Symposium Sunday Introduction



JCAS Symposium Sunday


Dear Joyce Ivy Blog Readers,

Hello! My name is Brittany Carlson and I am the Director of the 2016 Joyce Ivy College Access Symposium (JCAS) and a Joyce Ivy Foundation Senior Fellow. In addition to working for the Joyce Ivy Foundation, I am a full-time graduate student at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, pursuing my Masters of Education in Higher Education Administration. Prior to beginning my program at Harvard, I worked for two years in the Admissions Office at Middlebury College, my alma mater, as an Admissions Counselor. Like many of you, I am a proud Midwesterner – prior to matriculating at Middlebury, I lived in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan (my family moved around quite a bit!), so transitioning to New England for college was not without challenge. However, my years at Middlebury, both as a student and a staff member, were transformative

I discovered my professional and personal passions, met friends who I will have for life, and truly developed into the person I am today. It is no exaggeration that my decision to leave the Midwest and attend Middlebury has had the most impact on my life thus far. It is with this personal experience and my professional experience in seeing the transformative power of access to highly selective institutions through admissions that the mission of the Joyce Ivy Foundation resonates so deeply with me. I am honored to serve as the Director of JCAS 2016, and I believe strongly in the impact it can have on each one of you!

With that, this is the official launching of the Symposium Sunday blog series that will lead us to the Joyce Ivy College Admissions Symposium (JCAS) on May 6th and 7th at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor, Michigan. For those of you who are new to our blog or website, JCAS is a two-day event which brings together high school counselors, community-based organization leaders, admissions representatives from a sample of the country’s most selective colleges and universities, students, and families for financial aid and college admissions workshops. For more information and to register for JCAS beginning Tuesday, February 16th, please visit:


From now until May 6th, I will be checking in with all of you through a series of seven blog posts on Sundays in preparation for JCAS. Some of the topics will include a preview of workshops and sessions at JCAS, such as making and narrowing a college list, tips for visiting colleges and finding out about colleges online, and financial aid and Common Application tips, other topics will focus on highlights of JCAS 2016 and important reminders. In addition to these Symposium Sunday blog posts, make sure to also visit the blog on Tuesdays for facts about the colleges that will be at JCAS.

Use these resources as you begin or continue your own college search process – I am excited to take this journey with you!

See you in May ,
Brittany

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