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NACAC L.A.- Notes from a newbie

As the Admission Professional of the Year recipient, I was given the opportunity to attend this year’s NACAC conference in Los Angeles. While the schedule was very robust with lots of awesome sessions and events, it was a bit overwhelming. Reading all the options and coming up with my game plan felt a bit like cramming for a test. I’ve made some cliff notes (does anyone even use these anymore?) so you won’t need to cram for a NACAC conference in the future.

  • Step 1, open your NACAC emails.
  • Step 2, actually read said emails. No really, pre-conference emails have a wealth of information, and it helps to look at your options in snippets and come back to it often.
  • Utilize the conference app. It allowed me to filter sessions specific to the content I wanted to learn about and build my own schedule. It also sent me reminders of the things I was most interested in doing.
  • Don’t be afraid to walk out of a session- Yes, I just encouraged you to leave but for good reason! There are many things happening at the same time such as sessions, learning labs etc. I found myself wanting to attend multiple things and since I was flying solo, I cut out early to make it to everything on my list.
  • Take the initiative to introduce yourself to someone new. I promise, the benefits far outweigh the fear of talking to strangers! I met two counselors from Vancouver Island, Canada, we had invigorating conversations that branched outside of just ‘work talk’ and now it’s on my travel bucket list. You should Google it; this place is like visiting Europe without flying over an ocean to get there.
  • If you’re invited to an after party (most are hosted by sponsors/exhibitors), go! While these events are not hosted or sponsored by NACAC, they are another great way to network and have fun and, let’s be honest, having fun with our colleagues is icing on the conference cake!

4 Reasons You Don’t Want to Miss Out on Colleges to Counselors

School Counselors and CCTCs - Last chance to register for C2C!
Deadline for the St. Ambrose session - Wed., 10/23
Why should you attend this FREE professional development event?
1. College Updates - As a high school counselor or CCTC, you get the latest insights directly from colleges to help guide your students through the admissions process. Plus, you have the option to go on a campus tour on either campus!

2. Exclusive College Resource Booklet - Receive a comprehensive admissions booklet and digital PDF version featuring key information from all participating colleges—a handy tool throughout the year!

3. Learn about Financial Aid & FAFSA
Each host site will have a financial aid representative share information about the financial aid process, FAFSA, and more to help your students navigate their financial aid options effectively.

4. Expand Your Reach: By attending each event, you'll connect with a wider range of colleges across Iowa, offering a more complete view of Iowa’s and the surrounding states higher education options.

Don't forget — C2C happens only once a year, so register for one or both fall events now at https://www.iowaacac.org/prof-dev- - It's FREE!!

From Spam Email to Award Finalist: My Unforgettable MIDWest Journey

On the morning of May 14, 2024, I was a little preoccupied with my 28th birthday coming at me quickly. Reviewing my work inbox, I read a subject “Re: Iowa ACAC – Congrats!”. My IT department has put me through lots of training on what to do with spam. So, my first thought was to do some research on what this ‘ACAC’ acronym is. My research concluded that the Iowa ACAC was pretty legit and the conference seemed real. The email even referenced making a social media post! Although, for some reason, I made the executive decision that it made more sense for this to be spam, and I ended up deleting the email. A weekend passed, and one day my supervisor, Dana Chrisman, eventually gathered all of my fellow admissions office mates and congratulated me. Dana explained that a counselor I had worked with had written the most thoughtful recommendation about my visit at one of her high schools.

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From the Other Side

"Hello from the outside
At least I can say that I've tried
To tell you I'm sorry for breaking your heart"
Adele really hit me with the feels while I started writing and made it so fitting to share a verse. The other side is almost what we would imagine as recruiters, schedules, emotions, schedules, and future planning. 


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Navigating Gen Z: Insights from Iowa ACAC's Winter ACU

On a wintery Iowa day, I attended the virtual Iowa ACAC Winter session of Admissions Counselor University (ACU). During this session, we covered ethics, territory management, building connections, and communicating with gen z. Toward the end of our meeting, we were joined by a great panel of high school counselors and career advisors who provided insight on best practices when talking with students and visiting schools.

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We're Ba-ack! Winter Virtual ACU Returns

Has your admissions office recently hired new admissions professionals this semester? Are you looking for a way to refresh your basic knowledge on college admissions, tips for the travel season, or admissions best practices? If you answered yes to either of those questions, then you need to keep reading!

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Meet the Board - Professional Development & Practices

The Professional Development and Practices Committee is excited to provide you with the latest updates from our committee and a few essential details about what’s to come this year from our area!

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ACU Review from a New Professional

I felt that everyone at ACU was really nice and it felt like they wanted us to be successful. In the Building Bridges chat, I thought that the “selling points” activity was nice to see what all the different schools had to offer and some of the similarities that we had, especially to other small private schools. I really liked the speed dating activity that we did, I do wish that we could have been more spread out. I felt like I was shouting to talk to the person across from me, and I had a lot of trouble hearing what they had to say. I also feel like spreading out the reps that were from the same school would be helpful, that way we can hear from multiple different schools.

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Hats off to our New Grads - ACU Highlights

Despite 100 degree temperatures, 2023 ACU attendees powered through their curriculum, listened and engaged in the phenomenal presentations by our “professors,” and made ACU 2023 an event to remember. 

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Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! I know, there aren’t fireworks, champagne or silly hats and glasses, but it’s just as important for us in education.

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MIDWest Conference 101!

Let’s start counting down the days! In just a few short weeks, we will all be together in person for the 2022 MIDWest ACAC Conference in Eagan, MN! The last time we all had the chance to be together was at the 2019 Iowa ACAC Conference at Prairie Meadows in Altoona. We made the best of things in 2020 with a virtual conference (thanks to our wonderful Past President, Tom Paulsen), and tried again in 2021 with a virtual MIDWest Conference (shout out to the excellent Wisconsin ACAC team for planning), but I know that I have really missed the in-person conference experience for the past two years. With all of the disruptions caused by the pandemic, we’ll have more first-time conference-goers than ever before, so as your current Iowa ACAC Conference Planning Chair, I wanted to share some thoughts and advice to help you make the most of your MIDWest ACAC experience! 

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What Does the Future Hold?

When I was in my undergraduate secondary education program, I had to take a methods class on wrestling. I had never wrestled or even watched a wrestling match (other than those ‘rasslin programs on TV). I asked my advisor, Dr. John Byrd, “Why do I have to take this class?  I have no interest  in wrestling.” His reply was very insightful. He said, “You never know when a job offer will include coaching wrestling.” Well, he was wrong. My first job did not require that I coach wrestling. My second job did! 

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Making the Connection

A number of years ago, I was very unsure about taking the next step to college. The director of my high school choir at the time was a Wartburg College graduate. He shared his incredible experience and encouraged me to visit. As an uncertain 17-year-old, I called to set up my visit and will never forget the kindness I received on the other end from the visit coordinator. I felt more confident about taking the next step. After my visit, I knew Wartburg was where I would go to college. I applied for a job in admissions during my junior year at Wartburg and developed many relationships that became influential in my career path. I had no idea how much that decision would impact my life. I served as a spiritcaller, Ambassador and eventually spent an entire summer working full-time in the admissions office. Still, when it came time for graduation, I wasn’t sure about the path I wanted to take. As I began looking for a job, it was a connection I had made at Wartburg that led me to Simpson College and a job as an admissions counselor. The people and the experience there solidified my love for higher education. When I had the chance to return to Wartburg Admissions, I knew recruiting for my alma mater was the right decision. Almost twenty years later, I find myself wondering where the years have gone!

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Admissions #10yearchallenge

Greetings from South Dakota! A recent trend on Facebook was the #10yearchallenge where you post a picture of yourself today alongside a picture of yourself from ten years ago…or maybe some could do 20 years ago or more. It’s a fun opportunity to take a few minutes to reminisce and reflect upon certain chapters in your life and think about where you’ve been, what you’ve done, what you’ve been able to experience, challenging times, good times, and so on and so forth.

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Back to School

I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting this summer as I prepare to leave my current position as an Admission Counselor at the University of Iowa. A little background: as an undergraduate, I worked in the Office of Admissions in two student positions and absolutely adored it. So much so that I began considering a year or two in admissions post-graduation. Driven by my desire to return to admissions and a feeling of uncertainty as I navigated student teaching, I accepted a temporary counselor position following graduation and a full-time position six months later. I knew my time as a counselor would either be short-term and followed by a return to teaching, or I’d decide to stay in higher education for a good portion of my career. A little over two and half years later, and I’ve made the difficult decision to return to the classroom.

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What's in a Day?

525,600 minutes. That’s how you measure a year. In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee. In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife. If you are familiar with the musical Rent, sorry, that song will be stuck in your head for the rest of the day now. But maybe that’s OK…shouldn’t we all think about how every minute in our life counts for something, especially in this last year?

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The Supervisor/Supervisee Relationship

Our relationship with our supervisors is one of the most important relationships that we have in our career, but it times it can also feel the most complicated. As three admissions professionals who have been in the field for a while, here are some things that we have learned over the years that can help you establish a great relationship with your supervisor.

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Remember Who's Watching

As 2021 begins to unfold, the lessons of 2020 are still fresh in our minds. We know it’s important to be connected, not to take anything for granted, and to have flexibility. However, one reminder helps me find daily perspective about how to handle each situation that gets thrown our way.

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Professional Development During COVID-19

In light of everything happening in our society today, you might think that professional development has been put on the backburner, but it is actually quite the opposite. Each type of company, association, and higher education news website is trying so hard to provide guidance and assistance to all of us in higher education as we navigate these unprecedented times. While we have continued to stay busy, it is a different type of busy that might offer more flexibility in our daily schedules, allowing us to catch some of these webinars and professional development experiences.

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Generational Diversity

Last month I had the opportunity to attend the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE) conference in San Diego, CA. The theme of the conference was “crossing borders and bridging communities”. There was one particular session I attended during my time at the conference that stuck out to me and it was a session about generational diversity.

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