Candidate for SASFAA President-Elect
Leonard E. Gude

Candidate Statement
Today, we live in a rapidly changing world where we are being asked to immediately respond to student needs and at the same time implement new technologies. It is critical that SASFAA provide the training necessary for the managers, counselors, and staffs of the association’s financial aid offices to survive and excel in this new work environment. As your SASFAA President, I will work to insure that these opportunities are made available to the membership.

I believe in getting things done. During my term as President of FASFAA, I asked the board members to do twice as much as in previous years and they all stepped up to the challenge. We first surveyed the membership to find out what they wanted from the association and then developed an action plan based upon it. The association provided training to over 1,200 attendees at 13 association events and association membership grew by nearly 8% (from 783 to 843 members). That year, FASFAA also implemented a workshop targeted towards developing future leaders, began work towards awarding of CEU credit for participation in training activities, held two successful state conferences, and hosted the SASFAA conference in Jacksonville. The association also enhanced and expanded outreach and early awareness programs by distributing 100,000 "Be Cool, Go to School" brochures to eighth graders throughout the State and developing and printing 8,100 “What Seniors want to Know About Financial Aid” brochures and distributing them to 607 District Guidance Counselor and High School Guidance Counselors. Activities were also initiated to enhance and protect the fiscal resources of the association.

I believe that the primary role of SASFAA is to serve the needs of its members. You can count on me to listen, so as to understand and advance the needs of the membership, to develop an action plan to address these needs, and to act and to follow through to insure that things get done.