Our members are constantly going above and beyond to help their students succeed in higher education. 

Awards

Outstanding individuals, groups, associations, and institutions are recognized each year at the NASFAA National Conference for their achievements and contributions to the profession and to students. 

View previous award winners

Most Valuable Professionals (MVPs)

NASFAA's Most Valuable Professional is a series that features a brief Q&A with a different NASFAA member every couple of weeks. 

View our MVPs

Movers & Shakers

NASFAA members are always moving ahead, whether enhancing their skills in their current roles, accepting promotions or job changes, or discovering new pathways as retirees. 

View recent Movers & Shakers

Member Spotlight Today's News Articles

These stories feature initiatives that our members have pursued that exceed the traditional scope of responsibilities of a financial aid office. If your university or financial aid office has taken on a project or unique efforts to help students, please reach out to us at [email protected].

• April 20, 2026 - April State & Regional Association Updates
• March 31, 2026 - Book Review: "Lifting the Veil on Enrollment Management: How a Powerful Industry Is Limiting Social Mobility in American Higher Education"
• March 25, 2026 - MVP Chad Olson, FAAC^®
• March 23, 2026 - March State & Regional Association Updates
• March 10, 2026 - Financial Aid Professionals Reflect on Most Recent 2026-27 Virtual Advocacy Pipeline
• February 25, 2026 - Q&A With Samantha Hicks, FAAC^®, Chair of Use of Artificial Intelligence in Financial Aid Offices Task Force
• February 23, 2026 - Book Review: “Gen Z, Explained: The Art of Living in a Digital Age”
• February 19, 2026 - February State & Regional Association Updates
• Janaury 29, 2026 - January State & Regional Association Updates
• January 26, 2026 - Book Review: “The Student Debt Crisis: America’s Moral Urgency”
• January 15, 2026 - NASFAA 2026 Charity Partner: First Generation College Bound
• December 22, 2025 - December State & Regional Association Updates
• December 18, 2025 - Book Review: "Degrees of Risk: Navigating Insecurity and Inequality in Public Higher Education by Blake R. Silver, University of Chicago Press"
• November 25, 2025 - Book Review: “Is College Worth It and the Myth of the College Premium”
• November 24, 2025 - November State & Regional Association Updates
• October 30, 2025 - From Gatekeepers to Changemakers: 60 Years of Advocacy and Leadership in Financial Aid
• October 29, 2025 - MVP Haley Lindsey, FAAC^®
• October 27, 2025 - Book Review: “Metrics That Matter: Counting What’s Really Important to College Students”
• October 20, 2025 - Meet the New Certified Financial Aid Administrator^® Commission Chair, Elizabeth Amador, FAAC^®
• October 14, 2025 - October State & Regional Association Updates
• October 7, 2025 - Lessons Learned From Running a Fully Remote Financial Aid Office
• September 9, 2025 - September State & Regional Updates
• August 25, 2025 - MVP Audra Main, FAAC^®
• August 20, 2025 - Financial Aid Offices Cite Continued Delays, Issues With FSA After Workforce
• August 15, 2025 - NASFAA Mourns the Loss of Joe McCormick
• August 12, 2025 - August State & Regional Updates
• July 28, 2025 - 10 Questions With NASFAA’s New National Chair, Heidi Carl
• July 24, 2025 - July State & Regional Association Updates
• July 23, 2025 - Book Review: “A Comprehensive Guide to Graduate Enrollment Management: Advancing Research and Practice”
• July 17, 2025 - A First-Time Attendee’s Perspective: NASFAA 2025
• July 16, 2025 - NASFAA Grad Prof Borrowing Thought Force Develops Advocacy Principles
• July 15, 2025 - Shining a Light on Financial Aid Careers: An Interview with Zack Goodwin on NASFAA’s Career Awareness Toolkit
• July 14, 2025 - How NASFAA 2025 Attendees Supported Higher Ground Youth & Family Services
• July 7, 2025 - MVP Lee Bray, FAAC^®
• July 3, 2025 - Book Review: "Class"
• July 1, 2025 - The College Cost Transparency Initiative Welcomes New Member Institutions
• June 24, 2025 - NASFAA Members Advocate for Graduate/Professional Community on Capitol Hill
• June 17, 2025 - June State & Regional Association Updates
• May 28, 2025 - Q&A With Angelika Williams, FAAC^®, Chair of the NASFAA 2025 Conference First-Time Attendee Task Force
• May 27, 2025 - Book Review: “Understanding the Working College Student: New Research and Its Implications for Policy and Practice”
• May 20, 2025 - May State & Regional Association Updates
• May 19, 2025 - Financial Aid Professionals Reflect on Recent Advocacy Pipeline Meetings
• May 13, 2025 - 10 Questions With NASFAA’s New President and CEO, Melanie Storey
• May 8, 2025 - MVP Eddie Salazar, FAAC^®
• April 29, 2025 - NASFAA Members Reflect on Recent Advocacy Pipeline Meetings
• April 21, 2025 - Book Review: “Enrollment Management: Successful Approaches With Dwindling Numbers”
• April 14, 2025 - Q&A With Alicia Keaton, Chair of the 2025 Conference Program Task Force
• April 8, 2025 - April State & Regional Association Updates
• March 26, 2025 - Financial Aid Professionals Reflect on Their Most Recent 2024-25 Virtual Pipeline
• March 19, 2025 - MVP Paul Friebus, FAAC^®
• March 18, 2025 - Book Review: "Can College Level the Playing Field? Higher Education in an Unequal Society"
• March 11, 2025 - March State & Regional Association Updates
• February 10, 2025 - Book Review: “The Synthetic University: How Higher Education Can Benefit From Shared Solutions and Save Itself”
• January 17, 2025 - Financial Aid Professionals Reflect on Their Most Recent 2024-25 Virtual Pipeline
• January 13, 2025 - January State & Regional Association Updates
• January 2, 2025 - Book Review: "Who Should Pay? Higher Education, Responsibility, and the Public"
• December 2, 2024 - Ivy Tech's Financial Aid Team Goes All-In on Certification
• November 25, 2024 - Q&A With Emily Osborn, Chair of the Graduate/Professional Borrowing Thought Force
• November 20, 2024 - NASFAA Members Reflect on Opening 2024-25 Advocacy Pipeline Meetings
• November 18, 2024 - Getting to Know NASFAA's Diversity Officer, Dr. Sharon Oliver
• October 17, 2024 - Why Financial Aid Administrators Do What They Do
• October 13, 2024 - 13 Reasons Why NASFAA Members Are Awesome
• September 26, 2024 - Meet the New Certified Financial Aid Administrator^® Commission Chair, Dr. Jessica Flogaites
• September 18, 2024 - Ten Reasons Financial Aid Professionals Think You Should Participate in NASFAA’s Advocacy Pipeline
• August 20, 2024 - 10 Questions With NASFAA’s New National Chair, Kristi Jovell
• July 17, 2024 - Financial Aid Professionals Advocate for Pell Grant Increases and Highlight FAFSA Complications on Capitol Hill
• May 30, 2024 - Q&A With Gena Boling, FAAC^®, Chair of the 2024 National Conference Program Task Force
• May 22, 2024 - Q&A With Katy Weisenburger, FAAC^®, Chair of the NASFAA 2024 Conference First-Time Attendee Task Force
• May 21, 2024 - 10 Reasons Financial Aid Professionals Are Fulfilled by Their Work
• May 20, 2024 - "How Many Students Did We Lose?" Aid Offices Fear Enrollment Repercussions After Rocky FAFSA Rollout
• April 24, 2024 - 10 Recommendations Experienced Financial Aid Professionals Have for Those Who Are New to the Field
• April 15, 2024 - "Our Confidence With the Department of Education Is Wavering:" Members React to the Rocky Rollout of the 2024-25 FAFSA
• April 11, 2024 - We're In Your Corner: NASFAA Advocacy Update
• March 14, 2024 - 10 Things Financial Aid Administrators Can’t Function Without
• February 20, 2024 - Financial Aid Professionals Reflect on Their Most Recent 2023-24 Virtual Pipeline
• January 8, 2024 - Missouri Hosts Week of Action to Help Students and Families With New FAFSA 
• September 26, 2023: Over 300 Institutions Across the Country Commit to Student Cost Transparency for Financial Aid Offers
• August 22, 2023 - Meet the New Certified Financial Aid Administrator® Commission Chair, Craig Slaughter, FAAC®
• August 3, 2023 - University of Wisconsin Project Seeks to Connect Indigenous Students With Financial Aid Resources
• August 1, 2023 - 10 Questions With NASFAA’s New National Chair, Helen Faith
• May 3, 2023 - Q&A With Brenda Burke, Chair of the 2023 Conference Mentor Task Force
• April 20, 2023 - Community Spotlight: Financial Aid Professionals Emphasize the Importance of Financial Literacy
• March 30, 2023 - Q&A With Kristi Jovell, Chair of the 2023 Conference Program Task Force
• February 27, 2023 - NASFAA Members Weigh in on Preparedness for FAFSA Simplification 
• February 22, 2023 - Q&A With Gail Holt, Chair of the FAFSA Simplification Implementation Working Group
• January 11, 2023 - Q&A With Celena Tulloss, FAAC®, Chair of the Federal Work-Study Task Force
• December 19, 2022 - Q&A With Amy Cable: What to Expect From the Succession Planning Pathway
• December 12, 2022 - Q&A With Justin Chase Brown, Chair of the Staffing and Benchmarking Task Force
• December 5, 2022 - Q&A With Dr. Christina Tangalakis: What to Expect From the FAAC® Forum
• November 3, 2022 - Q&A With Samantha Veeder, Chair of the Advancing the Profession Task Force
• October 14, 2022 - NASFAA Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month
• October 6, 2022 - It Starts With Access: How Institutions Are Supporting First-Generation Students
• September 20, 2022 - As Inflation Rises, Institutions Create More Resources to Help Students and Employees
• September 15, 2022 - Continuing the Double Pell Drumbeat, NASFAA Members Convene in Rhode Island
• August 24, 2022 - Financial Aid Professionals Reflect on 2021-22 NASFAA Advocacy Pipeline
• August 23, 2022 - Free Tuition Programs for Indigenous Students Pick Up Steam Across the Country
• August 12, 2022 - 10 Questions With NASFAA’s New National Chair, Brad Barnett
• July 26, 2022 - Getting to Know NASFAA's Diversity Officer Derek Kindle
• March 30, 2022 - Valencia College Partners With County to Provide Free College for All 2022 High School Grads 
• January 14, 2022 - Neg Reg Debrief: Committee Members Recount Experience in the Rulemaking Process
• January 11, 2021 - NYSFAAA's Focus on Webinars Pays Off During the Pandemic
• November 24, 2020 - Stony Brook's Financial Aid Office Finds Time Amid Pandemic to Focus on Credentials
• November 3, 2020 - The Pandemic Has Changed How Financial Aid Offices Communicate With Students
• April 1, 2020 - Southeast Tech Puts Unused Medical Equipment to Good Use
• March 2, 2020 - Rice University Invests in Students in the Middle
• December 10, 2019 - Des Moines Area Community College Works to Build Trust and Engagement With Spanish-Speaking Students and Families
• November 8, 2019 - American University's Food Pantry Battles Student Food Insecurity Daily, Year-Round
• October 7, 2019 - Colorado Mountain College's Income Share Agreement Program Offers Interest-Free Option for DACA Students
• September 24, 2019 - St. Petersburg College Aims to Prove That Financial Aid Works
• July 25, 2019 - Tallahassee Community College Finds Low-Cost Way to Train Financial Aid Administrators
• April 16, 2019 - KASFAA Committee Looking to Make Post-FAFSA Filing Training Available Statewide After Successful Pilot
• March 21, 2019 - University of Utah Hosts Open House to Curb "Verification Melt"
• February 26, 2019 - Liberty University Opens Scholarship to Help Middle-Income Students
• February 6, 2019 - University of Pittsburgh Creates "Forward"-Thinking Financial Aid Program
• September 28, 2018 - Colorado Mountain College Pilots Program to Help "DREAMers" Complete Degrees
• June 21, 2018 - University of San Diego Financial Aid Office Sticks Its Nose Out for Childhood Poverty
• June 14, 2018 - First Report on Amarillo College Poverty Initiative Yields Positive Results, Cultural Shift
• April 25, 2018 - Food Insecurity: Colleges Step Up When Federal Funds, Social Programs Fall Short
• March 28, 2018 - University of Texas System Partners with Census Bureau to Collect Data on Graduates' Earnings