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1, 2001 Serving students offers success for Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships Many students attending a college or university struggle with one common issue: finances. Concerns about paying for school while working diligently toward completing a degree can often create unwanted stress for a student. However, at Arkansas State University the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships helps to alleviate any fears and assist students with any financial issue. Financial aid personnel offer students a myriad of options including a variety of grants, scholarships or loans, according to Gregory Thornburg. Thornburg, who became director of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships in 1998, has focused his efforts on customer service and increasing financial aid knowledge among students and parents. "We’ve tried to increase awareness of the different forms of financial aid and scholarship programs we have," Thornburg said. "We visit schools, work with high school guidance counselors, sponsor Financial Aid Awareness Week and host an annual open house. We want every student to realize they are eligible for some form of financial assistance." Approximately 86 percent of all first-time, full-time freshman received some form of financial assistance during the fall semester of 2000, and more than $9.4 million was awarded in state, institutional or private funds to 2,834 students. The numbers could speak for themselves, but numbers aren’t the only story behind the hard-working office. Thornburg and his staff help each student who comes to their office. Students are divided alphabetically and assigned to financial aid counselors who work with their students during their entire academic career. "We want our students to see the same counselor all four years as an undergraduate student. "We want to enhance their entire experience," Thornburg said. Working closely with the same counselor encourages a trusting relationship to form, and provides the student with a sense of security and comfort. Providing more services on line is also another way the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships is making a more efficient experience for students. Students may apply for privately funded or institutional scholarships, grants or loans by visiting the Financial Aid and Scholarships website. With so much on the web, students have more options and access to information, and by filling out applications on line, processing time is shortened. "Having scholarship applications and other forms on line has been a benefit for students and our office," Dena May, scholarship coordinator, said. "Students are able to type in their information and then mail the forms to our office." "We hope to continue adding more and more online business. We don’t want students in line, we want them online," Thornburg added. For the second consecutive year the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships has been recognized by a national publication for being attentive to individual financial aid needs. Kaplan/Newsweek College Catalog surveys hundreds of high school guidance counselors throughout the nation annually. Based upon results, the company publishes their findings by ranking the top universities in the country. Approximately 1,000 universities were listed in the 2002 edition of the catalog. Arkansas State University was listed as one of the top 33 universities who are "responsive to student financial aid needs." Thornburg attributes their success to their continuing commitment to students and high school guidance counselors. "We’re very approachable, and high school counselors are very confident in our process. A counselor can call us regarding a student with a particular situation, and they know we will work for that student and watch out for them. They know we’ll work to do whatever we can to help a student. "Counselors also know who we are. We work with regional counselors on such a regular basis, they know if it concerns a scholarship who to call." Students should always keep in mind that once they have received a scholarship, grant or loan there are guidelines they must follow. For more information about the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships, call 870-972-2310 or visit their website, http://finaid.astate.edu/. # # # |
 University Communications Office Jonesboro, Arkansas Staff: Tom Moore Straley Snipes Vic Nelson 870-972-3056 fax 870-972-3069 Send mail: ASUnews@astate.edu Links: List of News/Announcements Upcoming Public Events About ASU ASU Home Page |
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