Financial aid workshops set for next week

For the past three years, the Marshall University Office of Financial Aid has been hosting a Financial Aid Awareness Week. This year, the event begins Wednesday and runs through Sunday.

Many of the different workshops take place in the Marshall Student Center.

Kathy Bialk, director of financial aid said, the office of financial aid staff will have a table set up in the student center throughout the week, next week.

"We will basically flag students down to remind them about our event, answer any questions they may have and give them free handouts," Bialk said.

Bialk and the staff said the main purpose of this week is to promote the College Goal Sunday. College Goal Sunday is held in the basement of the Community & The Office of Financial Aid strives to make students aware of their future, financially. "Live as a student now so you don't have to later," Bialk said.

Technical College building (MCTC) on Sunday, Feb. 9 from 1-4 p.m.  The event is available to anyone who might qualify, and it gives students the opportunity to fill out their 2012-2013 FAFSA.

Cindy Canterberry, financial aid counselor, said, the first year the staff held this event in 2010, they said the attendance was great.

"We were happy with the exceptional attendance at the event," Canterberry said. "In 2011, the attendance wasn't as great as the previous year. The staff expects to see a larger number of people at this year's event."

The announcements for the awareness week are difficult to miss. The Office of Financial Aid has been sending out emails, television targeted announcements, posting flyers around campus and updating its Facebook fan page.

Jean Ann Bevans, assistant director said, the staff strongly encourages students to attend the events and ask questions.

"We are always willing to help students out," Bevans said.

Kathy Bialk and her staff have conducted a presentation, to give to students on the first day as an introduction. At this presentation you will learn a lot about how to stay away from getting into debt, ways to pay your debt back and gaining knowledge about the process of financial aid.

The two topics of interest Bialk plans to attack this year are loan-debt worries and scholarship searches for students. The financial aid staff at Marshall has an objective they live by each year for the awareness week. That objective is to promote reminders to file for FAFSA.

Andrew Frobel can be contacted at frobel@marshall.edu