by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA

Three quotes made it to my desk in the days since returning from the NACAC conference in Baltimore. Two are from chief college admission representatives and the other from a national talk radio program.

Following the lunch for IECA members and college admission reps, a director of admission approached me and said “From now on, the FIRST question I’ll ask when I get a call from an educational consultant will be, ‘Are you a member of IECA?‘” While there has been a sea change in acceptance of independent educational consultants at NACAC and among college administrators in the last ten years, the enthusiasm for working in a team with consultants is certainly most pronounced among those who work directly with IECA Members. As indicated by this director’s comments, there’s particular reason: While many consultants do not join IECA for a variety of reasons, and some simply don’t join ANY organization, there is something unique about our members that is significant for families and admission directors. ONLY IECA requires a master’s degree or higher in a related field. ONLY IECA requires a minimum of 50 evaluative visits to campuses. ONLY IECA requires significant independent educational consulting experience, and reference checks to ensure an ethical and professional practice. ONLY IECA checks online and print marketing materials to guarantee honesty and integrity. When we say those joining must pass rigorous standards with a detailed commitment to our Principles of Good Practice, we mean it, and that makes all the difference inside admission offices and households across the world.

The second quote I got came from a vice president of enrollment management at a North Carolina university: “You did a fantastic job. Great ambassadors for the profession.” These words came in an e-mail following his participation in a day-long training program for those transitioning from an institutional position to independent educational consulting. IECA prides itself in our efforts to make our training the absolute best in the field—whether half-day workshops, full-day seminars, or our four-day Summer Training Institute—and I know we succeed. Our educational efforts are a source of continuing pride.

Which brings me to our third quote. The producers of the “Answers for the Family” program on L.A. Talk Radio described our upcoming conference in North Carolina with these words: “one of the most advanced and prestigious educational conferences in the country.“

by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA

About 100 educational consultants gathered together for the annual meeting of their “Special Interest Group” during the NACAC Conference. The hour-long lunch meeting was dedicated to a discussion of pro-bono and other community service models, reflecting the near universal commitment educational consultants make to service (a recent survey of members of the Independent Educational Consultants Association showed that more than 90% did some pro-bono work).

Chaired by San Francisco consultant Jane McClure, a panel of five consultants, led by Katelyn Klapper (IECA, MA) provided various models of service, including community-based organizations promoting college access, national organizations assisting under-served communities, no-fee service for foster children, sliding scale fees to serve those struggling financially, and more.

Among those sharing such models were IECA members Leslie Kent (VA), Joan Koven (PA) and Liz Zucker (MA).

Stephanie Sabga, a Denver-based consultant shared her experiences, doing a wonderful job synthesizing the difficulties in effective volunteer outreach—and providing terrific ideas on how to overcome these difficulties.

Leaving the room at its conclusion, IECA Foundation Chair Steve Antonoff (IECA, CO) commented on how much he wished all attendees at NACAC could have seen the presentation and learned of the commitment consultants make to service.

by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA

From the NACAC Conference in Baltimore

I’ve discovered today what happens when 100 IECA Members (loyal, enthusiastic members) along with another 100 alumni of IECA training programs (Summer Training Institute and Transitioning Workshop) come together at a NACAC conference. They create an amazing buzz about IECA, growth in the field and the association, and enhance the opportunity to share information about the Association and our mission with others.

That level of enthusiasm tells just a little about the feel of the NACAC conference so far.

Coming off of Thursday’s lunch, where more than 375 people jammed our annual gathering for members and college admission reps, much discussion has focused on IECA’s high membership standards and ethical guidelines, including a prohibition against actions and statement designed to prey on family and student anxieties.

Late Thursday, standing in the IECA booth (for those in Baltimore join us at booth #1005) there was a steady stream of college and university representatives coming by to thank us. Yes, for some to thank us for lunch, but for many more it was to thank us for setting high standards and assuring that our IECA members are knowledgeable, ethical, and student-centered. These folks were ENTHUSIASTIC about working with consultants who understand that it’s about a great match and long-term success and not simply about “getting in.” We look forward to seeing them at a future conference, hosting a tour, or connecting on our Facebook page.

Our members will also appreciate hearing that many companies have come by wanting to talk to us about offering products and services to IECA members. We’ll be following up in the coming weeks and look forward to offering our members new benefits.

Finally, a special congratulations to the two raffle drawing winners at our lunch. The individuals each won a gift card to Starbucks, and the schools they work for each receive a free registration (including meals and hotel) at an upcoming IECA conference.  The winners:

Joanne Lynch, assistant dean of admission at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston, RI and Lynn Boehne, director of admission services at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, MN.

by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA

From the NACAC National Conference in Baltimore

I am writing today from an amazing, overflow crowd jammed into the ballroom at the Marriott at the Inner Harbor. This annual lunch of IECA member independent educational consultants and admission directors and deans from the nation’s colleges is—by far—the largest gathering we’ve ever seen. This great turnout, some 300 college representatives and 70 IECA Members has grown by 40% in just the past two years.

In large part, this growth reflects the increased acceptance and support for educational consulting among admission professionals. Many colleges have shared their commitment to working with IECA members, as students referred to them know more about the school, possess good reasons to support the quality of the match, which all increases the likelihood of student success. One director of admission at a large Midwestern state university told me he values IECA consultants who help to attract appropriate students from communities beyond their usual feeder areas.

What these college reps shared based on personal observations is borne out by facts. Students who work with IECA consultants spend more time exploring possibilities and know more about the colleges they apply to. They are more likely to attend colleges out-of-state and are more likely to remain in a college through graduation.

IECA President Diane Geller and College Committee Chair Emily Snyder took the opportunity offered by the large crowd to emphasize IECA’s leadership in promoting strict ethics that include ensuring that students remain in control of their own search and application process, that consultants do not re-write essays or ‘package’ students and that IECA rules stress the role of consultants to ease, not prey on, parent anxieties.

Today was a great day of sharing, cooperation, and support all in the name of providing great counseling and opportunities for students in their search for college success.

by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA

I’m blogging today from the back row of a pre-conference workshop in Baltimore, part of the NACAC Conference.  No, I’m not ignoring the speaker, I’m one of the faculty for the all-day training.  This sold-out workshop is on transitioning from work as a school-based college counselor or a college admission official to working as an educational consultant.

The attendees are a terrific group of professionals who are intent to absorb as much as possible.  They quickly caught on to the four pillars of consulting: (1) knowledge (of students, of colleges, of the process); (2) counseling (advising students and managing families); (3) personal & ethics matters; and (4) small business skills. While most of those in the room know colleges, the process, or counseling skills, they had real questions about being an entrepreneur in an ethical and successful way. This is the focus of this afternoon’s sessions.

For MANY entering the field, they come with a passion for students and genuine belief in the importance of finding a good match between student and college.They fear that by charging families, or selling themselves and their services, it violates their commitment to serve students.

During the workshop we emphasize the simple truth that everyone who does college advising is paid: by tuition-paying parents at a private school, by school district salary or, in the case of educational consultants, directly by client families. Serving students well: through hard work, commitment to excellence and staying current while putting the needs of students first does not conflict with providing for oneself and one’s family.

It’s that balance that serves as a challenge to all consultants and an emphasis that drives IECA: how to be a GREAT counselor, a good businessperson, and ethical throughout.

by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA

All of the IECA Committees have been busy meeting and planning, and over the next few weeks I’ll highlight many of them and what initiatives are on the horizon for members of the Independent Educational Consultants Association.

Among the most active committees is the Learning Disabilities Committee. Their charge is three-fold: (1) assist members in becoming experts on topics related to LD issues; (2) assist members in their efforts to learn more about LD schools and programs; and (3) reach out to other organizations and professionals to coordinate and cooperate to better serve students and families.

The LD committee is responsible for several of the educational sessions being offered at IECA’s Fall Conference. Front and center of these is the pre-conference workshop exploring testing and how to evaluate the various psycho-educational evaluative tools. The committee has also organized a tour of LD school campuses that has been well-received and whose numbers are only limited by the size of the vans. We look forward to perhaps reading a blog from the tour.

I’m also pleased to see that the committee has developed a plan to represent IECA at the Learning Disabilities Conference early next year in Baltimore. IECA will have a booth, represented by members of the committee, and the group is now working on some new materials for distribution at the conference—the largest gathering of LD experts in the country. The goal is to reach out to parents who would benefit from a better understanding of how educational consultants can help them, as well as to LD professionals to learn how they might work with IECA members to better serve their clients. In additon, we expect that some professionals attending LDA’s conference would be appropriate for IECA membership.

The LD Committee, under the leadership of Pam Tedeschi (MD) and Rachel Sobel (PA), is actively working in all areas of their responsibility in ways that can have a direct and positive impact. Congratulations to them.

Watch this blog for updates on the great work of IECA’s other committees and affinity groups.

by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA

On Tuesday I will travel to attend my 15th conference of the National Association for College Admission Counseling. It’s only a one-hour drive to Baltimore, but as I make my way I will be reflecting on how dramatically different the terrain looks today for independent educational consultants, compared to that first meeting.

Back then about some 30 consultants were in attendance and if the other attendees had their way, we would remain invisible. Independent consultants were neither respected, nor for some even tolerated. It was perfectly acceptable to bash consultants publicly and colleges could be heard proudly exclaiming that they don’t talk to consultants. At one session, after listening to a presenter blast consultants, I stood up, introduced myself as the IECA Executive Director and took apart the criticism line by line. A few listened, but many more refused to hear my words. I think I was actually booed when I stated that consultants in IECA were serious professionals who emphasized great matches between students and their college choices.

Since that time we have engaged in a serious, sustained effort on many fronts. One way was to better educate NACAC organizationally. Through meetings between IECA and NACAC staff and Board members, we ended virtually all discrimination against independent consultants that was allowed to exist. Today, consultants comprise a major—and growing—slice of NACAC membership and conference attendees. Consultants serve nationally and regionally on ACAC Boards and in other leadership roles, and last year a candidate for NACAC president came from the IECA membership. The Independent Educational Consultants Association’s annual lunch for members and college admission representatives continues to grow, to the point that this year our numbers threaten to outgrow even the ballroom at the Marriott. For several years IECA and NACAC have partnered to present a pre-conference workshop for those transitioning from an institutional position to private practice.

The change in attitude is evident among most school-based counselors who heed the NACAC and IECA Principles of Good Practice that require independent and school-based counselors to work together in the best interest of students. Today, for every negative comment uttered about independent consultants, I hear ten positive—and another ten school consultants who tell me that independent advising is in their future.  The old view “you take money for advising students and that makes you a bad person” has given way to the reality that everyone who works as a college counselor–whether in a public school, a private school, or in private practice is being paid for the work they do. More and more school-based counselors see IECA members as allies in serving a student’s needs, just as a math tutor is an ally to the math teacher or a family therapist is an ally to the guidance counselor.

The most dramatic change may be the change in college admission offices. The number of colleges today who say they “don’t work with consultants” has shrunk from hundreds to a handful—and most of those remaining few are working with consultant client students…they just don’t know it. This year more than 300 colleges will take part in an IECA program: an IECA conference, an organized campus tour, a presentation, or participation in one of our special events. Colleges volunteer to serve on IECA committees. Many colleges now invite educational consultants to participate in campus tours. Virtually all colleges that do not invite consultants make an exception to include IECA members. And colleges increasingly organize special tours just for IECA members, a recognition of the valuable role consultants play in matching students to colleges where they think students will thrive and be successful.

If you will be at NACAC, and whether you are a member of IECA, a non-member consultant,  school-based counselor, or an admission director, please stop by our booth, #1005, in the exhibit hall and help us to plan and prepare for the next 15 years of serving students and families toward achieving collegiate success.

by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, Independent Educational Consultants Association

In a special agreement with College Board, IECA Member Educational Consultants will have an exclusive opportunity to order quantities of SAT materials for students in their practices. For the last several years College Board has decided to send such materials only to schools, but makes the significant exception for IECA Members. Over the last two days scores of boxes have arrived at the IECA office, and members will receive ordering information next week.

Available materials: Since both IECA and College Board are making concerted efforts to “go green” by reducing the amount of paper we use and expanding resources online, please be conservative when ordering as most families and students access this information and apply online, or get these same materials at school. Your help saves IECA paper, time, and thousands of dollars in shipping

• SAT Code List (limited to 1 per office)
• SAT Paper Registration Guides
• SAT Practice Booklets
• SAT Practice Tests
• SAT International Booklets
• SAT Flyers – “This is Your SAT”

In addition members should watch for information soon about the availability of the Common Application, also being made available exclusively to IECA members from the IECA office.

by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, Independent Educational Consultants Association

Rachel Diamond, IECA’s conference manager has just worked out the final details for the optional Tuesday evening reception for IECA professional, student and associate members. Over 120 participants have already signed up for the event and those who have not yet done so should revise their conference registration to plan to join us.

The Member Reception will be held on November 10 on the Charlotte campus of Johnson & Wales University, one of the nation’s premier schools for the culinary arts. IECA will be providing round-trip bus transportation from the conference hotel. Those who wish to take a brief tour of the campus will depart the hotel early, with those planning on attending the event only joining them later at JWU.

Students and faculty will be joining us at the reception with student chefs preparing food at action stations throughout the room, giving members opportunities to discuss the school, the students’ experience, and their cooking methods!

In addition, we have planned a number of cooking and baking demonstrations in the school auditorium, providing attendees with a touch of The Food Channel, live. There will be lots to see, hear, and taste in the demonstration room.

I love the fact that when we visit these cities for conferences we are able to take advantage of unique opportunities afforded by what can be found in the host city. As an extra treat, Charlotte is one of the top NASCAR cities in the country, home to the Lowe’s Motor Speedway, and we’ll find a way to include the city’s passion for auto racing throughout the conference: from the opening green flag to the checkered flag on Saturday.

by Mark H. Sklarow, Executive Director, Independent Educational Consultants Association

A number of questions have found their way to the office, often through Committee Chairs, regarding the registration fee for the pre-conference workshops, speed meetings, and tours prior to the 2009 Fall Conference. I am happy to respond as best I can.

Pre-Conference Workshops

The most prominent question has been why we are charging for pre-conference workshops, saying that ‘they were always free in the past.’ This is a bit confusing because the pre-conference, half-day workshops have virtually NEVER been offered at no cost. Only last spring, at the depth of the recession did will offer three “surviving the recession” workshops for college, school, and therapeutic consulting as a special effort given the economy. Prior to that, over 15 years and more than 40 pre-conference workshops, a fee has been charged.

Occasionally over the years there has been a corporate, school, or foundation sponsor for these pre-conference workshops. Those sponsorships allowed us to reduce the cost of participation to $20 or $25. What ARE the costs?  Because this is a pre-conference event, not covered by conference fees, there is often a rental cost to the meeting room, and the cost of projectors and LCD panels, usually costing more than $1,000. Even a simple coffee break, at hotel rates, runs nearly $20 per attendee. When you add in print materials, handouts, and a few other direct costs, the per person expense for such a workshop is between $67 and $75. Thus, we charged $75 for members and a bit more for non-member consultants and school representatives. We do not expect to make money off of these pre-conference events, but it is difficult to justify why a half-day training for as few as 20 or 30 individuals should be subsidized by everyone else.

It’s worth noting that I regularly compare IECA’s pricing with that of other national associations. The typical rate for a half-day workshop is between $175 and $250, making these programs a relative bargain. For most associations, fees are meant to include indirect costs: staffing, planning time, etc. that we do NOT work into the expense.

A quick but important word: Some have assumed that the fees paid go to the presenters. I want to ensure that everyone knows that those presenting the pre-conference workshops in Charlotte (Laura Seese and Marcia Rubinstien: Assessing Psycho-Ed Evals; Cyndy McDonald and Claire Law: What’s New in Financial Aid; and Beth Black presenting twice on quality service based on what she learned at Disney) are not being paid anything. All are doing presentations because they care about the field, want to serve their colleagues, and desire to give back. All should be applauded for their selfless commitment and we are incredibly grateful!

Campus Tours

We recently raised the cost of pre-conference tours from $90 for two-and-a-half days to $105. This cost does not come close to covering the actual cost. A bus rental for the day typically runs $2,500, materials, supplies, and other costs add another $400 or so. What appears to be a school-sponsored lunch is often actually paid for by IECA (like the box lunch this spring). No wonder another organization recently charged more than double our rate for their days of touring. Again, while we commit probably 50-100 hours of staff time to campus tours, none of this indirect cost is passed on to participants, something most other organizations do.

Earlier I explained the cost of the speed meetings. For those who missed it:

Why do schools pay $175 to participate in Speed Meetings? Because this is a pre-conference activity, there are expenses beyond the normal conference expense that are incurred. Food and beverages to be served during the event, audio-visual costs, printing, ballroom rental, and more need to be covered. What we are very pleased about is that we can give this opportunity for schools to meet one-on-one with perhaps 20 consultants for a fee that is about 10% of what schools pay to be part of larger fly-in programs with similar goals. We think this smaller amount means that many smaller schools with limited budgets can take part in the program. In terms of return-on-investment, this allows a school to meet with up to 20 consultants at a cost of about $8.75 per meeting. It’s worth noting that well over 100 schools and programs have applied to participate.

Why do consultants have to pay $35 to participate? First, we do think asking consultants to pay some of the cost of the food breaks is fair. More importantly, we have found over the years that when we offer programs at no charge, there is a large no-show rate of up to 40%. If it were a presentation in a classroom, lots of empty chairs may be embarrassing but the program could go on to a successful conclusion. With pre-scheduled one-on-one meetings, a 40% no-show rate would mean that many schools, that paid registration fees with the promise of back-to-back Speed Meetings, would find themselves without the promised consultant 40% of the time—an unacceptable result. So we sought to balance a fair, small fee but one that we hope guarantees that those who register will show up.

I hope this answers your questions. We consider it to be a trust between us that IECA will work hard to keep costs down, and deliver superior programming. We appreciate your interest and appreciate your questions.