The Presidential Award recognizes outstanding service and time dedicated to MASFAA. The recipient of this award has provided an important contribution to MASFAA, either by a single achievement or achievements accomplished over a period of time. The recipient can be counted on to complete tasks for the association often with little fanfare. This year, the award will be given to two individuals.

The first recipient of this year’s Presidential Award has consistently gone above and beyond the call of duty as a volunteer of this Association. In addition to her role as a member of the Executive Council, this individual served as a one-person Development Committee for two years, working tirelessly to secure the financial backing needed by MASFAA to remain a thriving professional association. This person’s work allowed MASFAA to further ensure its fiscal security, thus making available the resources that were needed to pursue our strategic planning initiatives and, most importantly, to develop useful services for our members. This individual was met with considerable challenges this past spring as the relationship between professional associations and the lending community changed dramatically, and this person provided timely information that helped the Executive Council to navigate through this emerging issue.

In addition to this individual’s contributions as Development Chair, this person always took an active role in helping to direct the activities of the Association. This individual never hesitated to voice a strong opinion if it was felt to be in the best interests of MASFAA. Although no longer part of the Executive Council, this person remains an asset to both the Association and to the financial aid profession. MASFAA is very grateful for this individual’s volunteerism and service.

It gives me great pleasure to give this year’s Presidential Award to Carla Berg of Bentley College.