Annual Hill Visits

submitted by Nathan Basford, FAFSAA President

WHAT A GREAT EXPERIENCE!

Dear SASFAA Members & Friends:

I had the honor of attending the third annual Hill Visits in Washington, DC on February 21st.  I was there with other SASFAA folks, as well as folks from the Eastern Association (EASFAA), the Midwest Association (MASFAA), and the Delaware, DC, and Maryland Association.

We were divided into teams! Our team consisted of four financial aid professionals who are so committed to ensuring students a chance for higher education. They were:  Julie Lundgren, Donald Jones, Karen Sokol, and I.  What a fantastic group of folks.

We were able to visit with representatives from the following states:  South Carolina, New Jersey, Florida, and North Carolina.  We were welcomed and left feeling that we had built relationships so that we can continue our support for higher education.

• Each of our visits lasted about 25 minutes.
• Our first visit went quite well:  We were able to meet with Elizabeth Simmons, aide for Tim Scott (SC). With Elizabeth being a recent graduating student she understood the importance of keeping the interest rate tied more closely to market rates. 
• Our second visit was with Thomas J. Woodburn, Jr., Legislative Correspondent to Representative Rush Holt, (NJ).  He was filling in for both of the aides for which we had original appointments, and perhaps for that reason, the conversation was not as smooth and flowing as the others.  Nonetheless, he was knowledgeable about Title IV aid and asked specific questions on how many students were awarded Perkins at each of our schools.  He also asked if we had a specific consumer information piece we liked better than the others.
• Our third visit with Justin Zorn, aide for Frederica Wilson (FL) went quite well, he was very interested in following up with us on education issues
•  Our fourth visit with Meghan Stringer, aid for Virginia Foxx, (NC) went very well also. As we left our last meeting Megan said "Thank you for all you do for students!”    This made our day on Capitol Hill a Success

I am very grateful that I had the opportunity of meeting with our Congressional representatives last week.  Our group took the time first to thank them for their support to the students that we serve nationwide in securing a post-secondary education. Our group also had the opportunity to thank them for the support they will continue in the future. We also offered our assistance to answer any questions they may have in the future regarding issues and decisions related to Title IV financial aid programs.

I look forward to continuing the relationships that have been made during our visits, and I will continue to push for students to have the funding that will allow them to achieve their educational dreams.

Submitted by: Nathan Basford

Group 9:  Julie Lundgren, Donald Jones, and Karen Sokol