The financial aid office should be unnoticeable to students, said one of two candidates vying for the associate director position in the Office of Student Financial Aid.

"My goal for the financial aid office is to simplify the whole process of financial aid," said John Nametz, who currently holds the position of assistant director of Student Financial Aid at the University of Arizona. "It would be ideal if the office worked so well it was invisible."

Nametz and Priscilla Parker, from Loyola University of Chicago, gave 15-minute presentations about their experience in and goals for financial aid, followed by a question and answer period.

This type of forum is important because students, faculty and staff get a chance to meet and speak with the candidates as well as give input in their hiring, said Melissa Wilburn, administrative associate in the Office of Student Financial Aid.

Those who attended the forum were asked to fill out an evaluation form that is reviewed by the hiring committee. The hiring committee will recommend a candidate to Student Financial Aid Director Phyllis Bolt Bannister tomorrow. Bannister's decision will then be approved by Jerome Lucido, assistant vice president of Enrollment Services, and Saundra Taylor, vice president of Student Affairs.

The associate director position includes administering the daily activities of 26 personnel in counseling, application processing and athletic financial aid coordinating. It also involves proposing institutional policy options through the office's advisory committee.

If hired, Nametz said, his role in the new position would be that of "a champion of new ideas, one who acts as a counterpoint and contributes different view points."

Parker said her strong point in regard to the position is her ability to relate to staff and solve problems.

Nametz formerly held the position of financial aid director at the University of Wisconsin centers from 1973 to 1985 and has been with the University of Arizona for the last eight years. He has spent the last 21 of his 22 years in higher education involved with student financial aid.

"I take my work home with me and change the things that frustrate me," he said.

Parker said the director position is similar to her former job at Loyola as associate director of financial aid, where she spent 15 years of her 26-year financial aid career until resigning in June. She said when you "can't help the way you want, you need to back up and do the best you can."

When the candidates were asked about keeping the staff updated on federal mandates in financial aid, Nametz said he "would make the staff feel comfortable when they don't know something and encourage them to ask questions ... we each need to be patient with each other and inform one another."

Parker said she would "ask what the staff is interested in and then inform them according to their interests." She also said that discussions and cross-training are important to familiarize the staff with new regulations.

Wilburn said the new associate director will be officially named in about a week and a half.