My Experience with ACPA and Next Gen by Katie Perry

“We are now beginning our descent into Tampa.”

 

Those eight words were enough to make me nervous. It was not my first time traveling alone. I knew at least one person that was going to be there. That wasn’t why I was nervous. The ACPA Conference in Tampa, Florida was the beginning of the first chapter of my career.

This conference wasn’t the only thing I was thinking about while traveling to Tampa. I had to make a decision about where I am going to attend graduate school this same weekend. I got to my hotel room, settled in, and began to write a Pros and Cons list. This is when I received a phone call. “We regret to inform you that you have not been asked to attend this graduate program. I’m sorry.”

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ACPA NextGen: My Experience as an Undergraduate Venturing Into Student Affairs by Morgan Ruebusch

Hello everyone! My name is Morgan Ruebusch. I am a junior at the University of Kentucky (Go Cats!) studying Secondary Social Studies Education with a plan to go into a student affairs masters program. I am currently rounding out my second year serving as a Resident Advisor. I’ve been involved in residence life since about my fifth week of freshman year. I saw an ad for a floor representative position in the Resident Student Association and decided to go for it. My RSA involvement soon led into me attending conferences like the South Atlantic Affiliate of College and University Residence Halls (SAACURH) and the Kentucky Association of Residence Halls (KARH). I found a niche on a large campus and I couldn’t have been more thankful for the friends I made that first year. Residence Life has been my biggest dive into student affairs on my campus for sure, so when I heard of the opportunity to attend ACPA’s Next Generation Conference this year I thought it sounded like a great opportunity for me.

Rest, Reflect, Respond

“Welcome home” is very often the message we share with students and parents when they arrive on our respective campuses. For the Commission for Housing and Residential Life, this same phrase is how we represent the Commission as your professional home within ACPA. After the exciting and busy time that is the ACPA annual convention, “Welcome home” is what I would like to share now that our time together is over.

Welcome home my friends.