Farewell Tribute to Diane Trainer

Diane, we are so grateful that you joined Lafayette’s Finance and Administration Division on June 11, 2012, as our accounts receivable manager. Throughout your tenure at Lafayette, you served as the director of student billing for the College. In this role, you effectively managed the robust efforts required to invoice our students for their Lafayette education and to manage the collection activity for our student accounts. Your service to the College brought us the resources that enabled our faculty and staff to create a transformative education for our student body. 

In addition to your technical responsibilities in this role, you also served as the compassionate and insightful face of Lafayette’s billing team. Your customer service skills have been extraordinary. You routinely offered intuitive financial counseling for parents and students. Your ability to connect with our students and their families was effective in preserving their satisfaction with the College. Because of your empathy, you formed highly supportive relationships with parents as their children benefited from the Lafayette experience. 

We greatly admired the fact that you approached each situation with fairness, compassion, and a desire to see the student succeed here at Lafayette. Your kindness has been the foundation of your ability to navigate difficult financial conversations with some parents who were enduring tough financial circumstances and sustain their contentment with the College. Our parents were always very appreciative of your support. During your tenure, we fondly recall those occasions when parents would stop by to meet you and thank you for your service. We echo their praise of you. 

Diane, please know that you will be missed by your Lafayette colleagues. We found the fact that you remained on staff for a year following your scheduled retirement to support the transition to a new director as heartwarming evidence of your commitment to your role and to the Lafayette College community. For more than a decade, you have truly gone above and beyond to ensure the success of the Lafayette’s Finance and Administration Division and the College. We hope that you enjoy a wonderful retirement.