Have you heard about WACAC’s Leadership Development Institute? Started in 2012 by WACAC Past-President Greg McCandless, LDI is a professional development opportunity for post-secondary emerging leaders. Admission professionals with at least four years of experience are matched with mentors at the Dean or Director level, and together they embark on a yearlong partnership designed to encourage career longevity and inspire meaningful involvement with WACAC.
I served as a mentor for this year’s LDI class and enjoyed the opportunity to work with young professionals and established colleagues alike. Our January retreat allows time for in-depth discussion on important trends and issues in college admission, and the mentoring relationship continues with additional meetings at the WACAC and NACAC conferences later in the year. I’m now also assisting with the coordination of the program, and am excited about shaping our Class of 2016! If you are interested in getting involved with LDI, please note the following steps…
- Participants must be nominated by a supervisor and have the support of their office to attend the two-day January retreat (costs covered by WACAC), as well as the WACAC and NACAC conferences in 2016. To encourage involvement WACAC will pay for conference registration fees. You’ll find the online nomination form here. Nominations are due by Tuesday, September 15th, and those accepted will be notified later in the month.
- Mentors should be at the Dean or Director level and email Lauren Cook by September 15th indicating an interest in participating. Mentors also enjoy having their retreat costs and conference registrations covered by WACAC. Please note that not all interested mentors may be able to join in a given year depending on our list of participants– we generally don’t include multiple staff from the same office in one class in order to involve as many institutions as possible and encourage candid conversations. Confirmation of mentor participation will be sent in early October once the participant roster is finalized.
You can read more about LDI on the WACAC website or email Lauren Cook with any questions. Please consider getting involved with this exciting professional development opportunity!
By Lauren Cook