Photo: Ellen M. Banner/The Seattle Times

Fatima Nuñez Ardon took an unusual path to the classroom: She earned her teaching degree through evening classes at a community college, while living at home and raising her four children.  

Community college-based teaching programs like this are rare, but growing. They can dramatically cut the cost and raise the convenience of earning a teaching degree, while making a job in education accessible to a wider diversity of people.

Financial aid is tough work. The regulatory changes seem never-ending, while a lack of financial education and increased resentment about college costs put constant pressure on every staff member’s customer-service abilities.

All of that is a big ask, especially for those in this field’s many modestly paid positions. Big enough to put its future in question. Three financial aid veterans offer their perspectives on the state of the financial aid profession—plus three practical solutions.