Check out the picture of Sparky out shopping today for his Ugly Sweater for the MASFAP Ugly Sweater Contest. He is having a hard time finding his size!
Don’t forget Monday of the conference to wear your UGLY SWEATER! You will get your picture taken for submission into the contest. Everyone will vote – and the ugliest/tackiest sweater wins a prize!
SPARKY ANNOUNCING LAST CALL FOR ASSOCIATE MEMBERS to exhibit and/or sponsor at the MASFAP Conference!
Sparky was today found making some calls out to MASFAP Associate Members. He wants all of our fantastic Associate Members to attend the conference to give information about products to us at a booth! Here are the exhibitors who have registered so far:
CHARITY ANNOUNCEMENT!
Do you remember two years ago when the conference charity was the Lake of the Ozarks Idiots Club? This year MASFAP will again help the students and families in the Lake of the Ozark area through our partners – The Lake of the Ozarks Idiots Club! Danna and Denny Hiner, the founders of the Idiots Club, are so excited to see you all again!
Sparky was just found today making some decorations for the MASFAP conference. He REALLY hopes you are planning on attending the conference! Sparky is feeling a little lonely today since no one has commented to his blogs. He would like you to respond with a comment to this blog to let him know what you are most looking forward to at the conference December 12-14!
Visit www.masfap.org to register!!!!
Veterans Day, tomorrow November 11, is when we pay our homage and respect to the veterans serve and have served the country. Thank you to all of the veterans reading this blog – you are heroes!
Sparky will be off tomorrow for Veterans Day as he salutes all the Veterans for their service to our country.
After standing in line for over an hour to vote last night and staying up into the wee hours of the morning watching the election coverage, Sparky, MASFAP’s Elf on the Shelf, is so tired, shocked and kind of confused about everything. He’s waiting to get out of bed until his Starbuck’s kicks in…
So the day after the election, Sparky can’t wait to hear more about how the election may affect education at the Annual MASFAP Conference. What do experts think could happen with the change in office?
Hello MASFAP – have you heard of the Elf on the Shelf? Well MASFAP has its own ELF on the Shelf named Sparky. He is Merry about MASFAP! Sparky will guide you through the next month until MASFAP starts on December 12!
He will be frequently pictured on the blog getting ready for MASFAP – his goal is to help you prepare for the upcoming conference.
My sister and I were raised by a single dad, which was considered a unique family structure in the 1980’s. As a result, we have always been close. During my last years of high school my dad remarried, and my step-mom and sister joined our group. Those with blended families know it takes time to work out the kinks (there is hope ~ we tease that twenty years later we all get along!). To add to the stress of a new household size, at this same time, my dad’s company closed, laying him off from work. He used this unfortunate event as motivation to return to college full-time to begin a new profession. Concurrently, my sister, who is one year older than me, was graduating from high school and enrolling in the same college as my dad. A year later I joined them. All three of us attended the same college simultaneously!
Until transitioning into the financial aid profession, I did not fully comprehend the important role our offices play on a college campus. When working with students, I try to reflect on my own life experiences, like those years when my dad, sister, and I were enrolled at the same college. Professional judgments may not have been available twenty years ago, but if they had been, our family would have benefited from one.
Election fever is in the air, and I’m here to announce a much friendlier version of the election cycle (in comparison with that little one happening in early November) has come to an end; we’ve rounded out the 2016 MASFAP Elections. Here is a comprehensive list of those you have elected to represent you in leading our great association!
President-Elect: Kerry Hallahan, Logan University
If you’ve gotten a chance to see any interactions between the Democratic nominee for president, Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump, it is quite obvious that these two are infatuated with each other – I kid! During this week’s presidential debate the world saw firsthand how dissimilar Hillary and Donald are. Just like the candidates themselves, their plans for Higher Education couldn’t be any more different! For instance, in a town hall event earlier this year, Trump said that education was one of the three most important priorities of the federal government, but he has pledged to drastically cut or eliminate the U.S. Department of Education during his presidency. Hillary has made it clear she would not eliminate the department, but has not released a plan to revamp or scale back the size of the department.
What the heck happened? I think September just happened… September is like no other month, I am going to venture out and say it’s the busiest month of the year. September, it sneaks up on you, you blink your eyes and it is gone.
To me, the craziness of September is not expected… August comes expectantly with the back to school craziness. November and December are also predictably hectic with the holidays and the end of the year. September seems like such an innocent month. Wrong!
Good Afternoon!
The MASFAP Board is meeting now – do you have a topic or suggestion for the Board to discuss? Or just say hello? Please respond with your topic (or hello) by adding a comment!
‘Twas The Night Before MASFAP
The Early Awareness Committee is focused and committed to offering regional workshops this fall for the high school counselors throughout the state. This year, we are planning these earlier than years past so counselors can prepare for PPY. After reviewing survey responses from the high school counselors, we were able to set dates and the locations for the 2016 MASFAP Fall Workshops. We also have started planning the agendas based on what the counselors want to learn more about from MASFAP. We strive to stay on top of the changes and make sure they are well aware of what is happening in the ever-changing Financial Aid World! In addition, the Early Awareness Committee is conducting a Priority Deadline Survey to all colleges in the state to provide all high school counselors updated information when they attend their fall counselor workshop. If you have not replied to Laura Steinbeck with your priority deadline, please do so ASAP so your school can be included in this information to the counselors.
Things get busy and I don’t always skim NASFAA News. A while back I saw the article titled “Important Federal Perkins Loan Reminders Provided at NASFAA Conference” so I clicked on it (https://www.nasfaa.org/news-item/9350/Important_Federal_Perkins_Loan_Reminders_Provided_at_NASFAA_Conference) to be reminded (of what I thought I already knew from the DCL GEN-16-05). Two important “reminders” (#4 and #5 in the article) weren’t addressed in DCL GEN-16-05. I feel like these items warranted another DCL. Did anyone else catch this? What’s your opinion? Do you routinely go back and review FAQ lists on a regular basis to see what’s been added? Just something I wanted to pass along in case you missed it. I hope you are all off to a fantastic fall semester!
Submitted by Kathy Elsea, MASFAP Delegate
Waking to the assault of our alarm clock, we try to prepare for the day ahead. From those morning chores that just don’t seem to get done unless we do them (dressing/feeding the kids, letting the dogs out, fixing breakfast, etc.) to the expectations at work, including emails, phone calls, meeting with students and talking to other administrators on campus not to mention our fellow staff members. The fight for our attention is endless, unforgiving and at times unbearable, not to mention exhausting. The attack doesn’t end here – it continues after work as we shop for/prepare dinner, clean the house, do laundry, help with homework and of course be a supportive partner to our other half, until we fall into our bed beaten into submission from the pressures we face and almost take for granted, each and every day.
How do others do this? I see my colleagues who approach each day with such joy and smiles, one might think what am I NOT doing here…???
We are the Champions my friends………… (Que the music)! With 450 Credentials earned the state of Missouri is leading the nation in NASFAA Credentials!!! The state of Georgia has 430 so they are on our tail. Don’t miss out on more opportunities to get yourself credentialed through the Professional Development committee and keep us as #1!
Registration Live Now: Administrative Capability and Professional Judgment – June 28th
While we wait on candidate notification before announcing election results, I am pleased to announce each proposed change to the MASFAP Constitution has passed! Thank you for voting!
For a reminder, this is what you have approved:
Thank you to all who braved the ballot, it is because of your time and dedication our association is such a success. Please join me in congratulating our newly elected officers of the Missouri Association of Student Financial Aid Personnel:
Greetings MASFAP!
One of the most time consuming duties of the Awards Chair is ensuring that the information reported in the MASFAP database is correct in hopes to recognize the right people at the conference. This is a very simple and yet a daunting task and never seems to be 100% accurate. As you prepare for the upcoming academic year, I would like to request that you include MASFAP membership updates to your checklist.
