ARLINGTON, Va., August 13-- Donald E. Fraser, Jr., director of college access and transition at the Met School in Providence, RI, has been named director of education for the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), an education association of more than 11,000 from around the world dedicated to serving students as they make choices about pursuing postsecondary education. Fraser will assume the position in mid-August.
NACAC CEO Joyce Smith said Fraser will invigorate educational programming in a number of key areas that are vital to members' professional growth. "Don brings a wealth of experience, professional relationships with other organizations and new energy to our programming," she said. "We look forward to welcoming his fresh perspective on our education and training activities."
At the Met School, Fraser is responsible for pursuing and developing partnerships with colleges, universities and other postsecondary programs to increase student access, retention and completion. He supervises, supports and evaluates the work of four Postsecondary Access Counselors who serve more than 700 students in grades 9-12 and one academic advisor each at the Community College of Rhode Island and Rhode Island College.
Fraser is a lecturer in the Developmental Studies and Counseling Department at Boston University (MA) where he teaches courses in college admission counseling in the summer and fall semesters.
He recently was named Rhode Island Counselor of the Year by the Rhode Island Association of Admissions Officers.
Fraser is currently co-leading a working group convened by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to examine College Readiness and Navigation Curriculum used to support the college going efforts of students from low-income households.
Since 2004, Fraser has worked as a consultant to Harvard University's (MA) Crimson Summer Academy, where he is curriculum coordinator for the College and Career Planning program, which assists talented high school students from low-income households in the Boston and Cambridge area. He recently redesigned the academy's three-year curriculum to better address challenges students encounter once they enroll in college.
From 2004-2005, he was program specialist for the Program for After School Education and Research at Harvard. He began his career as a guidance counselor at Brookline High School (MA).
Fraser earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from Boston College (MA), master's of education in school psychology from the University of Massachusetts at Boston and is currently working towards an Ed. D. in leadership in urban schools at the University of Massachusetts at Boston.
He is a member of New England ACAC, one of NACAC's 23 affiliates; was selected as a delegate to the NACAC Assembly, the association's governing body; and is a member of the National College Access Network (NCAN), American School Counselor Association (ASCA), and Rhode Island School Counselor Association (RISCA).
He has been a member of the New England Regional ACT Committee, a reader for the Gates Millennium Scholarship and a faculty member for New England ACAC's Summer Institute on College Admission.
About NACAC:
NACAC is an Arlington, VA-based education association of more than 11,000 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. More information about NACAC is available at http://www.nacacnet.org/.