendrix Award in 2010, the NASFAA Regional Leadership Award in 2018, RMASFAA’s Ron Smout Award for Teaching and Mentoring in 2019, and the Meritorious Achievement Award from the Western Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (WASFAA) in 2021.

Dr. JoEllen Price (FAAC) started her higher education career in 1988 and became a financial aid director in 1992. Dr. Price currently serves as the Dean of Financial Aid and Scholarships at San Jacinto College in Pasadena, Texas. Prior to assuming the role on June 5, 2023, she was the executive director of financial aid at Houston Community College. She has led financial aid operations for 6 different institutions (public, private and proprietary) in four states over her 35-year career. Positions held include executive director of student financial programs overseeing student accounts and financial aid; assistant vice president of enrollment management overseeing admissions, financial aid, and marketing; interim director of institutional research; registrar; and vice president of operations for a full-service financial aid consulting company working with over 50 different institutions. She currently serves on the Board of Trustees for the Texas Association of Student Financial Aid Administrator's and serves on multiple committees and task forces for TASFAA, SWASFAA and NASFAA. She completed all 16 NASFAA credentials in September of 2021 and is a NASFAA Certified Financial Aid Administrator. Dr. Price earned a bachelor's degree in business (1991), a master's degree in business administration (1997), a master's degree in information technology (2015), and completed her Doctorate's in Education (2022).