SASFAA Attends NASFAA Leadership and Legislative Conference and Expo

SASFAA Attends NASFAA Leadership and Legislative Conference and Expo

~ Implementing What We Learned ~

Submitted by:  Amy Berrier, SASFAA President-Elect 

Several SASFAA members had the opportunity to attend the 2015 NASFAA Leadership and Legislative Conference and Expo on March 1-3 in Washington, DC.  Many of us attended the Association Management Pathway which provided incoming state and regional leaders with valuable tools in helping us to prepare for a successful year in office. 

Our state associations typically send their incoming President, Treasurer, and/or other officers to this conference to help prepare for their upcoming year.  NASFAA provided sessions on understanding legal, financial and management issues every leader needs to know; identifying the characteristics of leadership; leading and managing change and transition within the association; and exchanging ideas with state and regional colleagues.  On the last day of the conference, SASFAA members made scheduled visits to Capitol Hill to advocate directly with our congressional delegations on behalf of our students. 

I was proud to represent North Carolina and the southern region while meeting with staffers from the offices of Senator Richard Burr and Congresswoman Virginia Foxx.  Senator Richard Burr is a senior member of the Senate HELP (Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions).  Congresswoman Virginia Foxx is the Chairwoman of the House Education and the Workforce Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training.  I was accompanied by Joey Trogdon, NCASFAA President-Elect.  Please view Joey’s comments below on items discussed during our congressional visits.

I am extremely thankful for SASFAA providing me the opportunity to attend the NASFAA Leadership and Legislative Conference and Expo.  I was also invited to attend the NASFAA Board Orientation at the NASFAA Office on Tuesday afternoon since I will become an observer beginning at the November 2015 NASFAA board meeting in Arizona.  I learned about NASFAA Board Structure, policies and procedures, and many other responsibilities I will take on while serving as a NASFAA Board Observer and Voting Member in the future. 

Please see what our other attendees had to say about this wonderful opportunity.

Laura Keown, Kentucky President-Elect:

Hill Visit:

I consider it an honor to have had the opportunity to meet with the Senior Education and Appropriations Analyst for the Senate Budget Committee.  Two of us from Kentucky, along with two colleagues from South Carolina, spent about thirty minutes discussing FAFSA simplification, Ability to Benefit, Federal PLUS loan credit decisions, fiscal support for Campus Based programs, and the usefulness of making our voices heard to our elected Senators and Congresspersons.  She took lots of notes, asked several questions, and encouraged us to continue to advocate with our elected representatives for higher education aid – and for any other issues of importance to us. 

The NASFAA staff, including Justin Draeger, did an excellent job in preparing us for our time on the Hill and I found myself really relying on their advice.  Their hints – everything from wearing athletic shoes to the Hill and then changing into dress shoes for the appointment to the most effective phrases to use in our advocacy discussions – were invaluable.

Finally, I am still overwhelmed by the opportunity to make my voice heard at such a high level.  We were told that 95% of our fellow citizens will never have that opportunity, so I am grateful to have been a part of this effort.

NASFAA Leadership Conference:

The conference was jam-packed with excellent sessions to prepare us for leading our associations.  Running a meeting, building a team, the legal status of associations, and all the other sessions were excellent preparation.  And of course, the opportunity to network with other states’ leaders was so helpful for ideas and support.  Finally, the Association Management Toolkit provided by NASFAA, which includes examples of agendas, reports, fiscal materials, conference scripts, parliamentary procedure tips, and much more, will be a resource I’ll turn to again and again as I serve KASFAA.

Amber Singletary, GASFAA Treasurer-Elect:

Visiting Capitol Hill was an incredible experience; being able to advocate for our profession and our students was an honor.  We were able to meet with Michael Black from Senator Isakson’s staff and discuss financial policies.  We advocated for simplification of the FAFSA; however, a two question FAFSA may be too simple.  We agreed that the process needs to be easier for our students and families.   We discussed the opportunities that families would have by using prior-prior tax year data; the FAFSA would be easier to complete since they would be using the IRS DRT and families would know earlier in the process what type of aid their student is eligible to receive. 

Being in our nation’s capital and advocating for students was a humbling experience. 

Sarah Baumhoff, Georgia President-Elect:

As President-Elect, GASFAA sent me to the NASFAA Leadership and Legislative Conference and Expo along with your Treasurer-Elect, Amber Singletary. We spent all day Sunday and Monday meeting with other incoming leaders from across the country. We had the opportunity to talk about association management – membership types, training opportunities, conferences, best practices and so much more. We also spent a great deal of time talking about leadership and how to best serve our organization from how to effectively run a meeting to legal implications of working with a non-profit and serving on a board. This conference strives to make sure we are ready to serve you.

Along with two days of sessions, I had the opportunity to spend a lot of time discussing ideas with other president-elects from other states. It was a wonderful opportunity and to be completely honest, I am still a little overwhelmed with all the information that I brought back.

On Tuesday, we went to Capitol Hill and met with Michael Black from Senator Johnny Isakson’s staff. We advocated for simplification that leads to greater access to financial aid. We discussed the fact that the idea of a two question FAFSA might be too simple, but that there was certainly room for change and to make the process easier for families. We discussed the idea of prior-prior tax year data as a way to simplify the process and let students and families know earlier in the process what aid they would potentially qualify for.

The significance of representing you and visiting Capitol Hill was not lost one me. So many in our country never have this type of opportunity to voice their opinions and advocate for those that we serve. It is extremely awe inspiring to know your voice was heard. I hope to have this opportunity again and continue to tell our story.

Steve Taranto, Mississippi Treasurer:

We had a very positive experience during our Hill visits. Several of the aids we met with (Sarah Lloyd Allred for Senator Roger Wicker; Jordan Downs for Congressman Gregg Harper; Amanda Newton for Congressman Steven Palazzo) were familiar with some of the issues regarding financial aid (simplification, Pell grant, student loan debt, Perkins loan lifeline, etc.), and some even had direct access as members of the Education committee, which we felt was reassuring since they seemed genuinely interested in our comments and concerns. Most of our discussions focused on the issue of student loan indebtedness. I can’t think of any direct quotes, but please know that it was a very gratifying experience to get even a brief glimpse of the activity at that level and the ability to advocate on our students’ behalf. The only comical interchange we had with Senator Wicker during his Mississippi Morning gathering was as soon as we introduced ourselves, he exclaimed, “Oh, you mean the FAFSA!” This was somewhat interesting since he immediately referred to a term that we commonly use as FAAs. It was a light-hearted moment, but hopefully one with deeper meaning as it relates to the issue of FAFSA simplification!

Elizabeth Milam, SCASFAA President-Elect:

The NASFAA Leadership and Legislative Conference & Expo was an enlightening and empowering experience. I felt well prepared for my Hill visits after participating in the NASFAA webinar and the conference session on federal issues. I enjoyed meeting the other attendees who represented a variety of sectors, states and regions. It was eye-opening to hear perspectives on association governance from other parts of the country. I highly recommend this leadership development opportunity.

Ryan McNamara, Florida President-Elect:

If you are an up and coming leader or want to be a leader in your state association, this is the leadership conference for you. The information and insight you receive will really help shape the way you look at your association and the direction you want to take it. 

A conference designed specifically for me. What a great way to meet other future leaders of state and regional associations. 

Nicole Patrick, Mississippi President-Elect:

I feel the Leadership Conference and the Hill visits were very rewarding.  Being able to hear different prospectives and ideas from other states was extremely helpful.  Also, being able to participate in the Hill visits was an honor.  I really didn’t know what to expect going into it and was very nervous.  Once we got started, I felt so much more at ease and comfortable.  I knew going in what an honor it was, but actually being there made it that much more meaningful.  Being able to speak on behalf of our students and their families that we see every day felt very empowering.  The Leadership conference gave me many tools that were necessary to be successful at the Hill visits.  Also, having colleagues from my state with me was very beneficial.   

Joey Trogdon, NCASFAA President-Elect:

Each year, NCASFAA sends people to the NASFAA Legislative & Leadership Expo in Washington, D.C. so they can receive training to help them effectively lead a state association.  As President-Elect, I was fortunate enough to attend the training and found it to be extremely beneficial.  Some of the sessions I attended included topics about a board member’s legal obligations, ethics, conflict resolution, and managing fiscal issues.  While there, I was also able to meet Mr. Justin Draeger, President and CEO of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA), and heard several presentations by well-known and respected speakers within their fields of expertise.

As a part of the training, we were encouraged to make appointments with members of Congress so we could advocate for federal student aid and share real life scenarios that we face each and every day.  Ms. Amy Berrier, President-Elect of the Southern Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (SASFAA), and I worked together to secure meetings with the staff of Senator Richard Burr and Representative Virginia Foxx.  In our meetings, we took the liberty of discussing several issues but highlighted specific areas that we believe need to be addressed such as increased regulatory burden that seems to have drastically increased in recent years, complex R2T4 regulations, FAFSA Simplification, and other issues as prompted.

All of the conversations were very fruitful and I believe that the staffers did listen to our concerns.  In the end, we all know that it is highly unlikely that all of our talking points will be acted upon.  However, we can at least say that two offices have heard concerns and are better suited to make informed decisions.

We are in the midst of a critical point in our industry as we approach reauthorization of the Higher Education Act and continue to tackle important topics such as FAFSA simplification, saving campus-based programs, and examining the use of PPY data in filing the FAFSA.  SASFAA has a long-standing tradition of advocating for financial aid administrators, our institutions, and our students and families at the state, regional, and national levels.  The Leadership Conference provided myself and other state and regional leaders the opportunity to advocate on behalf of these important issues.  The information presented, role-playing opportunities, and legislative updates provided, gave us the tools we needed to make an impact on the Hill, in our offices, and in our daily lives. 

Please join me in continuing SASFAA’s tradition of advocacy, education, and inclusion.  I look forward to continuing Nathan Basford’s momentum into another successful year for SASFAA.  Together, with your voice, we will lead this Association together.  SASFAA will continue to Make An Impact in 2015-2016!

Amy Berrier

SASFAA President-Elect, 2014-2015