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UB to host state counseling conference
By SUE WUETCHER
Reporter Editor
"A picture is worth 1,000 words," according to an old adage, and UB admissions staff hope that some prospective students will get a new view of UB via their high school counselors after the counselors attend the 25th annual New York State Association for College Admissions Counseling (NYSACAC) conference being held at the university on June 4-6.
The conference, which is expected to attract between 500 and 600 secondary school counselors and college admissions professionals, will provide an excellent opportunity for UB to showcase its campus and dispel some of the myths that exist about the university and Western New York in general, says Patricia Armstrong, associate vice provost and director of admissions.
School counselors can play a key role in the process when high school students choose the college or university they will attend, admissions staff members say.
"I think the majority of high school students do touch base with their counselors, especially in their senior year when they're looking at colleges," says Frances Bernstein, associate director of admissions. "I really feel that in some cases, it can make or break their decision to apply to a college or university, depending on what the attitude and the impression their school counselor has about the particular college."
Many of the counselors who will attend the June conference have never seen the UB campus, Bernstein points out. "For a long time, we've felt that a picture is worth a thousand words when it comes to this campus—it's a beautiful campus and very often we have counselors react, 'Wow, I never knew this was here.' That's what we're hoping for."
The distance factor certainly is critical to the misconceptions about the area, adds Armstrong. "Throughout the state, Buffalo appears to be a distant, cold campus and in reality, it's only an hour's flight from New York City," she notes. "Western New York is a beautiful region of New York State, and a lot people have never been exposed to it—and therefore don't appreciate it. This (bringing newcomers to campus) could help us do away with some of the myths about Western New York."
The conference will provide counselors with an opportunity to see the region through a number of off-campus excursions, including a dinner cruise on the Niagara Clipper, a trip to the Albright-Knox Art Gallery and a ride on the Maid of the Mist for a close-up view of Niagara Falls. The event also will include a "Taste of Buffalo" theme dinner featuring a number of the different ethnic foods that are plentiful in Western New York. "It's a fun way to showcase the diversity that is Buffalo," Bernstein says.
Of course, the conference will provide professional development opportunities as well as fun, she says, noting that there are more than 50 workshops being offered, including special sessions, that should have wide appeal among college admissions professionals, as well as secondary school counselors.
The keynote speech will be given by Judy Shepard, whose son, Matthew Shepard, was murdered in 1998, a victim of an anti-gay hate crime. Shephard's talk will be followed by a special session on drug and alcohol use and abuse. The conference's closing session will feature SUNY Chancellor Robert L. King, who will discuss current trends and outlooks in high education.
Also attending the conference will be Carl (Sandy) Behrend, director of guidance for Orchard Park High School and president of the National Association for College Admission Counseling.
Most of the conference sessions will be held in the Student Union, and many of the attendees will stay in the Governors Complex.
As a prelude to the conference, organizers have scheduled the sixth annual Coming Together Conference—a "pre-conference" for counselors working with students who have been traditionally underrepresented. In addition, tours of other local colleges—Medaille College, Daemen College, Niagara University, Canisius College, D'Youville College and Buffalo State College—will be available as part of the "pre-conference" activities.
Bernstein points out that the theme of the conference is "A Distinguished Past: a Limitless Future. That theme was chosen, she says, because organizers have taken the prospective that "we've come a long way, we're proud of where we've come and do feel the future holds a lot of opportunities."
For further information on the conference, contact Bernstein at 645-6627, 1-888-UB-ADMIT or fjb@buffalo.edu.
Registration materials may be obtained at the NYSACAC Web site at http://www.nysacac.org.