by Mark H. Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA

I needed to be in Boston earlier this week for 25 hours on IECA business. It was a hectic day, but I was able to join a group for dinner Tuesday. None were consultants or admission directors or educators of any stripe. Rather, each was related to the hospitality industry: a hotel manager, sales representative, a representative of the Boston Convention Bureau. Eventually I was asked to explain what members of the Independent Educational Consultants Association do. As I began my explanation, one person stopped me and said: “I just realized, I used a consultant when my parents decided I should go to a private high school.” Another noted that her sister just hired an educational consultant to help with their college search for her nephew. In both cases the consultant was a member of IECA.

The conversation was a great reminder of how far the profession has come. Not long ago, when I described what an educational consultant does, I was met with quizzical stares. “People PAY for that?” was often the question. Today those I meet are much more likely to immediately grasp the importance of hiring a knowledgeable, informed expert when exploring educational choices for their child. I’m heartened by how many people already know because they have either heard of the field from news reports or know someone in their own circle who has hired a consultant in their school, college, or therapeutic search.

As awareness and familiarity grows, the profession becomes more accepted and more appreciated. It is this that has led IECA to make use of as many outlets for promoting the profession as possible. We send out press releases and grant interviews with electronic and print media. Our goal is to do more of this in the coming year. Our Web site continues to attract tens of thousands of visitors, including parents looking to find a consultant to assist their family. Our Web presence has grown with greater commitment of resources, including paid advertising on behalf of our members, and the serious commitment we have made to using social networking and blogging has begun to have real impact on extending the awareness of the profession to new communities.

Of course awareness of the profession requires greater commitment to professional training and ethical values. As more people look at consulting, we want them to discover what we know: in a profession where anyone can hang out a shingle, IECA membership is the one way parents can rest assured that the individual they hire is knowledgeable, ethical, and competent in a way that assures the best possible outcomes for their student.

We continue to explore new ways to reach out and welcome ideas from members as to how we can extend our reach and awareness. Next year when I sit down with five hoteliers, I hope all five have their own IECA educational consultant story to share.

Related posts:

1. Defining Educational Consulting
2. THE Fundamental Difference Among School and College Consultants: A Brief Primer for Parents
3. Educational Consultants and the NY Times Article
4. School District Moves to Contract with Educational Consultants for College Advising; are we moving toward the tipping point?
5. How to Choose an Educational Consultant

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 15th, 2009 at 10:41 am and is filed under educational consultants. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.