Rutgers University
February 19, 2004
Attended: Francine Andrea, Joan Buttafuoco, Frank Cuozzo, Kimber Decker, Stephanie Fitzsimmons, Gisele Joachim, Dennis Levy, Shirley McFarlane, Helen Mikulak, Maribeth Quinn, Joe Roberto, David Sheridan, Mark Singer, Karen Sokol, Karen Weber
The meeting was called to order at 9:40 a.m. A quorum was established.
Motion to approve the January 15 Executive Council meeting minutes moved by Helen Mikulak; Seconded by Frank Cuozzo. Minutes were approved unanimously by a voice vote.
President’s Report: David Sheridan
· David distributed a copy of our application and supporting documents for the NASFAA State Award. He submitted our public awareness campaign to educate students, families and high school guidance counselors of the differences between financial aid professionals and financial aid consultants. David thanked Mike Bennett for his help with this project.
Committee Reports:
Awards and Recognition: Stephanie Fitzsimmons
· Stephanie still has a large supply of longevity awards. She suggested that we send these awards to eligible members who are unable to attend the spring conference.
· She will order two additional plaques this year for our new awards, the Young Leaders Award and the Committee of the Year Award.
· We would like to have biographies of Bill Murphy, Art Richmond and Tom Scott, for whom our NJASFAA awards are named, included in the spring conference program and listed on our Web site. Fran volunteered to write these biographies.
Conference: Gisele Joachim
· The spring conference will be held on April 14, 2004 at the Bridgewater Manor.
· Conference registration will be available on our Web site next week. The first two members from the same institution who attended the first General Session at the fall conference will receive vouchers for a free spring conference registration. The vouchers can be transferred to any member of the school’s staff.
The program includes the following sessions:
General Sessions:
· What to Do When You Start at 9 AM Sharp and End at 9 PM Dull!
· HESAA Update and Chat Room
Concurrent Sessions:
· The Tax Detective - Novice and Advanced Sessions
· Federal Update
· Communicating with the Millennial Student
· Leveraging Microsoft Office: Building Interactive Content
· Return of Title IV Funds
· The Annual Scholarship and Awards Luncheon will be followed by the Business Meeting, which will be held during lunch.
· Joe will book a two-year contract with Bally’s for November 8 - 10, 2004 and November 7 - 9, 2005.
Development: Kimber Decker
· There are a few vendors who are still unpaid from the fall conference. The total outstanding is $11,000.
· Kimber will contact vendors for the spring conference.
EASFAA Update: Joe Roberto
· The next EASFAA Executive Council meeting will be held February 22 - 24, 2004 in Wilmington, Delaware.
· The EASFAA Spring Conference will be held May 16 - 19, 2004 in Providence, Rhode Island.
· EASFAA will offer the Mentoring Scholarship Program in 2004-2005. This program encourages individuals to become involved in EASFAA by providing partial funding of their EASFAA Conference expenses. David asked for a volunteer for this program.
Government Relations: Maribeth Quinn
· Lissa Anderson, a member of GRC, and Gisele Joachim attended the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance Hearing in Washington, D.C. on February 5. Gisele provided a brief report to us today. The hearing included two panel sessions, one comprised of Congressional staff members, the other comprised of associations, including NASSGAP and NAICU. The goal of the Advisory Committee is simplification of need analysis, forms and delivery of student aid.
· We discussed the need to maintain balance with federal, state and institutional programs. Simplification of the FAFSA does not mean delivery of student aid will be simplified. David will submit a letter to New Jersey legislators on behalf of NJASFAA as a response to this hearing. He asked the Government Relations Committee to provide him with data on enrollment at New Jersey institutions versus FAFSA volume.
Maribeth informed us of items that were discussed at the February 18, 2004 Government Relations Committee meeting.
· Steve Tessitore from USDE talked briefly on “Pushed ISIR’s” and more extensively on the most recent Dear Colleague Letter on R2T4 Funds.
· The Government Relations Committee will present a Federal Update at the spring conference. It will be a panel session on the following subjects: Reauthorization update, EAC, Advisory Committee and the Default listserv hosted by Rutgers University.
· Scott Miller from AES and PHEAA attended the meeting to provide a Washington Update. He shared insights on developments and the general mood of legislators with reference to the President’s budget and Reauthorization.
Long Range Strategic Plan: David Sheridan
· A Strategic Planning retreat will be held on March 5. Past Presidents and elected members of Executive Council will attend. David will report on this at our March 18 meeting.
Membership: Karen Sokol
· The association has 396 members.
Newsletter: Frank Cuozzo
· The third issue of the Newsletter will be posted to the NJASFAA Web site in April.
· The deadline to submit articles for this issue is March 19.
Non-Traditional Concerns: Joan Buttafuoco
· The committee will hold a workshop on May 14 at The Cittone Institute. The agenda will include Clock Hour packaging and R2T4 Funds.
Public Relations: Mark Singer
· The NJASFAA Hotline was successful. 25 members participated and answered calls from over 300 students and parents.
· The committee is developing a brochure to promote the association. It will be available for the spring conference.
· Mark sent a press release to local newspapers about the FAFSA and deadlines.
Scholarship:
· David encouraged everyone to submit nominations for the NJASFAA Scholarship.
Sunshine: Shirley McFarlane
·
The committee is sending cards to members to recognize
happy events as well as sad events.
Training and
Professional Development:
· A Support Staff workshop will be held on March 16 at Rutgers University. The agenda will include a FISH workshop, State Update, Federal Update and Lender Update.
HESAA Update: Francine Andrea
Fran informed us of items that were discussed at the February 18, 2004 HESAA Board meeting.
· Warren Smith, chair of the board, formally acknowledged members of the Government Relations Committee who attended the meeting.
· An Administration of Oath was given to a new member of the board, Dr. Harold Deutschman.
· Proposed regulations for the NJBEST program have now been adopted.
· The Law Enforcement Memorial Scholarship Program application has been combined with the Survivor Tuition Benefits Program. The same application is used for both programs. The Law Enforcement Memorial Scholarship provides funding for children of certain law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. Funding comes from the sale of license plates.
Fran discussed additional issues.
· The Pilot Part-Time TAG Program for County Colleges will be in existence for at least three years. It has been very successful, with 4500 students receiving TAG in this program.
· HESAA will perform a study on the Outstanding Scholars Recruitment Program. A letter was sent to institutions requesting data on OSRP recipients. HESAA would like institutions to return this information as soon as possible.
·
Next week HESAA will send a letter to institutions
requesting nominations for the Student Advisory Committee.
Old Business:
·
David will ask Robert if he was able to reserve a room
at The College of New Jersey for the May 13 Executive Council meeting.
·
David also asked Karen Weber to see if she can reserve
a room at Rutgers University.
New Business:
· Joe received our liability insurance policy, which is effective through March 2005. NJASFAA is covered for $2 million.
Motion to adjourn moved by Maribeth Quinn; Seconded by Frank Cuozzo.
Time 12:10 p.m.