Program & Agenda

The Federal Student Aid conference is scheduled for December 1 - 4 in Music City USA - Nashville, Tennessee. This year’s conference will focus on the significant changes that could impact the Title IV Programs over the next year. These include the anticipated increase in schools transitioning to the Direct Loan Program^SM, FAFSA^SM Simplification and the proposed new Perkins Loan Program, among others. A primary objective of this year’s conference is to ensure all schools are trained and prepared to participate in the Direct Loan Program should they want or need to do so.

In addition to these changes, the movement to a single conference this year coupled with attendance expected at over 5,000 means that our conference format will change. In years past, we typically offered sessions 2-3 times per conference. This year, we may need to schedule sessions 4-5 times to help ensure everyone has an opportunity to get to the sessions they need. Many traditional sessions, while important, may not be offered this year due to new sessions and space constraints.

In the coming weeks, we will post a list of sessions and an agenda for this year’s conference. Please continue to monitor this site for updates and announcements.

We look forward to seeing you in Nashville this fall for another exciting FSA conference!

Thank You,
Federal Student Aid

Sessions

Conference Agenda

Special Features

PC Lab and Cyber Café

PC Lab Hours (subject to change)
Ryman Exhibit Hall B4, Level 0

Monday, November 30
CLOSED

Tuesday, December 1
7:30a.m. to 10:00a.m. and 12:00p.m. to 5:00p.m.

Wednesday, December 2
7:30a.m. to 9:00a.m. and 10:30a.m. to 5:00p.m.

Thursday, December 3
7:30a.m. to 9:00a.m. and 10:30a.m. to 5:00p.m.

Friday, December 4
7:30a.m. to 8:30a.m. and 10:15a.m. to 2:30p.m.

Cyber Café Hours (subject to change)
Ryman Exhibit Hall B4, Level 0

Monday, November 30
3:00p.m. to 7:00p.m.

Tuesday, December 1
7:30a.m. to 10:00a.m. and 12:00p.m. to 5:00p.m.

Wednesday, December 2
7:30a.m. to 9:00a.m. and 10:30a.m. to 5:00p.m.

Thursday, December 3
7:30a.m. to 9:00a.m. and 10:30a.m. to 5:00p.m.

Friday, December 4
7:30a.m. to 8:30a.m. and 10:15a.m. to 2:30p.m.

Guest Speaker

Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education—Biography

Arne Duncan was nominated to be secretary of education by President-elect Barack Obama and was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Inauguration Day, Jan. 20, 2009.

In his confirmation hearings, Duncan called education "the most pressing issue facing America," adding that "preparing young people for success in life is not just a moral obligation of society" but also an "economic imperative." "Education is also the civil rights issue of our generation," he said, "the only sure path out of poverty and the only way to achieve a more equal and just society." Duncan expressed his commitment to work under the leadership of President Obama and with all those involved in education "to enhance education in America, to lift our children and families out of poverty, to help our students learn to contribute to the civility of our great American democracy, and to strengthen our economy by producing a workforce that can make us as competitive as possible." Prior to his appointment as secretary of education, Duncan served as the chief executive officer of the Chicago Public Schools, a position to which he was appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley, from June 2001 through December 2008, becoming the longest-serving big-city education superintendent in the country.

Prior to joining the Chicago Public Schools, Duncan ran the non-profit education foundation Ariel Education Initiative (1992-1998), which helped fund a college education for a class of inner-city children under the I Have A Dream program. He was part of a team that later started a new public elementary school built around a financial literacy curriculum, the Ariel Community Academy, which today ranks among the top elementary schools in Chicago.

From 1987 to 1991, Duncan played professional basketball in Australia, where he also worked with children who were wards of the state.

Duncan graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1987, majoring in sociology. He was co-captain of Harvard's basketball team and was named a first team Academic All-American. He credits basketball with his team-oriented and highly disciplined work ethic. Duncan is married to Karen Duncan and has two children, daughter Clare, 7, and son Ryan, 4.