Region II Representative Nominee

Marlene Jones

Biography

Statement of Candidacy

I am excited and honored to be considered for the role of Regional 2 Representative within the Florida Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (FASFAA) organization. I am passionate for learning, educating, and training. I am a firm believer our society greatly benefits when our citizens obtain an academic degree. For that to happen, the foundation, which would be “us”, are the keys to helping everyone achieve their dreams. My goal is Better Together!

I completed the Gallup CliftonStrengths Top 5 Strengths Based Leadership assessment which revealed intellectual (appreciate intellectual discussions), developer (cultivate potential in others), and learner (great desire to learn and continuously improve) as some of my top core strengths. When I was a child, I played “schoolteacher” and taught the neighborhood children their alphabets, numbers, colors, etc. This developed my passion for teaching. At one of my previously held jobs, I was elected to train new employees. One of those trainees eventually became an office manager. The trainee thanked me for how thoroughly I trained her and stated it was the only reason she received the promotion. I added ‘trainer” to my repertoire. This inspired me to go to college and I became a first-generation graduate. 

My experiences as a financial aid loan coordinator and counselor, provided me with the opportunities to become a presenter for financial literacy overviews, assisted students and families at FAFSA Extravaganza, Florida Days, Preview, etc. I also had the privilege to be in the Mentorship for Machen Florida Opportunity Scholarship (MFOS) program. All this has been accomplished through the financial aid community, best practices, and the resources such as credentials from NASFAA U, NASFAA Today’s News, professional development i.e., webinars, conferences, workshops, trainings, networking, and volunteer opportunities afforded to me. 

I am currently enrolled in the 23-24 Leadership Education for Association Professionals (LEAP) cohort. I will be volunteering and collaborating with my LEAP team and FASFAA professionals to making the May 2024 FASFAA conference a magical carpet ride to a whole new world of solving mysteries. To that end, I would like to step up to the next level and become the Crown of Florida representative for my region because it combines my passion of learning, educating, and training. I want others to be empowered by what our financial aid community offers and to wildly achieve in their profession. We are Better Together!