During our regular association audit in 2012, questions were raised about an unused account on AACRAO’s books called the Conner Fund. After some digging through documents back to 1988, the national office and the Board of Directors rediscovered its original purpose. Named for AACRAO’s first Executive Director, John Douglas Conner, the fund was established and funded by donations with the goal of using those monies to further the professional development of members who otherwise would not have the means to participate in AACRAO activities. The national office underwent a substantial leadership transition in 1998 for a variety of fiscal reasons. During this transition, a large focus was placed on building a solid fiscal foundation for the association, and plans for the fund fell by the wayside. This account sat and grew interest for over 15 years.
Needless to say, the Board and the office felt that a plan to disburse money from the fund had to be developed. Starting with the 2014 Annual Meeting in Denver, a Board-appointed review committee began to accept applications for the Conner Scholarship, which draws from the Conner Fund. Successful applicants are awarded $500 to help defray the cost of attending meetings, and AACRAO is proud to have helped 13 newer members attend meetings they otherwise would not have been able to.
We asked winners who attended the 2015 Annual Meeting to write a bit about their experiences – here are some excerpts.
“As all AACRAO members can attest, being a student brings the problem of finances, especially as a doctoral student with two small (and expensive) children. I knew that the only way I could attend AACRAO would be with financial assistance, which, sadly, my university did not provide. Thankfully, I applied for and received the Conner Scholarship from AACRAO, making it possible for me to attend the 2015 Annual Meeting… To say the meeting was life changing is an understatement. I had the tremendous opportunity to network with professional enrollment managers, registrars, and others and learn about the field from those people actually in it." --Amy Hutton, Student Member at Virginia Commonwealth University:
“One of my favorite sessions was a Sunday add-on workshop titled Records Management: The Big Picture, presented by Wendy Kilgore and Reid Kisling. I believe they took a daunting subject and broke it down into manageable pieces. The session was interactive but not in an uncomfortable way. I definitely came back to Kansas with a much clearer picture on records management!”--Tricia Hartshorn, Registrar at McPherson College
“During a session on data visualizations, the presenter mentioned creating a missing grades dashboard to monitor grade submissions. Since then, I have reached out to the presenter to get more information on how to set up a dashboard at my institution… It is remarkable for me to interact with other professionals in this field and learn many new tricks of the trade that will enhance my work. While I believe no one is exempt from getting caught up in the monotonous minutiae of the day-to-day at times, taking a step back and conversing with others in the field gives you a broader perspective on the work our colleagues do to help students achieve their dreams.” --Josh Hignight, Assistant Registrar at the Illinois Institute of Technology
“From the start of the First-Time Attendees’ Orientation and Welcome gathering to the closing speech, each event was worthwhile. I met people in the Black Caucus and developed relationships that will help me in my career. Through the experience of attending the AACRAO meeting, I learned quite a bit about myself. I learned it’s important for me to explore other job skills within higher education; because you never know when you’ll find something you’re passionate about." --Liza Smith, System & Data Management Analyst at Georgetown University
In the interest of keeping the fund alive and well for years to come, however, only a select number of scholarships are awarded per year. If you would like to see this number grow, donations can be made to the Conner Fund c/o AACRAO to help grow the fund and make the experiences that our lucky thirteen have had possible for even more new members in the years to come.
Contact connect@aacrao.org for more details.
Pictured from left to right, recipients in bold: Mike Reilly, Melanie Gottlieb, Rachel Mckessock (U. Minn), Kess Knight (U. Minn), Tricia Hartshorn (McPherson), Ashley Edwards (former student member at Elon U.) Amy Hutton (VCU), Josh Hignight (IIT), Brad Myers.
Not pictured: Juanita Womack (Rowan University), Kim Pierson (Coe College), Liza Smith (Georgetown), Joseph Howe (Sentara College of Health Sciences).