By Jackie Carter, AACRAO Board President
AACRAO is actively seeking ways to improve engagement with our values across the breadth of our membership. We believe that our leadership, programming, and committees should reflect as closely as possible the physical, cultural, and institutional diversity
of the members of the Association. To do this well, we must understand member perspectives and experiences.
On March 11, 2024, all AACRAO members received a climate survey. This community climate survey was created to assess your views, and for you to reflect on your experiences with AACRAO.
In all our actions, AACRAO endeavors to demonstrate how our shared values are woven into the fabric of the Association through all our services and activities. We strive to create a culture and environment that is equitable for all members to thrive within
the Association.
In November 2023, AACRAO had 10,722 members from 2,234 institutions. As of late March 2024, those numbers increased to 14,246 members across 2,310 institutions.
- Why the increase? It’s simple - the Association is making a principled shift to be more responsive to the needs of its members who are dealing with one crisis after another.
- In December 2023, we opened rosters for all institutional members providing full AACRAO membership benefits to all interested personnel at active member institutions. This was the first of many steps we’re undertaking to support AACRAO’s
ongoing commitment to creating accessible, credentialed career pathways for our professions. By creating access for all levels of staff, we increase our ability to impact your employment and leadership pipelines.
AACRAO at Every Touchpoint
Because our members curate the outside world’s view of learners and higher education through learner records we want to reach deeper into institution staff inviting more admissions, enrollment, academic advising, transfer centers, and professionals
who would benefit from our resources and guidance.
- ⅓ of the new members are at the assistant, coordinator, or analyst levels.
- 12% of the new members are from community colleges,
- 13% of the new members are from Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs)
AACRAO wants to be more intentional, highlight its global reach, and take a strategic approach to credential innovation. This allows us to offer equitable and accessible programs and professional development opportunities for professionals like yourselves.
As we look to attract, develop, and retain a diverse membership, we must first check the pulse of the membership. Are we achieving our mission and how are you experiencing this?
Email exchange@aacrao.org, if you did not receive the climate
survey. The survey closes on March 22, 2024, and we want to hear from each of you.