Outreach Activities & Events

Prospective, college-bound students are invited to attend a U-M Financial Aid Session to learn more about financial aid, the application process, what to expect, and next steps planning. After the event, we will be sharing links to helpful videos and resources that will be helpful to every student applying to college. You can RSVP for your session here. Please direct all questions to ofa-outreach@umich.edu.

• Financial Aid 101 (General)
  Tuesday, Feb. 7, 6-7 p.m.

• FA Next Steps (General)
  Thursday, Feb. 9, 6-7 p.m.
  Tuesday, March 7, 6-7 p.m.
  Tuesday, April 4, 6-7 p.m.

• FA Next Steps (U-M Specific)
  Thursday, Feb. 16, 6-7 p.m.
  Thursday, March 9, 6-7 p.m.
  Thursday, April 6, 6-7 p.m.
  Thursday, April 13, 6-7 p.m.

• Scholarships 101 (General)
  Tuesday, Feb. 14, 6-7 p.m.

• Five Steps to UM Scholarships (U-M Specific)
  Thursday, Feb. 23, 6-7 p.m.
  Thursday, March 30, 6-7 p.m.

• Financial Aid Notice Workshop (General)
  Tuesday, Feb. 21, 6-7 p.m.
  Tuesday, March 28, 6-7 p.m.
  Tuesday, April 11, 6-7 p.m.

At this time, we are offering both in-person and virtual event support. Please indicate the type of support needed in all requests.

Our office has a variety of presentations to help students and families prepare to tackle the college application cycle. These include a three-part “Paying for College” series designed to give high school seniors an overview of what to expect when they plan for college. The Federal Student Aid Financial Aid Toolkit may also give you ideas for an event at your school. Complete this form to schedule a presentation for your school or community event.

Here are resources available for PDF download to share or print for your high school or community event. If you will be printing in black-and-white on colored paper, please use the B&W versions provided. We recommend that you download these to your computer or device and print directly from the PDF, not print from your browser viewer.

Find out how to navigate Wolverine Access, U-M's secure student portal.

• A Guide to Wolverine Access

What steps do your students need to take to prepare for and apply to college? This checklist offers step-by-step guidance.

• Financial Aid Checklist for High School Seniors

This one-page guide offers tips for each year of high school as you look to a future in college. It also features some key questions to ask about admissions, financial aid and life on campus.

• College Planning Guide: Get a Head Start!

This guide offers a list of some current scholarship opportunities and tips for applying for scholarship money.

• Guide to Private Scholarships

Stephen Nabors
Assistant Director for Outreach
snabors@umich.edu

Stephen leads our Outreach Unit with his 20+ years of customer service experience and 10+ years of supervisory experience in both the public and private sectors. Stephen’s advocacy for access and affordability in higher education fuels his passion for financial aid outreach. He is very appreciative of his role in helping provide and support financial aid outreach programs to help assist under-served and under-resourced students and families with a successful navigation of the financial aid application process.

Darion McPherson
Senior Financial Aid Administrator - Outreach
darionm@umich.edu

Darion has previously served as an orientation leader for new students and a foster care worker in Detroit, MI. While she has worked in several career fields, she is passionate about serving her community and working with students. Darion is excited to be a member of the outreach unit of the Office of Financial Aid, assisting student populations with financial aid, and financial literacy, and making higher education more accessible to all students.

Ellington Poston
Financial Aid Administrator - Outreach
eposton@umich.edu

Ellington Poston graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor of arts in psychology and a minor in Spanish in 2021. Her passion for the university and the Comprehensive Studies Program (CSP) community brought her back to Michigan where she is now serving as a financial aid administrator on the outreach team. Her favorite part of the role is that she gets to continue to work closely with CSP scholars and connect with students and families across the state to help them become more comfortable with the financial aid process.