Veronica Pickett, Financial Aid Director at Bowie State University for the past seven years, is leaving her position to join the US Department of Education. While at Bowie, she also served as the University's Project Manager for the implementation of Peoplesoft (data management system).

Veronica was a Deputy Director at the University of the District of Columbia and also served at one of the predecessor schools, Washington Technical Institute, for a total of 27 years. Among her awards was a selection as a recipient of the Association's Marilyn Brown Professional Excellence Award in recognition of her contributions to the field and the students which she served.

Her hard-working and industrious spirit, along with her deep and thorough knowledge of the myriad of rules and regulations that govern the student aid award-making process, will be sorely missed down in the weeds of our financial aid profession.

Nonetheless, it will be a great thing for all of us to have another one of our own at the Department who will be able to lend a helping hand or illuminate our darkness when we need to find that special answer that we so fervently need.

The Association's loss will clearly be the Department's gain.

Cynthia M. Harbel Retiring

Congratulations to Cindy Harbel on her retirement! Cindy is currently the Director of Student Financial Aid at Allegany College of Maryland in Cumberland. She began working for the college in 1975 and became the director in 1978. Her final day as the director was December 31, 2006. She is anxiously awaiting June 30, 2007, when her husband, Bill, will also be retiring. They plan on doing some traveling and taking it easy for a while. Cindy and Bill live in LaVale, Maryland, with their two sons, Eric and Jeff, and their two dogs. Cindy was recently honored at the Fall 2006 Conference with a special award and a humorous story from Cissy Vansickle. We wish Cindy a long and happy, healthy retirement!