College Counseling Back on the Road

ESJ counselors are taking advantage of the opportunity to travel again to colleges and universities for visits after COVID shut many campuses, to national or regional conferences, and for advisory board meetings. 

All three ESJ college counselors recently returned from Orlando where they attended the Southern Association for College Admissions Counseling (SACAC) annual conference.  This year was the first time the conference was held in person in two years.  Julie Carter, Ryan Riggs, and Andrea Rizzi used the conference as an opportunity to network with colleagues from both colleges and high schools from around the Southeast.  For example, Julie teamed up with Allyson Diljohn from Berkeley Preparatory School in Tampa to present a breakout session on moving from ideas to implementation. Ryan received an award from SACAC highlighting his commitment to mentoring younger college counselors new to the profession. In Orlando Julie had private tours of both UCF and Rollins College. This spring Andrea also visited the American University in Paris, which paid for all of her expenses to attend the informative tour. 

In addition, ESJ counselors serve as admissions advisors on three independent consulting boards. Julie serves on the admissions advisory board at the University of Georgia, Ryan on the board at Furman University, and Andrea on the board at Samford University. Colleges use these advisory boards to improve every aspect of their admissions process, from the printed materials to the tours to the interviews.  ESJ counselors visit these schools at least once a year to consult with the Deans and Directors of the admissions offices. They also compare best practices for high school college counseling offices with the other college counselors who serve on the boards.

This summer the counselors have plans to continue to travel to visit schools across the country. Andrea also will attend the prestigious Fitzwilliam Conference, an invitation-only event held in New Hampshire.