Susan Teerink, associate vice provost for financial aid and enrollment services, has decided to retire from Marquette University, effective June 30, Provost Kimo Ah Yun announced today. Teerink has served the campus community for 26 years.
“Marquette deeply appreciates all Susan has done to help our students navigate the financial aid experience throughout their college careers,” Provost Ah Yun said. “From serving as a key leader in the development of the Marquette Central model to working through recent challenges with the federal financial aid system, Susan has been an innovative and mission-oriented leader in student financial aid, and we wish her all the best in her well-earned retirement.”
“One does not stay the majority of their career in one place if it hasn’t been a positive experience. I am grateful for the opportunities that have been afforded to me both professionally and personally during my time at Marquette,” Teerink said. “It is the people who are the difference — all my former and current colleagues and the students we serve have made this journey worthwhile.”
Teerink started at Marquette as the assistant director for new students and families in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions, then located in Marquette Hall. She was named director of financial aid in 2006, and she was part of the team that researched and developed Marquette Central, the university’s one-stop student service area. Teerink assumed oversight of the area in 2009.
Teerink is a past president of the Wisconsin Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators and was recently appointed by Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers to serve as the private, nonprofit school representative to the Wisconsin Higher Education Aids Board. On the national level, Teerink served as a National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators trainer and the FAFSA Simplification Implementation Task Force. She also began working as a NASFAA Standards of Excellence reviewer in 2019.
Most recently, Teerink and colleagues were instrumental in the effort to modernize the Wisconsin Grant formula for private, nonprofit institutions in conjunction with the Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. Working across sectors they testified before both Assembly and Senate committees to update state legislation in preparation for the changes necessitated by FAFSA Simplification. Evers signed the updated legislation in December 2023.
Tara O’Neil, associate director of student financial aid, will serve as acting assistant vice president of student financial aid, effective July 1.
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