Earlier this week, attendees at the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) 2019 annual meeting in Los Angeles spoke for the first time at a national event about the “Operation Varsity Blues” bribery scandal.
As part of a panel that included Tammy Aagard, associate vice president for enrollment management at the University of Florida and AACRAO board member, and Phil Ballinger, associate vice provost for enrollment management at the University of Washington, I had the opportunity to provide an update on NACAC’s activities to date, and to hear questions and concerns from the admission officers in attendance.
Celebrating our members and their accomplishments is a highlight of our work at NACAC. From receiving commendations to landing new jobs to publishing books about the admission process, NACAC members gave us a lot to cheer for in the first quarter of 2019.
The Phi Beta Kappa Society hosted a special extended episode of their Key Conversations podcast this week all about the bribery scandal.
Fred Lawrence, the secretary and CEO of Phi Beta Kappa, Andrew Flagel, a vice president at the American Association of Colleges and Universities, and David Hawkins, NACAC’s executive director for educational content and policy, spoke about the issues the recent scandal has brought to light.
A new effort to raise graduation rates for single moms enrolled in community college is officially underway.
Single moms are among the fastest growing populations on college campuses – more than 11 percent of college students – but only 28 percent of single moms graduate within six years.
Former second lady Jill Biden announced the Community College Women Succeed initiative in late February. The initiative will start with regional roundtables, actually talking with these single mothers, and building a support system from there.
All students participating in postsecondary education need effective self-advocacy and self-determination. However, it is even more essential for those with disabilities for obtain and utilize these skills.
According to a new brief from the National Center for Learning Disabilities, self-advocacy skills “include a person understanding themselves, their rights, and their needs, and communicating that understanding—leading to self-determination. Self-determination is a dispositional characteristic that enables a person to act in service of freely chosen goals and make or cause things to happen in their own life.”
Pictured: David Hawkins, NACAC’s executive director for educational content and policy, Daniel Saracino, retired dean of admission at Notre Dame (IN) and former NACAC president, and Mike Rose, NACAC’s director for government relations.
The recent bribery scandal has captured the attention of the media, the nation, and the US Congress.US Rep. Donna Shalala, a former president of the University of Miami (FL), hosted a Congressional briefing Thursday afternoon. The briefing was intended to inform members of the House Committee on Education and Labor and their staffs about the dynamics that led to the scandal, as well as broader concerns about access and equity in college admission.
As a college advisor at City-As-School High School, one of the largest and oldest schools designed to re-engage students who choose to transfer high schools, this month’s college admission scandal came as no surprise.
It’s not breaking news to me that the college admission process tends to favor those already privileged in society. I watch it play out every day, as my colleagues and I fight to get our students into college — and to convince our students that they deserve that opportunity.
Native American students are often left out of the college access equation, a new report found.
“Invisibility is in essence the modern form of racism used against Native Americans,” the report said. “It is this invisibility that leads to a college access and completion crisis among Native American students. When a student is invisible, his or her academic and social needs are not met. This leads to students feeling alienated and alone, derailing their matriculation and the realization of their dreams and potential.”
Numerous students transfer to another college and complete their degree program each year. Wanting to be closer to home, changing your major, not seeing the current school as good fit, and financial issues often factor into a transfer decision.
Before making a final decision, students should consider the following:
The Phi Beta Kappa Society hosted a special extended episode of their 
