Pre-Conference: Sunday, July 10

Welcome Reception & Group Activity (Terrace; inclement weather: Hacienda Room)
Appetizers and cash bar available.

This event is made possible by additional financial support from our corporate partner CampusTap.

Day 1: Monday, July 11

Continental Breakfast (Hacienda)

This event is made possible by additional financial support from our corporate partner Fridayd.

Words of Welcome (Pecos)

ACSN President, Cheryl Bonner and the 2016 Conference Planning Committee will officially welcome you to Fort Worth and the 11th annual gathering of those providing career services to alumni.

Embracing Career Chaos: The Three C's
How do you find peace or help others embrace the chaos that occurs when you find yourself career disturbed?  Learn how to strategically use three C's: Curiosity, Connection, and Courage to develop a fresh mindset and strategy to using your degree, developing a personal brand and networking.

Swag Swap, Network with your Peers & Visit Corporate Partners (Pecos Foyer) 

This event is made possible by additional financial support from our corporate partner VineUp.

Breakout Sessions

#1 Just ASK: How to engage alumni in the career services process (Post Oak)
Presented by: Leslie Chamberlain, DePaul University
Alumni Engagement & Alumni career counseling/coaching/programming
What if you could significantly expand your alumni career services capabilities simply by engaging your alumni community? Join us as we share tools, communications and guidance to help your alumni identify how they can tap into the expertise of a fellow graduate.

#2 Helping Alumni Answer the Big Question: Should I Stay or Should I Go? (Pecos)
Presented by: Elizabeth Wallencheck, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School
Alumni career counseling/coaching/programming
Whether, when, and how to make one’s next career move is an important question on the minds of your alumni! Having a framework to sort out the questions behind this big question will help alumni understand their motivations, clarify their goals, and get the process started, leading to better outcomes.

Lunch Roulette (Hacienda)

During lunch you will randomly be seated with fellow conference attendees from other schools and universities.  This will give you an opportunity to meet new friends, share ideas and grow your network!

Breakout Sessions

#3 Transforming Career Services for All of Today’s Alumni (Post Oak)
Presented by: Amy Hayes, University of Michigan
Alumni Engagement & Alumni career counseling/coaching/programming
Join us as we discuss how the Career Development team of the Alumni Association of the University of Michigan used the organization wide five-year strategic planning process to think deeply and broadly about how to execute a bold vision of career and professional engagement for all of today’s alumni.

#4 Help! I Want To Reinvent Myself!? Guiding Clients through Career Change and Transition (Pecos)
Presented by: Margie Cherry, Lafayette College
Alumni career counseling/coaching/programming
Do you wince when a client announces they want to reinvent themselves? The job search process is easily explained. Preparing a client for the upheaval of career reinvention is not! Learn the stages of the change process, catalyzing questions, and unexpected resources that will help you AND your client succeed!

Network with your Peers & Visit Corporate Partners (Pecos Foyer)

6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

9:00 p.m.

9:45 p.m.

Group Dinners and explore The Fort Worth Stockyards.

This event is made possible by additional financial support from our corporate partner brazen.

Meet at Billy Bob's Texas for Line Dancing.

Board Shuttle back to hotel.

Day 2: Tuesday, July 12

Continental Breakfast (Hacienda)  

This event is made possible by additional financial support from our corporate partner Alumnifire.

Keynote Speaker: Don Asher, Asher & Associates (Pecos)

Encore Careers: Working for Meaning in the Third Half of Life
Retire? Or retool and redirect? That is the question. Not everyone wants to play golf and go to art openings for the rest of their lives. Some careerists will want to stay engaged with the world of “work” through an encore career, paid or unpaid, full- or part-time. Encore careers prolong mental acuity, provide a sense of purpose, strengthen (some) marriages, and increase social networks, among myriad other benefits. Learn how to counsel late-career alumni. Leave with handouts you can use every day.

Breakout Sessions

#5 Thinking Big About Virtual Tools and Alumni Career Engagement (Post Oak)
Presented by: Jon Ruzek, University of Minnesota
Alumni Engagement & Alumni career counseling/coaching/programming
Interested in leveraging technology and social media to virtually engage your alumni, but don’t know where to start? Learn how one university used webinars, Brazen, social media, and its website to enhance the value of its alumni network and engage more alumni around career topics.

#6 Thrive: Campus-Wide Career Initiative for Alumni and Student Engagement (Pecos)
Presented by: Maria Tomaino, Florida International University
Alumni career counseling/coaching/programming
Panther Alumni Week (PAW) celebrated its third annual alumni week of service during which alumni are invited to return as guest speakers to inspire students and share career advice. Since 2014, the program has tripled in size and this year engaged over 390 alumni, 4,000+ students, and executed 50 events. Join Florida International University and learn how this program continues to thrive and gain valuable takeaways on implementing an alumni/student week at your university.

Lunch & Employer Panel on Industry/Recruiting Trends (Pecos - Please be seated by 1:30 p.m.)  Bios here.

• Saira Khan, Senior Talent Acquisition Consultant, Hewlett Packard Enterprise 
• Mikaela Hurst, Recruiting Manager, iProspect 
• Scott Stavenhagen, Talent Acquisition, Lockheed Martin
• Noelle Bleich, Vice President – Human Capital Management, Goldman Sachs

This event is made possible by additional financial support from our corporate partner TalentMarks.

Breakout Sessions

#7 How to Start an Alumni Career Services Program (Post Oak)
Presented by: Debra Franke, La Salle University & Panel
Alumni Engagement & Alumni career counseling/coaching/programming
Are you at the early stages of developing an alumni career services program at your school? Learn the key considerations in starting a program, how to involve stakeholders, and where to begin. This breakout will include a panel of four colleagues who have started programs at their schools.

#8 Cracking the Hidden Job Market (Pecos)
Presented by: Donald Asher, Asher Associates
Alumni career counseling/coaching/programming
Between 55 and 85% of all jobs go to someone who did not apply for a posted opening. Learn how to find jobs before they're announced, jobs that are never announced, and jobs that don't even exist yet. Perfect for liberal arts majors, career changers, and alumni job seekers.

All School Alumni Networking Event (Worthington Room)

Day 3: Wednesday, July 13

Strengths Finder Professional Development (Elm Fork & Trinity Central)
Business casual attire recommended
Prerequisite: Take Strengths Finder before the conference. (Access codes will be provided after you register for the conference.)

Facilitators: Dede Williams and Brett Phillips, Texas Christian University
Strengths Quest gives professionals the opportunity to develop strengths by building on their greatest talents – the way in which they most naturally think, feel, and behave as unique individuals.  Grounded in Positive Psychology and the Clifton StrengthsFinder, Strengths Quest is used at more than 600 schools and universities and has helped more than 2 million people achieve academic, career, and personal success.

Part 1: During this highly interactive session, participants will learn more about the strengths philosophy, including how to develop strengths by building on their greatest talents. 

Part 2: Once participants achieve a base level understanding of their strengths and Strengths Quest, they will then learn how to facilitate activities and guide conversations to help students and alumni with career exploration and self-development.

Swag Swap and Announcement of 2017 Conference Location (Elm Fork – Trinity Central)

Conference Ends