ASSOCIATION OF COUNSELING CENTER TRAINING AGENCIES (ACCTA)
Board Conference Call Minutes
Monday, December 15, 2008
1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. Central Time
Participants: Officers: Drs. Kathlyn Dailey (President), Maureen Lafferty (President-Elect), Sharon
Kirkland-Gordon (Secretary), Salina Renninger (Treasurer)
Board Members: Drs. Arnie Abels, Tricia Besett-Alesch, Cyndy Boyd, Julie Corkery, Mary Ann Covey,
Pam Epps, Terri Rhodes, Carina Sudarsky-Gleiser, Jod Taywaditep, and Matt Zimmerman
Dr. Dailey called the Board Conference Call to order at 1:05 p.m. (Central Time)
I. Post-Conference Survey: Sharing Evaluative Feedback
Dr. Taywaditep brought up the issue of how the post-conference survey results were disseminated to
members. He mentioned that adjustments may need to be made when sharing results, as all members
including Diversity Scholars have access to the listserv and can read positive and negative remarks
made about their presentations.
Dr. Mollie Herman, who develops and coordinates the postconference survey, includes open ended comments about continuing education presentations,
presenters, diversity scholar presentations, etc. In her summary of the post–conference survey, she
routinely includes all comments, both positive and negative. The results of the entire survey are shared
with the membership. Diversity Scholars are also privy to this and all information disseminated by way
of the listserv. Dr. Taywaditep suggested that we review our procedure with regard to sharing
comments and /or feedback with session presenters. He stated that sharing feedback is very valuable,
but urged the Board to develop a procedure for how feedback is shared with the Diversity Scholars.
The Board discussed the various ways in which feedback could be shared with all presenters. Issues
such as the purpose of the evaluation, who receives the information, and the means by which the
presenter receives the information was discussed.
The Board made the following recommendations:
 Ask Dr. Mollie Herman to remove open-ended questions about the Diversity Scholar
presentations from the post-conference survey. Specific comments about all the presentations,
including the Diversity Scholars presentations will be included on the continuing education
evaluation form.
 Include a statement in the post-conference survey that indicates that all members will have access
to the results of the post-conference survey, including the Diversity Scholars.
 Provide each presenter with summative feedback based on the results from the continuing
education session evaluation forms. This information will not be shared with the membership.
1
Dr. Dailey thanked Dr. Taywaditep for bringing this issue to our attention.
II. Post-Conference Survey: General Feedback
A. Buddy Program
 This may be a good year to review the program and come up with new ideas. There has been
some interest in extending the role of the Buddy program from a “conference mentor” to a
“training director mentor.”

It was acknowledged that members have different needs with regard to a mentor; some want a
mentor and some do not.
B. Orientation
Dr. Besett-Alesch and Dr. Covey suggested an “orientation” for 2nd and 3rd year members
who may want to increase their involvement in ACCTA. According to Dr. Besett-Alesch,
this could be accomplished during one of the ad-hoc breakfast meetings.
C. Integrating New Members
The Board discussed feedback from members who did not feel particularly welcome and
shared ideas for helping to orient and integrate new members into ACCTA.
The following ideas were suggested:


Setting up a table at dinner for new members.
Providing a step-by-step process of what to expect and when.
D. Passages
 The vast majority of members liked having the Passages session on Sunday rather than
Saturday.
 A facilitator may be needed to keep the group moving and focused on the task.
 There may be a need for more focus on training and professional development issues.
 Some groups were very large; may be a need to divide larger groups into smaller ones.
Dr. Abels and Dr. Sudarsky-Gleiser will look into this.
E. Affinity Groups
 Feedback was mixed; some liked the scheduling change to the evening, others did not.
 It was recommended that a group leader be identified prior to the group discussion.
 Designate a specific location for the affinity groups.
F. Excursion -- Very positive feedback.
Dr. Sudarsky-Gleiser suggested instituting a community service option during free time.
Dr. Dailey mentioned that while it is a great idea, there is often not enough time to engage in
such an activity; Dr. Lafferty expressed concerns about transportation. Other Board members
responded providing suggestions, such as making a donation to a local organization, and
looking into it for next year’s conference. Dr. Dailey suggested that she contact Dr. Chanda
Corbett, who coordinates a community service activity for Division 17 in conjunction with
the APA Convention, to discuss the pros and cons.
2
G. Standing Committee on Diversity Meeting
The group has become very large and some feel that there is not adequate time to discuss
relevant issues. According to Dr. Dailey, this was one of the reasons the discussion groups
were created. Dr. Dailey asked Dr. Boyd (SCD liaison) to contact the SCD, so they can
review these comments and provide recommendations.
H. Business Meetings
General feedback is that the business meetings could be shorter. One of the suggestions is
that Dr. Herman’s presentation can be summarized with just a few highlights; as most of the
information can be made available via the listserv. Dr. Dailey noted that we may need to
look into this further.
Dr. Kirkland-Gordon mentioned that at AUCCCD’s business meetings, door prizes are given
at their business meetings to encourage attendance and to keep the audience engaged.
I. Diversity Issues
Feedback was positive; members reported that the climate at the conference was much
better this year than last. There were fewer negative comments. Dr. Dailey hopes we
can continue to move forward in a positive direction. “It is a work in progress”, she
said.
Worship Services
There was some feedback about holding the conference on Saturday and Sunday when
these are days of religious observance for those of the Jewish and Christian faith. In
addition, no information is provided on places of worship in the area. Dr. Dailey
reminded the Board that the 2009 conference will start Sunday evening which may be
more desirable. Dr. Lafferty commented that this may be a good issue to bring to the
membership.
III. Logistics and Conference Registration
Dr. Besett-Alesch, who coordinated conference registration made the following
suggestions/recommendations:

Provide more help and assistance with logistics. Holding a pre-conference meeting before
setting up the registration table may be helpful.

Select a different person to handle the excursion and excursion payments. The person who
handles conference registration should be separate from the person who handles the excursion
payments. They should not be combined.

Dr. Besett-Alesch noted that our conference registration process could be streamlined and
more efficient. Dr. Dailey recommended scheduling a conference call or email to include Dr.
Jay Zimmerman.
3
IV. Theme for the 2009 ACCTA Conference
Dr. Dailey noted that we need to choose a theme and title for the 2009 ACCTA Conference.
In a recent Board meeting, she shared the idea of honoring our past members and reflecting
on the ways internship training and ACCTA have changed over the years.
She presented two ideas:
1.
2.
ACCTA in Transition: Bridging our Past and Future
Counseling Center Internship Training in Transition: Bridging our Past and Present
Dr. Dailey asked the Board to brainstorm about possible themes and forward ideas and thoughts
via email.
V. Future Meetings
The Board agreed to change the Board conference call meetings to the 2nd Monday of the month at
1:00 p.m. Central time.
Conference Call Schedule:
 January (No Conference Call)
 February 9
 March 9 (Dr. Lafferty on Spring Break)
 April 13
 May 11
 June 8
 July 13
 August 10
VI. Adjournment
Board Conference Call Meeting adjourned at 2:00 p.m. Central Time
Minutes respectfully submitted by: Dr. Sharon Kirkland-Gordon, ACCTA Secretary
4