At NASFAA's third annual Poster Session at the 2006 Conference in Seattle, institutional representatives shared information on four innovative financial aid practices used on their campuses. NASFAA thanks all participating institutions. Information on each of the posters follows.
St. Petersburg College (SPC) created the Checklist for Financial Assistance an SPC poster in response to "No One Told Me!" It summarizes the financial aid application steps and the types of aid available. This easy-to-use checklist has created an overwhelmingly positive response from students and staff. St. Petersburg College was happy to share its success with other institutions and made this document available in following ways:
- Flyers distributed on campus
- Included in SPC's Practical Guide to Financial Assistance, Steering to Success
- Included in SPC's Student Handbook
- Included in Course Schedule booklets for each semester
- On the SPC Financial Aid Office Web site http://www.spcollege.edu/Central/ssfa/HomePage/index.htm
- Used as an e-mail attachment
For additional information, contact: Alice Marks at marksa@spcollege.edu.
The University of Texas-Pan American's You CAN Afford College poster illustrates the idea that all students can afford to go to college. It features a time-line style collage of pictures that depict students at various stages of life from childhood to college graduation. The first picture depicts children playing dress-up in career-related costumes (e.g., doctor, astronaut, teacher, etc.) and follows their growth and academic progression through the last picture, which depicts students receiving a college diploma at a graduation ceremony. Text on the poster encourages students/parents to learn more about financial aid. This poster is used in conjunction with the aid office's K-12 outreach efforts and is given to elementary, junior high and high school counselors to promote the idea that everyone has the capability to attend college. For more information, contact: William Morley at morleyw@utpa.edu.
The University of Texas-Pan American's poster, Don't Wait in Line GO ONLINE! encourages students to use the financial aid office's wide array of online services. Graphics include an animated picture of people waiting in line with a large "X" through it. Text includes the SFS Web site as well as a list of available services. For more information, contact: William Morley at morleyw@utpa.edu.
The University of Virginia's Super Saturday: Educating Our Community about Financial Aid poster illustrates publication evaluation of the financial aid outreach event held in February by the University of Virginia and Piedmont Virginia Community College. These institutions collaborated to hold a community-based financial aid outreach event for eight Central Virginia cities and counties. Financial aid administrators from both institutions presented "The Basics of Financial Aid." In total, 320 individuals from the community attended the outreach event. The administrators provided one-on-one counseling to 100 persons, helped 50 families obtain a Department of Education PIN, and facilitated the submission of 40 on-line FAFSAs. For more information, contact: Robin White at robinwhite@virginia.edu.
Again, our thanks to all participating institutions!
By Marty Guthrie
NASFAA Director for Governmental Affairs
Posted July 17, 2006 on www.NASFAA.org, the Web Site of the
National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA).
Copyright 2006. Redistribution to non-NASFAA institutions is prohibited
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