Meet Chad Olson, FAAC^®, director of student financial aid at Iowa State University.

With 26 years of experience in financial aid, Chad has dedicated his career to supporting student access and success in higher education. In his current role as a director, his leadership is grounded in collaboration, service and a deep belief in the transformative power of financial aid.

A committed leader at both the state and regional levels, Chad has served as President of the Iowa association (IASFAA) and the Midwest Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (MASFAA). He has contributed his time and expertise to the Site Selection and Leadership Symposium committees for IASFAA. With MASFAA, he has served on the Awards, Program, Mentoring, and Summer Institute/Leadership Symposium committees, and has chaired both the Site Selection and Exhibitor Relations committees. 

Chad has also served on the NASFAA Board of Directors as the MASFAA representative and served on the Association Governance and Nomination & Elections committees. He has chaired the Compliance Track for NASFAA’s Leadership & Legislative Conference & Expo and currently serves as the MASFAA representative on the Certified Financial Aid Administrator^® Program Commission.

For Chad, it is the people and the relationships he has built over the years that have shaped him into the professional he is today. 

“I’ve learned so many leadership lessons from so many people over the years, including my parents, my wife, and every financial aid professional I’ve worked with,” Chad said. “I strongly believe mentorship is not just a vertical relationship.” 

Chad’s belief in the transformative power of financial aid is also deeply personal. His wife, a first-generation college student and Pell Grant recipient, faced a financial crisis while in college. With the support of her financial aid director, who awarded her a Perkins Loan, she was able to complete her degree, attend graduate school, and ultimately begin her career at Iowa State University — where the two met. 

“I got the opportunity to meet that financial aid director and thank her for helping my wife out,” Chad said. “And I got the opportunity to help pay off that Perkins Loan!” 

Learn more about Chad, his interests, and his career path in the Q&A below!

How did you get your start in financial aid?

I started as a graduate assistant in the Office of Student Financial Aid at Iowa State University in August 1999. I started full-time in the office in July 2002 as a student loan coordinator and served as an assistant and associate director before becoming director in July 2023. 

What have been some of the biggest changes you’ve noticed in the profession since beginning your career?  

I’ve seen customer expectations increase tremendously over the years. I think our customers have very high demands due to the instantaneous world we live in, but our profession is one which still has processes that can take time. You can download a movie to your phone in a minute, but it takes a processing cycle to update my FAFSA? Communicating that timeline to our students and families can be a difficult process at times. 

Tell us about your institution. What are some unique aspects of working at Iowa State University?  

We have an amazing 20-acre green space on our central campus. You can often see students playing ultimate frisbee or hammocking on central campus after classes. We have a Zodiac symbol in the entrance to tour Memorial Union. If you step on it, you fail your next test. All the students, alumni and staff walk around it! 

My favorite part is the ISU Creamery, which is a student-run operation that makes ice cream and cheese. The ice cream flavors are named after different campus colleges, landmarks and ISU celebrities.   

What do you find the most rewarding and fulfilling about your work? 

I love solving problems. Financial Aid is always evolving, so there are always new challenges to tackle. I will admit that we’ve had enough changes in the past few years and for 26/27, so it would be great if some of the changes slowed down!    

If you could change one thing about financial aid, what would it be?

It would be wonderful if some of the administrative burden could be removed.  Whether it’s a revamp of the R2T4 process, GE/FVT reporting, or the upcoming Administrative Capability regulations, it’s difficult to be proactive and improve the student experience at our institutions.  I hope there could be more partnership with FSA and Congress when developing new guidance.

What's something you wish all higher ed folks knew about financial aid?  

Some of the new strategies or initiatives an institution develops may have financial aid implications, so we should have a seat at the table. 

Do you have any recommendations for people just getting started in the field?  

Our work is hard, and we get little recognition from our institutions. We don’t get a lot of thanks from our students, but we should always remember the generational ripple effects we can have on people’s lives when we’re “just doing our jobs.”  If that appeals to you, use that as motivation and go do all the awesome things!

Get involved in your professional associations! You will build an amazing network of colleagues that can help you solve problems and support you in the tough times. If you’re fortunate like me, they’ll become some of your closest friends. 

What's something you couldn't function without?  

I’m embarrassed to say my phone! My phone melted down at NASFAA in San Diego a couple of years ago, and my friends had to create a “where’s Chad?” text string to keep track of me because I never knew what time it was and I was presenting at the conference. The first thing I did when I got home was buy a new phone AND a watch!

Do you have any hobbies or special interests you’d like to share? 

I’m one of the hosts of the MASFAA Me Up podcast, along with Alex DeLonis and Emily Haynam. I collect mini-bats from the baseball stadiums I visit. I’m a big pro wrestling fan, in fact, I’m a pro wrestling ring announcer for IPW, Iowa’s oldest independent wrestling promotion, which is celebrating 25 years this summer!

Any special plans this year? 

My daughter is a high school wrestler, so we’re going to the first NCAA women’s wrestling championships in early March. We will probably do some three-day weekends to hit some baseball games with my kids. Other than that, just trying to survive, like we all are!  

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