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Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Your SASFAA Board will hold its first official meeting this weekend, August 3-4 in Jacksonville, FL at the site of our 2014 Annual Conference - the Hyatt Regency. Our theme this year is "Hitting our Stride by Celebrating our Strengths" and we plan to do just that!  Please contact me at zbarree@hsc.edu if you have any items you want the Board to discuss at the meeting. 

And if you are a member of Facebook, please “Like” our Southern Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators page.  We want to be able to stay in touch with you as many ways as we can! The photos alone on the SASFAA Facebook page are enough of a reason to “Like” the page. 
 
Be on the look-out for more updates about our new year soon after our meeting.  During these very busy times in our aid offices, keep in mind this quote by Lowell Thomas: Do a little more each day than you think you possibly can. We probably all already have that one down no problem! Thanks for all you do to help students and families "hit their stride!"During these very busy times in our aid offices, keep in mind this quote by Lowell Thomas:  Do a little more each day than you think you possibly can.  We probably all already have that one down no problem!  Thanks for all you to do help students and families “hit their stride!”  The Board and I look forward to serving you, our members!
 
Zita Barree, SASFAA President

Monday, July 29, 2013

Sad News

Dear SASFAA Friends,

It is with sadness that I inform you know that Anh Do's  beloved father, Hien Vi Do, passed away at 7:30 Sunday morning. He was 70 years old.  He had been in the hospital for several weeks suffering from complications of liver and kidney failure.

I know that Anh and her family would appreciate our thoughts and prayers at this time.

Cards can be sent to:

Ms. Anh Do
13601 SW 76th Street
Miami, Florida, 33183

I will provide an update about services once I receive them.

Nathan Basford
SASFAA President-elect

Friday, July 19, 2013

NASFAA Statement on the Bipartisan Student Loan Certainty Act

NASFAA Statement on the Bipartisan Student Loan Certainty Act

Washington, DC, July 18, 2013 -- Today, a group of U.S. Senators from both sides of the aisle introduced a compromise measure to lower interest rates for 100 percent of borrowers who have taken out, or will take out, a new federal student loan after July 1, 2013.

According to a statement released today by the Senate HELP Committee, the Act requires that for each academic year, all newly-issued student loans be set to the U.S. Treasury 10-year borrowing rate (specifically, the yield on the 10-year note as determined by the last auction held before June of each yearundefinednot the changing daily rate) plus add-ons to offset costs associated with defaults, collections, deferments, forgiveness, and delinquency.  The resulting interest rates for loans taken out this year, after July 1, 2013, would be 3.86 percent for subsidized and unsubsidized loans for undergraduate students, 5.41 percent on unsubsidized loans for graduate students, and 6.41 percent on PLUS loans for parents and graduate students. These rates would apply retroactively to newly  issued loans taken out after July 1, 2013.  The interest rate would be fixed over the life of the loan to provide borrowers with certainty to plan for the future. 

Additionally, this bill protects against the threat of unforeseen circumstances by imposing a cap to ensure interest rates never exceed 8.25 percent for undergraduate students, 9.5 percent for graduate students, 10.5 percent for PLUS borrowers.  The Congressional Budget Office has determined this legislation would save taxpayers $715 million over ten years.

Justin Draeger, president of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA), released the following statement regarding the compromise:

“The financial aid community is pleased to learn that lawmakers have reached a comprehensive, long-term solution on student loan interest rates. 

This compromise would set interest rates based on market conditions and will ensure that federal student loans stay on par withundefinedor cost less thanundefinedprivate education loans, which contain fewer safeguards for students and parents. 

Interest rate caps will also ensure that loans remain affordable in the future. 

NASFAA applauds President Obama's leadership on this issue, and thanks the sponsors of this bill for reaching a compromise that will benefit millions of students and families.”  

Please contact us at news@nasfaa.org for additional information or to schedule an interview.

About NASFAA 

The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) is a nonprofit membership organization that represents nearly 20,000 financial aid professionals at more than 3,000 colleges, universities, and career schools across the country. Each year, our members help nearly 15 million students receive funding for postsecondary education. In all, NASFAA member institutions served 97 percent of all federal student aid recipients in the US. Based in Washington, DC, NASFAA is the only national association with a primary focus on student aid legislation, regulatory analysis, and training for financial aid administrators. For more information, visit www.nasfaa.org.

Monday, July 8, 2013

Dear SASFAA Friends,

Wanted:  Persons who have the desire and willingness to work hard for no pay while meeting new people and having fun in the process. 

For:  The most rewarding job you’ll ever have! Ok, well maybe that’s not totally true, but did I mention you will have fun, meet new people and it’s rewarding?

It is that time of year again for the Nominations and Elections Committee to solicit nominations for the SASFAA Officer positions that will be open next year.  If you or someone you know fits the bill, then consider running or nominate someone for one the open positions on the Board.

This year we are looking for President-Elect, Vice President, and Secretary.

If you nominate someone, please be sure to have that person’s permission.  Nominees will need to be prepared to provide a biographical statement to the Nominations and Election Committee.  We will present a slate of candidates to the Board for approval in November. 

Please send your nominations to anyone on the committee.   Committee members are:

Jeff Dennis (Chair) – jdennis@swu.edu
Sharon Williams (Alabama) – sdwilliams@lawsonstate.edu
Nathan Basford (Florida) – nbasford@fsu.edu
Philip Hawkins (Georgia) – phawkins@westga.edu
Chris Tolson (Kentucky) - cytolson@campbellsville.edu
Cindy May (Mississippi) – cmay1@olemiss.edu
Bridget Ellis (North Carolina) – bbellis@barton.edu
Sarah Dowd (South Carolina) – sdowd@tctc.edu
Jeff Gerkin (Tennessee) – jgerkin@utk.edu
Margaret Murphy (Virginia) – murphyml@evms.edu

On behalf of the Nominations and Elections Committee, I want to thank you in advance for assisting us in shaping SASFAA’s future!

Jeff Dennis
SASFAA Past President

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

SASFAA Nominations & Elections Committee Request

Good morning SASFAA,

The Nominations and Elections Committee would like to hear more from the membership on two items. There was a survey back in February and we heard from approximately 30% of the membership. The results of the survey back in February are below. We would like to hear your opinion on two items:

1. Should there be candidate speeches at the opening of the annual conference?

2. Should the polls remain open during most of the annual conference?

The results of the survey did not heavily lean one way or the other except in the case of bringing back speeches to the opening session. We would like to hear from you as a member of the Association as we attempt to determine what is best in presenting potential leaders to the membership. An email to Jeff Dennis at jdennis@swu.edu will be easy enough to answer the following questions:

1. Yes or No – Would hearing a candidate speech at the opening of the annual conference assist you in determining who to vote for?

2. Yes or No – Should the polls remain open during most of the annual conference?
 
 

Monday, July 1, 2013

SASFAA - A New Year Starts Today


Today starts a new SASFAA Year and I, along with all members of the 2013-14 Board, are excited to hit the ground running! Our theme this year is "Hitting our Stride by Celebrating our Strengths" and we plan to do just that!
 
Our first official meeting as a Board will be August 3-4 in Jacksonville, FL at the site of our 2014 Annual Conference - the Hyatt Regency. Please contact me at zbarree@hsc.edu if you have any items you want the Board to discuss at the meeting.
 
And if you are already a member of Facebook, please “Like” our Southern Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators page.  We want to be able to stay in touch with you as many ways as we can! The photos alone on the SASFAA Facebook page are enough of a reason to “Like” the page. 
 
Be on the look-out for more updates about our new year soon and remember this quote from T.S. Eliot: "Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go." The Board and I look forward to serving you, our members!
 
Zita Barree, SASFAA President