WVSU to Host U.S. Department of Education Roundtable

1/25/2013

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Contact: Dr. Donna M. Simon
(304) 766-3363
dsimon@wvstateu.edu
 
  INSTITUTE, W.Va. – U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va. will join in a roundtable discussion conducted by the U.S. Department of Education Office of Federal Student Aid on Monday, Jan. 28, on the campus of West Virginia State University (WVSU).

Registration for the Roundtable begins at 10 a.m. in the Wilson University Union. Manchin and Capito will give introductory remarks for the event at 10:30 a.m.

The purpose of the Roundtable is to discuss ideas and challenges with providing financial aid throughout the state of West Virginia. Participants will include high school administrators, school counselors, higher education officials, elected officials and representatives of state non-profit organizations.

In addition, Marshall University President Stephen Kopp and Chancellor Paul Hill of the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission are expected to attend.

Maisha Challenger and Fred Stennis, awareness and outreach representatives with the Office of Federal Student Aid, will provide an overview of financial aid tools and resources available through their office as part of the Roundtable.

Following the presentations, Roundtable participants will engage in discussions with an emphasis on developing next steps toward increasing awareness of and access to financial aid in the state.

The Roundtable will conclude at 12:30 p.m.

The Office of Federal Student Aid, a part of the U.S. Department of Education, is the largest provider of student financial aid in the nation, providing more than $150 billion in federal grants, loans, and work-study funds each year to more than 15 million students paying for college or career school. For more information, visit www.studentaid.gov.
                                                                                       
West Virginia State University is a public, land grant, historically black university, which has evolved into a fully accessible, racially integrated, and multi-generational institution, located in Institute, W.Va. As a “living laboratory of human relations,” the university is a community of students, staff, and faculty committed to academic growth, service, and preservation of the racial and cultural diversity of the institution. Its mission is to meet the higher education and economic development needs of the state and region through innovative teaching and applied research.