Meet the Financial Coaches

Keith Hamburg

Senior Financial Coach

Keith serves as the Senior Financial Coach in the Office of Financial Education at Montana State University and has done so since August of 2013. Keith’s goal is to help his student clients pay for school while taking on as little debt as possible, allowing them to “Live like a college student today, so they don’t have to tomorrow.” He has the privilege to work with students, assisting them to engage and take control of their finances with budgeting, scholarship searching, credit, and more. Keith has been in Bozeman since 1994, and before coming to MSU, he owned his own business and also worked for MetLife Financial Services.  

Keith’s belief is to always meet a client where they are at on their financial journey. He is a first-generation college student with a degree in Communications (1990). 

Jennifer White-Dobbs, M.A.

Financial Coach

Jennifer joined AYCSS in 2019.  She enjoys working with students to learn strategies for successful budgeting, find creative ways to pay for school, and develop their future financial goals. Engaging with students through coaching as well as offering clinics and teaching class sessions are her favorite parts of the job. Feeling confident about finances is a challenge and a valuable life skill to learn in college. With a B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Maine, Orono and a M.A. in Museum Studies from the Cooperstown Graduate Program, Jennifer’s previous work experience is in museum education and collections. She moved to Bozeman with her family to enjoy the beautiful outdoor lifestyle.  In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, skiing, horseback riding, and exploring.

Pam Bittner

Financial Coach

Pam Bittner joined the Office of Financial Education in 2022 after a career in the private sector. She is an Accredited Financial Counselor candidate. Mostly self-employed, her finance career has included real estate finance, tax preparation, private wealth accounting, business start-up accounting consulting, acting as CFO for a private hedge fund, and financial coaching for Gen-Z professionals. She has streamlined these experiences into sharing her enthusiasm for a successful financial life with young people. Pam received her MBA from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and her degree in Civil Engineering from The Ohio State University. Pam loves spending her time skiing, hiking, biking and backpacking, and spending time with her sons (one of whom is a Bobcat). Nala, the dog, often accompanies her adventures.

Vanessa Chau

Program Manager

Vanessa serves as the Career Services & Financial Education Program Manager in AYCSS. As a Career Services & Financial Education Program Manager, Vanessa will focus on supporting her teams and with minimal contact with the students. However, she is available to answer questions over the phone or walk-ins who needs help to navigate AYCSS website, studentaid.gov, search for CAT scholarships, complete FAFSA financial aid, and federal loans forgiveness information. Her goals are to develop, plan, and implement strategies to expand the Career Services and Financial Education programs in 2023.
In her spare time, Vanessa enjoys experimenting with cooking at home, horseback riding when the weather permits, and traveling.