Posts tagged NACADA

Earlier this month I had the amazing opportunity to participate in the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA) annual conference in Atlanta, Georgia. The 2016 annual conference brought together over 3,200 current and future higher education advisers, and is the largest academic conference in the western hemisphere! During my time at the conference I was able to attend several sessions covering a variety of topics and issues in higher education advising.  I also had the privilege of presenting with Longwood’s Counselor Education Professor, Dr. Quentin Alexander, during the conference. Our presentation, “Understanding Our Privilege within the Context of an Academic Advising Relationship”, we discussed the various forms of privilege in our society, and how our privilege has impact within the context of the academic advising relationship with students. The framework for our discussion around privilege was built from the work of Peggy McIntosh and others who have researched topics of privilege and oppression. Throughout the presentation, we engaged in lively conversation with our audience on understanding privilege, recognizing our privilege as advisers, and understanding how this can impact the advising relationship.  At the conference, our presentation was selected as LGBTQA commission-sponsored session, because it reflected information that is particularly representative of the sponsoring commission’s interests. I would like to thank Longwood’s College of Graduate and Professional Studies for providing a travel grant to assist with the cost of this amazing opportunity!