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Summary: The U.S. Department of Education is pleased to invite you to the annual Spring Conference to be held March 22-24, 2005 in Reno, Nevada

Publication Date: January 21, 2005

Author: Chief Operating Officer, Federal Student Aid

Summary: The U.S. Department of Education is pleased to invite you to the annual Spring Conference to be held March 22-24, 2005 in Reno, Nevada


Posted on 01-21-2005

School Partners

I want to invite you to join me at FSA's 2005 Spring Conference in Reno, Nevada from March 22 to March 24, 2005. This year, FSA is offering exciting new programs designed specifically for campus financial aid professionals. For experienced financial aid professionals, we are excited to offer the opportunity to participate in a strategic visioning program designed to begin the development of a new, front-end, student aid delivery system - Hearing From You: Creating a Vision for the Aid Delivery Process. For those new to financial aid, we will be offering intensive, specialized, training designed for new financial aid officers - Financial Aid 101. In addition, we will be conducting two pre-conference workshops on Monday, March 21, one for those from the Direct Loan community and one for our colleagues from career colleges.

This new agenda replaces our traditional approach of offering update and interest sessions. Also, we will not be hosting a PC Lab or "Ask a Fed". I hope you will consider joining us as we shape the future of financial aid. Details on the Spring Conference activities are provided below.

Hearing From You: Creating a Vision for the Aid Delivery Process

FSA is entering a new phase of its aid delivery evolution with the introduction of the Front End Business Integration (FEBI) initiative that will result in a re-engineering of its aid awareness activities, application processes, disbursement business processes, funds management activities, and its customer service functions. Participation of campus aid professionals is critical in helping FSA set a strategic vision for the new system. Participants will be expected to be actively involved in a series of exercises designed to ensure that "we get it right".

The program will explore the future of financial aid delivery from both a student and institutional perspective. Using a structured approach, in small workgroup environments, participants will help define the considerations FSA should use to inform the future of the aid delivery process. FSA leadership will synthesize your recommendations and ask for your validation of our summaries. For additional information on specific topics to be addressed, please visit the Program section on www.ed.gov/fsa/conferences.

Because the active participation of registrants for this three-day meeting is critical, we ask that you register only if you are able to attend the entire three-day program. Due to the unique format of this program, we can only accommodate 650 participants on a first come, first served basis. Therefore, if you want to help design the future of student aid delivery, register as soon as possible. This program is designed for campus aid administrators and due to space limitations, other members of the higher education community (lenders, servicers, software developers, etc.) are invited to join us on day three, March 24, as we review and validate the results of the workgroups.

Financial Aid 101

Financial Aid 101 is a new three-day course offering basic instruction on the Federal Title IV student aid programs and their administration at schools. It is designed for newcomers to the world of student financial aid. Participants will learn how to determine student eligibility, calculate Pell Grant awards, determine loan periods and loan amounts, award campus-based aid, and much more. This program is restricted to campus financial aid professionals who have two years or less experience working in a financial aid office and will be limited to the first 200 registrants.

We will also be conducting the following two pre-conference workshops on Monday, March 21.

o Pre-Conference Direct Loan Workshop

This workshop includes a session on Direct Loan servicing with Sue Szabo, our General Manager of Borrower Services, and consolidation updates with Jeff Baker, our Program Manager of Policy Liaison and Implementation. There will also be a Direct Loan clinic, beginning at 1:00 pm to answer your specific questions in a one-on-one format. FSA's Chief Operating Officer, Terri Shaw, will conduct a Direct Loan town-hall meeting at 3:00pm followed by a reception from 5:00pm to 7:00pm.

o Pre-Conference Career Colleges Workshop

This special workshop is designed for private career colleges and schools and will provide important information, updates and training on the administration of the Title IV student aid programs.

I encourage you to visit the conference website at www.ed.gov/fsa/conferences to register. I look forward to seeing you in Reno.

Terri