OCTOBER 2006

Mississippi State Report
Garry Jones, MASFAA President

Our Transitional Board Meeting was conducted this past July at the Marriott Downtown in Jackson, Mississippi. Progress from last year’s Board to this year’s was smooth and very productive. I am privileged to work alongside so many talented and caring individuals.

MASFAA Executive Board for 2006-07 is:

President Garry Jones
East Miss. Community College
President-Elect Peggy Shoemake
Pearl River Community College
Past-President Soraya B. Welden
Meridian Community College
Vice President Marilyn James
Miss. State University - Meridian
Secretary Jackie Boone
Nelnet
Treasurer Steve Greenough
American Student Assistance
Member-at-Large Nancy Gault
Sallie Mae Education Trust
Director Robert Givens
University of Mississippi
Director Robyn Cilwik
William Carey College
Director Teresa Bost
Mississippi State University

Some highlights of our transition meeting included:

  • Committee Chairs were briefed on their responsibilities.
  • Volunteers were appointed for each committee. There were approximately 65 individuals who volunteered and each was placed.
  • Budgets were discussed.
  • Selected participants from the Executive Council who will attend NASFAA’s Leadership Conference.
  • Discussed purchasing the updated NASFAA’s updated CORE curriculum for use in our Financial Aid 101 training held each March.
  • Discussed SASFAA’s Leadership Workshop initiative regarding each of the 9 nine states selecting participants for special leadership training.
  • Discussed Brent’s charge regarding submitting a project to NASFAA for award consideration. An idea was presented and talked about.

Some of the goals we will work towards this year include:

  • Continue previous work of updating the P&P manual.
  • Strategize on how to grow and continue current membership involvement on state and regional levels.
  • Establish well defined descriptions and expectations of each committee area with the intention of placing a pdf file on our website. Potential volunteers can utilize this pdf file as they determine which committees are of interest and practical, as it relates to time commitment, etc., for them to consider.
  • Continue developing a more cohesive network in interacting with high school counselors.
  • Discuss viability of a Treasurer-Elect position.
  • In conjunction with ATAC revamping our website to be more user-friendly and informative.

This is MASFAA’s 40th year. The Conference Chair has already begun working hard to put together an exceptional and a memorable conference for its membership next summer. Our next Board meeting will be held in conjunction with the decentralized training set for November 17.

The Board of Directors conducted a meeting via conference call on August 25. The 2006-07 budget was voted on and approved. A discussion was held regarding the controversy surrounding MyRichUncle. The Board voted to obstruct any MRU individual from membership or to sponsor or exhibit at any MASFAA function until a public retraction of the accusations and comments made against financial aid professionals has been sufficiently demonstrated. Although a formal letter is not being sent to MRU, a letter was sent to MASFAA membership explaining the Board’s position and decision.

MASFAA will once again offer NASFAA’s Fall Training Workshop. With this year’s topic being Verification, we sense the training will be well attended. Two trainers have been selected to attend the 2-day training of trainers to be held in Washington, D.C. on October 4 and 5. Our trainers this year are LaShanda Chamberlain, Director of Financial Aid at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, Jackson County Campus, and Nancy Denson, Assistant Director for Counselors at the University of Southern Mississippi. Our 1-day training will be held in Meridian, Mississippi.



PREVIOUS PAGE   ~   TABLE OF CONTENTS   ~   NEXT PAGE