Our organization is busier than ever. Several committees have been putting in long hours working to make this professional association one of the best. As IACAC President, I have the privilege of sharing with you some of the highlights of their work and invite you to marvel with me at our accomplishments to date:
In the season of St. Patrick’s Day, I feel so lucky to be a College Counselor! Every day I get to help students plan for their future. As a group, we are fortunate that we have each other for help, advice, encouragement or even a much needed laugh. As both a celebration of our hard work and an opportunity to enrich our knowledge, the conference chairs are eagerly preparing for our annual conference, “Going the Extra Mile for Students.” You will see that many things are the same; however, the conference chairs have some exciting surprises in store for you during May 4-6th at The Westin in Itasca.
The annual membership year for IACAC is changing! The Executive Board approved a proposal submitted by the Membership Committee at their January meeting to change the membership year from June 1- May 31 to October 1-September 30, effective October 1,…
Have you thought about getting more involved in IACAC but can’t get out of the office to attend board meetings?
Have you ever wanted to attend an IACAC Board meeting to better understand how the organization works?
Do you have some ideas on how IACAC can function most efficiently?
Do you have some ideas for new or existing committees and board positions?
Are you just curious?
Do you often feel squeezed between those you supervise and those who supervise you? If so, you are a middle manager, a job that sometimes seems impossible because no one likes feeling as though they are shoved into the middle. Help is on the way.
Members of IACAC and ISCA met with Governor Pat Quinn
to discuss the MAP Grant and counselor ratios for students in Illinois.
From left to right: Dan Stasi, Executive Director for ISCA, Illinois Mental Health Counselors Association, Coalition of Illinois Counseling Organizations PAC; Robert Freitag, St. Charles North High School, IACAC Government Relations Committee Member; Governor Pat Quinn; William Morrison, Highland Park High School, IACAC Government Relations Committee Co-Chair; Sam Stover, Beloit College; Erin Mason, De Paul University, President Elect-Elect for ISCA; Laura Docherty, Fenwick High School, President-Elect for IACAC
On Thursday March 3rd, members of the Government Relations Committee (GRC) partnered with members of the Illinois School Counselors Association (ISCA) in a Springfield Advocacy Day. This annual event has grown in size each year. This year was no exception, with approximately sixty counseling professionals and graduate students in attendance. The agenda for the day included a brunch where participants were trained on how to speak with legislators and a visit to the hill where members of both organizations met with legislators at the capitol and in their offices. In addition, a core group of members representing the two organizations had a meeting with Governor Quinn. This is the second year in a row that IACAC had an opportunity to meet with the Governor, a definite sign of growing name recognition in Springfield (many thanks to President-Elect Laura Docherty for arranging the meeting!).
As you know, the Illinois Association for College Admission Counseling is affiliated with the National Association for College Admission Counseling. In order to remain a member in good standing, we need to adhere to the guiding principles of that organization, especially in the area of Membership and adherence to the Statement of Principles of Good Practice.
From time to time, NACAC reviews the By-laws of its affiliates and makes recommendations to bring us into compliance with NACAC By-laws. Such a review occurred during this fiscal year. Most of the proposed changes involve minor language adjustments and will not affect the way that we conduct IACAC business. Where there are substantive changes in Board policy, these are explained in the rationale below each section.