2020-2021: 56th Annual Conference

2020-2021

November 4-6, 2020 | Kalahari Convention CenterWisconsin Dells, WI

On behalf of the Wisconsin School Counselor Association, welcome to the Wisconsin School Counselor Association’s 56th Annual Conference!

The 2020-2021 school year will be our first year with a new location and a new date!  Join us for another fabulous conference with professional development, personal growth, and networking.

The Wisconsin School Counselor Association is proud to be a nationally recognized leader due to our amazing conference and outstanding members. 


CONFERENCE TEAM ANNOUNCES CANCELLATION 8/5/2020

The theme for the November 2020 WSCA conference, “CHANGE”, could not be more apt as we are all struggling with the impact COVID is having on our schools, families and communities.  WSCA leaders were so excited to bring the school counselor community together in November at our new conference location, the Kalahari Resort in Wisconsin Dells.  The conference team met and after careful deliberation and planning, made the difficult decision to cancel this year’s WSCA Conference. The well-being of our members, families, schools, and communities was paramount to our decision.

We are looking forward to seeing everyone for the 2021 WSCA Conference as scheduled and are grateful to the Kalahari Resorts and Convention Center for working with us. We are also thankful to our conference committee, speakers, exhibitors, and sponsors for your understanding and dedication to the school counseling  profession.

COVID-19 has presented us all the opportunity to think, act, and live differently. Our approach to how we define, and balance work and home is forever changed. As a school counseling community, we are here to support each other, serve as an outlet to ask questions, request assistance, and share ideas. WSCA recognizes as educators we are facing another year of uncertainty which will require us to be flexible and adaptable. WSCA continues to be committed to providing high quality training, collaboration and networking opportunities for our members this year and has a leadership team working on what this looks like for 2020-2021.  We are asking school counselors to complete the following survey,   https://forms.gle/k9xXidZT5pRLShA5A , so we have your input to create a plan that meets your needs.   

Thank you for all your hard work, dedication, and heart during these challenging times and your contributions to the WSCA school counselor community.

Gary Cambpell, Paula Haugle, Erin Wood, Andrea Berlin, Rich Miesfeld, Victoria Claas, Stacy Eslick, Nicole Kester

WSCA Conference Team

CONFERENCE REGISTRATION CANCELLATION INFORMATION

All registrations will be cancelled by the WSCA business office and any funds paid via credit card will be refunded 100% back to the original card used.  For any registration that was paid by check, a check will be sent to the originator.  This will take some time, so please be patient as we work through the cancellation process. 

If you do not receive your refund by September 8th, please contact the WSCA business office via email at: admin@wscaweb.org or call 608.204.9825.

Kalahari Hotel Cancellation

Guests should use the passkey link you used to make your reservation to cancel.  After clicking on the link, select manage existing reservation, then enter the confirmation number.  Once logged in, you will be able to cancel the reservation.  Passkey link:  

https://book.passkey.com/event/50041183/owner/49796246/home

There will be messaging saying there’s a $25 fee to cancel, however that will not be charged.  Each guest canceling will receive a refund of their entire deposit.

If you made your reservation over the phone, you will need to call the Kalahari reservation number to cancel.  Reservation number: 877.253.5466

If you made your reservation with another hotel outside of using the passkey, please contact your booked hotel directly.

Per the Kalahari, anyone wishing to keep their reservation or make a new reservation and stay at the group rate may do so at their own discretion, independent of the conference.


A Note on Covid-19 and Our Contingency Plan

We know with the current climate that there are many questions regarding what will happen with events moving forward in a world still affected by the Coronavirus Pandemic.  As of this moment WSCA is still committed to planning our in-person November conference.  At the event we will adhere to all safety and health guidelines put in place by the State of Wisconsin and recommended by the CDC.  In the event that those recommendations do not allow for an in-person event by the time of the 20-21 WSCA Conference, we have created a special cancellation policy which will apply in case of any need for changes to a virtual format or outright cancellation.  View the conference mailer here to learn more.


Keynote Speakers

November 5, 2020
OPENING KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Dr. Mandy Savitz-Romer

Mandy Savitz-Romer’s professional experience has allowed her to link research to practice in the field of school counseling, specifically as it relates to college access and retention for urban students. Before joining the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Savitz-Romer was the associate director of the Boston Higher Education Partnership, where she led research, policy and programmatic initiatives focused on promoting college access, readiness and support for Boston Public School students. She previously taught courses in school counseling and postsecondary planning at Boston University. As a former urban school counselor, Savitz-Romer is particularly interested in how schools structure counseling support systems and college planning efforts to reach all students. Her work in promoting academic achievement for Boston students has also included directing various enrichment programs for middle school, high school and first-year college students in the Boston Public Schools, Boston University, Boston College and Simmons College. She is the author of Fulfilling the Promise: Reimagining School Counseling to Advance Student Success (Harvard Education Press 2019) and the co-author of Ready, Willing, and Able: A Developmental Approach to College Access and Success (Harvard Education Press 2012),

Mandy’s keynote, Leveraging School Counselors to Promote Educational Equity and Justice, will describe what is possible when schools and districts draw upon the talents of their school counselors and put them at the center of students’ school experience. She will share how counselors can provide an “academic home” in which school counselors are a first point of contact for student support and weave a web of networked supports to support students. By offering this framing and specific strategies for how to advocate for their programs, school counselors can make changes in their own schools and districts to promote educational equity and achievement.

 

 

November 6, 2020
BRUNCH KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Tim Clue

Long before he was an educator, professional speaker, comic, published playwright and father, Tim was an undiagnosed hyper-active dyslexic rug rat raised in a small rural town outside of Chicago. By 24, Tim was an award winning college professor and coach of a nationally-recognized speech team. By 30 he established himself as a nationally recognized comic opening for Jerry Seinfeld and performing for a former President, George Bush Senior. By 40 Tim was published playwright. Now this transformative speaker, educator and writer is helping reshape the way educators build culture and connection for minds in the making. Tim transformed his struggles in the classroom to become the teacher he never had and now mentors a nation into rethinking our 21st century education. “We must create lifelong curious learners more capable to light the path to their own journey.

 


Thank you to our 2020-2021 Conference Sponsors!