Virtual Summer Institute - June 29-30, 2020 Session and Roundtable Schedule

Monday, June 29

Session 1 8:00 - 9:00 am PT / 11:00 am - 12:00 pm ET

Admissions Strategies for High Achieving, Low-Income, Black and Brown Students Danny Tejada, Villa Duchesne and Oak Hill School, St. Louis, MO We often hear about undermatching. Dig deeper into what this means, and learn about how to help high-achieving, low-income students make the most of their opportunities and options. In this workshop, we will talk about the importance of utilizing fly-in programs, test-optional admission, Early Decision and colleges that meet full demonstrated need in our work with these students. Recent changes in the college admission landscape will add more complexity to the process of helping our most vulnerable students become the changemakers they are meant to be and ensure their upward mobility.

Reframing The Reach: Fish Out of Water Jack Fitch, The Bolles School, Jacksonville, FL Julie Carter, Episcopal School of Jacksonville, Jacksonville, FL Using the concepts of "reach schools" and "best fit" schools, we plan to explore and discuss why reach schools can be a valuable part of the college search process. We will also discuss how counselors can navigate the conversations between students and families about why the "reach" schools might not be the "best fit" schools and might cause a student to feel like a “fish out of water.” Malcolm Gladwell’s book David and Goliath will serve as the framework for the conversation, but it is not necessary to have read it to participate!

Wham!, Mongolian Metal, Star Wars and the Ivy League, in the Time of Coronavirus Mark Moody, Shanghai American School, Puxi Campus, Shanghai, China Mindy Rose, Shanghai American School, Pudong Campus, Shanghai, China When the complexities of modern Chinese identity and aspirations cross paths with the accepted best practices of the American college search, things get interesting. Fanciful notions of “fit” fade against the powerful forces of familial expectation and limited familiarity with, context for, or nostalgia for the American college landscape and experience. We’ll explore surprising and entertaining reference points that will illuminate factors in the disconnect created when mindsets of counselors, admission officers, and heritage Chinese students come together in the college search. In addition to discussing methods we have used to expand this conversation, we’ll invite participants to share their best practices.

1 Session 2 10:00 - 11:00 am PT / 1:00 - 2:00 pm ET

Maintaining Professional Ethics in a Post-DOJ World Matt Lane, Branson School, Ross CA Jonah O’Hara, St. Stephen’s Episcopal School, Austin, TX With recent changes to NACAC’s Code of Ethics of Professional Practices (CEPP), we’ve already seen a glimpse of what a future without CEPP might look like. And, according to many idealists in the profession, it isn’t pretty. Can ACCIS members and the colleges we work with, most of whom are NACAC members, stay true to a moral compass in a dynamic industry that incentivizes practices that do not serve all students? What have we lost already, what rumblings are we hearing, and are there any silver linings? How can we help to keep actors from behaving badly? Please join members of the regional and national NACAC Admission Practices committees as we discuss the past, present, and future of topics that range from Early Decision to May 1 to Waitlists.

A New Twist On An Old Tradition: The College Fair Gets a Makeover Rosanna Llorens, Director of College Counseling, Sequoyah School, Pasadena, CA (7/1/20) Jordan Studevan, St. Mark’s School, Southborough MA We hail from two very different schools, representing the east and west coasts, a traditional boarding and a progressive day school. We have each hosted an "Anonymous College Fair" but in distinctly different ways. In this workshop, we will share our respective formats for hosting this non-traditional, low-cost college fair, which forces students to evaluate schools and engage with admissions professionals without knowing the name of the college or university, thereby allowing students to be more open to the diversity of post-secondary institutions available to them.

Profiles, Grade Distributions, SSRs - Oh MY! Ellen O'Neill Deitrich, The Hill School, Pottstown, PA Jeff Fuller, Strake Jesuit College Prep, Houston, TX Jim Rawlins, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR This session will examine how and why colleges use secondary school documents such as profiles, grade distributions and school reports when reviewing student applicants. What makes each of these documents effective in terms of presenting the most accurate picture of your school community? How can college counselors ensure we are sharing information in a way that is most transparent and effective, clearly demonstrating the unique and important aspects of our schools?

The Psychology of Disappointment: The Emotional Value of Risk-Taking, Regret, and Hearing "No" Janet Weller, Roland Park Country School, Baltimore, MD Robert Awkward, Marin Academy, San Rafael, CA As counselors, it is easily the best part of our job to hear our students receive a “YES” in the college admission process. We balance lists and share statistics to lead the college-bound and their families toward informed choices that maximize success. Could we be doing more, however, to encourage growth from opportunities for risk taking, even if it may end in a denial? Is there a part we can play in building resilience if we allow – or even encourage – our students to hear “NO,” too? In this session, guided by books like Jess Lahey’s Gift of Failure, Carol Dweck’s Mindset, and Nassim Nicholas Taleb's Antifragile, along with peer-reviewed psychological research, we will explore how humans experience disappointment, the taxes and benefits of it emotionally, and how we can help students to navigate this part of the process to come out stronger and more prepared to step into independence.

Affinity Roundtables 11:30 - 12:30 pm PT / 2:30 - 3:30 pm ET The affinity group Roundtable sessions provide an opportunity for discussions within safe and supportive spaces defined by membership in a specific identity group. These are identity, NOT ally spaces. Roundtable discussions will NOT be recorded.

Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Counselors

Black, African Heritage Counselors

Latinx Heritage Counselors

White European Heritage Counselors talking Anti-racism

Roundtables 1:00 - 2:00 pm PT / 4:00 - 5:00 pm ET Roundtables are facilitated discussions among members to collaborate in finding solutions to issues and to crowdsource best practices. Topics for discussion are listed below; choose one to attend. Roundtable discussions will NOT be recorded.

Communicating with School Heads and Boards during a time of rapid change in college admission.

Reading the Fall Leaves -- Directing energy, focusing intention and listening to the universe speak about back to school practices (in other words, what the heck does fall look like?)

Advising on predictable outcomes ("reach," "possible," "likely" in an unpredictable world)

3 Tuesday, June 30

Session 1 8:00 - 9:00 am PT / 11:00 am - 12:00 pm ET

Counseling Gen Z - The New Student Support Model Jamie Nestor, Poly Prep Country Day School, Brooklyn, NY Alexis Perez, Poly Prep Country Day School, Brooklyn, NY Digital Natives. Zoomers. Generation Snowflake. Whatever you like to call them, Gen Z has now filled our classrooms. They come to the table with different needs - more stress and depression, craving face-to-face interactions away from their online personas, and with a diversity of being we’ve not yet faced. How do we counsel students in a way that is supportive yet trusting, meeting their needs and helping them grow from the moment they cross the high school threshold? The deans model of student support has become the foundation for college discussions at our school, building on the existing trust and addressing the needs of this generation. Learn about this model and how you can bring some of our practices back to enhance your counseling offices.

Engaging Teaching Principles in College Counseling Jim Mahoney, The Blake School, Minneapolis, MN Beth O'Brien Dreihaus, The Seven Hills School, Cincinnati, OH A panel of hybrid college counselors/teachers representing a range of subjects, backgrounds, and perspectives will share how we incorporate best practices of classroom teaching into our work in college advising to better advise, support, and inspire deeper learning in our students. This session is less concerned with how our teaching backgrounds help in leading college seminars for students or hosting parent presentations, but rather how teaching pedagogy and classroom techniques inspire and influence our individual and family college counseling work. We will engage data from ACCIS and share specific resources and "moves" borrowed from our classrooms, with a larger goal to improve understanding and demonstrate commonality between teaching faculty and college counselors.

What's in a List? Lead the Conversation about Reframing Outcomes on Your Campus Aaron Fulk, Marin Academy, San Rafael, CA Amy Rogers, Miss Porter’s School, Farmington, CT As college counselors, we are uncomfortable with college admissions lists being used to summarize the outcome of an independent school experience. Yet, the majority of ACCIS schools publish college matriculation lists in marketing and admissions materials to prospective families. In an age of sky-rocketing school tuitions, the return on investment question is a fair and legitimate concern for prospective and current families to be asking. Learn how two Directors of College Counseling, informed by NAIS data from the "Jobs to be Done" research about the new independent school parent, are teaching their communities how to define outcomes in a way that reimagines the value of our communities.

The Write Way: Sharing Your Professional Voice Brennan Barnard, The Derryfield School, Manchester, NH Sam Bigelow, Middlesex School, Concord, MA As college counselors we are uniquely poised to create connections among students, families, colleagues and the greater public. During this interactive session we will explore the messages participants are eager to share. We will provide guidance and space for jump starting a piece of writing that has been percolating and offer prompts for writing that participants were not even aware needed to emerge. We will share our work and highlight strategies for getting writing published.

Session 2 10:00 - 11:00 am PT / 1:00 - 2:00 pm ET

Knowing and Telling Student Stories Bruce Wolanin, Pomfret School, Pomfret, CT "The shortest distance between two people is a story," says educator Patti Digh. This session will focus on learning student stories as a caring adult and as a college counselor, then telling those stories in a meaningful way to colleges. Become better at developing trust with students -- perhaps by telling your own story -- and helping them realize how exciting their college search can be. Get strategies for establishing a school-wide culture of storytelling. Finally, learn more about translating student stories into authentic narratives and helping students tell their stories in their college applications.

Minimize Debt, Maximize ROI: A Counselor's Toolkit for Financial Aid Kyle Graham, Poly Prep Country Day School, Brooklyn, NY Brook Wolcott, Cannon School, Concord, NC Student debt has both immediate and long-term effects on the students and families who accumulate it. After discussing the impact of debt, presenters will share an easily digestible overview of the financial aid landscape in higher education. We'll introduce a framework for engaging families in conversations about cost, fit, and balancing priorities in the search and selection process.

Serving Students or Gaming the System? Moira McKinnon, Berwick Academy, South Berwick, ME Radha Mishra, Hun School of Princeton, Princeton, NJ NACAC's Code of Ethics and Professional Practices (CEPP) has lost some of its most important provisions that held colleges, counselors, and students accountable for making reasonable and ethical decisions. Students for Fair Admissions vs. Harvard is under appeal, and has brought to light the concept of "rich kid affirmative action" in legacy and athletic admits. How do we hold on to principles and also educate our families about the impact of these realities? Should we encourage families with financial need to take advantage of potential poaching offers? Create stronger policies within our institutions that reflect our school's values? How do we support middle income families who feel unsupported by colleges offering only need-based awards? Join this open conversation about wellness and integrity in this new environment.

The Enneagram: Learning the nine personality types or styles and counseling accordingly Julie Carter, Episcopal School of Jacksonville, Jacksonville, FL Robert Awkward, Marin Academy, San Rafael, CA Pam Ambler, Pace Academy, Atlanta, GA What the heck is the Enneagram? Come for an introduction to the Enneagram of Personality and learn the nine interconnected personalities that transcend culture and time. How might understanding your Enneagram type, key motivators, and key fears improve your counseling practices? How can understanding your student’s Enneagram type better inform your college counseling, increase your empathy, and cultivate an authentic and individualized college selection process? Attendees should complete a cursory personality type assessment prior to the session at: https://assessment.yourenneagramcoach.com

Greater Middle Eastern Heritage Counselors

Indigenous/First Nation Heritage Counselors

LGBTQ+ Counselors

Multiracial Heritage Counselors

Supporting International Students in Covid Times

Tweaking programs, presentations, rep visits, and strategies for a virtual fall

Creating city-wide networking groups for college counselors to share college admissions news, strategies, and advocate for students on the local level.

How are folks communicating with students? E-Mails don't seem to be as effective in this environment. What are some strategies for keeping students up to date with all the coronavirus based changes to the admission landscape.