The 2011 recipient of the Charles “Jack” Sheehan Distinguished Service Award is Gail Holt, from Mount Holyoke. This award is named for Jack Sheehan, a respected, influential and affectionate financial aid professional, formerly of Boston University, and Gail certainly exemplifies these qualities today. Her work at her own school, as well as her roles as President of MASFAA, College Goal Sunday Chair, and now EASFAA Representative all reflect her dedication to the field and our students.

In the wake of the passing of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, MASFAA has established a new award honoring his lifelong dedication to defending the rights of the disadvantaged and his tireless drive to ensure access to high-quality education for every American. This year the Senator M. Kennedy Public Service Award recipient is Joe Russo, from Notre Dame. This award recognizes outstanding public service, and Joe has provided this consistently, over more than 50 years in the field, in a number of roles. From an appointment to Congress’ Advisory Committee for Student Financial Aid to a visiting fellowship at New College, Oxford and through his current work as a member of the board of the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation, Joe continues to be a leading voice in our profession.

Jonathan Sparling, a member of the Financial Aid team at WPI, is this year’s winner of the Charles E. Jones Achievement Award, named for Chuck Jones of Holy Cross. According to Mr. Jones’ widow, Ms. Heidi Gilmore, this award is designed to recognize a younger financial aid administrator who has demonstrated leadership and a commitment to service. Jonathan Sparling has shown these qualities in his everyday job, and he also has dedicated time to working with “Colleges Against Cancer” and as an advocate for sexual assault victims, not to mention work with students to educate them on financial literacy.

Lastly, this year’s MASFAA Presidential Award winner is Meredith Stover, from Babson College. Meredith’s colleagues, in nominating her for the award, are consistently impressed with her kind and calm demeanor, as well as her vast knowledge of and dedication to the field. She has done considerable, valuable work for MASFAA in her role as co-chair and trainer with the Just the Facts program, and she is consistently available to help the Association in any way possible, making her extremely deserving of this award.