KYACAC President

Allie Kerns

College Counselor (A-K), Trinity High School

Greetings, KYACAC!

My name is Allie Kerns, and I am the 2018-2019 President for the Kentucky Association for College Admission Counseling (KYACAC). We are one of 23 affiliates across the world for the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC). As I have learned more about NACAC and the other affiliates, my belief that KYACAC and NACAC will positively impact your day-to-day work has grown stronger. NACAC and KYACAC provide you with the ability to network with school counselors, college admissions counselors, and other professionals; to share best practices; and to learn how to best advocate for our students. If you are not already a member of KYACAC and NACAC, I strongly encourage you to join. Let’s work together to promote college access and help our students succeed.

Key upcoming opportunities:

• 2018 New Counselor Workshop: Location TBD in Louisville, KY on September 6.
• 2018 College Counseling Information Exchange (CCIE): Spalding University in Louisville, KY on September 7.
• 2018 Louisville National College Fair: Bellarmine University in Louisville on September 8.
• 2018 NACAC Conference: Salt Lake City, UT from September 27-29.
• 2019 KYACAC Annual Conference: Location TBD in March 2019.

Did you know that members of KYACAC can receive grants to pay for their attendance at professional development events like NACAC, CCIE, and the State Conference?  Furthermore, we provide EILA credit for those who attend.  KYACAC sets aside $5000 in money each year to support counselors who wish to attend conferences but face funding challenges – really, and there’s no catch.  In fact, we hope that it’s reason enough to inspire your involvement in the organization and your efforts to provide support to students with whom you work.  You simply need to be a member to take advantage of these funds.  NACAC also offers additional grant opportunities. I am currently serving on the NACAC Imagine Grant committee and have not seen an application from KYACAC yet! The application will open soon for the 2019 year. If you’ve ever wanted to take advantage of KYACAC’s annual conference, NACAC’s conference, GWI, or create a new program in KYACAC, then please APPLY! If you have questions, I am more than happy to assist you with any of these funding opportunities.

I have always been fortunate to work at places that support my involvement with KYACAC and NACAC. However, I understand that many of you may not have that support at your home institution or high school. Regardless, I encourage you to become involved, even if you have to fight for it. In our profession, our goal is to serve our students. We cannot do that unless we are learning and collaborating with each other. Given the current climate surrounding education, we need to work together, now more than ever. Excuses not to be involved are no longer an option. You can make the time by planning ahead. We can help find ways to fund you – all you have to do is ask.

Without a doubt, my involvement with both organizations has positively impacted my ability to do my job. Each moment that I am doing something with or for KYACAC or NACAC, I learn something new. Whether it is information to take back to the KYACAC leadership team to move our organization forward, or information on new ways to reach and assist my students, my involvement has kept me nimble in my ability to adapt. I am a firm believer that doing things the same way “because they’ve always been done that way” is not a valid excuse. We cannot be afraid to try new things. Further, colleagues that I have met through KYACAC and NACAC have become a second family to me. These people have influenced my life and have helped me become a better college counselor. We all need that support system.

Benefits of being a member of KYACAC and NACAC:

• As an organization, we are able to lobby both at the state and national levels for causes surrounding college counseling.
• As a member of NACAC, I have the ability to find accurate information quickly about a given subject within college counseling, I can access resources often at a discounted or free rate, and I have access to a mailing group of members from around the world that can answer any questions I have regarding college counseling.
• The relationships I have with my college representatives allows me to speak on behalf of my students with them in a more direct manner, it allows me to find out information about colleges much more quickly, and it adds legitimacy to what I tell students as I counsel them because I have access to the most current information as well as direct contact with admissions staff. 
• The PD opportunities, whether it is at State Conference, our fall College-Counselor Information Exchange (CCIE) in Louisville, or our New Counselor and Admissions Professional Workshops, as well as the National Conference each fall, allow me to gain knowledge to keep current on college admissions issues and trends.
• Access to the KYACAC sanctioned college fair calendar.
• The ability to be a voice for our students.

This is a short list of benefits that being a member of KYACAC and NACAC offers. I hope that you will consider joining. Or, if you’re already a member, becoming an active participant – we have some upcoming initiatives for which we need your assistance. I encourage you to visit www.kyacac.org or www.nacacnet.org for more information on membership and what the organizations do. I hope to see you very soon. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or any members of the leadership team.

Best,

Allie Kerns

College Counselor (A-K), Trinity High School

President, Kentucky Association for College Admission Counseling