Conference Ceynotes…or, ummm Keynotes…

If you think Christina looks excited, than you can image how PUMPED your 2018 MASFAA Program Committee is to be able share a bit about our special guests and tentative schedule.

Colin Ryan

Confirmed! Colin will be joining us on Sunday evening to help solve the strategic issue facing every financial institution today: how to reach young people. By linking comedy and financial advice together, he offers a new and different way to reach the young people who are both in our schools and our workforce.  His trainings offer advice on creating dynamic, personalized, and creative financial literacy that decreases student debt and increases retention and job placement.  Colin’s sense of humor and passion for helping people empower themselves through great financial understanding leads to a conversation that is funny, memorable, and accessible no matter your background.

Collin’s book, A Comedic Guide to Money, is a funny, engaging, and practical guide to the financial skills that allow us to build the life we want. Through relevant and memorable examples, success stories, and cutting-edge behavioral research, his book gets young people and adults talking about money.

KiKi D’Itailien

Confirmed!  KiKi L'Italien will be joining us Monday afternoon to talk about design thinking for better engagement.   Later that afternoon attendees will have the opportunity to find out why weird is better during KiKi’s networking interest session.  KiKi is the CEO and founder of Amplified Growth, a digital marketing firm specializing in digital transformation projects. She also hosts the popular Association Chat live-streamed podcast, a weekly association-centric news and education outlet which has run since 2009.

KiKi serves as faculty for Mediabistro's online courses in social media and influencer marketing and was a contributing author to the book Social Networking for Nonprofits: Increasing Engagement in a Mobile and Web 2.0 World (ASAE, 2010).

Justin Draeger

Confirmed!  President and CEO of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, Justin Draeger will be joining us to give both an update from NASFAA as well as answer questions during our open forum on Wednesday.  Justin serves as the primary voice of NASFAA and as the liaison between association members, the U.S. Congress, federal agencies, and the media.  Most of his career has been devoted to assisting disadvantaged populations achieve their educational goals and better their communities.

Craig Munier & Zack Goodwin

Tentative…  But – we’re on their calendars and just need to cross our fingers that the federal fiscal year or other budget problems don’t get in our way.  Worse case, we’ve been promised virtual presentations.

FREE PreConference Workshops

Confirmed!  We’re bringing back the FREE PreConference workshops to MASFAA 2018 – choose from 1 of 3 topics:

·         Implicit Bias w/ Steven Foster from the University of Michigan

·         How to Advocate w/ Keri Gilbert from University of Missouri and Will Shaffner from MOHELA

·         How to Make Management Look Easy w/ David Peterson from University of Cincinnati

And last, but definitely not least, keep your eyes peeled for an email on June 1^st.  Not only will we be sending out the tentative schedule with some session descriptions, conference registration will be LIVE!  With registration available a bit earlier, we’re hopeful it gives you additional flexibility in your conference/travel budget.

As always, keep up to date with 2018 MASFAA Conference information on the website as we continue to add additional details - https://masfaaweb.org/conference

MSFAA Visits OASFAA

Submitted by Ryan Rafko – Current MSFAA President and Michigan’s Representative on MASFAA Executive Council

I recently had the opportunity to travel to the Ohio Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (OASFAA) Spring Conference which was held at the Sheraton Columbus Hotel at Capitol Square in Columbus from April 25^th to 27^th. The reason for my travel was due to my involvement on the MASFAA Executive Council and its State Exchange Program. This program allows each state president or representative the opportunity to visit another state association conference to see how they execute a conference and conduct business but also to network with all of the wonderful Financial Aid Professionals from across the state!

One of the highlights was the opportunity to present on a panel with I believe the longest title on the agenda: Protecting Student Data: Discussing Institutional Responsibility for Cybersecurity, Data Protection, and Security Risk Management. This presentation covered a lot of information within a short time frame and led to plenty of questions and discussion. My biggest takeaway from this presentation and discussion was the impact that this has had at schools of all shapes and sizes. We had representation from schools in a variety of sectors not only on the panel but also in the audience. Hearing what other schools have done and utilizing this information to create and develop our own "best practices" is why the Financial Aid profession is such a welcoming and collaborative group. I’m glad to say I was a part of this team effort and will be adapting it for use at my Summer Conference in June!

From the updates on MASFAA by President Elect Marvin Smith, to the NASFAA Federal Update by Karen McCarty, the offering of a NASFAA credentialing opportunity, and of course the Federal Updates provided by US Department of Education Trainer Zack Goodwin this conference was packed with valuable information and professional development opportunities.

I would like to thank everyone from the OASFAA Board and all of the registrants who welcomed me with open arms even though I am from that state up north. It was truly a rewarding experience that allowed me the chance to increase my Financial Aid network while providing me with access to a quality program and knowledgeable speakers and presenters throughout my attendance. 

Why Blog?

We are looking for interesting blog posts to share news and updates with the MASFAA membership!

But I can't write a blog!

Yes, you too can write a blog. Every member of MASFAA has knowledge to share with their colleagues. We can help you get started. The definition of a blog is something that is written in an informal or conversational style. Keep it simple and easy, this doesn't need to be a big project.

What do I write about?

Did you do a session at your state conference? You could write a post about the key takeaways from your presentation? 

Are you working on a session for the MASFAA or NASFAA conference? Give us a preview or some info to get people interested. 

Are you attending other not financial aid specific conferences? Tell us about them so that your colleagues may consider attending.

Do you have a technology tip that you often share with people in your office?

What questions do you get asked most by your colleagues? Turn the answer into a blog post.

Are there events happening in your state association? We'd love to hear about them. What did you learn? What went great? What will you do differently next time?

Did you attend a MASFAA event? What did you learn? What would you want others to know about the event?

How to I submit something?

The best place to send your blog post, your questions, your comments is to:

blog@masfaaweb.org

You can also contact:

Melissa.haberman@uwex.edu

To Join or Not to Join…There is No Question!

submitted by Matthew Kearney (MO) Chair of Membership Services

I originally became a member of MASFAA when I was at a large public institution.  While there were a number of benefits to joining this organization, what I found most helpful, was finding folks in other states at similar types of schools.  There weren’t many in my state that dealt with the pure number of students, which in its own way brings different challenges.  While resources were greater, the volume created more havoc. 

Currently, I am at a small private institution and while the number of students we work with is significantly less, there are similar challenges and some different from what I experienced at my previous institution.  While it is easier to find peers of similar institutions in my state, now that I’m at a smaller institution, I have found it very beneficial to reach out beyond my state to see what others are doing.  Schools in Indiana, Michigan, or West Virginia may face similar issues to what I see, but they may handle them differently than we’ve been doing in Missouri. 

Throughout my time in Financial Aid, I’ve realized the larger my network, the better I am at my job.  Different perspectives are truly important to getting the best outcomes, so I encourage those who either haven’t renewed their membership or have others in their office that may be interested in joining, to get on board and not only help yourselves, but the MASFAA organization as well.  We need more ideas and perspectives, and we welcome everyone who wants to be a part of this fantastic organization.