Conference news

AdAstra
The 3rd annual Ad Astra Information Systems™ 2016 North Central Summit took place at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities on July 12-13. Fourteen academic institutions from four states were represented among our 29 attendees. Representatives from four UMN system campuses were able to attend. The Summit offered two session tracks (academics or events focused) and provided participants with training and networking opportunities with peer institution scheduling colleagues and Ad Astra staff.

NASFAA
Tina Falkner, Marcia DeGaetano, and Julie Selander attended and participated in the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) annual conference July 10-13. Julie and Marcia presented "Developing and Providing Integrated Student Services: The One Stop Shop for Students" and Tina moderated the session. There was a packed room of attendees wanting to learn more about the "one stop model" and there were quite a few followup questions. The opening session speaker was Jeannette Walls, best known for her memoir The Glass Castle, a New York Times best-seller for more than six years selling 4.5 million copies in the U.S. alone. She discussed overcoming hardships and the keys to turning adversity to your advantage. Attendees also had the privilege of hearing from six of the 2016 Success Stories, hearing firsthand about the important role financial aid and administrators have played in helping students pursue and achieve their goals.