State Updates...
California Update
Connie Burden, CASFAA President
www.casfaa.org

What a golden opportunity to write for the WASFAA newsletter. I became president of the California Association Of Student Financial Aid Administrators (CASFAA) in December. CASFAA is well into their year and I have chosen to use my year as a year to encourage new volunteers and develop new leadership. During the past three weeks I have had the opportunity to send congratulations to a number of Directors in our state that are retiring or moving into new careers. It has been said that today most people will have 5 - 7 careers within their work history. Not jobs, careers. I find it most remarkable that many of my colleagues have been in financial aid for 10-20 years. That tells me that it is a career that provides great personal accomplishment. The reality is that we are now looking to those new in our field to begin to develop their leadership abilities. With that, CASFAA has planned a series of summer mini conferences called, "Thinking Outside the Box." The focus is on adapting to changes that disrupt our daily routines. We offer these throughout our state at a low cost to our members and minimal cost to non-members.

CASFAA is also planning the third Management Institute. A limited group of 25 financial aid administrators will come together to discuss the best practices in financial aid. CASFAA has kept this Institute at a minimal cost for our members and it is a wonderful opportunity for those looking to develop their management capabilities.

Our major conference will be in December and our conference committee is actively planning our conference that will be held in San Francisco. Our theme is "CASFAA Connections." We connect with so many lives, colleagues, students, parents, campus departments, Department of Education and the California Student Aid Commission. We plan to celebrate the connections we've made over the years at our annual conference.

We are well into our year and it is a golden year of opportunity for each of us in our profession. I hope your year will be golden, too.