IECA Fall Conference: Two Months and Counting
by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, Independent Educational Consultants Association
It is now two months until IECA’s Fall Conference opens in Charlotte, North Carolina. Our local host committee has been working with Rachel Diamond (IECA Conference Manager) in helping to finalize details on a number of items, and overall things are coming together for what promises to be an exceptional gathering!
Some 50 educational sessions will take place over four days, from 75-minute breakouts to three-hour pre-conference workshops and our first ever Master Class on Saturday morning. That session, on adolescent brain theory and how this relates to the work of consultants as well as school and program representatives (not to mention parents!), has attracted a pre-registration of over 300 attendees. As I look at the breakouts they look like the strongest ever, and at the request of attendees, we’ll re-introduce specialty tracks, allowing for attendees to more readily identify topics of particular interest.
The complete list of breakouts will be published online by the end of September. Among those I’m looking forward to include several dealing with the use of social networking both for consultants and for admission offices, boarding school and colleges showcases, a session on gifted underachievers, an exploration of how to mine college data for valuable information, a number of sessions on complex LD issues, a session exploring home-based alternatives for troubled teens, a session on using Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator in our work, fostering independence among adolescents, and so much more.
As of this writing there were well over 260 consultants registered for the conference, suggesting that by the time the conference is held we may see the largest gathering of independent educational consultants. This will be great news for those in the college or school fair and the information swap, and will make other networking opportunities even more valuable. We continue to see interest growing in the speed meetings that have attracted over 60 consultants and the campus tours with over 125 participating!
We also have seen near record numbers of early-registered colleges and schools. A list of these will be sent to participating consultants prior to the conference to assist them in planning their time in Charlotte. Those interested in registering are urged to do so soon, both to guarantee availability of housing and to avoid late fees that will apply in early October.
There are a few deadlines more quickly approaching: those interested in advertising in the conference program should contact Sarah Brachman (Communications Manager) soon at sarah@IECAonline.com and those interested in a place in the vendor hall area of Conference Central should contact Rachel Diamond at Rachel@IECAonline.com. Finally, to maximize opportunities, several sponsorships are available and Rachel Diamond can assist you in discovering how sponsorships can help your college, school, program, or business.
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