August 6, 2008
Who: The National Association for College Admission Counseling’s (NACAC) 64th National Conference
What: NACAC’s National Conference is the largest annual gathering of college admission professionals. This year’s conference will address current topics in counseling, admission, financial aid and technology and provide members with specific in-service training suited to their institutional and career needs.
The conference attracts more than 5,000 attendees each year, including secondary school counselors, college admission officers, independent counselors, financial aid administrators, enrollment managers, and affiliate organization members.
When: September 25-27, 2008
Where: The Washington State Convention & Trade Center, Seattle, WA
Speaker Highlights:
Randy Snow was the first Paralympian inducted into the Olympic Hall of Fame. Snow is a business owner, a Fortune 500 speaker featured on CNN, ESPN and USA Today. Examining four very important leadership virtues, Snow’s energetic and humorous talk, “The Courage to Lead,” will inspire the audience to live the truth, compete with a purpose, reach for opportunities, and remain compassionate.
Sherman J. Alexie, Jr. was raised on the Spokane Indian Reservation in Wellpinit, WA. After a brain operation at six months—from which he was not expected to survive—Alexie learned to read by the age of three. Encouraged by a poetry teacher, Alexie has gone on to write numerous poetry collections, short stories and novels which have earned him several awards, including the Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest Writers’ Award. His novel, Reservation Blues and Indian Killer, was named a New York Times Notable Book. Alexie’s keynote will address his view of the world and race/racism based upon his life experiences.
Dr. Zenobia Lawrence Hikes served as the vice president for student affairs at Virginia Tech during the worst school shooting in U.S. history. She has provided expert commentary to CNN, numerous other electronic and print media outlets, universities, and professional associations. In this must-attend event, she will address the simultaneous challenges of violence, emotionally fragile students and incivility in American culture, which impact institutional environments and the quality of the admitted-student pool. Hikes will discuss the new uncharted territory and lessons learned in times of tragedy and explore the value of partnerships between secondary schools, parents, admission officers, student affairs, and other university stakeholders as we move toward resiliency.
Conference Highlights
- More than 110 diverse and informational educational workshops, seminars and sessions led by experts in the field of college admission counseling on such topics as admission testing, college access and selectivity. Experts will also discuss “yellow chip” student athletes, careers in engineering, stress and the college application process, community college, early access programs, managing the generations, swimming with the sharks and much more.
- NACAC New Members and Counselors’ Preview Day is a great opportunity for local counselors from Seattle area to network with other local counselors and meet leaders from Pacific Northwest ACAC and NACAC.
- An exhibit hall featuring more than 200 companies showcasing products and services that assist counseling professionals, including the latest technology, marketing and communication tools.
- A Counselors’ College Fair that will provide an opportunity for all national conference attendees to share information, network with colleagues and meet with representatives from approximately 500 colleges and universities.
A Sample of Sessions of Interest:
- The State of College Admission: Trends in Counseling and Admission
- Time to Talk: Current Trends in College Admission
- NACAC Commission on the Use of Standardized Tests in Undergraduate Admission
- Gender and the College Admission Process
- Understanding the Impact of Social Media on College-Bound Youth
- Admission Policies for Undocumented Students: Tough But Not Smart
- Parents in the Process: From Handholding to Cutting the Cord
- Principles of Good Practice for Recruiting International Students
- Test-Optional Admission Update
- Election 2008: How the Candidates Stack Up on College Admission Counseling Issues
- The No-Longer-New SAT and ACT
- CC101: The Community College Connection
RSVP: Please email Kristen Bourke if you would like to attend this event as a member of the press.
For more information on the 64th NACAC National Conference, visit http://www.nacacconference.org/. We also encourage you to read the national conference blog.
About NACAC: NACAC is an Alexandria, VA-based education association of more than 10,500 secondary school counselors, independent counselors, college admission and financial aid officers, enrollment managers, and organizations that work with students as they make the transition from high school to postsecondary education. The association, founded in 1937, is committed to maintaining high standards that foster ethical and social responsibility among those involved in the transition process, as outlined in the NACAC Statement of Principles of Good Practice.