1. VCAN Can Lead (part one) – Speaker: Paula Robinson, SCHEV

This session is designed for seasoned college access leaders to discuss Virginia college access priorities and trends, identify and develop solutions to challenges in the Virginia access field, share data and fuel collaboration across the access community.

2. Admissions Race Game – Speaker: Tomika Brown, ECMC

Participants will receive a free resource to learn more about the holistic approach to college admissions. This student activity is fun, engaging, and purposeful in reinforcing that students are more than their GPA when applying for college!

3. Data Driven Partnerships – Speaker: Mary Grace Campos, VA Tech Access Collaborative

This session will highlight the importance of using data to establish Virginia Tech’s College Access Collaborative (CAC), a department dedicated to college access and success for educationally disadvantaged and historically marginalized communities through partnerships with urban and rural high schools, community colleges, and college access programs. Presenters will discuss the use of data to: 1. Secure institutional and state legislature funding to facilitate partnerships throughout the Commonwealth. 2. Establish new partnerships to align with Virginia Tech’s Project 2022 goal of a student body comprised of 40% underrepresented, first-generation and low-income students. 3. Secure additional grant funding to expand programmatic outreach efforts.

4. Pomp & Under the Circumstances – Speakers: Seth Knight, RVA Futures; Verenda Cobbs, Communities in Schools (Richmond)

Given the swift change in student interface during the spring of 2020, many students and adults grappled with how to celebrate given the "new normal." This session will explore the social and psychological importance of acknowledging student accomplishments towards transition and explore the ways organizations across the Commonwealth facilitated those events.

1. VCAN Can Lead (part two) – Speaker: Paula Robinson, SCHEV

Conversation continues from Part 1.

2. Validate, Appreciate and Refer – Speaker: Paula Craw, ECMC / Active Minds Board Member

A conversation can be life-changing. Join us to learn about three easy-to-remember steps to actively listen to help a friend or loved one who may be struggling: Validate–Appreciate–Refer.

3. Community College: Why It’s the Right Choice – Speaker: Jordan Meadows, JTCC

Participants will learn why the Community College pathway is the right option for almost all students who are pursuing post-secondary education.

4. Career Coach Certification – Speaker: Celeste Hall, VA Community College System

Enhance Your Skills through credentialing. The Virginia Career Coach Certification (VCCC) process is designed to enhance the career coach's knowledge in all areas of career development with a focus on 12 competencies developed by the National Career Development Association. Coaches and those working with students on career development can strengthen and expand their knowledge and skills while enhancing their professional credentials. This session will provide information about the program content, delivery formats, certification and serves as an introduction for anyone considering VCCC.

1. Refocusing Your Approach to College Access – Speaker: Ryan Hannifin, RVA Futures

College Access requires partnerships with professionals from a variety of worlds – school counseling, non-profit organizations, college admission offices, volunteers, to name a few. The work we do is different but it takes all of us to make a lasting impact. Unfortunately, conversations get stalled and productivity gets lost when we all focus on the wrong things. Let’s discuss the best approaches to collaboration, setting up worthwhile programs, creating partnerships, and what it means to make an impact.

2. Career Development: Discovering Your Next Move – Speaker: Jennifer Wells, VA Community College System

Many professionals, after working in a certain role or industry for an extended period of time, hit the proverbial wall in their careers. Being left with an uncomfortable “stuck” feeling, very few individuals know how to overcome professional hurdles or build new paths. This interactive session will demonstrate the importance of setting career exploration and career path goals—now! Attendees will be able to identify personal traits to consider and will understand career exploration using information, people, resources, and their own experiences. This presentation is ideal for those wanting to take the next step in career path development.

3. Student Loan Advocacy – Speaker: Scott Kemp, SCHEV

Participants will learn statistics/trends and resources available through the student loan advocacy office in Virginia.

4. Creating a Sense of Belonging – Speaker: Tally Botzer, VA Center for Inclusive Communities

This workshop provides participants with the opportunity to explore specific features that help to create inclusive school climates. Participants will explore their own experiences with the education system and then use those experiences to identify practices for fostering a sense of belonging in their school. Additionally, participants could use this information to consider ways to assess climate for students, educators, and families.

1. Pronouns Matter Because People Matter – Speaker: Angela Greenlay, ECMC

Society has taught us to make automatic assumptions about what pronouns to use for someone. We typically rely on visual cues related to a person’s gender expression. However, gender is not always that simple. Sometimes a person’s gender identity (the way the person identifies internally in terms of their gender) doesn’t align with their gender expression (the way they look). In addition, not everyone identifies strictly as male or female. In this session, we will discuss the importance of using correct pronouns, how to ask others to share pronouns, and what to do if you mistakenly use the wrong pronoun.

2. Academic and Testing Support for College Bound Students – Speakers: Jake Neuberg and Carrie Finsilver, Revolution Prep

Mounting research indicates that student achievement in college and career readiness is meaningfully impacted by academic supports offered beyond the school day. Designing a successful implementation hinges on three key aspects: equity, integrity, and quality. Revolution Prep will share what they’ve learned through their partnerships with schools and districts across the country, and how they've been able to impact academic standards, state testing requirements, and post-secondary readiness.

3. A Whole New World: Private Colleges Reflect on COVID-19 Lessons – Speakers: Ashley Browning, David Lesesne, and Brenda Poggendorf, Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia (CICV)

This session is designed to share reflections and insights from collective enrollment experiences at Virginia’s private colleges during the era of Covid-19. We’ll reveal some of the challenges that private higher education has faced in this increasingly virtual and constantly changing environment, and how we’ve been challenged to brainstorm innovative ways to share our student experience with prospective students and families. Nimble by a product of our small size, creative efforts have allowed private colleges and universities to adapt and provide access to high-quality education experiences for all students.

4. Pathways to Persistence – Speaker: Andrea Croley, Virginia529

We will discuss how our programs provide opportunities to tomorrow’s leaders through the SOAR Virginia program, a pathway to independence for persons with disabilities through ABLEnow, and options for families to affordable and accessible education savings options through Virginia529.