After 40 years of serving higher education in several financial aid roles, including the State of Maryland and the University System of Maryland, Jane Hickey is retiring from her position as Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships at UMBC, effective October 1, 2020.

Jane began her career first as a student assistant in the Financial Aid Office of Salisbury University, her alma mater.  After earning her bachelor’s degree, Jane worked first at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore in the Office of Financial Aid before being hired at Chesapeake College as director.  She later served as the Associate Director for MHEC’s Office of Student Financial Assistance for nearly six years.  She has served several Maryland Community Colleges, including Anne Arundel Community College and Prince George’s Community College as Director of Financial Aid.  Jane moved to the University of Maryland Global Campus (formerly University of Maryland University College) in 2010 where she served as Executive Director of Financial Aid.  

In February 2014, Jane joined the UMBC community as Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships.  During her tenure as director, Jane contributed immensely to the effective and efficient administration of need-based and merit-based aid.  Her contributions include successfully leading UMBC through its first Department of Education Program Review (required for Title IV aid eligibility); restructuring roles and responsibilities and establishing protocols and procedures to maximize audit, compliance and quality assurance standards; implementing an online portal to promote and facilitate the application, review and selection of hundreds of institutional and private scholarship opportunities; and, the recent expansion of the financial aid services to include financial literacy education, to name a few.  UMBC has benefited immeasurably from Jane’s depth of knowledge and expertise in student financial aid and her student-centered approach.  We will miss Jane tremendously.