The purpose of OASFAA shall be: to foster and promote the professional preparation, effectiveness, recognition, and association of administrators and counselors of student financial aid in educational institutions beyond high school and individuals in public or private agencies or organizations concerned with student financial aid.
A Letter from your President...
August 9, 2009
These times have been challenging for the financial aid community. We have seen many
changes in the aid programs. Institutions and agencies are being downsized while
enrollment and workload has increased. Although we are facing challenging times, I am
so proud of OASFAA for staying active and committed to training its members. I would
like to provide an OASFAA update.
OASFAA held its annual Summer Drive-In (SDI) Workshop at Clackamas Community College
on August 6th. We had over 70 attendees who participated in a valuable day of training.
Hats off to the SDI committee co-chairs, Jennifer Knight and Mary McGlothlan, and to
committee members Russell Seidelman, Tip Ryan, Katy Wilson, Tracy Marshall and Lei Oie
for putting together a very successful program.
Thanks to ECMC, ED Fund and NELA for their generous corporate donations to OASFAA for
the 08-09 year. The financial assistance from our partners provides tremendous support
for OASFAA's training programs. OASFAA is accepting donations for the 09-10 year.
Donors may contribute to OASFAA at:
http://www.oasfaaonline.org/docs/toc_pved.html.
Here are some highlights of OASFAA’s activities:
- A member survey has been sent out
- We are working on an OASFAA brochure for new members
- The mentoring program is continuing. The general goal of the mentoring program is
to assist protégés with developing their professional skills in four main areas:
teamwork; support; breakthroughs; and problem-solving. The results of the project
will be shared at the annual conference. If you are interested in participating next
year, you can contact Dina Birmingham at
Dina.Birmingham@nelaservices.net.
- The National Training for Counselors and Mentors (NT4CM) is a joint partnership of
the U.S. Department of Education’s office of Federal Student Aid, the National
Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA), and the National Council
of Higher Education Loan Programs (NCHELP). NT4CM works with states to help provide
free training and support for counselors and mentors who assist students and their
families in preparing financially for college. Leslie Limper, Training Chair, is
coordinating this effort. Watch for future information about the NT4CM training events.
- The Support Staff Workshop will be on November 5th at Lane Community College. The
theme is: Get Your Game On….Helping Families Navigate Financial Aid. Terri Crawford
and Nancy Hanscom are co-chairing this event.
- OASFAA ended the 08-09 budget year in the black (OASFAA fiscal year is June 1 –
May 31). We made cuts for the 09-10 fiscal year based on expected reduction in vendor
support and anticipated reduction in attendance at events. We have money in reserves
to cover our expenses for future conferences. We did not increase the cost of
training events for this fiscal year; most training events are $35 and the early bird
annual conference registration rate is $180.
- The 2010 Annual conference will be at the Portland Jantzen Beach Red Lion, January
24 -26 (Sunday through Tuesday). This is a new and nice venue. Co-chairs Melinda
Dunnick and Kathy McCutchen are working with the conference committee to put together
a great training event. With the HEOA regulations expected in November, this will be
a good year to come to the OASFAA annual conference. There are scholarships available
to help individuals pay for registration. Watch your email for more information about
the annual conference.
- The 2011 and 2012 annual conferences will be back at Salishan and be held on
Wednesday through Friday, 02/02/11 – 02/04/11 and 02/01/12 – 02/03/12. The change in
days is based on OASFAA survey responses.
- College Goal Oregon is scheduled for January 30, 2010. Although it is not an
OASFAA sponsored program, it is an opportunity for our members to give back to the
community by helping students and their families complete the FAFSA. Go to
www.collegegoaloregon.org
for more information.
Last of all, I would like to personally thank all of the OASFAA volunteers and donors.
Your support is what keeps OASFAA going. If any of you are interested in getting
involved, you can volunteer at
www.oasfaaonline.org/docs/forms/memVolunteer.html. If you have never volunteered
with OASFAA before, serving on a committee is a good way to start. You will find
volunteering with OASFAA to be personally and professionally rewarding. OASFAA is
always looking for new as well as “seasoned” members to volunteer.
Donna Fossum, OASFAA President
Director of Financial Aid
Western Oregon University
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