Among the 36 attendees at Iowa ACAC's 2026 Admission Counselor University was Lexi Bright, Kirkwood Community College. We asked Lexi her thoughts about ACU - what stood out, takeaways and her favorite part. Here's what she had to say!  

I think a lot of things that stood out to me were also big takeaways for me too: 

• The power of the parents. It is important to talk directly to the student and make sure they understand what you are saying, but it is also beneficial when parents know what's going on. They can check in with their student, remind them about deadlines, and encourage them to stay on track.
• Using language everyone understands. We work in higher education every day, so it's easy to use terminology that is familiar to us but not to students and their families. It was a good reminder that our job is to educate, not overwhelm people with words and acronyms they may have never heard before.
• Communication with students from a school counselor perspective. One thing that really stuck with me was hearing school counselors talk about how students don't really pick up paper anymore. It can be much more effective to email counselors information that they can easily forward to students.
• Having some sort of routine/structure when traveling. This might look different for everyone, but I learned how valuable it is to have some sort of structure while traveling. Whether that's packing in two separate bags, one for personal items and one for work, having a morning or evening routine, or simply knowing it's okay to step away and recharge, having that structure can be very beneficial. 

• Students don't always read emails that are written in long paragraphs. Using bullet points makes the information easier to read, and it's something I want to start doing.
• One statistic that really surprised me was when Olivia asked what percentage of community college students who plan to transfer actually do. Hearing that it was only 20% was shocking to me, especially since I work at a community college.

My favorite activity was the evening social event. I was a little disappointed that we weren't able to do the Scenic City Empress Riverboat Cruise because of the heat, but we pivoted and played games at our tables instead. Looking back, I think everything worked out for the best because that's when I really got to meet people from other schools. Who knows? I might not have met those people if we hadn't been playing games together! Some of the people I met at my table ended up being the group I spent the rest of the evening with, and I look forward to seeing them again out on the road or when they come visit Kirkwood!