Session C-24Mary K. Muncie

U.S. Department of Education

Kristen Demaree NCHELP

Jennifer Martin NASFAA

Session Agenda

• Introduction to NT4CM• The need for NT4CM• Pilot for Academic Year 2008-09 • Plans for Academic Year 2009-10• Discussion

Introduction to NT4CM

What Is NT4CM?• National Training for Counselors and Mentors

(NT4CM)—intended audiences

• Free training

– Designed at the national level, offered locally to high school counselors and college access community

– Includes details regarding the Federal student aid programs and state-specific programs

• Ongoing support

– Via monthly communications

Who Are the Players in NT4CM?

• Steering committee

• State coordinators

• Trainers local to the area who are professionals in Student Financial Assistance programs

The Need for NT4CM

Why Offer NT4CM?

• Usability studies as well as discussions with counselors told us that they:– Need up-to-date aid information– Prefer it to be face-to-face– Want it annually– Need on-going communication

vehicle

Why Offer NT4CM?

• Survey of states told us:– Some conduct annual training, but

not all have the resources– Modules re: new programs can

supplement what they do offer

NT4CM—History to Date• How we got to here:

– March 07—steering committee established• Planning begun and states polled • Decision to combine resources and pilot

– June—materials developed– August—Web goes live—webinars conducted– Sept.-March—sessions conducted– April-May—evaluation and lessons learned

How We Did It—The Process

• State Participation -- Pilot Year --17 states and Puerto Rico

- Alaska - Illinois + - New York+- Arkansas + - Iowa + - North Carolina- California - Kentucky + - Ohio- Connecticut - Maine + - Tennessee +- Florida + - Mississippi + - Utah + - Georgia + - New Hampshire

• State Participation –- 2009-10 --Those states below

and as noted by + above

- D C - Massachusetts - Washington

- Hawaii - Michigan - West Virginia

- Louisiana - Texas

State Roles—Coordinators• Managed logistics

– Securing trainers, dates, locations

– Determining participation level

– Ordering materials

– Conducting outreach and publicity

• Participated in bi-weekly conference calls with steering committee during planning phase and as needed throughout

• Offered ongoing feedback

• Shared best practices

Materials for NT4CM

• Developed and shipped by steering committee to state coordinators

PowerPoint presentationInstructor ManualParticipant GuideHandouts and resource lists

• Customizable outreach materials provided electronically

• Sample of Participant Guide circulating

NT4CM Web Site

Participant (public) Web site www.fsa4counselors.ed.gov/NT4CM

•General program information – fact sheet, FAQs

•Registration—online or links to states’ sites

•Downloadable Participant Guide•Links to resources

NT4CM Web Site

Trainer and coordinator Web site www.fsa4counselors.ed.gov/trainers•Downloadable PowerPoint

presentation and instructor manual•Downloadable customizable outreach

materials•Train the Trainers webinar

2008-09 Workshop Overview

Agenda had three main sections:

– Federal aid (provided by NT4CM)

– State aid (provided by states)—template provided by NT4CM

– Resources (provided by NT4CM and states)

2008-09 Workshop Curriculum - Federal

• Overview of financial aid

• How to apply for federal aid

– FAFSA4caster

– FAFSA on the Web

2008-09 Workshop Curriculum - Federal

• Eligibility criteria and application procedures for Academic Competitiveness Grants

• How to search for federal, state, institutional and private scholarships

• Avoiding financial aid fraud

2008-09 Workshop Curriculum - State

• Using templates, detailed state grants, loans and scholarships:– General information– Maximum award– Eligibility criteria– Application procedure

2008-09 Workshop Curriculum - State

• Using templates, detailed state prepaid tuition plans and state college savings plans:– General information

– Contributions and outcomes

– Tax benefits

2008-09 Workshop Curriculum - Resources

Resources provided

– Fact sheets

– Web sites

– Phone numbers

• Developed two new modules geared for middle school audiences– Counselors– Students and families

• Encourage student and families to plan financially for college as early as possible

New Modules for 2009-10

• Plan to develop new modules throughout the year– Students with disabilities– Foster youth– Non-traditional students

• At the end of this presentation, want to hear what additional topics you would like to see addressed

Expansion of Workshop Materials

Plans for Academic Year 2009-10

Based on lessons learned and evaluations

Lessons Learned

• Earlier communications—to take advantage of piggy-backing opportunities

• Clearer delineation of criteria for participation—see separate handout

• Incentives for attending—CEUs• Expand steering committee and supporters• Build on successes—evaluations from pilot

• 62% responded “outstanding” when asked if the training met their needs for assisting students to prepare financially for college (4.6 rating out of 5).

• 78% responded “outstanding” when asked to rate the NT4CM materials (4.8 rating out of 5).

• 61% responded “outstanding” when asked to evaluate the case studies, charts, and other graphic illustrations, (4.6 rating out of 5).

*Data based on 461 surveys received out of 1,149 participants.

Evaluation

Evaluation–Quotes

• “Good job! Where were you guys all these years?”

• “Great workshop for someone wanting the basics of financial aid!”

• “Very helpful, I learned a lot about new programs. Thank you. I'd like to do this yearly to stay knowledgeable about updates.”

The Numbers for Academic Year 2009-10

• States– Players

• Sessions– Planned offerings

• Trainees– Estimates

Next Steps—and Your Ideas

• How do we recruit more states?• What can we add to fill a need?• Are there any comments from those

who participated in the pilot year or who are participating this year?

• What additional topics should we add to curriculum?

• Other ideas to plus up the effort?

Contact Information

We appreciate your feedback and comments. We can be reached at:

Mary K. MuncieMary.K.Muncie@ed.gov 202.377.3202

Jennifer Martinmartinj@nasfaa.org 202.785.6973

Kristen Demareekdemaree@nchelp.org202.822.2106

nt4cm@ed.govany and all inquiries