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1/8/2016 ACT State Organizations | ACT State Organizations Newsletter, April 2015 | ACT
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ACT State Organizations(/stateorgs/index.html)
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HELPING PEOPLE ACHIEVE EDUCATION AND WORKPLACE SUCCESS
Streamlining ACT State Organizations
At last month’s Spring Summit for ACT State Organizations Leaders, ACT announced it is replacing its StateRepresentative positions with a 15member ACT State Organizations Steering Committee. The SteeringCommittee format—approved by the ACT Board of Directors in January and set for implementation by the endof September—will enable the ACT State Organizations program to operate more efficiently and effectivelythrough shared resources, streamlined communications, and standardized processes across state councils.
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Workforce Survey Results
The Steering Committee will consist of three membersfrom each of the five regional districts created last year,providing representation for every state and the District ofColumbia and providing a range of perspectives acrossK–12, postsecondary, and career segments.
According to Suzanne Conquest, director, ACT StateOrganizations, the Steering Committee will help identifyState Organizations’ initiatives and ensure their alignmentwith the mission, goals, and objectives of ACT. Thecommittee will also chair ad hoc subcommittees that canbe assembled to meet the needs and demands ofnumerous units across the organization.
In explaining the transition, ACT leaders told SpringSummit attendees that the new structure is the outcomeof surveys, evaluations, conferences, and focus groupsthat were undertaken to align the efforts of ACT StateOrganizations members and identify the needs of theorganization as a whole.
ACT Board of Directors member Mark Musick confirmedthe value of ACT State Organizations. “They have theirfingers on the pulse of what’s happening at the local level,”said Musick. “They are key to providing us insights intowhat users want and need from ACT, and how ACT canimpact and assist them in meeting their goals and ourvision.”
Historical Highlights
1959: ACT State Organizationscreated to provide feedback onproducts and emergingopportunities within states
1959: Each state selects a StateRepresentative to sit on the ACTBoard of Directors
2003: State Organizations arereclassified as an AdvisoryBoard and governingrepresentation on the Board ofDirectors is removed
2012: ACT State Organizationsoversight is transitioned fromACT Client Relations to ACTPolicy, Advocacy, andGovernment Relations (PAG)
2014: Five regional districts arecreated, each encompassingeight to 14 states allocated to aState Organization DistrictManager
2015: State Representativepositions are retired and replacedby an ACT State OrganizationsSteering Committee
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For ACT to identify and conduct research on the pressing workforce issues facing our country today, it isimperative to understand the issues that stakeholders face. This year, the ACT State OrganizationsEducational and Workforce Issues Survey asked more than 12,342 current and past ACT State Organizationsmembers to identify what they consider to be their state’s most significant policy issues in education andworkforce development. In previous newsletter issues, we’ve presented the K–12 and postsecondary results,and this month you can read results from the workforce sector(../pdf/StateOrgSurveyWorkforceSectorReport.pdf).
Upcoming Test Enrollment DeadlinesSpring 2016 enrollment is now open for school districts that wish to administer the ACT® test to allstudents during the school day as part of their districtwide testing program. Two test dates are available:March 15 and April 19. The enrollment deadline for both spring dates is June 10, 2015. Learn more (/stateanddistricttesting/).
The enrollment deadline for fall 2015 ACT Aspire® summative testing is June 5. The testing window isOctober 12 to December 4, 2015. Learn more about ACT Aspire (http://www.discoveractaspire.org/).
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Southeast District News
Bobby Rush,[email protected]
(mailto:[email protected])@bobbyrush027
(http://twitter.com/bobbyrush027)New ACT State Organizations member recruitment hasbeen a focus for the Southeast district during the past twomonths. Since February, the Southeast district haswelcomed 75 new members to its ranks. Southeast districtleaders met and participated in an ideation activity duringthe Spring Summit for ACT State Organizations Leaders.
Congratulations to District Manager Bobby Rush and his wife, Hailee, who welcomed theirsecond child, Eva Elizabeth Rush, into the world on March 15.
South Carolina: The South Carolina Council met onFebruary 19 at Midlands Technical College in Columbia tobegin planning the fall conference and discuss otherpossible opportunities in the state, including educatingstudents and parents on the importance of taking the ACTinterest inventory survey seriously. A special thank you toSandi Oliver for hosting the meeting.
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Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Virginia will hold their council meetings this month.
March Madness in the Midwest district extended far beyond the basketball loyalties of many of our councilmembers to a very busy month for council activity. Councils are assessing their activities during the pastseveral months and entering into vigorous dialogues to innovate and advance their structures and missions inthe year ahead. State councils are also concluding their first participation in the ACT College and CareerReadiness Campaign. Several states are naming an exemplar this year, while others have learned about theprocess and plan to increase applications and select an exemplar in coming years.
As we approach the end of the school year, state councils are beginning to schedule spring and summerplanning meetings, where they will select new council leaders, recognize the work of the past year, andidentify ways that councils can be most effective, engaged, and involved.
Iowa: The Iowa ACT State Organization and Council hosted its annual conference in Ames, concluding withan inspiring endnote from Iowa’s Secondary Principal of the Year.
Missouri: Missouri hosted two conferences, one each in St. Louis and Kansas City, with many Missouri ACTCouncil members making long drives across the state to support both events.
Nebraska: With seven conferences complete, The Nebraska ACT State Organization will host the Midwestdistrict’s eighth and final conference of the season on April 9 in Lincoln. Thanks to the Nebraska ACT Council,a number of strong presenters from across education and workforce sectors are lined up to speak.
Spring has been a busy time for the Southwest district with review and submission of the ACT College andCareer Readiness Campaign exemplars, planning conferences, and promoting ACT State Organizationsmembership. Arizona, California, Hawai‘i, and Louisiana participated in the ACT College and Career ReadinessCampaign.
Arizona: The Arizona Council is meeting this month via conference call to begin planning its 2015 conference,which will be hosted in December at the Desert Willows.
Arkansas: The Arkansas Council has been working hard the past couple of months to launch a membershipcampaign. This is intended to increase the ACT State Organizations member base in Arkansas so collegeaccess providers, administrators, and other education and workforce professionals have access to the mostupdated news and information from ACT. The Council continues to make great strides in membershippromotion.
Hawai‘i: The Hawai‘i Council is hosting its second annual ACT State Organization Conference(http://www.cvent.com/events/hawaiiactstateorganizationconference/eventsummary
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Midwest District News
Rose Babington,[email protected]
(mailto:[email protected])@rose_babington
(http://twitter.com/rose_babington)
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Southwest District News
Linda Vasquez,[email protected]
(mailto:[email protected])@lindam_v (http://twitter.com/lindam_v)
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105658f6db834d0f808aae26f8d48a27.aspx) on April 17 at the Ala Moana Hotel. The theme, Using Data forStudent Success, aims to provide information and training to educators and workforce professionals on usingdata to develop and launch programs that help guide students along their college pathway and on to careersuccess.
New Mexico: Exciting times for the New Mexico Council as they prepare to host their first ACT StateOrganization conference in September, Achieving Global Competitiveness: Future of Workforce of NewMexico. The conference intends to bring to light the state of New Mexico’s workforce and bring togetherprofessionals from K–Career to develop an action plan to address the issues at hand. A call for proposals(http://www.act.org/stateorgs/cfp/nm.html) will launch this month, but in the meantime, anyone interested insubmitting an application should contact the district manager.
Texas: The Texas Council will gather on April 21 at Highland Park ISD for its annual spring meeting. Thankyou to Highland Park ISD and Council member Gena Gardiner for hosting the meeting.
March activity in the Northwest district included conferences, meetings, congratulations, and the ACT Collegeand Career Readiness Campaign.
Conferences: Both Utah and Kansas have spring conferences on the books. The Utah conference, heldMarch 19, hosted Tami Pyfer, education advisor to Utah’s governor. Tami provided opening remarks for theACT College and Career Readiness Campaign honorees. Kansas continues its April 24 conference planning,which will also include honoring the ACT College and Career Readiness Campaign exemplars. The Coloradoconference is scheduled for September 18, with the theme, College and Career Elevated: More Than One WayUp the Mountain.
Meetings: Each state council in the Northwest district has a spring inperson meeting on the books. Councilagendas include elections, revised bylaw review, and planning for next year. The Utah Council meeting isscheduled for March, with Wyoming, Idaho, Montana, Kansas, and Nevada in April, followed by Alaska in Mayand Oregon in June.
Congratulations: Paulette McIntosh, past chair of the Colorado Council, announced her retirement from TRIOUpward Bound at Metropolitan State University. The Colorado Council will miss you and thanks you for yourservice, Paulette. Jen Crandall, former state representative from Wyoming, announced an exciting careerchange—she is moving from Wyoming to Colorado where she will be a student counselor at Aims CommunityCollege in Greeley. We are pleased that Jen intends to continue her Colorado Council work as soon as shesettles in. Bobby Gandu, Kansas chair, welcomed daughter Ellery Inslee Gandu to the world on February 11.Congratulations to Bobby and his wife, Trish.
ACT College and Career Readiness Campaign: Most of the states in the Northwest district participated inthe campaign for the first time. Those who participated in the data review reported enjoying the experience,and ACT is listening to council feedback to make the process more streamlined and timely next year.
ACT State Organizations leaders from throughout the Northeast district joined with their counterparts fromacross the country in Tampa last month at the Spring Summit for ACT State Organizations Leaders.Representatives from 11 of the district’s 14 states had the opportunity to discuss goals for the Northeastdistrict and for each state.
Many of these goals focused on activities that will enhance awareness of ACT throughout the Northeast. Thisincludes greater exposure of ACT services, research, and initiatives in the region, along with growing themembership of our state organizations. Look for additional updates from individual state councils as these newinitiatives begin.
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Northwest District News
Jo Martell,[email protected]
(mailto:[email protected])@jo_martell (http://twitter.com/jo_martell)
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Northeast District News
Denton DeSotel,[email protected]
(mailto:[email protected])@denton_desotel
(http://twitter.com/denton_desotel)
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New Council Members
Vermont: Jessica Van Deren, Vermont Tech, and Elizabeth King, Community College of Vermont
Ohio: Tim Dorsey, Cuyahoga Community College
ACT State Organizations continues to seek out new council members who are dedicated to the mission andpurpose of ACT State Organizations and are able to serve in a leadership capacity within the organization. Ifyou are interested in learning more about opportunities to serve on your state council, please contact DentonDeSotel (mailto:[email protected]) or your state’s council chair to learn how to become involved.Contact information can be found at http://www.act.org/stateorgs (/stateorgs/).
ACT College and Career Readiness Campaign
Four states from the Northeast district participated in the 2015 ACT College and Career Readiness Campaign.Thank you to the state councils in these states for their work in kicking the campaign off and helping to selectthe inaugural award recipients.
A goal of Northeast district state council leadership is to expand the campaign to more states in 2016. Workwill be underway for this expansion, including state and regional events, to celebrate the district’s ACT Collegeand Career Readiness exemplars while continuing to raise awareness around the goal of college and careerreadiness for all.
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APRIL 2015
In this Issue
Streamlining ACT State OrganizationsWorkforce Survey ResultsUpcoming Test Enrollment DeadlinesSoutheast District NewsMidwest District NewsSouthwest District NewsNorthwest District NewsNortheast District News
Relevant Links
Workforce Survey Results(/stateorgs/pdf/StateOrgSurveyWorkforceSectorReport.pdf)State and District Testing (/stateanddistricttesting/)ACT Aspire®
(http://www.discoveractaspire.org)ACT College and Career ReadinessCampaign (/readinesscampaign/)
Contact Us
Suzanne ConquestDirector, ACT State [email protected](mailto:[email protected])
Savanah SchottProgram [email protected](mailto:[email protected])
ACT State Organizations500 ACT DriveIowa City, Iowa 52243
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[email protected](mailto:[email protected])
Join us on LinkedIn(https://www.linkedin.com/company/actstateorganizations?trk=nmp_rec_act_company_photo)
Join us on Twitter(https://twitter.com/hashtag/actstateorgs)
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
April 1
Georgia Council Conference Call
April 7
Arizona Council Conference CallWyoming Council Spring Meeting
April 8
Wyoming Council Spring MeetingUtah Council Conference CallAlaska Council Conference Call
April 9
Nebraska State OrganizationConferenceVirginia Council Conference CallMississippi Council MeetingMontana Council Conference CallIdaho Council Meeting
April 10
Colorado Council Conference Call
April 14
Kentucky Council MeetingNorth Carolina Council Conference CallSouth Carolina Council Conference Call
April 17
Hawai‘i State Organization ConferenceVirginia Council Meeting
April 20
Florida Council Conference Call
April 21
Kentucky Council Conference CallTexas Council MeetingOregon Council Conference CallIdaho Council Conference CallAlabama Council Conference CallIllinois Council Conference Call
April 22
California Council Conference Call
April 23
Tennessee Council Conference Call
April 24
Kansas State Organization Conference
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New Mexico Council Meeting
April 29
North Carolina Council MeetingNevada Council Meeting
