Lisa Lilley receives M. Cecil Padgett Outstanding Achievement Award

 MUSCLE SHOALS – Northwest Shoals Community College (NWSCC) Executive Director of Student Financial Services Lisa Lilley was recently awarded the 2024-2025 M. Cecil Padgett Outstanding Achievement Award by the Alabama Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (AASFAA).

The annual award was presented at the Alabama Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators conference in Atmore, Ala. It is one of the highest honors conferred by the AASFAA.

The award is named after the distinguished financial aid director at Spring Hill College in Mobile, who passed away in April 1999, this award recognizes individuals who have provided exemplary service in the field of student financial aid over a sustained period. Recipients of this prestigious award are acknowledged for their outstanding dedication, significant contributions, and remarkable achievements in advancing student financial aid and higher education in Alabama. The award honors those who have made lasting strides in supporting student assistance programs and embody the spirit of excellence that Padgett represented.

Lilley has served in her current role as NWSCC Executive Director of Student Financial Services for the past seven years. She has worked an additional 32 years in financial aid offices for other colleges and universities in the state. Lilley holds a Master of Education degree from Auburn University at Montgomery and a Bachelor of Science degree from Liberty University.

Lilley expressed her appreciation and surprise for the award. “I am deeply honored to receive the M. Cecil Padgett Outstanding Achievement Award,” stated Lilley. “I have been honored to spend 39 years serving in financial aid. This recognition reflects on our team at Northwest Shoals and our passion to help our students realize that their dreams are possible.”