About

Mission

The Massachusetts Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators empowers its members to be educated, engaged, and effective professionals.

Vision

To be recognized as a model for leadership in financial aid.

Strategic Plan

The Strategic Plan seeks to address the needs of the Association so that MASFAA can empower its members to be educated, engaged, and effective professionals and be recognized as a model for leadership and innovation in financial aid.

The 2017-2020 MASFAA Strategic Plan states that the direction for the next three years should focus on identifying how the organization can increase membership, and improve diversity and engagement, while using technology to enhance communication with its members and provide more frequent training opportunities that meet a variety of needs.  The Plan also affirms that MASFAA should continue its state and federal legislative advocacy on behalf of its members and use its healthy financial reserves to support innovative capital investments in the organization’s future.

President’s Welcome

We made it out of the 2023-2024 academic year!  Job well done, but the hard work isn’t over.  MASFAA plays a crucial role in not only supporting members such as yourselves, but also students and families throughout the Commonwealth.  I am confident that over the next year we can continue to make a positive impact on our community as well as the financial aid community as a whole.

2023-2024 was a record year- not only because of the FAFSA changes and delays but also because of the outstanding involvement we saw from our members.  The Conference Committee hosted its largest conference in recent history with over 350 members in attendance.  This was a chance to not only share what we had learned about the recent changes in aid, but also to reconnect.  Seven other major events were MASFAAs wonderful committees with a cumulative total of over 440 members participating.

I am sure that the 2024-2025 academic year will come with its own set of special challenges, but I am confident that with MASFAAS dedication, not only to its members but also the students and families that we serve- that we can continue to advocate, support one another, learn from one another and stive for excellence.  Your involvement in MASFAA is crucial to these goals.  If you have not already joined a committee, I urge you to consider joining one.  Your prospective, ideas and time (no matter how much or little of it you are able to give) can make a difference to a committee and to the ideas and information that is shared within our community.

Thank you for your dedication to financial aid and I look forward to a productive and fulfilling year ahead.

 

Thank you,

Sarah Bergeron

President, Massachusetts Associate of Student Financial Aid Administrators

Statement of Ethical Principles

The primary goal of the financial aid professional is to help students achieve their educational goals through financial support and resources. To this end, this Statement provides the Financial Aid Professional with a set of principles that serves as a common foundation for accepted standards of conduct.

The Financial Aid Professional shall:
Advocate for students
  • Remain aware of issues affecting students and continually advocate for their interests at the institutional, state and federal levels.
  • Support federal, state and institutional efforts to encourage students, as early as the elementary grades, to aspire to and plan for education beyond high school.
Manifest the highest level of integrity
  • Commit to the highest level of ethical behavior and refrain from conflict of interest or the perception thereof.
  • Deal with others honestly and fairly, abiding by our commitments and always acting in a manner that merits the trust and confidence others have placed in us.
  • Protect the privacy of individual student financial records.
  • Promote the free expression of ideas and opinions, and foster respect for diverse viewpoints within the profession.
Support student access and success
  • Commit to removing financial barriers for those who want to pursue postsecondary learning and support each student admitted to our institution.
  • Without charge, assist students in applying for financial aid funds.
  • Provide services and apply principles that do not discriminate on the basis of race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, disability, age, or economic status.
  • Understand the need for financial education and commit to educate students and families on how to responsibly manage expenses and debt.
Comply with federal and state laws
  • Adhere to all applicable laws and regulations governing federal, state, and institutional financial aid programs.
  • Actively participate in ongoing professional development and continuing education programs to ensure ample understanding of statutes, regulations, and best practices governing the financial aid programs.
  • Encourage colleagues to participate in the financial aid professional associations available to them at the state, regional, or national level and offer assistance to other aid professionals as needed.
Strive for transparency and clarity
  • Provide our students and parents with the information they need to make good decisions about attending and paying for college.
  • Educate students and families through quality information that is consumer-tested when possible. This includes (but is not limited to) transparency and full disclosure on award notices.
  • Ensure equity by applying all need-analysis formulas consistently across the institution’s full population of student financial aid applicants.
  • Inform institutions, students, and parents of any changes in financial aid programs that could affect their student aid eligibility.
  • Strive to ensure that cost of attendance components are developed using resources that represent realistic expenses.
Protect the privacy of financial aid applicants
  • Ensure that student and parent private information provided to the financial aid office by financial aid applicants is protected in accordance with all state and federal statutes and regulations, including FERPA and the Higher Education Act, Section 483(a)(3)(E) (20 U.S.C. 1090).
  • Protect the information on the FAFSA from inappropriate use by ensuring that this information is only used for the application, award, and administration of aid awarded under Title IV of the Higher Education Act, state aid, or aid awarded by eligible institutions.

These guidelines last updated by NASFAA‘s Board of Directors 11/21/2017. Used by Permission.