Region 1 Minutes

Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Shanghai Red’s

Submitted by Sarah Izzo, Secretary

 

Attendance:

 

AFC                                         Rachel Barker

Bank of America                     Darcie Stephens

Bryant & Stratton                    Jim Ayers, Luanne Brown, Bob Kociecki, Carrie McCooey & Cheryl Talty

Buffalo State College               Lynn Chilson, Warren Hoffman, Dan Hunter (retired) & Lisa Morrison

Canisius College                      Mary Koehneke, Lea Nicholson & Michelle Rizzo

Citibank                                   Debi Mansour & Laura Worley

College Loan Corporation       Vince Scalise

Daemen College                      Mary Costello, Sean Courtemanche, Helen Lukasik (retired) & Jeff Pagano

D’Youville                               Stephanie Atti, Susan Barber, Melody McMillan, Lorraine Metz, Matt Metz, Carmita Prelewicz, Sharon Ross & Judy Worth

EdAmerica                              Holly Zaglaniczny

ECC                                        Bernice Anson & Sarah Izzo

SUNY Fredonia                       Amy Beers, Jeremy Corrente, Daniel Tramuta & Megan Zaffalon

Hilbert College                        Beverly Chudy, Julie Lanski, & Elaine Szczpanski

Houghton College                   Kayann Gutekunst

HSBC                                      Sherrie Sheppard

Jamestown Business College   Diane Sturzenbecker

Key Bank                                Jerome Moss

M & T Bank                            Leigh Bove & Kathleen O’Connell

Medaille College                      Catherine Buzanski, Tammi Meidenbauer, Karen Miller & Jeanne     Mossios

Nelnet                                     Pierre Alric & Ann Del Plato

Niagara County C. C.              Kathy Michalski

Niagara University                   Jennifer Garey, Martie Howell, Maureen Salfi & Christine Tamburrino

NYSHESC                              Dawn Langdon, Jack Rafferty & Marc Woolf

Olean Business Institute         Valerie Goodwin

PNC Bank                               Patty Peterson

St. Bonaventure University     Mary Jo Brockel & Gail Quinn

Sallie Mae                                Ithrene Cameron & Shane Rauh

Student Capital Corporation    Katrina Delgrosso & Dan Dunn

Student Loan Xpress               Brian Levy

Trocaire College                      Terry Adamczyk & Janet McGrath

UB                                           Brent McEnroe, Annette Pyszczynski, Kevin Ryan & Amanda Wirth

USA Funds Services                Debra Eddy

Villa Maria College                  Diane Kasprzak & Sister M. Diane Miller

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome & Introductions (Kevin Ryan)

 

Thank you to all our 2006-2007 NYSFAAA Vendor Sponsors (please follow link below and sign in to the NYSFAAA website members’ area to view list).

 

http://www.nysfaaa.org/docs/restricted/Members/sponsors/06-07AnnualSponsorship.pdf

 

 Thank you to all members that brought toy donations for Toys for Tots, we collected well over 100 individual toys, stuffed animals and clothing items!

 

Treasurer’s Report (Brent McEnroe)

 

NYSFAAA Region 1 Meeting-Tuesday December 12, 2006

Shanghai Red’s Buffalo, New York

 

 

 

Balance as of 10/11/2006 Equals: $2,127.59

 

10/20/2006

Minus: Check#496 $58.24 Kevin Ryan (reimbursement mailing admissions workshop certificates).

Equals: $2,069.35

 

10/24/2006

Minus: Check#495 $91.00 Houghton College (Region 1 meeting September 28, 2006)

Equals: $1,978.35

 

11/07/2006

Minus: Check Image Fee $2.00

Equals: $1,976.35

 

11/13/2006

Minus: Check#498 $304.80 Postmaster (Fall 2006 Early Awareness Mailing)

Equals: $1,671.55

 

11/15/2006

Minus: Check#497 $21.19 Stephanie Atti (Early Awareness Envelope Purchase)

Equals: $1,650.36

 

11/24/2006

Minus: Check#500 $158.00 Hallmark Management Service (Region 1 Meeting Hilbert College October 26, 2006)

Equals: $1,492.36

 

11/27/2006

Minus: Check#499 $500.00 Shanghai Red’s (Deposit for Region 1 Holiday Meeting 12/12/2006)

Equals: $992.36

 

12/05/2006

Plus: Deposit $1,900.00 Revenue Share (New York State Treasury)

Equals: $2,892.36

 

Plus: Deposit $150.00 Member Fee for Holiday Meeting (12/12/2006)

Equals: $3,042.36

 

12/06/2006

Plus: Deposit $60.00 Member Fee for Holiday Meeting (12/12/2006)

Equals: $3,102.36

 

Plus: Deposit $120.00 Member Fee for Holiday Meeting (12/12/2006)

Equals: $3,222.36

 

12/07/2006

Minus: Check Image Fee $2.00

Equals: $3,220.36

 

Executive Council Report (Janet McGrath)

 

Janet had sent copies of the Principals and Procedures to Region 1 and asked for comments that they wanted me to bring back to Executive Council.  If anyone has any additional comments let me know or please see me after the meeting to give them to me.

 

I read a letter from Nancy Toedecki, Early Awareness, regarding A Special Thank You to Region 1 for all the assistance they have given and the work they have done.  Stephanie Atti is the representative working on this committee.  Kevin Ryan & Brent McEnroe were mentioned for their significant contributions.  We will be discussing Kids to College program by Sallie Mae at the next Executive Council meeting.

 

Executive Council Meeting will be held Dec. 14-15, 2006 in Newburgh, NY.

 

Committee Updates

 

High School Counselor Workshop (Kathy Michalski)

 

 

REGION 1 REPORT FOR SCHOOL COUNSELOR WORKSHOPS

 

 

FIRST WORKSHOP HELD AT CLASSICS V ON 11/16/2006

 

   We had 102 counselors in attendance at the Classics V.  It was a half day workshop and I have attached the agenda.  The counselors were very happy with the topics that we offered this year and the location.  The evaluations were positive and several counselors suggested topics for next year.

 

SECOND WORKSHOP HELD AT ST. BONAVENTURE ON 11/17/06

 

    We had 46 counselors in attendance at St. Bonaventure.  It also was a half day workshop and the agenda was the same as the Classics.  The feedback from the counselors was good. 

 

 

The hot topic this year was the ACG and Smart Grant.  The counselors had plenty of questions and Warren did an excellent job in presenting the material. 

 

Committee Members:

 

Warren Hoffmann – Buffalo State

Stephanie Kindzia – Buffalo State

Sandy Stevenson

Terry Adamczyk – Trocaire College

Elaine SzczepanskiHilbert College

Janet McGrath – Trocaire College

 

Without the assistance of our committee members and lender support, these workshops would not be possible.  Thank you to all.

 

Submitted by,

 

Kathleen Michalski - Niagara County Community College

Brian Levy – Student Loan Xpress

 

 

Support Staff Workshop (Sarah Izzo) – Region I is seeking individuals interested in chairing or co-chairing this annual event for 2007.  Please contact Kevin Ryan if you are interested.  Past co-chairs will be available to assist anyone interested in volunteering to head up this fun event.

 

 

HESC Update (Jack Rafferty)

 

HESC Update-December 2006

 

Redesigned HESC Website

 

HESC recently created a web environment with easier navigation, targeted content and quick links for students and parents. Upgrades to the site include separate pages for students, college and lender administrators and school counselors. Students and parents can also use “hot buttons” to quickly apply for TAP to sign their e-MPN.

 

Default Management/Prevention Grant

 

HESC recently unveiled a new default prevention grant initiative for

creative default prevention proposals at NYS colleges.

The grants, ranging from $2,500 to almost $50,000 per school, will be awarded to selected colleges and universities for creative proposals designed to identify risks that contribute to student loan delinquency and to develop and implement new programs which have the best potential to significantly reduce the dollar amount of defaulted loans.

To be eligible for consideration, grant proposals must be submitted to HESC no later than Jan. 25, 2007. The awards are expected to be made by March 26.

HESC representatives will discuss details about the default prevention grant during the ongoing statewide HESC Administrative Workshops. Locations and dates of the workshops can be found at www.hesc.org.


For more information about the new grant, colleges are encouraged to visit

HESC’s website at www.hesc.org, or contact Edward Gilbert at

(518) 473-3528, egilbert@hesc.org.

 

 

Loan Processing Updates

 

A new Web screen has been added to transaction processing giving schools the ability to update a student’s loan period begin and end dates and grade level. For more information on this loan processing update including other enhancements, please review HESC Financial Aid Services Bulletin 2006-015. 

 

New TAP Reporting Requirements

 

NEW TAP CREDITS EARNED REPORTING REQUIREMENT- October 10, 2006

As a reminder, a new state law requires the president of the New York State Higher Education Services Corp. (HESC) to prepare and submit an annual report on the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) to the governor and Legislature by February 2007.

The annual report will include statistics regarding TAP recipients, including the number of:

-students receiving TAP in each term;

-students who were granted waivers by their institution;

-students decertified for not meeting good academic standards;

-credits earned by TAP recipients.


HESC collects most of the information needed for the annual report except the number of “credits earned by TAP recipients.” HESC will collect this data from each school.

Starting in December, HESC will provide each school with a file of their undergraduate students certified for each term of the prior year. This new outgoing TAP file, HE8501 Listing of Students who Receive TAP at a Specific School—Credits Earned Reporting (Outgoing), will be available electronically as a flat file or an Excel spreadsheet. The file will be compared to the school's system and create a return file with the credits earned data populated, or to produce a summary listing.

Schools will be required to submit TAP credits earned to HESC using one of the following three file format options:


HE8502 Credits Earned Reporting for Students Receiving TAP--Detail Reporting (Incoming)
This file format will be used to report the number of credits earned for each student by term and academic year.

HE8503 Credits Earned Reporting for All Students at a Specific School --School-Provided Listing (Incoming)
This file format is for schools that wish to provide all students to HESC and HESC will perform the data matching.

HE8504 Credits Earned Reporting For Students Receiving TAP-- Summary Reporting (Incoming)
This file format will be used to report the total number of students who received a certain number of credits by term and academic year.

(The City University of New York (CUNY) central administration will submit the number of TAP credits earned by recipients for all students at CUNY schools).

Note: On Monday, December 11th, HESC will hold a TAP Webcast to discuss the new school procedure regarding the reporting of TAP credits earned ( a copy of the HESC TAP Webcast Announcement is attached below).

Questions regarding TAP questions, including the new TAP Reporting Requirements, can be directed to HESC TAP Policy at 1-518-474-3552 or at tappolicy@hesc.

 

TAP Processing Schedule

 

The following schedule includes the anticipated date of Rosters, Remittance Advisories, Accounting Documents and Student Status Listing. If unable to meet the scheduled date of any of the listed reports, we will send an e-mail update.

 

 

2006 December Processing Schedule

December 1st

2006-07 Remittance Advice/Accounting Documents

2006-07 Student Status Listing

December 8th

2006-07 Remittance Advice

2006-07 Student Status Listing

December 13th

2005-06 Remittance Advice/Accounting Documents

2005-06 Student Status Listing

December 15th

2006-07 Remittance Advice/Accounting Documents

2006-07 Student Status Listing

December 19th

2006-07 Roster (All Terms)

December 22nd

2006-07 Remittance Advice

2006-07 Student Status Listing

December 27th

2005-06 Remittance Advice/Accounting Documents

2005-06 Student Status Listing

December 29th

2005-06 Roster

2006-07 Remittance Advice/Accounting Documents

2006-07 Student Status Listing

Files will be available for retrieval the following morning. Payments will be mailed or electronically transferred within three to five weeks of the date of the associated Roster or Accounting Documents.

Consolidated Scholarship Rosters (SU8069) and Consolidated Scholarship RAs (SU8071) are now available in On-demand on the dates listed above. These documents are for scholarships such as: WTC Memorial, Robert C. Byrd Scholarship, etc.

Information regarding these documents is available in FAS Bulletin 2006 - 010 and Appendix F of our Programs, Policies and Procedures manual. Reports will be available for printing and viewing by visiting the Transaction Center area of this web site. If you are authorized to access this data, you will be required to logon with your HESC User ID and password.

For assistance in obtaining a User ID and password contact HESC’s Help Desk at 1-888-NYSHESC (1-888-697-4372).

_____________________________________________________________

HESC TAP Webcast Announcement

 

(Sent 11/30/06 to all TAP Eligible Colleges)

 

Dear Colleagues:

 

Please mark your calendar for HESC's TAP Webcast, which will be held on December 11th from 1pm (EST) to 1:30pm. The webcast will be held via "Sametime" web access. Limited conference call access will be available for those who cannot access "Sametime" or the web during the event. The webcast will focus on the new

TAP Reporting Provision that requires HESC to prepare and submit a statistical TAP Report to the Governor and NYS Legislature each calendar year, and the mechanism that HESC will use to collect the data from TAP participating colleges.   

 

HESC encourages all school colleagues to participate using "Sametime" web access, since we will be unable to accept live questions from colleagues who participate via conference call. To enter the "Sametime" meeting, you must visit http://gator.hesc.com. The HESC TAP Web Cast will be listed under "New/Active Meeting".

 

Prior to the December 11th meeting, school colleagues are encouraged to review the "Sametime" navigation instructions, and test meeting tutorial information, which are attached below. Conference call dial-in instructions for those who will be unable to participate via "Sametime" is also attached below.   

 

As a reminder, HESC will be reviewing the new TAP Reporting Requirements during the statewide HESC Administrative Workshops. Visit www.hesc.org for a list of workshop dates and locations.

 

Regards,

 

Patti Ronan Thompson 

 

 

December 11th HESC TAP Web Cast Conference Call Information for non-Sametime Participants

 

For access to the conference, dial (518) 408-1500 (Capital District Area),  or the toll-free number

(866) 266-3697 if outside the local calling area. 

 

Date of Conference:

 

December 11, 2006 

 

Start Time of Conference:

 

 1:00pm (EST)

 

End Time of Conference:

 

Conferee Code:

 

Conference Name:

 1:30pm

 

 3161438 (followed by #)

 

HESC TAP Reporting

 

 

Legislative Forum Training

 

NYSFAAA is planning to provide funding for 15 members statewide to participate on a mission to the legislature.  Region I is seeking volunteers.  Pierre Alric spoke to the importance of this type of activity and emphasized that our legislators attempt to meet with as many of their constituents as is possible.  It is important that NYSFAAA have all constituencies covered when meeting with the NY State Assembly and Senators.  The training will help provide bullet points for the volunteers to address with their legislators.  NYSFAAA is willing to provide funding for the training forum and accommodations.  There will be no out-of-pocket expenses for volunteers and members are strongly encouraged to participate in this great experience.

 

Spring 2007 Region I Meetings

 

Ø      2/22/07          Villa Maria College

Ø      3/15/07          Canisius College

Ø      4/5/07                        Buffalo State College

Ø      5/24/07          St. Bonaventure University

Ø      June                 TBA

 

College Goal Sunday

 

Medaille will be hosting College Goal Sunday on February 11, 2007.  The event is designed to bring in disadvantaged students to complete the FAFSA (preferably online).  The day will run from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM.  There will space set aside for Orientation, access to a computer lab, and for one-on-one counseling.  Please contact Ambrose Price at ambrose.m.price@citizensbank.com for more information or to volunteer. 

 

School, Lender, & Guarantor News

 

Debra Eddy announced that USA Funds is hosting free web-cast trainings.  A list of web-casts is available at the USA Funds website.

 

Laura Worley reminded Region I members that Webletter submissions must be made by 1/25/07. 

 

SUNYFAP will be hosting a Financial Aid Chat Night on December 13, 2006.

 

Leigh Bove (M&T) asked if anyone knew the PMI color code for the 2007-2008 FAFSA, if you know, please contact Leigh (formerly Fiorenzo) at M&T Bank.

 

Holiday Messages

 

Warren Hoffman spoke briefly about Chanukah and the history and observation of holidays in general.  Warren closed by sharing the prayer said at the start of Jewish holidays.  Thank you Warren.

 

Dan Hunter shared his traditional Christmas message by reading the editorial that appeared in the September 21, 1897 edition of the New York Sun entitled “Yes Virgina, There is a Santa Claus” and closed by sharing a moving poem called “The Soldier’s Night Before Christmas”.  The poem was purportedly written by a U.S. Marine serving in Okinawa, Japan, but was actually written in 1986 by then Lance Corporal James M. Schmidt, serving in Washington, DC.  The poem’s original title was “Merry Christmas, My Friend” and was published in the Marine publication Leatherneck in December 1991.

 

Please have a safe and happy holiday season and thank you to everyone for your generous Toys for Tots donations!

 

Next Meeting: Villa Maria College

Thursday, February 22nd

Details to follow in separate e-mail