An Exercise in Love
Oya Schooley, The Episcopal Academy
September 16th, 2026

Come August, I start working on my letters of recommendation. Starting early makes my fall more manageable. I'm able to be more present during school hours if I'm not trying to write rec letters with twenty-five interruptions in between. And I'm more present in my life outside of work, too—which by October always seems to have shrunk down to nothing. My family wants to do things like enjoy the fall weather, and I never have time to spare, especially after the NACAC Conference. Every year I hope that maybe this will be the year when I can actually go apple picking. Fall is a blur, but November is glorious, which is what keeps us going. Getting a good chunk of my letters sketched out in August helps the fall feel less tired and blurry, more memorable and enjoyable. 

Writing letters of recommendation is among my favorite parts of the job, because I get to stare into the souls of my students. I read their surveys and their writing. I read what teachers have said about them, what parents wanted to brag about their kids. Then I combine all of it with my own impressions of the student, built from actually getting to know them. I add in context—their impact on our community, where they're coming from, their hopes and dreams, their relationship to the school, the social forces they're living within. All of it, together, gives me something close to what the anthropologist Geertz called a "thick description" of a person. I think about my students more deeply than they'll ever know.

Meeting your students where they are: How social media can help
Bartley Sides, Associate Director of College Counseling at Christ Church Episcopal School

Working with teenagers means being up-to-date with social media trends that have caught their attention. From TikTok dances to meme trends, finding ways to meet students where they are is a great way to showcase a school’s college counseling program while also having fun with colleagues. 

Bartley Sides, Associate Director of College Counseling at Christ Church Episcopal School (CCES), has found the fun in teenage trends through their office Instagram account. See our Q + A with Bartley below:

The Integrated College Counseling and Social Emotional Counseling Model: Addressing the "Groundhog Day" of Admissions Anxiety in High-Pressure Schools
Nikki Magaziner Mills & Carrie G. Friend, St. Albans School

We don’t have to tell the counselors of ACCIS that in our high-achieving ecosystem of independent schools, the college admissions process is one fueled by emotion. Applying to college is and always has been a big life transition, a moment of growth and introspection, and an opportunity. But increasingly, in this ultra-competitive, changing, and uncertain admissions landscape, anxiety and self-doubt and expectation can shift a year-long rite of passage into a mult-year crisis of personal and family identity. 

Many years ago, we in the College Counseling Office and the Counseling Office at St. Albans School realized that our offices were having similar conversations about disappointment and stress with the same families. In a moment that has since enriched our work immeasurably, we decided to start collaborating to directly address the real and big emotions that are infused into every step of the process of applying and going to college. The practical and emotional coexist for the people going through this process, and we realized that addressing one without the other was only talking about half the story. 

RAFT Framework: How to Approach the End of Senior Year with Students and Parents
Catalina Guzmán, Executive Director of College Counseling, The Episcopal Academy
March 18th, 2026

Every spring, there is a moment when the energy of the senior class shifts. College decisions are mostly finalized, the urgency of applications fades, and what replaces it is something quieter and harder to name. Some of us may call this “senioritis,” that mix of relief, avoidance, nostalgia, anxiety, and a creeping sense that something important is ending. It seems like a natural part of the college application journey and one that is often met with resignation and trepidation. 

As college counselors, we spend months helping students get into college. We are deeply skilled at guiding families through the admissions process, translating institutional priorities, and managing expectations along the way. But once the destination is set, and many of us start to look toward the juniors, it is important not to forget what comes next for our senior class. Senior spring is not just a victory lap; it is a transition period that deserves as much intentionality as the admissions process itself.

While students are the ones making the leap, it is the adults who care for them who perhaps most need our support now. Parents and caregivers are uniquely positioned to help their children process what is coming to an end, what is changing, and what is beginning. At the same time, they are navigating their own transition, often quietly and without much guidance. When we focus solely on student readiness, we miss a critical piece of the puzzle: students cannot fully launch if the adults around them are not ready to let go.

Psychological Safety in Action
Ashley Armato, Associate Director of College Counseling, The Lovett School
February 18th, 2026

I’m writing this in the afterglow of the Bad Bunny halftime performance, still sitting with the pride it stirred in me as a Latina. I’m not Puerto Rican, but watching Benito center Puerto Rican culture—its language, rhythms, history, and political realities—on one of the world’s largest stages felt powerful and deeply familiar. The performance radiated joy and unapologetic authenticity. It wasn’t softened or translated for mass appeal; it was rooted, specific, and proud. I found myself thinking about the thousands of people who saw themselves reflected in that moment and felt a deeper sense of recognition. For many, it wasn’t just entertainment. It was dignity. It was the feeling of being seen without having to explain yourself first.

That feeling has stayed with me, especially as I think about the spaces we create for students every day.

Signals and Noise: Futures Thinking in College Admissions Counseling
Erin McCubbin, Executive Director of Student and Graduate Success, Mount Vernon School
Jared Colley, Chief Innovation Officer, Mount Vernon School
January 20, 2026

Futures thinking begins with a mindset shift: we are not in the business of prediction. 1 The lines of sophomore parents outside our offices may illustrate that parents wish we had a crystal ball, but that would be letting someone else control the premise of our purpose within this profession. The reality of futures thinking is deeply at odds with the college admissions landscape, which is often dominated by confident forecasts, tidy narratives, and the promise that there is a “right” path if you can just decode it.

As college counselors, we are immersed in that noise.

Jonathan Nicholson- Breck School 
November 19th, 2025

In an attempt to promote common language and to support employees, there has been a growing practice of using pocket sentences - short, helpful lines that can effectively capture a point. 

With November 1 still fresh in the rearview, I am exhausted. However, there is still work to be done, programs to plan, fires to put out. In short, the work is still there, and we are needed more now than ever before. Below is wisdom from people I admire, reconstituted as pocket sentences. Perhaps you may find them to be useful tools for meditation, reflection, inspiration, or survival. 

The days are long; the years are short. 
This wisdom was wasted on me in my early years of parenting as I was intently focused on survival and, on the good days, maintaining some form of professionalism. I would invest personal time into chores - cleaning the house, washing the car, you name it - feeling that the show of organization could make me feel in control. It never did. And the mess always returned. 

As parents, we’re never really in control.
We know the family because they’re always around - wanting explanations, asking for conversations, seeking this teacher or that class, pushing for the higher grade. This approach to parenting at independent schools can yield results. The child may very well end up in the higher level course, with the better grade, or in class with the teacher who grades easier or pens the better recommendation letter. The results can leave parents feeling that all will be well, and a student less prepared. 

From Practice to Presentation: Scaling Tools for Broader Impact 
Carolyn Siegel, Pinewood School 
October 15th, 2025

When I first began presenting at state-level conferences a decade ago, I realized that my passion for a topic was only part of the equation; equally important was considering the diverse educational contexts represented in the audience. In my first teaching presentation, public school teachers asked about state standards, which I hadn’t considered since they weren’t part of the curriculum design. This made me realize I needed to consider beyond independent schools for these presentations. As I prepare presentations, I draw on familiar tools and student stories I know well, presenting them so they resonate across broader contexts. 

I’ve come to see conference presentations as reflective processes by which I improve my own practice, translating individualized work into tools that empower a broader community of educators, such as my most recent presentation, Engage and Uplift: Strength-based Approaches in the College Process (NACAC 2025). As self-reflection and writing support are two of my core strengths, I often focus on these two areas when shaping a presentation proposal. I begin by identifying two to three students whose stories can anchor how I frame it. Next, I reflect on how I have guided them toward a stronger final personal or supplemental essay. I then think about: (1) What role did I play as that student’s college process unfolded? (2) What concrete steps, rooted in my strengths, helped them move forward? When a story clearly highlights my strengths in action, I record it in a brainstorming document to revisit later on.

As the semester progresses, I draw from books and professional development opportunities, periodically returning to my brainstorming document to add ideas and slowly refine my thinking. When I write my proposal, I think about what connects these stories. This year, the current political situation added a layer of complexity. I ended up revising my proposal’s DEI language so that I could present on content that uplifts students’ individual experiences and perspectives while ensuring public school counselors from certain states could still attend my session and get CE credits. Ultimately, I aim for a proposal that is sufficiently broad to allow for flexibility down the line. 

Hurricane Application is coming....are you ready? 
David Brunk, Severn School
September 17, 2025 

Hurricane Application has intensified overnight, and the consensus model indicates that Application will reach major hurricane status within two weeks. While there is considerable spread in terms of the precise track of the storm, most analysts agree that Application will be an impressively long-lived and potentially destructive cyclone.

A strained and slightly pessimistic metaphor, perhaps, but there are several similarities between the actual hurricane season and the work we do. Forecasters predict what will unfold on the macro level (think La Niña and the demographic cliff), and non-experts have a tendency to prognosticate about outcomes with individual applications and specific schools. (Consider this overheard gem: “This is a great year to apply to Brown because there are going to be fewer international students!”) Unfortunately, “strained and pessimistic” also describes many students’ relationships with the college process.

Application season is indeed upon us. As has seemingly been the case for the past several years, the season started earlier than ever as more students nationwide are applying to schools with October deadlines. Compressed application seasons lead to more stress for students, and we are tasked with helping students navigate the turbulent waters and find their way to safe harbor. 

An Introduction to College Counseling at International Schools: Part II
Cory Zimmerman, Singapore American School
June 18, 2025

If my previous blog post was my attempt at a primer on international schools–why they exist and whom they serve–in this follow-up post I’d like to provide a personal view on some of the rewards and challenges of working as a college counselor outside the US. I have just concluded my eighth year as a college counselor in Asia, and the experience has been a boon for my professional and personal development. While I miss my stateside independent school colleagues dearly, I wouldn’t change my decision to make the leap those years ago, and that’s partially due to ongoing support that ACCIS has provided while I’ve been abroad. In case you’d like to make a similar transition, you might consider the following:

Rewards

AI Is Replacing Career Launchpads—Here’s How We Help
Scott Kominkiewicz, 'Ioloni School
May 28th, 2025

Putting the “Counsel” Back in “College Counselor”
Lucas Frankel, Shady Side Academy
April 16, 2025

Articulating Self-Truths: Preparing Students for the Application Process and Beyond
Carolyn Siegel, Pinewood School
March 19, 2025

My 15 years as a language teacher lie at the core of my identity as an educator. Through these experiences, I grew committed to fostering intercultural communicative competence, which the American Council of Teaching Foreign Languages describes as the “accumulation of individual experiences and the quality of reflection on those experiences [to] pave the path to growth.” In my language teaching, I devoted time and space for students to reflect on their social identities and how these identities might connect with the cultures and topics that we studied. Now, as a college counselor, I continue to emphasize reflection as I encourage students to consider who they are and what aspects of their identity and life experience they choose to share in the college application process. 

Last fall at NACAC, while presenting “Below the Water’s Edge: A Reflective Deep Dive to Aid Students’ Supplemental Essay Writing,” I felt immense hope as I witnessed the enthusiastic nods from attendees. We know that many selective and highly selective institutions in the United States emphasize holistic review in their admissions process. A student’s ability to engage in diverse communities has become an increasingly prized attribute. Just as grades are a strong predictor of future academic success, a student’s capacity to thrive in diverse environments is best conveyed by how effectively they articulate their unique perspectives and backgrounds during the application process.  

From Tuskegee to NACAC: Championing HBCU Visibility in Independent Schools
Jamon Pulliam, Viewpoint School
February 21, 2025

Happy Black History Month!

What’s more Black History than Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)? 

An Introduction to College Counseling at International Schools: Part I
Cory Zimmerman, Singapore American School
January 22, 2025

As a college counselor working at an international school and a product of one myself, here is a balanced (but ultimately subjective) description that might demystify (or even attract some of you to) the international school world.

Some personal background

I grew up in the US, France, Singapore, Japan, Malaysia, and the UK before repatriating to the US for university. I have worked as a Teach for Americacorps member teaching high school English in North Carolina; an admissions officer at Washington University in St. Louis; and a college counselor at Sidwell Friends School in Washington, DC, Taipei American School in Taiwan, and now Singapore American School, which also happens to be one of my boyhood schools. I moved to international school college counseling in 2017. I had cherished my relationship with my college counselor in high school, so I relished the opportunity to provide that same support to third culture kids like I was, at the precipice of making a huge decision on where to attend university.

Sumana Moudgal, The Westminster Schools
December 18, 2024

I almost didn’t apply.

It was the fall of 2020 and I was frantically looking for another position. Having served as the Magnet Counselor at a public school for 10 years, I was burnt out. I loved my job – the students  I counseled and the families I supported – but maintaining a healthy work-life balance was lost. Fall came and went, as I applied and interviewed with several international schools abroad alongside others closer to home. There were many late night interviews (the time zone tango!) where after battling the exhaustion of a full day of work, I put on my happiest face at the interview and gave it everything I had. In the end, I received multiple offers, but either the location wasn’t right, or the package didn’t quite meet my needs. 

Notes From an ACCIS Skeptic
Katie Gayman, Phillips Andover
November 20, 2024

Full disclosure: I am a skeptic of professional organizations. When I became a college counselor in 2009, I entered the profession as a teacher, in both formal title and identity. And though I gave up my duties running science labs and grading lab reports long ago, I still view myself as a counselor/teacher. Therefore, when I attended my first NACAC (two Baltimores ago), I glanced around at the throngs of counselors wearing name badges adorned in “flare,” many hugging each other and squealing in delight, and I wondered, are these my people?

I felt similarly walking into my first ACCIS Summer Institute. When I entered the lobby to check in on the Mount Vernon campus at GW, it seemed like everyone already knew each other. So, I did what we hope our students will do on their first day of college: put the name tag on, took a deep breath, began shaking hands, and embraced the discomfort. 

The English Teacher Pipeline
Adam R. Levine, Harvard-Westlake School
October 16, 2024

At the ACCIS New Counselor Workshop, I surveyed the room, clutching my bingo card. The icebreaker challenge? To find a different person to sign each square, if the description pertained to them. “Speaks Multiple Languages.” Easy. “Puts Ketchup on their Hot Dog.” Better be easy. “Former Professor or Teacher.” Hmm. As a former English teacher, I wished that I could sign it myself. Who among us was coming to college counseling from the classroom?

As it turns out, a handful of us were former teachers. And, more specifically, a few of us were English teachers, past and present. This wasn’t too surprising—two of my colleagues at Harvard-Westlake are English-teachers-turned-college-counselors, and I could name many examples from other schools. But why do specifically English teachers at independent schools gravitate to the world of college counseling? And what’s the transition like from The Scarlet Letter to the acceptance letter?

Self-Care for College Counselors: Finding Balance During Application Season
Lisa Clay, The Out-of-Door Academy
September 23, 2024

As the leaves start to turn and the school year gains momentum, college application season kicks into high gear. For college counselors, this time can feel like a whirlwind of personal statements, deadlines, and late-night essay reviews. While guiding students through this pivotal moment in their lives is fulfilling, it’s crucial to prioritize self-care amid the hustle. After all, you can’t pour from an empty cup.

The Importance of Self-Care

Self-care isn’t just a buzzword; it’s a necessary practice for maintaining your mental, emotional, and physical well-being, especially in a demanding role like counseling. When you’re juggling numerous student and family needs, the pressure can easily mount. When you’re at your best, you’re better equipped to guide them through this stressful journey. (Even better… Modeling self-care behavior for students not only demonstrates the importance of prioritizing their own well-being but also equips them with valuable tools to manage stress and maintain balance during their academic journeys!)

Year End Reflections
Moira McKinnon, Berwick Academy
June 14, 2024

It feels like we’ve been saying, “This is the craziest year in college admissions ever” for quite a few years. And yet, has it ever felt so true as it does this spring? It almost seems quaint now that we were all up in arms when a handful of families and one independent counselor with no ethical core made up some crew stats and got themselves arrested. 

At the dawn of Varsity Blues, we also faced the unknown challenges arising from the Department of Justice targeting NACAC’s best practices. We worried that admissions would become a free-for-all, with rampant poaching of students and ever more outrageous guarantees of nicer housing and bigger scholarships. Then Covid hit, and no one had time for that. Colleges were too busy trying to support the kids already on their campuses to attempt to snag kids enrolled or enrolling elsewhere. Five years on, the Wild West atmosphere we dreaded has largely failed to materialize, if you don’t consider the NCAA transfer portal.