IECA Spring Conference

On May 8th and 9th, Larry was the moderator or panelist for three breakout workshops at the semi-annual National Conference of the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA) conference in Chicago:

“The Cloudy Future of Standardized Testing” focused on the serious questions around the validity of standardized testing to predict success equally among disparate student populations. While some colleges perceive there to be a need for standardized tests, test optional schools are recognzing the established fact that student success is equal among those who submit test scores and those who don’t. Panelists including Robert Schaeffer (Public Education Director of FairTest), Jon Boeckenstedt (Vice President of Enrollment of DePaul University), Andy Borst (Director of Undergraduate Admissions of University of Illinois – Urbana/Champaign), and Matt Niksch (Chief College Counselor of Noble Network of Charter Schools) shared their perspectives in this timely and important discussion.

In the College Committee Session “College Use of Customer Relationship Manager Tools in Enrollment and Admissions”, Larry and fellow moderator, Marilyn O’Toole, examined the use of technology and data collection in college admissions. Panelists Eric Range (Element 451), Ben Kavanaugh (Bucknell University), Lauren Sefton (Rhodes College), Mike Borovsky (Purdue University), and Darryl Jones (Gettysburg College) discussed how this data is collected and used by college admissions offices as well as how this impacts all stakeholders in the overall admissions process.

The workshop “Is This a Good College? The Power of Rhetoric in College Counseling” explored the power of semantics as well as verbal and non-verbal communication in college admissions. Consultants Jennie Kent and Nicole Oringer joined Larry in this presentation in which they incorporated “both sides of the desk” – the admissions side and the college counseling side

Larry is very grateful to all the workshop panelists as well as the consultants who attended these sessions. He appreciates all of the positive feedback he has received.

Private Day and Boarding School Applications

Parents often ask us, “When should we start the application process for private school?” For a variety of reasons, we believe the earlier, the better. Rather than waiting until applications go live in the fall, we encourage families to begin in the spring and summer to allow for advance planning and identifying the best use of their child’s summer time when schedules tend to be less busy.

Holly has begun meeting with families of 7th graders applying for private day and boarding schools for high school in Fall 2020. She uses this time to get to know the students and their profiles and to develop preliminary school lists. Some families have already started visiting prospective schools. Throughout the coming months, Holly will continue to work with them focusing on interview skills, fine-tuning school lists, and mapping out the paperwork and testing deadlines. By the time the application cycle officially begins, these students will be well positioned to complete and submit their applications.

The Importance of Advocacy

“Now that I have the evaluation results, how do I make sure that the teacher and school will work with me to meet my child’s needs?”

Parents often need guidance in navigating the possible special services programs and processes once a child’s learning challenges have been identified. At Learning Associates, we recognize that effective educational advocacy is just as important as the evaluation itself. As a Learning Disabilities Teacher-Consultant and former teacher, Holly is uniquely qualified to partner with families on behalf of their children. In meetings with child study teams and teachers, Holly explains the results of testing, discusses the implications of those results, and advocates for our educational recommendations. She can attend 504 Committee and Child Study Team meetings along with parents to secure appropriate programs and services. This collaboration increases effectiveness.

Some situations require legal advocacy. When an education attorney is required, Holly can make recommendations and work alongside counsel.

For more information on special education advocacy, see https://u.org/2E4u8I0.