Mike Nylund President & CEO, Ex Officio Board Member

Mike Nylund joined Scholarship America in July 2013, bringing more than 20 years of professional experience and a deep knowledge of financial aid policy and administration to the role of president & CEO. As the organization’s leader, Nylund is dedicated to data-driven solutions that deliver positive, life-changing impacts to students—not just on the way to college, but all the way through their educational pathway and into their careers.

Prior to his current position, Nylund was Scholarship America’s Vice President, Product Strategy and Partner Solutions. In this role, he led product strategy and positioned Scholarship America as a strategic partner to community foundations, corporate foundations, post-secondary institutions and Fortune 500 companies. He oversaw relationships with more than 1,300 partners as well as new business development, leading a Partner Solutions division that distributes more than $230 million in scholarships to over 70,000 students each year.

Previously, Nylund led one of the nation’s largest centralized financial aid offices at Capella University, spearheading a team that packaged and awarded 90,000 student financial aid applications and disbursed close to $800 million annually in federal, state and private aid. He worked side by side with Admissions and Academic Advising to ensure positive student outcomes while maintaining compliance with federal and state financial aid regulations.

Nylund is a graduate of Michigan State University and a former recipient of the Medio J. Bacco Memorial renewable scholarship which gave him access to a post-secondary education. He is a member of the National Scholarship Provider’s Association (NSPA), National College Access Network (NCAN) and the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA).

Mike resides in St. Paul, Minnesota with his husband Scott, where they spend every winter dreaming of a life someplace other than Minnesota.