Yesterday, the St. Louis Aid Professional Group, commonly and endearingly know as SLAP, met for the first time in quite some time. It was a great turnout and there was a lot of good discussion. Samantha Matchefts, UMSL, MASFAP President, shared updates in regards to MASFAP and Melissa Findley, Missouri Scholarship & Loan Foundation spoke about a new state initiative called MOCAN. There was discussion and ideas shared about many topics. The group overwhelmingly wanted to continue SLAP, and decided on quarterly meetings and rotating the location. Greg Hutchinson, SLU, and Kathy Dixon, MOHELA, agreed to help coordinate the next meeting.

May is National Military Appreciation Month.  I am a military mom and I have a son who is serving in the Air Force and is currently deployed overseas.  I want to remind everyone to remember current and former members of the U.S. Armed Forces, including those who died in the pursuit of freedom.  The military has played a very important role in the development of our country.  The U.S. Army was created in 1775 to protect the freedom of the first 13 colonies.  Since then our military has grown into a leading fighting force which serves to defend our vast population and to protect our national interests.

One of the benefits of being in the military is the GI Bill which helps servicemembers, veterans, and their families to achieve their education goals through a variety of GI Bill programs.  The purpose of the GI Bill is to reward members of the Armed Forces for their service and to give them a means to readjust to civilian life after serving.

The Early Awareness committee has worked with schools across the state to set the dates for the fall 2019 high school counselor workshops. We will be hosting nine, free workshops across the state of Missouri for high school counselors to attend. The purpose is for MASFAP members to build relationships with the high school counselors, as well as to present information and updates regarding the FAFSA, the award letter process, verification, and other pertinent financial aid topics. This year we will be collaborating with MDHE to also provide information on their services that counselors can utilize to assist students.  Our first workshop will be held in St. Louis on Friday, September 13 and MASFAP partners with St. Louis Graduates and EducationPlus to put on this particular workshop.  All nine workshops will be held between September 13 and October 11. See the below Save the Date card with the locations and dates!

Please help the Early Awareness Committee to get the word out about these events by forwarding the dates to your contacts at the high schools in your area.  Additionally, Kayla Klein will be emailing the counselors who attended the workshops last year. Again, thank you for your support of MASFAP and these workshops – partnerships with the high schools is so important to the success of students!