UTSA hosts volunteer training for Jan. 28 Student Aid Saturdays event

Julian Castro

Mayor Julian Castro speaks at Café College opening
(Photo courtesy of City of San Antonio)

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(Jan. 4, 2012) -- Volunteers are needed for UTSA participation in Student Aid Saturdays, a program to help students and families complete financial aid paperwork. The Saturday events are at sites around the city. The UTSA event to aid prospective students and their families will be 1-4 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 28 in the Business Building Computer Lab (2.01.20).

Volunteers for the UTSA and other events must go through training before the Saturday event. Training will be offered each Wednesday starting Jan. 4 from 6 to 7 p.m. at Café College, 131 El Paso St., San Antonio, Texas, 78204, and Saturday, Jan. 21.

"This will be my third year hosting this event, but it is the first year the event has been publicized through Café College and the mayor's office," said Christopher Goldsberry, UTSA coordinator of financial aid outreach. "The UTSA Office of Student Financial Aid and Enrollment Services will be fanning out our staff to help assist at as many of these events as possible. Additionally, we will be helping students fill out both the FAFSA and TASFA, depending on their eligibility."

For more information, contact Christopher Goldsberry at 210-458-2802.

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What you need to know: Volunteering for Student Aid Saturdays

  • Student Aid Saturdays events help students and parents complete the federal and state financial aid forms, otherwise known as FAFSA and TASFA. Research shows that 90 percent of students who complete the FAFSA will enroll in post-secondary education. Multiple locations will be available January 28-March 17, where students and parents can receive one-on-one assistance to complete the forms.
  • Volunteers can work shifts of either 8:30-11:30 a.m. or 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

Volunteer jobs:

  • Financial aid: work with parents and students in the financial aid process on a computer; must be comfortable working on a computer, setting up emails and automated computer process
  • Floater: Help with anything that comes up and needs to be addressed immediately, duties as assigned including support in waiting room
  • Greeter: Greet families and students and direct them to registration table
  • Registration: Determine that families and students have necessary materials, direct them to waiting room or computer lab

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About Student Aid Saturdays

Student Aid Saturdays is a partnership of the San Antonio Education Partnership, Generation TX and SA2020, and is managed by the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce. The goal is to make this a rewarding volunteer activity by helping out students navigate their way to college. There is a direct correlation between students who apply for financial aid and then go on to college. Student Aid Saturdays is designed to help San Antonio achieve SA2020 goals of college readiness, high school graduation and college enrollment.

SA2020 is a community-wide effort to transform San Antonio over the next 10 years into one of the nation's great cities. The initiative aims to achieve its goals through programs to enhance arts and culture, safety, downtown development, economic competitiveness, education, family well-being, health and fitness, government accountability, civic engagement, natural resources and environmental sustainability, neighborhoods and growth management, and transportation.

Café College, 131 El Paso St., San Antonio, Texas, 78204, is a one-stop counseling service center in downtown San Antonio that provides college-admissions, financial-aid and general advice for students seeking to attend college.

 

 

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