NACAC Conference - the best and busiest 3-day conference for any admission professional. It’s a combination of new learning, hope for the future, and friendships to last a lifetime.

On weekends starting in April, there is a pretty high chance you could find me with dirt under my fingernails and my hair stuffed into a hat. I have been spending every weekend, and some weeknights, over the last month and a half working on my home vegetable garden and a demonstration garden at Lowe Park in Marion, IA.

How do I describe the RIDE? I moved to Iowa 7 years ago from the beautiful State of Hawaii. The first question students asked me was “Why” and the second question after I sat down with them to do their career planning was “What’s this college or that college like?”

This month will mark my 12^th year in Admissions, and while I love my job and working with students, one of the biggest reasons I’ve stayed in  Admissions is because of the people I’ve been fortunate to work with or alongside. Recently, during one of my Iowa ACAC committee meetings some of my committee members remarked about how different the landscape of admissions travel has become over the years. When we had first joined the profession, connecting with admission reps from other schools for lunch in-between fairs or a social hour after a day of travel was the norm. A few of us reminisced about the good ole days in Shenandoah! These types of stories seem to be fading, and it made us all wonder why?

Is it summer yet? It’s funny how we work all year long for a very short period of time where we all sit anxiously and wait for the numbers to start going up and can’t wait to just rip the band-aid off. 

As we gear up for another round of travel, I think it’s important to think about how to make the most of your time on the road. Rather than focusing on what you are doing for your college or institution, I want to focus on what you are doing for you! How are you keeping yourself sane and making the most of your time out of the office during the busy yield season?

With temperatures cooling down and the recent time change, fall is among us and so is the month of Thanksgiving. As Admissions professionals, we can get caught up in the preparation of who can open their application first and get the biggest head start to applicants, what college has the most impressive materials to share with prospective students and who has the most fall visits scheduled for students to have the most amazing experience.

As the start of school is approaching, I know it can feel like all the fun summer activities go out the window. And while schedules definitely get busier, remember that we still have a couple months of sweltering heat left in Iowa! There is time to check off those last remaining summer bucket list items. You’re likely going to be spending a lot of time in cars and hotel rooms before you know it, so I recommend enjoying the outdoors while you still can!

August is here and school supplies are flying off the shelves. This can only mean one thing: admissions recruitment travel season is right around the corner. Whether you are new to the field or have earned your “road warrior” status years ago, surviving travel season comes much easier with preparation. Here are my tips and tricks learned during 10+ years navigating the rolling hills (interstates, highways, brick, gravel and sometimes even dirt roads) of Iowa behind the wheel of a college-branded car:

Has anyone else noticed that there is a gift guide for everything now? They’re all over social media this time of year! Gift guides for him, gift guides for her, gift guides for teens, for moms, for dogs; I’ve even seen gift guides based on the different enneagram types. So I figured it was time someone made a gift guide for admission representatives. Here’s my 2021 holiday admissions gift guide: 

In January and September I compiled lists of lessons learned since the start of the pandemic for SCENES. Lessons such as buying TP and Clorox wipes anytime you had the chance, and the most flattering angle for video calls.

Six hundred and twenty-eight days is the time between when our whole world changed and when I am writing this. Obviously, we need no reminders about the differences that we have faced in our industry due to Covid-19 or in our personal lives, but for some reason this year feels different. We are relatively back to normal, hosting tours and on-campus events, and with that comes the usual stress, burnout and overall exhaustion of the fall. 

FRIENDS! I don’t think I have ever been more thankful than I am this year, heading into the Thanksgiving holiday. We are all here. Like, literally AT WORK, physically.  I know it took some adjustment(s) but let’s be thankful! When I sit back and ponder on the year (which who has time to actually do that in the hustle and bustle of recruiting season), I am in awe of my colleagues, friends, family, our students and my co-workers. We did it, not always gracefully, but we did it. We’re back to a new “normal” and I really feel grateful. 

Everyone’s clothing shrunk during the pandemic, right?

In January I compiled a list of lessons learned since the start of the pandemic for SCENES. Lessons such as buying TP and Clorox wipes anytime you had the chance, and the most flattering angle for video calls. At the time, I think we all were hoping we were wrapping up the pandemic.

I’m sure we can all agree it’s been a weird year. Many of our offices have had to make adjustments that we never thought would be necessary, and we’ve all attended an excess of virtual events. But everything changed for people outside of the office as well.

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?

If you are anything like me, you likely left work on Friday, March 13, 2020, expecting to return on Monday. When you ultimately did return to your office, perhaps you found a time-capsule of life “pre-pandemic” – calendar still on March, piles of papers on your desk, mystery food in your work fridge, etc.

Last month, Tom Paulsen asked our members to share what they are thankful for this year. We know it’s been a tough year, but there is still a lot to be thankful for. Here are some things that our members are thankful for this year!

• An office that knows how to pivot to create a successful virtual event!
• I am thankful that despite the challenges of 2020, we have also gained some unexpected positives that will be a part of our "fabric" going forward: creating new virtual strategies to reach prospects without barriers of distance, cost and time; strengthening our need to collaborate and develop new skills; having new-found time in our homes with our loved ones to focus on what matters most; developing a renewed appreciation for the simple joys of life and being able to wear slippers all day long! Here's to the challenges that, while difficult, brought us some significant gifts! May 2021 offer hope, peace, joy and good health to you and yours!
• Pets, Significant Others, "Non-Busy" Time at Home
• We welcomed our first child in January 2020, right before COVID hit. She has been the constant ray of sunshine during these uncertain times.
• Faith Family Friends Remote-work-ability Shelter Food Clothes Flexibility Innovation
• The amazing connections via Zoom that have expanded my community. Also, the time to reflect on what is important in life. And what is important are our relationships. In the end that is all that matters.
• A time to refocus on the things that matter.
• Gift of time with my family.
• Supportive coworkers, longtime friends, and the health of myself and my family!
• I’m thankful for great leadership on our team that has supported our staff through the transition to working from home, and who have supported us in finding a work-life balance in this tricky time. I’m also thankful for a wonderful husband and our awesome dog! Working from home is so much better with a dog in the house.

Eight months ago, the Coronavirus struck hard and quickly changed our personal and work lives in unimaginable ways. The COVID-19 pandemic has taken over 200,000 American lives and over 1 million people globally. It has negatively affected people’s mental health and wellbeing due to worry and stress, social isolation, loneliness, and job loss. Add the political divide and numerous crises, 2020 has left many mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausted.