Webinars

 Join us for an insightful webinar as we explore the intricacies of FAFSA data and federal tax information (FTI). This session will provide guidance to assist schools when making determinations on accessing, disclosing, and handling FAFSA and FTI data in accordance with federal statute and regulations. We will navigate through the complexities of FAFSA data and FTI, offering valuable insights into the proper procedures and protocols schools must follow when considering data sharing. Attendees will gain a thorough understanding of their responsibilities in safeguarding sensitive student data.

What is and what is not other financial assistance (OFA)? This question comes up a lot. Join David Futrell, Director of Institutional Compliance, in a discussion of the longstanding rules and general observations related to the treatment of OFA (formerly EFA). We’ll focus on the changes made by the FAFSA Simplification Act, which removes from OFA 1) emergency financial assistance for unexpected expenses within the student’s cost of attendance (COA); and 2) foster care payments under Title IV, Part E of the Social Security Act. We’ll also discuss what happens when Title IV aid and non-Title IV aid exceed the COA.

What U.S. noncitizen categories are eligible for Title IV aid? How do we tell? How can a student qualify for Title IV aid using ability-to-benefit? How do schools resolve issues regarding aggregate loan limits and overborrowing? Student eligibility will be the focus, so join NASFAA’s Norma Robinson as we explore the answers to these questions, and other related topics.

The webinar will focus on a timely hot topic in the financial aid community. The topic will be announced three months prior to the event.

Will there be significant changes to the 2025-26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)? With the implementation of the changes required as a part of the FAFSA Simplification Act in place, we will discuss changes and modifications made to the application and the application process in place for the 2025-26 application cycle. Join Lissa Powell and Sarah Austin with NASFAA’s Training and Regulatory Assistance team as they walk through the coming year’s application process.

Financial aid administrators often describe their own career paths as an individual journey of discovery rather than intention. Despite being pivotal to the success of postsecondary institutions, this role is frequently a position that talented individuals "fall into" by happenstance and then learn to love, grow, and find success in. Join this webinar to hear from a panel of experienced financial aid administrators and association leaders as they explore possibilities and solutions for how to change our profession from an accidental career to a chosen professional pathway.

"I'm Just a Bill, and I'm Sitting Here on Capitol Hill": How a Bill Really Becomes a Law Schoolhouse Rock!'s iconic "I'm Just a Bill" video only had it partially right. It didn't cover authorization vs. appropriation legislation, regulatory vs. statutory guidance, mandatory vs. discretionary spending, or negotiated rulemaking. In financial aid, how does a bill really become a law? And how do we implement it once it gets signed? To quote Schoolhouse Rock!, "While a few key congressmen discuss and debate whether they should let me be a law. How I hope and pray that they will, but today I am still just a bill." How do we help bills cross the finish line and, more importantly, what happens once they do?

The NASFAA Policy Update will include the latest updates on what's happening in Washington related to student aid policy. The Policy Team will provide updates on Higher Education Act reauthorization, student aid funding, regulatory action, administration initiatives, and close with a question-and-answer session.

This webinar will review the 2025-26 verification data element and documentation requirements. It will also focus on some of the more complicated verification-related issues that come up year after year. Join David Futrell, NASFAA Director of Institutional Compliance, as he leads you through the latest verification requirements and challenging issues.

Join NASFAA in collaboration with SchoolHouse Connection for an insightful webinar dedicated to supporting unaccompanied homeless youth on their journey through higher education. Led by experts in financial aid and youth homelessness advocacy, this webinar will delve into the unique challenges faced by unaccompanied homeless youth and explore strategies for providing them with the necessary financial aid resources and support services.

In its commitment to the graduate and professional community, NASFAA is providing this webinar as a forum for graduate and professional financial aid administrators to discuss current issues of concern for their students and peers. NASFAA will provide an update on topics specific to the graduate and professional aid community, and close with a question-and-answer session.

To participate in the Title IV aid programs, schools must demonstrate certain standards of administrative capability. Join Sarah Austin, regulatory specialist, to provide an overview of the measures of administrative capability, including special attention on the new provisions that went into effect July 1, 2024.

The webinar will focus on a timely hot topic in the financial aid community. The topic will be announced three months prior to the event.

Financial aid administrators operate in a regulated environment where even concepts of time might not mean what they do in day-to-day life. An hour, a day, a week, and a year are all regulated calendar terms with a lot of subregulatory guidance attached. In campus discussions about new academic program structures, we sometimes hear ourselves thinking "You keep saying that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

In this webinar we will parse out these terms and explore how even subtle changes to academic programs and courses could impact payment periods, semesters or quarters, and the timing of disbursements and student eligibility determinations. 

Join Tiffany Gibbs, Director of Online Compliance Products and a panel of experienced program administrators who will walk through the basics of administering the Federal Work-Study (FWS) program. Topics of discussion will include carry forward/carry back, the matching, and the community service requirement. The community service waiver from the COVID-19 national emergency expires at the end of the 2024-25 award year. 

NASFAA's Annual Business Meeting will be conducted virtually, immediately preceding the Policy Update Webinar. NASFAA's bylaws dictate that the association must meet annually for the purpose of transacting all business which may be brought before the membership. The meeting will include updates on NASFAA's financial status, FAAC®? program, governance and oversight, and diversity efforts.

The NASFAA Policy Update will include the latest updates on what's happening in Washington related to student aid policy. The Policy Team will provide updates on Higher Education Act reauthorization, student aid funding, regulatory action, administration initiatives, and close with a question-and-answer session.

The  NASFAA Quiz Show webinar is back, and we are preparing for season 5! As always, our NASFAA Quiz Show webinar allows you and your staff a chance to take a break from all the things that keep you awake at night and enjoy a fun webinar set to provide training in an entertaining manner! We bring to life some of those very thought-provoking and sometimes mind blowing AskRegs questions in an approach that is considered edutainment. The goal is to provide a good mix of questions so even our financial aid neophytes can participate in the fun as well. So, join NASFAA’s Kochie Vaughan and David Tolman in this engaging webinar as they test your knowledge on a variety of financial aid topics. Have fun watching, learning, and seeing which staff members in your office are NASFAA Quiz Show Champions!

Join David Futrell, NASFAA Director of Institutional Compliance, for a review of some of the most frequently asked AskRegs questions related to FAFSA Simplification. Depending on the most popular questions leading into the webinar, topics will likely range from constructing the cost of attendance (COA) to packaging, as well as include verification and professional judgment (PJ) consideration of special circumstances and dependency overrides.

Join NASFAA's Tiffany Gibbs and Sarah Austin as they provide an overview of all of the new regulations that are not FAFSA Simplification centered, which also go into effect on July 1, 2024. 

Areas where there are changes include financial responsibility, administrative capability, certification procedures, gainful employment and financial value transparency, and ability-to-benefit. 

Prison Education Programs are responsible for ensuring that they are operating in the best interest of their students. Advising services, both those focused on student services and on academic success, must be equitable to those offered to campus students. But operating in a carceral environment is different in many aspects to operating on campus.

This webinar, the first in a series, opens the conversation about advising to students participating in a PEP. It is hosted by NASFAA, working with our partners from the Advising Success Network, including NASPA: Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education, NACADA: The Global Community for Academic Advising, and Achieving the Dream. First, the panelists will focus on defining the essential areas of advising. For each advising topic, they with introduce the discussion of what the implementation challenges might be. Those big questions will set the stage for the in-depth conversation to be held at the NASFAA PEP Convening "Breaking Barriers: Bridging Worlds in Prison Education and Student Advising" scheduled in June.

NASFAA's Annual Business Meeting will be conducted virtually, immediately preceding the Policy Update Webinar. NASFAA's bylaws dictate that the association must meet annually for the purpose of transacting all business which may be brought before the membership. The meeting will include updates on NASFAA's financial status, FAAC®? program, governance and oversight, and diversity efforts.

The NASFAA Policy Update will include the latest updates on what's happening in Washington related to student aid policy. The Policy Team will provide updates on Higher Education Act reauthorization, student aid funding, regulatory action, administration initiatives, and close with a question-and-answer session.

Gainful employment is back! Join Norma Robinson, Compliance Generalist, and Sarah Austin,  Regulatory Specialist, to cover the return of gainful employment (GE), and the introduction of Financial Value Transparency (FVT) to the financial aid landscape. This webinar will cover the who, what, when, where, why, and how of GE and FVT, including definitions, reporting requirements, metrics and frameworks, as well as when regulations officially go into effect.

The NASFAA Quiz Show has been renewed and is all set for season 4! Get ready, because as a NASFAA member, you might be called on to serve as a contestant for season 4! We guarantee that you are going to love your NASFAA Quiz Show webinar experience. The webinar brings to life some of those very thought-provoking and sometimes mind-blowing AskRegs questions in a manner that is considered "edu-tainment." The goal is to provide a good mix of questions so even our financial aid neophytes can participate in the fun as well. So, join NASFAA's Kochie Vaughan and David Tolman in this engaging webinar as they test your knowledge on a variety of financial aid topics. Have fun learning and see which game show makes its debut for season 4!

Once considered a looming crisis within higher education, the enrollment cliff is upon us. Coupled with Title IV changes, schools are looking to develop better marketing strategies and create stronger aid packages that can maintain enrollment during this time. Join us for a lively discussion as we explore the role of financial aid in achieving enrollment goals with limited resources and a shrinking pool of students to choose from.

Prison Education Programs (PEP) and the institutions they are part of need to manage their financials, and there are a variety of ways they do this. The issues of affordability, cost management, and financial forecasting can be challenging. Defining the components of the Cost of Attendance (COA), including tuition, fees, and materials can be challenging. Programs need to balance legal jurisdictions, equity and fairness to students, and program sustainability. This needs to be done in the context of understanding the estimated financial aid anticipated to be available for each student. The panel on this webinar will include program leaders with experience in analyzing these questions.

In its commitment to the graduate and professional community, NASFAA is providing this webinar as a forum for graduate and professional financial aid administrators to discuss current issues of concern for their students and peers. NASFAA will provide an update on topics specific to the graduate and professional aid community, and close with a question-and-answer session.

In an ever-changing landscape of higher education enrollment management and financial aid, leading through change has never been more critical. This webinar will provide attendees with the understanding and tools necessary to navigate the tumultuous seas of change within their institutions.

Join us for a discussion on best practices for using technology to streamline your scholarship matching process, and maximizing your institution's scholarships. This session will also include a demonstration of the latest technology from Scholarship Magic where you will be able to observe the scholarship process in action, gaining unparalleled insights into fund distribution, student matches, and impactful donor engagement.

Significant changes to the Pell Grant eligibility criteria and federal methodology (FM) formula are on the horizon, including a new name for the expected family contribution (EFC), which has become the Student Aid Index (SAI). The revamped formula includes higher income protection allowances (IPA), elimination of the state and other tax allowance against income, elimination of many forms of untaxed income and excludable income, addition of small businesses and family farm assets, elimination of consideration of more than one family member in college, and more. Join NASFAA’s Jackie Cottom to take a deep dive into the new SAI.

Financial aid advising is an essential component of Prison Education Programs (PEPs). Many PEPs rely on the paper FAFSA when serving students who are incarcerated. We expect many new PEPs will enroll their first students in the Fall of 2024.  The challenge of introducing PEP work at the same time as FAFSA Simplification implementation crescendos will create a challenge for financial aid staff as well as PEP administrators. During this workshop, we will walk through the 2024-25 FAFSA completion process, highlighting the most complex form and verification questions. We will also talk about the methods for processing those paper FAFSAs. Both financial aid teams and prison program administrators will join the conversation and welcome your questions.

The newly redesigned 2024-25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) changes the way students apply for Title IV assistance, and in many cases, institutional and state aid. Join Lissa Powell and Tiffany Gibbs with NASFAA’s Training and Regulatory Assistance team as they walk through the changes and enhancements to the application process.

The NASFAA Policy Update and Final FAFSA Countdown will include the latest updates on what's happening in Washington related to student aid policy and FAFSA Simplification implementation. The Policy Team will provide updates on student aid funding, regulatory action, administration initiatives,  latest updates on implementation as we approach the launch of the new FAFSA and close with a question-and-answer session.

This webinar will review the 2024-25 verification data element and documentation requirements resulting from FAFSA Simplification changes to the application process. While NASFAA hopes for a reduction in verification selections, verification will still be required in some cases. The webinar will discuss some of the more complicated issues that will remain even after FAFSA Simplification has been implemented. Join David Futrell, NASFAA Director of Institutional Compliance, as he leads you through the latest verification requirements and challenging issues.

While adapting to change has always been an important skill for financial aid administrators, transformational changes such as FAFSA Simplification and disruptions in the workforce present greater challenges than ever before. To help meet the challenge, Jackie Copeland, Chrissy Gass, Vanessa Martineau, and Art Young join NASFAA’s Susan Shogren to explore change management and interpersonal communication as foundational professional skills. This panel of experienced financial aid administrators and association leaders will share stories and strategies for communicating, managing, and sustaining change effectively.

This Q&A style webinar, will provide a baseline review of student eligibility, then test your knowledge on various student eligibility categories. Join Kochie Vaughan, Regulatory Specialist, to explore some of the most frequently asked questions related to student eligibility received by our NASFAA AskRegs service.

Financial aid advising is an essential component of Prison Education Programs (PEP). Many PEPs rely on the paper FAFSA when serving students who are incarcerated. During this webinar, we will walk through the FAFSA completion process with both financial aid administrators and prison program administrators, highlighting the form's questions that are more complex to address. We will also talk about the methods for processing paper FAFSAs. Both financial aid teams and prison program administrators will join the conversation and welcome your questions.

We've all had good customer service experiences, and those that left a lot to be desired. While financial aid is a student service function with customers at its core, aid administrators also must follow a plethora of rules that can come across as not customer-friendly. Join this webinar to learn how to balance following the rules with providing a positive customer experience.

The biggest changes to the FAFSA in history will be implemented in the 2024-25 application cycle - are we ready? Explore the upcoming changes to the FAFSA, including direct data sharing with the IRS and a streamlined Federal Methodology, and learn more about the latest updates on implementation as we approach the launch of the new FAFSA in December.

In this session, Husch Blackwell will provide fundamental Clery Act Compliance requirements for the Title IV professional. This session includes best practices for the Annual Security Report and the Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act (DFSCA). Included will be lessons learned from recent U.S. Department of Education program reviews relating to the Clery Act.

Join Tiffany Gibbs, NASFAA Director of Online Compliance Products, as she covers some best practices in the administration of the Federal Work-Study(FWS) program. The webinar will cover the general, prepandemic rules and best practices regarding FWS, the new campus-based schema in COD for the reporting of student earnings, as well as the end of the COVID-19 national emergency and what that means going forward for the FWS program.

Join Art Coleman, managing partner and co-founder of EducationCounsel LLC, and representatives from higher education associations, as they discuss the implications of two recent U.S. Supreme Court cases — SFFA v. Harvard and SFFA vs. UNC — which challenged the legitimacy of race-conscious admission policies.