L E T T E R S

S o c i a l M e d i a

P O S T I T !

E M A I L

THE ADVOCATE Www.aasfaa.org

T E L E P H O N E

C l o u d C o m p u t i n g

E X P L O R E

Fall 2011 Volume 28

AASFAA.ORG

R S S

COMMUNICATION

THE ADVOCATE Www.aasfaa.org

Fall 2011 Volume 28

AASFAA.ORG

Issue Summary

This issue marks the first publication specific to a particular theme. The ADVOCATE will continue to publish themed newsletters, which are meant to relate to our members. We are jumping for joy about our first issue theme of COMMUNICATION. In this issue you will find articles discuss‐ing communication as a soft skill and key steps to implement successful communication experiences in the office. The issue also delivers FAQ’s and policy updates, which will serve as AASFAA’s means of communicat‐ing about financial aid with you the reader.

Features Letter from the President 4 Prescription for Communication 5 Effective Communication in the workplace 7 Loan Default Prevention FAQ’s 8 SAP Policy Update 10 AASFAA Board and Committee Chair Biographies 17

S p o n s o r s I n d e x

Mountain American p. 2-3 USA Funds p. 22

THE ADVOCATE Www.aasfaa.org

Fall 2011 Volume 28

Editor:

Christa Seagren Apollo Group christa.seagren@apollogrp.edu

Editorial Policy:

ABOUT ADVOCATE: The AASFAA Advocate is the primary means of communica-tion with all association mem-bers. It’s purpose is to inform the membership of association activities, to provide federal legislative and regulatory up-dates, to provide a space for comments on the trends in fi-nancial aid from members of the profession, and to provide information that the Newsletter Committee deems beneficial to the membership at large. While AASFAA is supportive of the many vendors and sponsors, newsletter articles are not de-signed to enable vendors to promote products and services, except through paid advertise-ments. ACCEPTANCE POLICY: The AASFAA Newsletter Com-mittee will edit all articles for appropriateness for the general membership. Each issue of the AASFAA Advocate will be re-viewed and approved prior to the final production by the Newsletter Committee and the current AASFAA President. LET’S TALK ABOUT YOUR ARTI-CLE: Questions regarding this policy should be addressed to the Edi-tor.

Final production by the Newslet-ter Committee and the current AASFAA President. Questions regarding this policy should be addressed to the Editor.

President President Elect Past President Vice President Secretary Treasurer Treasurer-Elect Post-Secondary Representa-tive at Large Post-Secondary Representa-tive at Large

Paula Cady Northcentral University Shirley Vaden Embry-Riddle Erin Wilborn Education Management Corporation Diana Mateer Champion College Services Michelle Castillo Northern Arizona University Ed Wagner Education Management Corporation Kristin Wilde Sanford-Brown College Nancy Killian Art Institute Chanda Brown Pima Community College

AASFAA.ORG

THE ADVOCATE Www.aasfaa.org

Fall 2011 Volume 28

AASFAA.ORG

L e t t e r f r o m t h e P r e s i d e n t

Greetings, As you look through this newsletter you will see a theme emerge. That theme is communication, something that unfortunately, AASFAA may have struggled with a bit in the past. It is my goal as your AASFAA President to change that. I would love to see everyone become involved in what is going on with AASFAA. I feel the best way to do that is to communicate to the member‐ship who we are and what our mission is. Really take the time to read through this newsletter. Get to know your current AAS‐FAA Board. Take a look at what the committees are all about and think about how you might want to get involved. The first order of business is to communicate with the membership who I am and how I came to be your AASFAA President. I am currently the Director of Student Financial Services at Northcentral University. I have been involved with AASFAA since 1989. During that time, I have had the opportunity to serve on several committees, co‐chair conference committee and did a brief stint as President. Due to some unforeseen changes, I was appointed President by the current AASFAA Board and Dianna Mateer was appointed as your Vice President. A HUGE thank you to the existing members of the AASFAA Board of Directors who have led fearlessly though all of the changes. Also, a big thank you to Jean Russell who offered her guidance and wisdom to the board and committee chairs. What a FANTASTIC Fall Conference we had! The Fall Conference was held in beautiful Tucson, AZ this year and the agenda was jam packed with relevant information to help us navigate our ever changing industry. We had representation from Department of Ed, NASFAA and WASFAA. The Conference committee led by Josee Marin really out did themselves and a great time was had by all. If you weren’t able to attend this year’s conference the session handouts are on AASFAA.org. Look for information on the Spring Symposium coming soon. Keep on the lookout for new ways in which AASFAA will be communicating with the membership. An example of this will be an AASFAA FACEBOOK page. We are working on it now so be sure to LIKE us when we are up and running. In closing, I would like to say it is truly an honor to serve the entire AASFAA membership as this year’s President. I consider my‐self extremely lucky to be a part of such a great group of talented individuals that make up our state organization. Cheers, Paula Cady AASFAA President

CONSUMER COMMUNICATION: A PRESCRIPTION FOR DISCLOSURES

AASFAA.ORG

By Diana Mateer

Consider for a moment how much of your communication with students is prescribed in fed‐eral regulation in the form of disclosure and dis‐semination rules. Just as following a doctor’s pre‐scription promotes your good health, following these communication rules help to ensure that your institution is healthy. The Student‐Right‐to‐Know‐Act, FERPA, the Program Integrity Rules of October 2010, HEOA—all require many different types of disclo‐sures and methods of dissemination. The U.S. Congress and ED have aimed to protect consum‐ers and the federal funds that help them get a higher education, so the purpose of some disclo‐sures is obvious— prospective students have a right to know program costs, length, and other information that is realistic, not promotional. For schools with gainful employment programs, Pro‐gram Integrity Rules require disclosures designed to help students make connections between the school’s programs and employment opportuni‐

ties. Federal student loan counseling, private loan disclosures, preferred lender arrangements, net price calculators—all provide vital information for students who borrow for their education. Some disclosures, such as those required by the Clery Act, were created from specific occur‐rences. Originally known as the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act, the legislation was renamed the Clery Act after the student whose murder on her college campus prompted the creation of the Act. The school had a history of violent crimes that had not been disclosed to students, and the intent of the Act was to force higher education institutions to dis‐close crime statistics and campus security informa‐tion as a condition of their Title IV eligibility. Does disclosure stop campus crime? Of course not, but it may have a profound effect on a student’s decision to

attend a particular school, and that is why this communication is so important. What do you say when someone asks “what is this program’s total cost to me and how long does it really take to graduate? What kind of career can I expect to pursue af‐ter completing the program? Is this campus safe?” If you were having a conversation with a student, these would be reasonable ques‐tions you might be expected to answer. Think of disclosures as answers to common ques‐tions rather than regulatory requirements, and treat them like a con‐versation. Your disclosures should be clear, concise and accurate. They should en‐courage additional ques‐tions if the student has them. And most impor‐tantly, look at the disclo‐sures from a student’s per‐spective. Would you under‐stand them?

Of course you must also ensure that they follow the rules required in higher education law. To help you out, ED has developed a comprehensive assessment describing requirements for consumer infor‐

mation that a school must provide to students, the De‐partment, and others. You may review it at: http://ifap.ed.gov/qahome/qaassessments/consumerinformation.html. The assessment includes activity worksheets with checklists you can use to ensure that your school is complying with consumer information requirements, and includes links to other reference ma‐terials and the regulations themselves.

Students are counting on you, and ED is expect‐ing you to tell students what they need to know about your school.

Applying basic communication rules to disclosures and follow-ing regulations are im-portant parts of a pre-scription for a healthy

AASFAA.ORG

By Kristin Wilde

Providing quality communication is an essential building block of any school’s customer service. When students, employees, and outside contracts are not treated well or addressed with the appropriate level of communication, then the school loses. Students will drop from school, employees seek other employment, and vendors choose to be associated exclusively with other businesses or in‐stitutions. All employees should be trained on and ex‐pected to uphold the highest level of quality communi‐cation and customer service possible.

C o m m u n i c a t i o n a n d C u s t o m e r S e r v i c e T i p s t h a t w i l l m a k e y o u j u m p f o r j o y .

Some communication and customer service tips to remember when at work are: 1) You are employed (i.e. paid) to play the part of the BEST _________ (insert your ti‐

tle here) ever. Attitude is EVERYTHING! Your attitude helps to determine how peo‐ple perceive you. Attitude is a choice.

2) Customers service should not only be extended to the student (the obvious cus‐tomer), but also to everyone you interact with while at work.

3) Think of all contacts as customers. This includes but is not limited to: instructors, professors, admissions, bursar, parents, lenders, servicers, coworkers, superiors, etc. The way that news matters.

4) Customers should be treated with warm fuzzes or socialization before getting down to business. Even the worst of news is best received when the customer knows that you really care.

Remember: no matter what your position, you can truly impact your institution in concerted effort is made to consistently provide quality customer service!

AASFAA.ORG

AASFAA.ORG

You asked the questions...we have the answers!

By Grace Smith, USA Funds Account Executive

As your spring 2011 graduates approach repayment on

their student loans, offering them answers to some key questions can help get them on the road to successful re‐payment. USA Funds® Life Skills® provides frequently asked questions and answers that address the information bor‐rowers need to know about repaying their student loans. The following five questions and answers are among those included in the “What Do I Need to Know About Repaying My Student Loans?” lesson from USA Funds Life Skills. 1. Why do my monthly payments add up to so much more than what I actually borrowed? In addition to repaying the principal on your loan, you also owe interest on the principal balance until you pay back the loan in full. Using the Repayment Calculator, you can calcu‐late the amount of accrued interest you will pay on your student loans. For example, if your principal balance is $10,000, and you take 10 years to repay the loan, you will end up paying back $3,810 in interest in addition to the original $10,000 principal balance, for a total of $13,810. This example assumes a constant interest rate of 6.8 per‐cent. 2. I have trouble keeping track of my finances. Is there a quick and easy way to make sure that I pay my loans and pay them on time? Yes. Lenders and servicers want to do all they can to assist and reward you for paying back your loan on time. One op‐tion is to permit your payments to be automatically de‐ducted directly from your checking or savings account. By choosing this payment option, you may qualify for an inter‐est‐rate reduction from your lender or servicer. You’ll need to complete an automatic debit‐authorization form. 3. What if I have more than one student loan? You must make monthly payments on each loan. Some students opt for loan consolidation. Loan consolidation allows you to combine your loans into a single monthly pay‐ment. Loan consolidation often allows you to extend the repayment period beyond the standard 10 years, thus low‐ering your overall monthly payment. This may sound like a good deal, but treat this option with caution: You will end up paying much more in interest in the long run.

4. What if I don’t earn enough money to make the full monthly payment on my loans? If you have trouble making your student loan payment, you should contact your loan servicer immediately. One of the ad‐vantages of taking out feder‐ally sponsored student loans is that you have a variety of options for relief when re‐payment problems arise. You may qualify for a defer‐ment or forbearance, or you may select one of the flexible repayment options. 5. Why is it necessary to stay in touch with my school, lender or loan servicer? Make a habit of staying in touch with your school, lender or loan servicer. Your lender needs to know about any employment, address, phone or school‐related changes. Students often move following graduation. If you move, you should notify your school and your lender or loan servicer of your telephone and address changes. Otherwise, you might not receive important information about your student loan ac‐counts, and they might not be able to help you when repayment problems arise. Borrowers who fail to notify their lender or ser‐vicer of address or phone changes are at significantly higher risk for student loan default. You also are required to inform your lender or loan servicer of anything that might change your eligibility for an existing defer‐ment. For example, if you drop out of school temporarily (even if it’s only one term), you must notify your lender. USA Funds Life Skills is a Web‐based financial literacy education and student success program that equips schools to help stu‐dents develop basic life management skills so that they gradu‐ate on time with a minimum amount of debt. The online curricu‐lum offers 30 life lessons that feature engaging activities and video segments that retain students’ attention. The tool also includes online, printable resources, quizzes, interactive exer‐cises, real‐life scenarios and a glossary of terms that students of all levels need to understand.

Answers to important questions you need to know!

Six Steps

Schools

Need to Know

To Lower

Default Rates

Approximately 45 percent of the nation’s colleges and universities posted 2009 cohort default rates that were higher or the same as their previous year’s rates, according to rates released by the U.S. Department of Education Sept. 12. Schools that would like to achieve lower default rates should consider the following six key activities: Enhanced loan counseling. Although federal regulations mandate entrance counseling for first‐time borrowers and exit counseling for departing borrowers, schools can offer counseling that goes beyond the minimum requirements. Incorporating additional information about personal finance topics, collecting additional contact and reference information, explaining in detail loan repayment options and providing more information about sound debt management and credit management practices can better equip borrowers to minimize their education debt and pay back their loans. Financial literacy. Students who are more knowl‐edgeable about the prudent use of credit, budget‐ing and other basic personal finance topics are less likely to borrow excessive amounts and more likely to fulfill their financial obligations while in school and following graduation. Delivering per‐sonal finance education can influence student be‐haviors in the management and repayment of their student loans. Student retention. Students who persist to the completion of their academic programs are at much lower risk for loan default than those who drop out before completing their degrees or other academic credential. Developing or enhancing existing plans to promote student retention can have the twin benefits of improving graduation rates and lowering student loan default rates. Dedicated staff. Employing experienced and trained default prevention staff helps to establish strong working relationships with student loan borrowers from their college years through the repayment of their loans. Postsecondary institu‐tions that are strapped for resources might con‐sider devoting a portion of an existing staff mem‐ber’s time to coordinating default prevention ef‐forts. Borrower contact. School contact with borrow‐ers, while they are still in school, during the six‐month grace period after they leave school, dur‐

ing repayment, and especially if they fall behind in their loan pay‐ments, is a proven default prevention best practice. Analyzing characteristics of borrowers in default. Schools should analyze data on their borrowers who default on their loans to ascertain the unique characteristics of former stu‐dents who end up in default. This analysis can inform future strategies and interventions for preventing loan default. For additional information and support to curb student loan de‐faults, visit the Department of Education Default Prevention Re‐source Information page at http://www.ifap.ed.gov/DefaultPreventionResourceInfo

By: Grace Smith, USA Funds Account Executive

AASFAA.ORG

By: Grace Smith, USA Funds Account Executive

When the U.S. Department of Education announced changes to the federal regulations related to satisfactory academic progress in October 2010, financial aid administra‐tors across the country began working to understand and implement the revised rules. The regulations require schools to revise their existing SAP policies or develop new policies that take into account the new rules and terminology, effec‐tive with the first SAP review occurring on or after July 1, 2011. USA Funds® University regional training executives talked with several financial aid administrators about their experi‐ences with implementing the new SAP provisions. Here are some of the thoughts and tactics they shared regarding the new SAP rules and how they’re implementing them:

Frequency of SAP reviews These financial aid professionals reported that they will not change how often they conduct SAP reviews. Those who review SAP on a payment period basis will continue to do so. One representative of a four‐year university whose school will continue to review annually will be unable to use the newly established “financial aid warning” status, but found this scenario preferable to the potential complications associated with conducting more frequent reviews. The time between payment periods is

Financial Aid Professionals Discuss Satisfactory Academic Progress Rules

AASFAA.ORG

AASFAA.ORG

very short at her school, and institutional poli‐cies related to registration and on‐campus hous‐ing were going to result in undesirable conse‐quences for staff and students if more‐frequent SAP reviews take place. Financial aid staff members at that school in‐stead are working with faculty and their admini‐stration to develop an early alert system and an approach to academic advising that they believe will address progression issues more proac‐tively.

Pace of progression Several aid professionals commented on intro‐ducing a “pace” component to their SAP re‐quirements as a means of ensuring every aid applicant could complete the program of study within the maximum allowable time frame. One school that reviews progress every pay‐ment period identified that some of its first‐year students who struggle significantly in the first term were going to find it difficult to meet the school’s minimum pace expectation of 75 percent by the end of the second term. As a re‐sult, that school is expecting a greater number of appeals to be reviewed by their cross‐departmental committee, and a related increase in the use of academic plans.

Expecting similar issues, a financial aid professional from another school that reviews more frequently than once per year said his school currently is evaluating whether to use a graduated scale in which the pace ex‐pectation would start low and increase over time.

Appeals, probation and academic plans All the school representatives with whom the trainers spoke indicated their schools will continue to allow students to appeal their statuses. One school will require students to appeal, but will not place students on “financial aid probation.” Instead, the school will establish individualized academic plans for every student not making progress. That school believes this approach is more likely to ensure a marginal student’s successful completion of a program of study. Academic advisers will work out the details of each plan and keep the financial aid office informed re‐garding the student’s compliance with the plan.

Making the transition These aid professionals discovered several challenges as they examined the effect the new policies and pro‐cedures could have on various categories of financial aid applicants. They considered how to address the needs of returning students who no longer will meet the school’s SAP requirements despite meeting the

It is important to review SAP information to make sure your school is com‐municating ef‐fectively with students.

AASFAA.ORG

previous requirements. The financial aid administrators grappled with academic policies related to repeated course work and the treatment of transfer credits that were different than the new SAP requirements will allow. One school found that, for SAP purposes, it must calculate a grade point average that is different than a student’s offi‐cial GPA. But with challenges came opportunities. A colleague at another school revealed that she learned about cer‐tain aspects of grading practices and policies she had not known previously. The implementation of the new SAP procedures allowed her to educate her colleagues across campus about how academic policies relate to and affect financial aid administration.

Communication is key For the majority of the professionals, the greatest predictor of success in transitioning to the new SAP re‐quirements appears to be increased communication and collaboration with other offices and departments at their institutions. They shared information as early as possible, convened committees to identify issues, and developed plans for informing students and staff as they continue with implementation of the new rules. The financial aid administrators said that their schools are implementing plans for communicating with stu‐dents about the changes in SAP requirements. Several aid administrators are incorporating information into their award notification process, often involving collecting student acknowledgement, and into financial aid handbooks and other consumer information. In a few cases, schools also are sharing information through newsletters, newspaper articles and electronic updates.

By Chanda Brown

We each are members for our own reasons and as a result, the mission, vision and purpose of AASFAA will differ from one person to the next. For some it is about a sense of camaraderie on the battlefields of Title IV regulations‐‐gainful employment anyone? Others envision AASFAA as an opportunity to ob‐tain training and professional development goals. While still, even others might view the organization as a vessel for networking, building relationships, and learning from one another.

The purpose of AASFAA is to meet each of those expectations! AASFAA is an organization of Arizona financial aid professionals dedicated to assisting and supporting our fellow col‐leagues. Aware of the constraints and opportunities inherent within the state, AASFAA is a resource for Arizona financial aid administrators to utilize for training, professional development, networking, and discussing industry best practices. The mission of AASFAA is to provide our members with the highest quality of personal and professional growth opportunities. We do this by providing ongoing training and access to a broad network of financial aid profes‐sionals spanning all types of institutions.

AASFAA members value integrity, honesty, hard work and camaraderie. It

is through our participation in AASFAA that we exhibit these characteristics and through our daily interactions that we live them.

AASFAA.ORG

A A S F A A

A S F A A

Getting Involved with AASFAA! By Shirley Vaden We all have busy schedules and I often think I can’t possibly add anything else to my plate. But, I have been involved with AASFAA for 15 years and it has been a very rewarding experience. I have never regretted the time that I have given to the association and although at times it may have seemed a little overwhelming, the end result is the satisfaction of being involved in some way. The most important reason that I wanted to be involved was because I know that our organiza‐tion is only as good as we make it. The networking opportunities are fabulous ‐ when you go to a conference, some members you only see once or twice a year….but, for a day or two you get the chance to catch up with them. I seldom will sit at a meal with the same people. I always try to sit at a table with people I don’t know or haven’t seen since the last conference and I love to sit with someone I have never met. This is a great opportunity to welcome a new‐comer and make them feel comfort‐able….remember, we were all newcomers once. Over the years, the members have become my friends, my mentors, my resources, and people I am happy to know. Unfortunately over the years some of those people have moved on, and our association has lost some of our members – but, they will always remain a part of my life. The first year I was in Financial Aid, I recall going to the AASFAA conference and it was a wonderful experience…the sessions, the members, and the food. I knew then that I wanted to be more in‐volved. So when the call went out for volunteers for the Conference Committee – I volunteered and I am so happy I did. After serving on the conference committee for a couple of years I was encouraged to attend a board meeting and before I knew it I was Secre‐tary. Then I was asked to serve on the Fiscal Plan‐

ning and Development committee for a couple of years, and then became the editor of the newslet‐ter for two years. Eventually I was back on the board as Treasurer‐Elect and Treasurer and I did this rotation a couple of times. This year I am Presi‐dent‐Elect, next year I will be President, and then I will become past‐President….I call it my 3 year plan. I will admit that depending on your involvement you will give up some of your free time for the asso‐ciation – but, at the end of the day, it is a great feel‐ing. I have developed some wonderful friendships over the years with members that I have worked with in different capacities either on the board or a committee. We have a strong association and the history that some of our members have with AASFAA helps to make us one of the greatest (I think) state associa‐tions. But, we need “new blood” on our Board and our Committees – because everyone has ideas and suggestions to bring to the table – as I said; we are only as good as our members make us. Any mem‐ber is welcome to attend a Board meeting ‐ it is a great way to begin your involvement. So, next time you are at a conference and you think about a subject you would like to see on the agenda, or you have a different idea about an arti‐cle for the newsletter, you would prefer a ham‐burger rather than Mexican food, you have an idea about increasing membership, you would like to sit at the table up front – and have everyone watch you eat! Volunteer…..because in the words of someone’s Uncle –

WE WANT YOU!

the scenes at

AASFAA?

What goes on behind

By Chanda Brown The majority of work that keeps AASFAA running, provides support for main business functions, and helps the organization fulfill its mission is the work and dedication of 11 AASFAA committees. No matter what ar‐eas of interest you might have, what talents you possess, or what skills you might like to learn, AASFAA has something for everyone! Below is a brief description of each committee. If you find something you like let us know—we are always looking for volunteers! Archives: If you enjoy documenting history, then please come join us! Responsible for the maintenance and

upkeep of records and data all things AASFAA related. This includes information from confer‐ences, symposiums, pictures, and pertinent email correspondence. Key responsibilities and goals for the future will be to develop a way to electronically maintain this information permit‐ting easy retrieval and membership access to view the history of AASFAA activities. Conference: If you are looking for a challenge this is the right committee for you! Responsible for planning, organizing, directing, controlling and evaluating any

conference or meeting as directed by the Executive Board and supported by the Association. As we can see this committee does it all! Activities within this group includes looking at the pertinent issues emerging in the industry and establishing a theme, agenda, and speaker series that promote and support the needs of finan‐cial aid professionals in Arizona.

Awards & Scholarships: We all love free stuff and a little recognition from time to time! As funds permit, this committee promotes the availability of, solicits nominees for, and makes selections/recommendations for various scholarship recipients. This year, AASFAA gave awards for the John Medley Financial Aid Advocacy and Robert Thompson Memorial Lead‐ership awards. Awareness & Outreach: Marketing and networking anyone? This committee works closely

with the FP&D committee and looks for ways to develop, maintain and enhance new liaison relationships with external professional organizations and agencies on matters related to all things education! Fiscal Policy and Development: If you are numerically inclined this is the right com‐

mittee for you. FP&D proposes AASFAA’s annual budget and is the lead for fund raising and revenue generating programs. FP&D assists with both the billing and promotional efforts of the association and is responsible for providing documentation on AASFAA’s tax exempt, non‐profit status for each participating sponsor and vendor’s tax needs.

Information/Technology: Who ever said IT wasn’t fun?!? This group is the hands on team that manages and requests updates to the AASFAA website to ensure that it remains a useful tool for references and information inquiries. The chair of this committee is the direct liaison with the website hosting vendor and is responsible for ensuring the IT needs of the Association are met. This committee also supports the efficient use and means of electronic communications for our membership and maintains our mailing listserv.

AASFAA.ORG

AASFAA.ORG

Membership: This committee focuses on all things membership related! Members of this group focus on attracting new members and retaining current members. In addition, this group is responsible for ensuring the membership directory online is accurate, and works closely with the Treasurer, Treasurer Elect and the Information and Technology chair to post notice of renewal on the web for collection of annual dues.

Newsletter: Members of this group are true financial aid Advocates! Tasked with the responsibility of updating members on the happenings of

AASFAA, regulatory information, and conference activities. This group develops the theme, outline, and format of the AASFAA Advocate newsletter! Members of this com‐mittee contact members, committee chairs, Board members, affiliated agencies and re‐gional and national association liaisons to acquire content material for use in the newslet‐ter. This committee also recently acquired ownership of developing AASFAA’s Facebook page—so keep a look out for that as well! Site Selection: For all those detail‐oriented planners out there, this is a group sure to in‐

terest you! The Site team is responsible for examining, recommending and preparing details regarding potential site locations for AASFAA activities such as conference and symposium! This group looks at various locations and com‐pares them on a host of factors including capacity, per night room expense, meals expense, gratuity levels, number of complimentary rooms, meeting rooms, and vendor rooms. This committee then negotiates the best possible deal with the company to ensure that it has the resources and meets the needs of the Association’s event. Because the location and agenda of the event are

so critically intertwined, the chair(s) of this group also serve as members of the conference committee as the site coordinator(s).

Membership Training: There is never a dull moment in financial aid! This group of dedicated professionals develops and coordinates training activities for the membership. Members of this com‐mittee reach out to the membership to inquire about training needs and work closely with both the Newsletter and Conference committee chairs to identify both agendas and themes. In the future, this committee might expand to offering regional training activities within the state focusing on the needs of each area.

Nominations and elections: The name really does say it all for this committee! Responsible for the admini‐

stration of the nominations and elections processes, this group ensures that the Association is managed and

represented by qualified and highly skilled professionals! AASFAA encourages every mem‐

ber to run for office, but this committee also helps with identifying and directly pursuing

qualified candidates in the event of a shortfall on nominations.

We are always looking for volunteers! Contact Us to join in the FUN!

We are pleased to meet you

AASFAA.ORG

Paula Cady President Northcentral University Paula has been in the Financial Aid industry for over 23 years. She is currently the Director of Student Financial Services at Northcentral Uni‐versity. Prior to Northcentral, Paula has worked different aspects of financial aid with EDMC, J.P. Morgan Chase, and the Art Insti‐tute of Phoenix. Paula has been involved with AASFAA for the majority of her time in the in‐dustry. She loves working in the industry and being a part of such a dynamic community of very talented people. Paula has been married for 15 years to her hus‐band Roy. They have a 12 year old son Tommy, a 24 year old step‐daughter Krista, and an 18 month old granddaughter Avery. Paula and her family enjoys spending time together as well

Shirley Vaden President‐Elect Embry‐Riddle Shirley Vaden has been in the Financial Aid com‐munity since 1996 having worked at Prescott College for 7 years and then employed by NEL‐NET for 3 years and now working for Embry‐Riddle. During the last 15 years Shirley has served on the Board as Treasurer, Treasurer‐Elect, Secretary, and currently as President‐Elect. In addition to serving on the board she has also served on sev‐eral committees – conference, fiscal planning & development, newsletter and also helps on other committees. It has been very rewarding to be associated with a great organization and Shirley looks forward to next year when she will be President.

Erin Wilborn Past President Education Management Corporation Erin began working in Financial Aid in 2004, by chance. She stumbled across a job at Prescott College as the front counter person. She knew she could answer the phones and handle basic financial aid questions. Little did she know that in a few short years the oppor‐tunity would turn out to be her career and passion. Erin quickly moved from the front desk to a counselor position then to Assistant Director. When working for Prescott College, the Director at the time was heavily involved with AASFAA and encouraged Erin to be‐come involved. She finally took the leap a few years ago, beginning with chairing the newsletter. The following year Erin decided to run for office and was pleasantly surprised when she was elected as Vice President. Erin’s experience with AASFAA has been nothing short of amazing. She is proud to be involved in an association that truly cares for their members and understands the impor‐tance of education. Everyone involved, whether it is the board members or commit‐tee members, are passionate about what they do and it shows!

AASFAA.ORG

Michelle Castillo Secretary Northern Arizona University Michelle Castillo currently serves as the Financial Aid Director of Northern Arizona University and Secretary of AASFAA. She began her career in financial aid over 11 years ago at the University of New Mexico and has served in a multitude of fi‐nancial aid roles since that time. Upon moving to Arizona she quickly became involved in Arizona's College Goal Sunday program, serving as the Northern Regional Coordinator. She also became active in AASFAA and served her first term as Secretary in 2009. AASFAA has provided her a great opportunity to network with others around the state and would encourage anyone that is passionate about finan‐cial aid to get involved in our great state organi‐zation!

Ed Wagner Treasurer Education Management Corporation Ed has been active in AASFAA since 2004, and has been working in Financial Aid since 1999. The first eleven years of his Financial Aid career were with a 3rd party outsourcer, ACS, where the pri‐mary client was the University of Phoenix. A little over two years ago, Ed made a move to Education Management Corporation (“EDMC”), where he holds the position of Vice President of Financial Aid. Before starting in Financial Aid, Ed was a Certified Public Accountant with Arthur An‐dersen. Since his background is accounting, Ed felt that he could help AASFAA the most in the role of Treasurer. Besides being Treasurer this year, and Treasurer‐Elect last year, Ed has volunteered at the registra‐tion table at the conferences and symposiums since joining AASFAA. He looks forward to many more years with AASFAA.

Diana Mateer Vice President Champion College Services Diana has worked for more than 30 years in higher education, helping students find financing for their educational dreams and assisting institu‐tions with programs and processes to enhance student services. Diana began her higher education career as a work‐study student where she developed a pas‐sion for helping fellow students. She has held po‐sitions as a financial aid director for a number of private sector schools in Arizona, as well as a long career in the student lending sector as a client re‐lations representative for two large FFEL lenders and a nationally‐based guarantor. Diana has been an active member of AASFAA for 25 years, and has served as Association President as well as several Board of Directors and Commit‐tee Chair Positions. She has received several of the highest awards given by the Arizona Associa‐tion, including the Robert Thompson Memorial Leadership Award, Member of the Year, and the John Medley Student Advocacy Award. Diana is currently serving AASFAA as Vice President. Diana obtained a master’s degree from ASU’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law in May 201 and joined Champion College Services as Compli‐ance Specialist.

AASFAA.ORG

Chanda Brown Post– Secondary Representative at Large Chanda Brown serves on this year’s AASFAA Board of Directors as a Representative at Large. With 9 years of financial aid experience, Chanda’s background is diverse including both 4‐year pub‐lic and 2‐year community college professional environments. Additionally ,she is a doctoral stu‐dent working on a dissertation looking at devel‐oping a predictive model of student loan default and evaluating what, if any, institutional default management measures are effective at reducing a student’s risk of delinquency/default. Earlier in the year, the President sent out a call to AASFAA membership asking for committee vol‐unteers, and Chanda jumped at the opportunity. She believes in the mission of the organization to assist each of us within the field and wanted to be a bigger part in that!

Howard Fischer Ottawa University Awards and Scholarships As Chair of the 2011‐12 AASFAA Awards Commit‐tee, Howard Fischer had the honor of preparing the certificates, plaques and awards recognizing all of the 2010‐11 Committee members and Board members for their dedication and hard work on behalf of OUR Association. It never ceases to amaze him how many people it takes to do what we do each year. Howard also had the privilege of coordinating the nominations for the John Medley Financial Aid Advocacy and Robert Thompson Leadership awards. Howard says “these are the two highest awards that our Association presents and I’d like to congratulate Grace Smith (USAF) and Pat Pep‐pin (Mesa Community College) for being recog‐nized with these awards. We are a better Asso‐ciation because of people like Grace and Pat and they are to be commended and lauded for their outstanding professionalism and dedication to all that they do”.

Nancy Killian Post‐Secondary Representative at Large Art Institute Nancy currently holds the board position of Post‐Secondary Representative at Large. Nancy has been the Associate Director of Student Financial Services at The Art Institute of Tucson for over three years now. She has held positions at Cor‐tiva Institute‐Desert Institute of Healing Arts, The University of Arizona and Purdue University in the field of financial aid for over 28 years. Nancy re‐ceived her Bachelor’s of Science degree in the field of Financial Counseling at Purdue University in 1994. Nancy has been an active member of AASFAA since 1997 and was also a member of ISFAA (Indiana Student Financial Aid Association) prior to moving to Arizona. Positions that she has held on board prior years are: Post‐Secondary Repre‐sentative at Large 2006‐2007, Scholarship Com‐mittee Co‐Chair 2008‐2010, Scholarship Commit‐tee Chair 2010‐2011 and Vice President 2009‐2010. Nancy is proud to serve AASFAA again in the po‐sition of Post-Secondary Representative at Large.

Kristin Wilde Treasurer‐Elect Sanford‐Brown College Kristin Wilde has been in the Financial Aid indus‐try for almost eight years. She has been involved in multiple financial aid roles including: processor, past due cash, VA, drawing down and posting of funds, R2T4, advisor, processing supervisor, asso‐ciate director, and director. In her personal life, Kristin is currently studying in an MBA program and is the proud mother of two children: Rae and Ky. Kristin Wilde has become more involved with AASFAA over the last year to expand her network of individuals and to help advocate for Financial Aid. She is the current Treasurer‐Elect.

Christa Seagren Newsletter Committee Chair Apollo Group Christa has been in the education industry for almost 8 years. Apollo Group has not only opened doors to become involved in higher education through or‐ganizations such as AASFAA, but also the opportu‐nity to become a learner herself. Christa has a mas‐ters in adult education and training and is currently pursuing a PHD in Higher Education Administration. Christa’s current role with Apollo Group focuses on training and development, which she has been in for 3 years. In this role she is responsible for a variety of projects such as facilitating in classroom as well as teleconference (i.e., Adobe Connect, and WebEx) learning sessions. She is also tasked with the design of curriculum under many facets such as e‐learning, instructor lead, and digital communications. Her background includes a vast knowledge base in inno‐vation, process improvement, and web design. Christa has a passion for learning as well as teaching and is currently pursuing faculty opportunities. AASFAA was and still is a wonderful opportunity, which came along when there was no free time to spare, but amazingly has become such a positive outlet for expression, design, and creativity. Christa is looking forward to the commitment from the AASFAA organization to providing outstanding ser‐vice to it’s members as well as pursue new avenues of ensuring the commitment is retained. Keep an eye open for an upcoming FaceBook page from her as well.

AASFAA.ORG

David Grant Information & Technology Committee Chair Northern Arizona University/Post Secondary AT Large A little about your IT Chair, David Grant from Northern Arizona University... David hails from land of the last frontier ‐ Alaska! He enjoys travel‐ing and has lived in Australia and South Korea... He moved to Arizona in 2008 and has been in‐volved with Financial Aid and a member of AAS‐FAA ever since. One of his favorite quotes is ‐ "Whatever you are, be a good one" ‐ Abraham Lincoln, which he strives towards in his role as Of‐fice Supervisor, Loans and Operations at the Flag‐staff mountain campus. David publishes and maintains the AASFAA web site and provides web support to all other com‐mittees and individuals to assure optimum web‐based communications among AASFAA mem‐bers and the community. If you have any ques‐tions regarding the website and/or updates for it, head on over to the Member Services section and get in touch!

Josee Martin Carrington College Conference Committee Josee has been in the education industry for over 13 years. She came from a customer service, sales and management background. Josee was an advisor at a ground campus before moving into the director role. She was in financial aid for 2 years before moving into the corporate director role. Josee remained in that position for just over 7 years. At that time, Josee took over an explod‐ing online office with over 3,000 students and 90 + staff. From there, she did 2 online start ups. Josee is currently the Senior Director of Student Finance for Carrington College. She has been in her current position for just over a year and a half. There are 10 ground campuses mainly in the Northwest and Southwest parts of the coun‐try. Carrington is a division of DeVry Inc.

Spring Symposium Update By Josee Martin

We are hoping to have the Spring Symposium Friday, March 30, 2012 at the Black Canyon Conference Center in Phoenix. We anticipate a set up similar to last spring with 3 tracks of topics. Topics and volunteers needed. Please email Josee Martin at jmartin@carrington.edu.

By Josee Martin

The conference surveys have been sent out and if you have not yet had the opportunity, please do. We want to hear your voice! Thank you again all people who assisted in the success of the confer‐ence. A special thank you goes to Erin Wilborn, Jean Russell, Jorge Zepada, Tom Rector, Nancy Killian, Nicole Harral – and U of A for the programs! We have received very positive unofficial feedback so far. The sponsors, attendees, speakers and moderators were all amaz‐ing! We are so thankful to have such a valuable resource – all of you! ‐ that are willing to take time out of their hectic schedule to make the conference a success! We look forward to your feedback electronically through the survey.

Mark your calendars!

AASFAA.ORG

Fall Conference Wrap‐up