Fall 2016 Newsletter
IN THIS ISSUE:
Message from the President:
Happy 50th, NYSACAC!
By: Susan Davidson President, NYSACAC Associate Director of College Counseling, Rye Country Day School
In April, 1967, the NYSACAC Constitution was adopted. That year, the first Boeing 737 made its maiden voyage. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke out against the Vietnam War in a religious ceremony. The Higher Education Act was a toddler, having been born in 1965 (it would go on to produce the TRIO and Pell Grant programs in 1968 and 1972 respectively). Questions about equity and educational opportunity were reaching a boiling point. As we celebrate 50 years of
NYSACAC, we reflect on issues that are almost as similar today as they were in ’67. We look at the similarities and differences in our profession and our work with students. Our respect for our colleagues grows and we are grateful for our mentors. We look forward to the next 50 years in higher education. The Road to 50 is paved with member support and willingness to volunteer. As an organization, our vision is to be at the forefront of creating leadership and professional development
continued on page 2
From the President.......................1-2 Conference Recaps........................2-4 Summer Institute..........................7-8 Favoring the Wealthy..................9-10 Upcoming Events.......................................11 Student Leaders in Admissions.......13 Camp College.............................14-15
NYSACAC Newsletter
Fall, 2016
continued from page 1 opportunities in college admission counseling. The core networking opportunities that NYSACAC programs provide benefit students and families. I, therefore, feel incredibly honored to serve as president of the association. If you were able to attend the NACAC Conference in Columbus, we hope you joined us for a wonderful Affiliate Membership Meeting sponsored by our 2017 Conference Host, SUNY Geneseo. There, the association conducted a 50/50 raffle, which raised more than $1500 for the Road to 50 Campaign. The program included an opportunity for NYSACAC Vice Presidents to describe the work of their committees; after that colleagues had time for networking.
Membership Action Items for the fall: • Please support the Road to 50 Campaign. Launched in December 2015, all donations to NYSACAC are a contribution to the Road to 50. Go to www.nysacac.org and click on Donate to be a part of this campaign. Contributions will support NYSACAC programming, including scholarships for students and grants for counseling professionals. • Renew your membership to NYSACAC through your primary member at: www.nysacac.org/renew • Learn more about our upcoming Regional College Fair on Sunday, October 16th at: www.nysacac. org/nysacac-regional- college -fairs
• If you are interested in a volunteer opportunity we have “tall, grande, and venti,” ways for you to get involved. Log in at www.nysacac.org and fill out our Committee Interest Form. Our profession is ever-changing, from early FAFSA and PPY to new SAT and new application platforms. Our country is also in the midst of a pivotal and contentious election season. Don’t forget to take care of yourself. Remember to reach out to your colleagues and mentors when stress feels like it’s taking over. I would love to hear from you. Don’t hesitate to e-mail me at president@ nysacac.org.
NYSACAC Conference Award Winners One of the great traditions of the NYSACAC annual conference is the opportunity to honor those whose contributions have had tremendous impact on the organization. At the 2016 Annual Conference, the following awards were presented: Distinguished Service Award, College: Donna Shaffner, Utica College This NYSACAC award recognizes a College Counselor of the year for his or her exceptional service to our profession. President’s Award: Kent Rinehart, Marist College This NYSACAC award is presented to an individual who, over a period of years, has performed outstanding service to NYSACAC, to our profession, and to the community.
Award winners from left: Donna Shaffner, Kent Rinehart, Bryan Rothstein, Kristen Harris
Human Relations Award: Kristen Harris, Rising Star Award: Bryan Rothstein, NYC Department of Education Adelphi University The Rising Star Award honors individuals The Human Relations award is presented and programs that exemplify excellence to an individual or program that embodies and dedication to serving the needs the ideals of the Human Relations of students in the transition from high Committee. The person the program school to college. They must be new honored works tirelessly on the issues members who are striving to make of access and making post-secondary a difference within the association education opportunities available to through their work in committees. historically underrepresented students.
NYSACAC Newsletter
Fall, 2016
NACAC 2016: Stories from Columbus
New to NACAC: Reflections By Christine Loo, Director of College Counseling The Stony Brook School
“Chris, you’ve got to go to NACAC.” For years, I’ve heard people say this to me. And for years, I had put it off, thinking that I would go some other time. But I heard it again and again, that I needed to go to NACAC. So this year, I made the decision to attend. Overcoming my intense fear of flying, I left for the NACAC National Conference. I must admit that I went with a lot of apprehension, as a friend was unable to go at the last minute. I thought to myself: “Should I go alone to this 6,000-person conference? Will people talk to me? Who will I eat lunch and dinner with?” I found myself feeling like a high school freshman during the first few weeks of school. I arrived at the convention center. People told me that it would be a “bit overwhelming”. It was. Others told me that there would be great networking opportunities. There were. Still others talked about the parties... lots of parties. There definitely were! The first thing I noticed was that there were people everywhere. It was a little intimidating. But then I found that almost everyone I met was willing to share their experience, their wisdom, and their love for students with me. I was inspired both by how much people
loved their work and their willingness to work collaboratively for the same goal: to empower students to make the best college decision that they can. As the conference went on, I felt proud to be part of a profession where people were not only incredibly competent, but compassionate. Over the next three days, I met people everywhere; in sessions, in the hotel lobby, waiting in line to send my Chegg box… everywhere. I met up with a few old colleagues. And I was adopted by a group of counselors from LA who became friends. Even on the plane ride home, I had a great conversation with a young Asian-American woman whose story I could relate to. By the time I arrived home, I felt motivated, empowered and inspired by the people I had met. Finally, I learned a lot! The sessions were helpful to me, especially as I continue to navigate a fairly new position working at a private boarding school. The presenters were informed, knowledgeable and articulate. I learned about how to help student athletes, write better letters of recommendation, and received good advice about the college essay. Best of all, I can finally say that I have a better handle on UCAS and if I have questions, I now
have people I can contact! That alone was almost worth the trip to NACAC. The three days at NACAC were everything I thought it would be. I’m really glad I went. The days were filled with lots of learning opportunities, both formal and informal. The things that were shared with me during impromptu conversations rivaled what I learned in the scheduled sessions. Experience is a great teacher and I learned from many veterans in the field about how to be a better college counselor. The networking opportunities were wonderful; people were so open to finding out more about The Stony Brook School and to share with me about their schools, both on the high school and college side. But what I will treasure most about my time at NACAC are the many, many conversations I had with people about how much they love what they do. The work done across the table, from both the high school and college side, is a great collaborative effort. NACAC gave me the opportunity to see just how big this work is. I’m proud to be a part of an organization where every member works on behalf of the students we serve. Looking forward to Boston next year!!
NYSACAC Newsletter
NACAC 2016: Continued
Fall, 2016
Burdick awarded Inclusion, Access and Success award at 72nd Annual Conference
Jonathan Burdick
Jonathan Burdick, dean of college admission and vice-provost for enrollment initiatives at the University of Rochester, has led his university to identify, attract, counsel, assist, enroll, and retain students from all backgrounds and perspectives. Under Burdick’s leadership, the University of Rochester has partnered with The Posse Foundation, Raise. me, Chicago Scholars, College Horizons, and the National Hispanic Institute. Additionally, the university
I was a NACAC virgin
established the Rochester Promise— providing scholarships to graduates of the Rochester City School District. Burdick has also looked beyond the US to find students, specifically recruiting high-achieving, lowincome applicants from Africa. The Inclusion, Access & Success Award celebrates persons and programs who have been instrumental in making postsecondary opportunities available to historically underrepresented students.
By Michele Harris, Guidance Counselor/College Advisor High School of American Studies at Lehman College
I have long known about the NACAC National Conference, but have never had the opportunity to attend until this year. I was fortunate to be nominated for a NACAC grant by my friend, colleague and mentor Dr. Carla Shere. When I got the great news from the NYSACAC President that I was a grant recipient, I zoomed ahead full force to plan an exciting experience that was long overdue. Upon my arrival to the very friendly Columbus, Ohio, and after half a week of college visits at my school, I took the advice of some of my colleagues on the college side. They told me to “take it slow, it’s a lot to take in the first time,” so I decided to do just that.
what was to be an extraordinarily fun, but educational experience. A major highlight of the conference was attending Jeff Selingo’s lecture based on his new easy-to-read book There Is Life After College. All of us should be required to read this excellent and relevant book. It was comforting to attend the Affiliate Membership Meeting where the recipients of the grant were recognized and we were able to see familiar faces and connect with our dedicated colleagues. NYSACAC is a great organization for networking and building lasting and important relationships with those who share a special connection and a shared common experience. For the days that followed I exuberantly navigated the enormous Columbus conference center utilizing the amazing volunteers in vibrant blue jerseys who were so gracious in helping me get around.
On Thursday morning, I was genuinely mesmerized by the enormity of the conference center and so pleased with the friendly and easy registration process including the sleek water bottle, which I carried with me throughout the conference. I downloaded the The sessions I attended related conference app and started to plan not only to my work but also to my
personal interest in this expansive and ever-changing profession. Mingling with the Naviance crew, the Common App folks, The College Board crowd and founder of Compass Prep was incredible. Collecting business cards and exchanging information about my school paid off. Not surprising, an email from one such contact from the conference was waiting on my phone by the time my plane landed. NACAC is an excellent networking, social and fun experience and I truly felt sad at its conclusion. It is my hope to be a regular attendee to develop the bonds that I noticed so many of my talented peers share year after year. It was exciting to return to my school on Monday (though tired) and share the innovative technology, career data and statistical information with my wonderful students who also appreciated the great benefits of my attendance at the 2016 NACAC National Conference.
FALL OPEN HOUSE
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2016
Purchase, New York mville.edu/openhouse
NYSACAC Newsletter
A glimpse into How America Pays for College 2016
Fall, 2016
By Stephanie Stock Director of Business Development, Sallie Mae
Figuring out how to pay for college can be a challenge for your students and their families. They know other families are making college happen, but how? How America Pays for College 2016, the national study by Sallie Mae and Ipsos, explores how parents and students are funding college, the steps they’re taking to make college more affordable, the value they place on education, and more. The 2016 study reflects the results of interviews with 799 undergraduate students, ages 18-24, and 799 parents of 18-24 year-old undergraduates. Here are key findings: • Families spent less out-of-pocket for college in academic year 2015-16. By tapping more scholarships and grants, families were able to spend about $1,100 less from savings, income, and loans than in 2014-15. • Scholarships and grants were the top college-funding source. They covered 34% of college costs—the largest percentage of any resource in the last five years.
Fall ACT College & Career Readiness Workshops
• Nearly all families—98%—took at least one step to make college more affordable, and students are doing their part: 77% worked during the year, 62% cut personal spending, 49% lived at home, and 27% were working toward earning their degree faster. • Fewer than half of families borrowed last year. Borrowing by the student covered 13% of college costs, down from 16% in 2014-15. Parent borrowing covered seven percent, up from six percent the prior year. • Cost is a factor, but not the top factor. Sixty-seven percent of families narrowed
college choices based on cost, but when it came to making the final decision on where to attend, the primary reasons for choosing a college were split between academic program and personal choice (31% each), followed by cost (27%). Families firmly agreed on the value of college; 97% said higher education is an investment in their student’s future. An overwhelming majority of families, 90%, expected their student to earn at least a bachelor’s degree; 54% expected their student to earn a graduate degree. The study also found 88% of families were willing to stretch themselves financially to make college happen, and 83% felt confident they made the right decisions when choosing how to pay. See the full report and related infographic at SallieMae.com/ HowAmericaPaysForCollege, and join the conversation using #HowAmericaPays.
Reading Fiction Enhances Social Skills
By Gloria Rothenberg, Ph.D., School Psychologist Register today for The ACT Readiness Workshop, Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK High School A recent article in The Washington Such results have implications for the focus of our ACT College and Career Readiness Post (Kaplan, July 22nd, 2016) educational programming. Given Workshops this year. Learn in detail about updates describes research indicating that these serendipitous benefits of including:
readers of fiction tend to score higher on measures of empathy. As we read and imagine ourselves in characters’ experiences, this seems to increase our “theory of mind” and empathy for others.
reading fictional literature on social skills, we should carefully select fiction to be included in our curricula for English and Language Arts.
Keith Oatley, a cognitive scientist This free half-day, interactive workshop is also a great opportunity to meet with other professionals at the University of Toronto, reviewed (2016) over a decade of research to network and share ideas.
h t t p : // w w w . c e l l . c o m / t r e n d s / c o g n i t i v e - s c i e n c e s /p d f/ S13 6 4 6613(16)30070-5.pdf
The ACT® and enhanced reports PreACT® ACT Aspire® ACT Online Prep®, and other test prep offerings Click Here to Register
Upcoming Workshops: 10/24/16 Stony Brook: Stony Brook University - SUNY 10/25/16 Brooklyn: Marriott NY at the Brooklyn Bridge 10/26/16 Bronx: CUNY - Herbert H. Lehman College 10/27/16 Yonkers: Hampton Inn - Yonkers
on the impact of reading fiction on social cognition. He concluded that the immersive experience of putting oneself into the character’s point of view creates a greater understanding of others and activates areas of the brain that we use when engaging in real social interactions. Literary fiction seems to have the greater effect in contrast to genres like science fiction.
For further information, see Oatley’s review at:
In early August, admissions professionals and high school counselors from across the state came together for a week of Professional Development at the 30th Annual Summer Institute. The Institute gave participants the opportunity to learn best practices, share expertise, develop creative approaches to new and not-so-new problems, establish networks, and review ethical standards for our profession. We would like to thank our gracious hosts at the Skidmore College for providing a wonderful space for great conversations and relationship-building. We look forward to next year’s event!
Summer Institute Notes By the University of Rochester Admissions Counselors
The university of Rochester sent 7 new admissions counselors to NYSACAC Summer Institute and some would say, it was a #URTakeOver! Here’s what some of our counselors had to say about the program: “The biggest help for me was speaking with high school counselors to hear their concerns and get their perspective on the application process, especially in conjunction with how other schools might do it and what that means for them in terms of how they approach admissions counselors and the admissions process. It made me a lot more aware of the holistic app review process and realizing really how critical it is to communicate to them and the students.” –Sarah Gerin, Admissions Counselor “All in all, I’d have to say that I learned the most from the mentor group sessions. I hadn’t seen a Common Application or even thought about the SATs in over ten years, so spending a significant amount of time reviewing each section of a student application was very helpful. It was also interesting to understand just how subjective the
admissions process can be based on who is reading the application and how a student’s acceptance is also dependent upon other student profiles in the applicant pool that year.” –Lisa Anthony, Admissions Counselor “I was most moved by the session that talked about students who lack the resources to learn about or apply to college. I want to make it more of my mission to connect with those students as I travel and assist them in any way I can in order to make their college search process a little easier. In our mentor groups, we all were tasked with admitting two students to our institution, “Webster College”, and I learned a great deal from the college counselors and CBOs in my group since most were from the NYC area. I learned to keep an open mind when assessing students for admission and to be mindful of what that student may bring to the university.” –Caroline Boron, Admissions Counselor “After attending the Nuts and Bolts workshop, I took a few key points away: Give yourself one hour between visits; have an outlier day to catch up on emails, notes, etc.; seeing kids is a bonus,
speaking with the counselor about new majors, changes, past students is where it’s at; you can/will meet parents at college fairs; take pictures of your receipt; get an EZ-Pass; call the school if you’re going to be late; be nice to administrative assistants; the faster you call someone who is upset back, the less mad they’ll be—also some truth in giving them time to cool down. Sometimes they just need to vent… understand that.” –Kayon Ellis, Admissions Counselor Each admissions staff member took some major points away from the conference and we found it to be a wonderful bonding experience. (Some of us weren’t even on the job for one week yet!)
2016 NYSACAC Summer Institute By Ted Mallwitz, Admissions Counselor Hilbert College
Developing a strong knowledge base and skill set is essential for success in higher education. Often new professionals in enrollment are “thrown to the wolves,� in many cases lacking the preparation to be effective counselors. The NYSACAC Summer Institute provided a thorough introduction to concepts, best practices, and current issues in enrollment that will better prepare those who are new to the field. The workshops and information sessions covered many key topics such as the college selection process for students, ethics, financial aid, social media, and how to plan ahead in building a career in higher education. I had completed my first year in admissions prior to attending the Summer Institute and I absolutely see
the value of this experience. I feel that it would have been extremely beneficial for me if I had attended such an event prior to my first year as a counselor. A coworker new to admissions attended the event with me and I am confident that this experience empowered her with the knowledge that she will need in order to be an effective counselor. The Summer Institute also created the opportunity for admissions counselors to connect with high school counselors and counselors from community based organizations (CBOs). Often we forget that we are just one part of a larger ecosystem of education, but having the opportunity to speak with these counselors proved insightful as to the secondary education side of the college
enrollment process and the ways in which we in admissions can better serve students through collaboration. I am confident that the Summer Institute helped me expand my knowledge of enrollment and allowed me to build upon my professional network in the field. I feel that attending such events is essential for the success of admissions counselors, high school counselors, and CBO counselors. It is my hope that NYSACAC continues to build upon their success with these events for future professionals in the field.
NYSACAC Newsletter
Fall, 2016
Intentionally or not, favoring the wealthy on college campuses By Danielle Jakob College Access & Persistence Counselor at Success Academy HS of the Liberal Arts
Five years ago, I visited a wellestablished New England preparatory school to meet with a handful of wideeyed, bushy-tailed seniors and their college counselor. I, too, was freshfaced, having just begun my new job as an admissions counselor at the most selective women’s college in the nation. This was one of my first recruitment trips and the first of many schools I would visit that day, that week, and that year. This particular high school had doublebooked my visit with a large university in the South – not rare, since the high schools with the best reputations are typically the most swamped with visit requests. The representative and I walked together to the college counseling office, where we were told that there were no students to meet with either of us. Though the goal at these visits was to court prospective students – it was considered a bust if no one showed up to see me – I was always grateful for no-shows, as it allowed me to spend more time catching up with college counselors. (When you spend most of your day talking to 17-year-olds about dining halls and dorms, you welcome the supposed detour to talk shop with someone your own age.) The other representative and I sat down with the college counselor and shared updates about our campuses. Barnard had just unveiled plans to build a new library; her university was about to announce an aggressive campaign to increase diversity on campus. “We’ve been trying to make campus a more welcoming place for students of color and we’re going hard after low-income kids,” she touted. “We also need more full pay boys from New England, so send ‘em my way!” I listened, confused, as the college counselor roared in laughter and smirked, “Oh, good to know. We’ve got tons of those, don’t worry.”
I chuckled too, but my brows furrowed on the inside. Didn’t these two institutional priorities conflict with one another? The very populations this university aggressively recruited inhabited vastly different worlds, worlds that were embodied in their high school experience: some high schools had squash courts and stables in spades; others lacked even the most basic facilities. As I became a more seasoned admissions officer, tensions like these became more and more obvious. They stood at the crux of our work – colleges are businesses, after all, and whether by will or by fiscal obligation they bring in full-pay kids to be able to afford full-need kids. I now work as a college counselor at a high-performing charter school in Manhattan and all but a few of the students I counsel belong to this second demographic. They will be sought after to fulfill the vague institutional priority entitled “diversity” and to negate the homogeneity upon which our nation’s oldest institutions were founded. Admissions representatives will recruit my students with an eye toward diversity—rightfully so—and recruit others in the interest of financial security. This is not a choice. (In an ideal world, we would have prevented slavery, desegregated districts and schools, and broken cycles upon cycles of poverty. Colleges are working hard to undo the repercussions of those systemic failures, but they must be wealthy enough themselves to do so.) From our seats at the committee table around which all admissions decisions were voted upon, my colleagues and I at Barnard had the privilege of getting to know the common fears and joys of our applicant pool. And when we spoke to auditoriums full of students and their parents about the benefits of
a private liberal arts education, we had the privilege of assuring our audiences that Barnard was need-blind in its admissions process and met 100% of financial need for its admitted students. Issues around money still arose, either in person or subtly, via the application itself. Rare was the student who wrote so blatantly about her socioeconomic status in an essay, but the struggles were still clear. Parents of all income levels voiced concerns about being able to afford college. Low-income families had plenty to worry about. Highincome families found plenty to worry about. Families in the middle were quick to label themselves as such, with the common fear that they were too rich to receive need-based aid, yet too poor to pay full freight without incurring disproportionate debt. A 2013 study by Professor Jason Houle of Dartmouth College revealed that college students from middle-income families were more likely to shoulder student loan debt than their peers from either end of the socioeconomic spectrum. Young adults from the higher-middle-income bracket in Houle’s study reported 30% more debt than their peers in the lowest income bracket; young adults from the lowermiddle-income bracket reported 59% more debt. What it means to be middle class varies across cities and states, but the Pew Charitable Trust defines it as households that earn between twothirds to twice a state’s median income; by this definition, a family in Manhattan making up to around $115,000 is considered middle class. Yet given the exorbitant cost of living in New York City, one could argue that this amount is not nearly enough to maintain a nofrills middle-class lifestyle. At Barnard, it was typically families in this so-called middle-class bracket who ended up with the heaviest loans. Continued on next page
NYSACAC Newsletter
Fall, 2016
Favoring the wealthy, continued. What I intuited at Barnard was that the ever-growing rich-poor divide was giving way to a disappearing middle class on campus. A Pew Research Center analysis of data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors found that median income has grown more at the far ends of the income spectrum than in the middle; according to their report, the percentage of Americans constituting the middle class has shrunk from 61% in 1971 to 50% in 2015. An analysis from Pew Charitable Trusts’ Stateline blog affirmed that the middle class shrunk in every state in the United States between 2000 and 2013. At Barnard, we had the privilege to confront this swelling disparity by helping to handpick our community, one by one, but we didn’t have much to work with: middle-income Americans no longer represent our country’s majority and I sensed this in our applicant pool. Yielding the middle-income students who did apply was a battle we often lost either to private colleges with more robust endowments or to public colleges with markedly lower tuition rates. Even in our relatively comfortable selectivity bracket and rank, we couldn’t compete with those colleges for middle-income students. Our peer institutions faced similar problems. As a sad result, their campuses remained polarized along not just racial lines but economic ones as well. Still, it was a luxury to be able to select from a highly accomplished applicant pool replete with perfect GPAs and astonishing extracurricular activities. The outcomes follow that the highest achieving middleincome students will be admitted to colleges deemed “most selective,” which, in turn, happen to be the most generous when it comes to need-based financial aid. ‘A’ students are also the ones who earn merit-based scholarships at “more selective” schools like Clark University or Rutgers University, where they will thrive and likely graduate with minimal debt. High ‘B’ students might be lucky to fall into this bracket as well, if they help to fulfill an institutional priority or carry legacy.
Colleges struggling to enroll middleincome students are faced with a nearimpossible predicament: reduce financial aid for lower-income students, raise tuition for higher-income students, or simply shift the focus away from the middle entirely and toward the extreme ends of the socioeconomic ladder. For obvious reasons, these options are unfeasible (and immoral). A more realistic and even easier option would be for colleges to streamline their often bloated and outdated administrations and reallocate more funds away from shiny new buildings and toward a more robust financial aid budget. The $450 million that funded the renovation of one university’s football stadium in 2015 could have covered full tuition, and then some, for 10,000 students there. Our nation’s most well-known, and sometimes richest, universities are always embarking on ambitious expansion plans, yet many remain notorious for failing to meet students’ financial need in a practice known as “gapping.” In his bid for the Presidency, Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont wooed collegeaged voters with a plea for free tuition at public institutions. Representative Tom Reed of New York has proposed that the wealthiest private universities use their endowments to lower tuition drastically. While we can applaud these politicians for confronting issues of college access, the onus must also be on the colleges themselves, especially as fiscal support is declining from the state and federal governments, leaving colleges like the one I encountered little choice but to hike up tuition and go after full-pay students. Politicians have the power to change student loan structures in a way that more directly benefits the lower and middle classes, but colleges have the power, and responsibility, to lessen the load for the neediest families in the first place, and to actively enroll and support a socioeconomically diverse student body. The federal government ought to incentivize this effort and reward colleges that recruit, enroll, and graduate a certain percentage of low- and middle-income
students. President Obama proposed a version of this plan, entitled “College Opportunity and Graduation Bonus,” in 2014, but it has failed to excite Congress. It is hard to believe that college campuses have become economically polarized by choice; surely, no college president would choose to contribute to the $1.2 trillion national student loan debt as reported by the Economist in 2014. Colleges that do have the choice—in other words, those with the capital—are generally doing the best job at serving the underserved (ironically, these tend to be the same colleges that were initially founded to serve the wealthy elite). And yet sometimes, unconscionably, institutional priorities are elsewhere. In reality, the majority of our nation’s colleges and universities have neither the capital nor the prestige to attract and yield an applicant pool that reflects America’s true socioeconomic or racial diversity. But lack of resources is a poor excuse when other factors are within the administration’s control. Why not hire only presidents who make a commitment to aggressive fundraising for financial aid and promise to make this a priority over shiny new buildings? Why not do away with merit aid, which is typically awarded to lure wealthy students, and instead award that money to students who could not otherwise afford to attend? Why not do as Berea College has done and reduce outside operating costs by employing its own students around campus? Whether by choice or not, the gap between the rich and poor is growing larger and larger on college campuses and colleges must confront it. The government must, too, support, enforce, and reward efforts toward access for low- and middleincome students. College can only be the great leveler of society we want it to be if the enrollment and success of students most in need of upward mobility are institutional priorities.
F
FALL EVENTCALENDAR OCTOBER
October 16, 2016 : NYSACAC Regional College Fair 1:00pm-3:00pm @ St. John’s University-Staten Island October 19, 2016 : Final Presidential Debate October 24, 2016 : CACNY’S 5th Annual NYS Opportunity Fair 10:00am-12:00pm @ SUNY Welcome Center, 33 West 42nd Street, New York, NY October 24, 2016 : The ACT Readiness Workshop @ Stony Brook University-SUNY October 25, 2016 : The ACT Readiness Workshop @ Marriott-NY at the Brooklyn Bridge October 26, 2016 : The ACT Readiness Workshop @ CUNYHerbert H Lehman College, Bronx October 27, 2016 : The ACT Readiness Workshop @ Hampton Inn-Yonkers October 28, 2016 : Smart Scholars Early College High School College Admissions Forum 9:00am-12:00pm @ New York State Education Building, 89 Washington Avenue, Albany, NY
NOVEMBER
November 8, 2016 : General Election November 17, 2016 : Pine Tree Admission Consorium Luncheon for School/College Counselors Albany, NY
SAVE THE DATE
June 6-7, 2017 : NYSACAC 20th Coming Together Conference SUNY Geneseo June 7, 2017: NYSACAC Middle Management Institute SUNY Geneseo June 7-9 : NYSACAC 39th Annual Conference @ SUNY Geneseo
Attention NYSACAC College Members
On behalf of the Smart Scholars Early College High School, NYSACAC admission officers are invited to the Smart Scholars ECHS College Admissions Forum to learn more about the program and what Smart Scholars students are achieving through the program. There are 24 Smart Scholars programs in New York, including programs at Bard High School Early College, Albany High School, and the schools listed at: http://online.flipbuilder.com/eciw/chqo/#p=8 Admissions officers will be able to share information about their college application process as well. Please attend the Forum on: Friday October 28th 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. New York State Education Building 89 Washington Avenue, Albany, NY 12234
Updates from the Government Relations Committee: Brian Culligan & Daryl Hornick-Becker, Co-chairs
Make Your Voice Heard Your vote this election matters more than ever
No one would say this election season has been boring. In the midst of this chaotic and at times unbelievable election cycle, it’s easy to lose sight of the real-world issues that truly impact our profession, our institutions, and most importantly our students. Participating in the upcoming primaries, presidential election and state elections has never been more important. Higher education and paying for college became a major platform this year for both parties. Both presidential candidates have proposed various methods to help students afford the cost of higher education, including free community college and refinancing student loans. Regardless of whether or not their plans are enacted, their positions in addition to the growing public interest can easily influence future legislation. In congress this past year we
witnessed the introduction of priorprior year tax information and sweeping changes with the passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act. This year even more landmark legislation will be under consideration, including reducing the number of questions on the FAFSA and increasing resources for HBCUs, not to mention the entire Higher Education Act which is up for renewal. Your congressmen and senators will have a major role in shaping this legislation, and 34 senators and all of the representatives in the house will be up for election this November. At the local level you can have even more of an impact. The New York State Dream Act, which enables undocumented students to receive state aid, was once again passed by the NYS Assembly and will be considered by the State Senate come September. An assembly bill to examine counselor-student ratios and another to make a guidance counselor
in every school mandatory are both set to be reviewed this upcoming legislative session. Your vote matters to your local representatives, and all 63 New York State senate seats and 150 assembly seats will be up for election this November. NYSACAC urges you to make your voice heard. Find out how your representatives stand on the issues that matter to you and stay up to date on the important upcoming election dates. Your vote this year could have lasting effects on college access, affordability and the higher education landscape. Don’t miss your chance to truly have an impact. Important Dates: October 14th - Voter Registration Deadline for General Election (Register at www.nysacac.org) October 19th - Final Presidential Debate November 8th - General Election
It’s a wrap!
The first NYSACAC Middle Management Institute is in the books! Lauren Sangimino, Vice President for Professional Development & Planning
NYSACAC recently wrapped up its first Middle Management Conference Track at the 2016 Annual Conference. We would like to thank those who participated, especially our presenters: Jeff Bates Ann Fleming Brown David Coates Heidi Greene Peter Hagan
Jane Mathias Rodney Morrison Patty Peek Kent Reinhardt Greg Wasserman
We look forward to offering more opportunities for Middle Managers at the 2017 Annual Conference at SUNY Geneseo. There will be some changes made to the program and it will run as a pre-conference workshop on Wednesday, June 7, 2017. Be sure to check the conference website when registration opens!
Scholarship Committee Updates From Co-Chairs Patrick O’Neill and Carla Shere
Although the NYSACAC Scholarship deadline is not until May 1, we are already planning for the year ahead by recruiting Scholarship Committee members. The primary responsibility of committee members is actually fun, because we are charged to give away money! The committee is looking for professionals willing to serve our organization by reading and reviewing the scholarship applications that young people put forth from
member institutions. It is a wonderful way to support these students in New York State. If you would like to join us in the process, please reach out to Scholarship Committee Co-Chairs, Patrick O’Neill from the University of Rochester or Carla Shere from Columbia Secondary School for Math, Science and Engineering. They can each be reached at scholarship@ nysacac.org.
NYSACAC Newsletter
Fall, 2016
Student Leaders in Admissions Forum celebrates fourth annual event Annemarie Cervoni & Lisa Searle, Co-chairs
On Saturday, September 10, student leaders and professional staff from across New York State gathered at the University at Albany for a day of idea sharing and networking for the fourth annual Student Leaders in Admissions Forum. The Forum gave participants the chance to develop creative approaches to the challenges we face, share ideas on recruiting and training student ambassadors, learn more about making a career in college admissions, and share expertise related to the work we do. We would like to thank our gracious hosts at the University at Albany for providing a wonderful space for great conversations and relationship building. We look forward to next year’s event! Christina Sutphen, Associate Director of Admissions at St. Bonaventure University Julie Curran, Lead Student Ambassador and senior at St. Bonaventure University Ellen Piper, Lead Student Ambassador and senior at St. Bonaventure University As the Associate Director of Admissions this is my third year supervising the student ambassadors program at St. Bonaventure and my sixth year supervising student employees in general. It is both a challenging and rewarding experience. Student employees are eager and green to learn, though they can also get pulled in many different directions between school work, social activities and other academic endeavors. So it is important to show them that we appreciate them and want to invest in their learning,
which is why I appreciate the opportunity to bring students to conferences, especially a conference designed for them. This is the second year St. Bonaventure has gone to the Student Leaders in Admissions Forum, and I think the rewards are two fold, both for the student leaders and for administrators. I am able to connect with other administrators that supervise student ambassadors and tour guides and hear what is working for them, what they are struggling with and borrow ideas from each other. After attending the workshop last year, I was able to hear many ideas that might work for St. Bonaventure, and in fact I was able to modify parts of a program that I heard about during a presentation. The atmosphere is collegial and open, making networking and discussion easy. Our students were able to present this year on different initiatives that we have put into place for student staff training. It gave them an outlet to express the passion and dedication they have given our student ambassador program for the past year. Here’s what they had to say: Attending this conference allowed us as Lead Ambassadors to
meet with other student leaders in Admissions and discuss what we do that works and address things that we could improve. It was interesting to hear from other schools about the structure of their programs and how they handle similar issues. We were able to take away a few ideas to improve the way we answer tough questions, run events as student leaders, and communicate with professional staff. We also had the opportunity to present on how we have adopted the Welcome to College mission into our new and returning Ambassador trainings. Overall, we are excited to implement some of the ideas we gained from workshops we attended. It is great to be a part of an organization like NYSACAC that understands the importance of building student leaders and continuing to support professional staff growth.
LET’S GO to
CAMP
Camp college program continues to thrive Amber Long & Beverly Santos, Co-Chairs
Camp College is rewarding for the soul! benefits of adjusting to college. – Camp College Committee Member When the heavy storm came on and Mentor Saturday it graced us all day with Camp College was a small glimpse its presence. The team at Potsdam at how college will be...and how I showed that they were prepared will interact with people that I am for anything and made the best of not familiar with in little over a year staying inside for all of our activities, from now. This was something out a task only a veteran like Tom of my comfort zone, but I need to Nesbitt could lead! The students and push myself because I won’t always mentors remained positive and still be given the “safe option”-Bronx actively participated in workshops on finding the right college match, Charter Prep, Class of 2017 financial aid and simulated courses For the past fifteen years, NYSACAC from volunteer college faculty. has hosted Camp College, a threeThe following week at Canisius day-two-night summer college access and preparation program for College was filled with sunshine students from underrepresented and and a different group of enthusiastic underserved communities. Not only students, most of whom made does Camp College serve its students, the eight-hour bus trip from New but it is also a fruitful professional York City. Highlights at the Canisius development opportunity for the session included tours of the Buffalo college admission, high school campus, an interactive African counseling, and community based dance and drumming presentation organization professionals who (an experience our students and donate their time to volunteer as mentors will never forget) and the traditional trip to Niagara Falls. mentors for the programs. Here In addition to the workshops This year, SUNY Potsdam and and faculty-led courses, the most Canisius College hosted successful back-to-back summer camp sessions powerful moments of Camp College were the small group in July. mentor sessions that take place Although the rainy weather tried to throughout the weekend. Teams dampen the spirits at SUNY Potsdam, of college admission, community nearly 90 students from the Syracuse based organization professionals and New York City areas were still and high school counselors lead treated to the gracious hospitality of the mentor groups. They often the North Country. After checking in reported learning a great on Friday, the students immediately deal from working with the got comfortable in their residence students and each other hall rooms, met their roommates, at camp and developed unpacked their belongings and a greater appreciation for anticipated how the weekend would our profession through go. Our opening session alone their participation in the foreshadowed the student-centered program. workshops each young scholar would experience. The Potsdam The Camp College program Orientation leaders volunteered their served nearly 175 students time to present skits on college living this summer and offered and stuck around to address student a dynamic professional questions about the challenges and development opportunity
for over 50 college counseling and admissions professionals. If you have ever wondered about Camp College or considered getting involved, the time is now! The Camp College planning committee is looking for members who are ready to devote time to implementing positive changes to improve an already-excellent program. The team is grateful to the hosts who have offered their campuses and time year after year to help make Camp College a success. Hofstra University graciously prints the Camp College program book every year and many campuses within and outside of NYSACAC contribute to Camp by sending swag for our student participants, raffle prizes and supplies. We look forward to continuing to be the standard bearer for Camp College programs across the country. See you next summer at Canisius College and SUNY Delhi! For more information on Camp College, please visit www.nysacac. org/campcollege or contact co-directors Beverly J. Santos, Uncommon Charter High School or Amber N. Long, THINK Global School at camp.college@nysacac.org.
FOLLOW US ON: Make sure to use #NYSACAC at upcoming events! Don’t miss your chance to advertise in our next issue. Submit your advertisement today. Special discounts for multiple ads. Save up to 15%. Our next advertisement submission deadline is January 15, 2017. Share your ideas, research, news briefs, announcements, upcoming events and insights with your fellow NYSACAC members. Get involved and submit an article for the next NYSACAC newsletter. Newsletter Committee: Sara Robinson, Co-Chair Associate Director of Admissions & Advisement University at Buffalo School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Daniel Shanley, Co-Chair Sr. Assistant Director of Student Affairs & Enrollment Management Communications Utica College Sheryl Kavanagh, Committee School Counselor Grand Island High School Christine Loo, Committee Director of College Counseling The Stony Brook School Christine Rivas-Laline, Committee School Counselor Plainview Old-Bethpage John F. Kennedy High School
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