2026 NCDA Global Conference
AGENDA
IN-PERSON CONFERENCE PROGRAM
Agenda Times listed below are Central time zone. The Agenda is subject to change.
For information on a typical NCDA Global Career Development Conference, please review the 2025 NCDA Conference Program Book.
QUESTIONS
If you have any questions regarding the NCDA Global Career Development Conference please view the FAQs or contact Mary Ann Powell, NCDA Convention Director.
Conference Session Listing (subject to change)
| Sunday, June 28, 2026 | |
| 1:00 - 5:00 pm | NCDA Career Teaching Academy |
| 3:00 - 5:00 pm | NCDA Conference Registration Open on site |
| 3:00 - 6:00 pm | NCDA Board of Directors Meeting |
| Monday, June 29, 2026 | |
| 7:00 am - 8:00 pm | NCDA Conference Registration Open |
| 7:45 am - 12:00 pm | Professional Development Institutes (4-hour in-depth workshops) - registration required; space is limited |
| 8:00 am - 12:00 pm | NCDA Leadership Academy |
| 8:00 am - 5:00 pm | NCDA Career Teaching Academy |
| 8:00 am - 3:00 pm | NCDA Board of Directors |
| 8:00 am - 5:00 pm | Training and Education Council |
| 8:00 am - 5:00 pm | NCDA Credentialing Commission |
| 1:00 - 3:00 pm | State Leadership Training |
| 1:15 - 5:30 pm | Professional Development Institutes (4-hour in-depth workshops) - registration required; space is limited |
| 3:30 - 4:30 pm | Committee Chair Meeting with the President-Elect |
| 6:00 - 8:00 pm | Exhibit Hall Open |
| 6:00 - 8:00 pm | Welcome Reception |
| 6:30 - 7:30 pm | Meet the Candidates for Upcoming Board Election |
| Tuesday, June 30, 2026 | |
| 8:00 am - 5:00 pm | NCDA Conference Registration Open |
| 8:00 am - 5:00 pm | Exhibit Hall Open |
| 8:30 - 9:30 am | Committee Meetings |
| 8:30 am - 9:30 am | First Timer's Orientation |
| 9:45 - 11:15 am | Constituency Group Meetings
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| 11:15 am - 12:30 pm | Lunch in the Exhibit Hall |
| 12:30 - 12:45 pm | Pre-General Session: Networking/Door Prizes/Activities |
| 12:45 - 2:15 pm | Opening General Session - Dr. Bidhan "Bobby" Parmar Learn more about the Livestream Option |
| 2:45 - 3:45 pm | Presentation Series 1 and Roundtables Series 1 |
| 4:15 - 5:15 pm | Presentation Series 2 and Roundtables Series 2 |
| 5:30 - 6:30 pm | Committee Meetings |
| 5:30 pm | Networking and Evening Activity Sign-Ups |
| 5:45 - 6:45 pm | Award Winner's Reception |
| 7:30 - 9:00 pm | International Reception |
| Wednesday, July 1, 2026 |
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| 8:00 am - 5:30 pm | NCDA Conference Registration Open |
| 8:00 am - 4:00 pm | Exhibit Hall Open |
| 7:30 - 8:30 am | Committee Meetings |
| 9:00- 10:30 am | General Session - Azizi Marshall |
| 10:45 am - 12:00 pm | Brain Trust Reception |
| 11:00 am - 12:00 pm | Presentation Series 3 and Roundtables Series 3 |
| 12:00 - 1:30 pm | Lunch On Your Own |
| 1:30 - 2:30 pm | Presentation Series 4 and Roundtables Series 4 |
| 3:00 - 4:00 pm | Presentation Series 5 and Roundtables Series 5 |
| 4:15 - 5:30 pm | Annual Membership Meeting |
| 5:30 - 6:30 pm | Committee Meetings |
| 5:30 pm | Networking and Evening Activity Sign-Ups |
| 7:30 - 9:30 pm | Evening Social at Crave Rooftop |
| Thursday, July 2, 2026 | |
| 7:00 am - 11:30 am |
NCDA Conference Registration Open |
| 8:00 - 9:00 am | |
| 9:15 - 10:15 am | Presentation Series 7 and Roundtables Series 7 |
| 10:30 am - 11:30 am | Closing General Session - Dr. Jaana Kettunen |
| 11:30 am | Conference Adjourns |
Continuing Education Hours Available
Professional Development Institutes
June 29, 2026
7:45 am - 12:00 pm
PDI #1 Career Constellations, Storytelling, and Playful Pedagogy: Applying Evidence-Based Career Interventions to Promote Career Resiliency
Discover how elements of playful pedagogy (wonder, choice, joy), narrative approaches, and career constellation frameworks catalyzes creative resilience and innovation in clients and students. Explore evidence-based frameworks, experience hands-on, practical labs and discussions, and leave with ready-to-use activities, templates, and an evaluation plan to implement in courses, counseling, and programs.
Candy Ho, Kwantlen Polytechnic University and Michael Stebleton, University of Minnesota
PDI #2 Finish Well Beyond 50: Creative Solutions to Impact and Scale Resilience with Older Adults to Find Grace, Dignity and Mischief
Experience, evaluate, adapt the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute's Colorado State University program helping adults find community, reframe retirement, and gain clarity and confidence about "what's next." Test proven methods and activities, engage with tools, role play to replicate with your clients, community or institution. Teach back learnings from clips. This program (always over-subscribed) includes four short courses, one full-day retreat and follow-up activities and draws from NCDA publication "Career Coaching: Fundamentals, Applications, and Future Directions" by Maietta (2022).
Rich Feller, Colorado State University and Mark Franklin, University of Toronto
PDI #3 Creative Resilience: Integrating Art Therapy and Career Counseling to Foster Adaptation and Growth
Career-related shocks and setbacks are a common occurrence for most people. During this hands-on workshop, participants will engage in hands-on, traditional and creative activities designed to help their clients explore and fortify their career resiliency in the face of career uncertainty. Benefits of arts-based, visually focused interventions will be emphasized.
Debra Osborn, Florida State University and Barbara Parker Bell, Florida State University
PDI #4 Career Construction Counseling Principles and Practice
Career construction counseling provides a means for people across life’s diverse spectrum to use work to actively master what they passively suffer. Integrating theory and practice, session participants will engage in learning and practicing career construction counseling and its core method, the Career Construction Interview. Designed for a general audience.
Jackie Peila-Shuster, Colorado State University, Hande Sensoy Briddick, South Dakota State University, Kevin Glavin, Walden University, Brian Taber, Oakland University, Julie Hill, University of Arkansas, Chris Briddick, South Dakota State University
June 29, 2026
1:15 - 5:30 pm
PDI #5 Organizational Career Development 101
This interactive PDI prepares career development professionals to expand their influence within organizations. Participants will explore key concepts, theories, and tools for creating integrated career development systems that link individual growth with organizational performance, positioning themselves as capable change agents for meaningful workplace transformation.
Hyung Joon Yoon, The Pennsylvania State University
PDI #6 Hope in Depth: Integrating Hope-Action Theory and Depth Psychology to Create Authentic, Resilient Careers and Lives
This workshop integrates Hope-Action Theory and Depth Psychology to help participants build authentic, resilient career plans. Through interactive exercises, attendees will create their own career plan while learning techniques they can apply with clients, emphasizing meaning, creativity, and adaptability in career decision-making.
Spencer Niles, William & Mary
PDI #7 Living Your Values: Designing a Career and Life Aligned with What Matters Most
Discover how aligning career choices with personal values fuels resilience and clarity. This hands-on workshop immerses participants in reflection, storytelling, and design activities to clarify values, envision multiple futures, and build facilitation skills for guiding clients toward purpose-driven, sustainable careers.
Mark Danaher, Careers By Design, LLC
PDI #8 AI in Action: Creatively Using AI to Enhance Career Counseling Delivery - A Demonstration
This interactive session shows how AI supports career counseling through 36 activities across 11 categories. Participants will co-create a client case, explore real-time ChatGPT applications with a supporting prompt workbook, and engage in dialogue on AI’s opportunities, limitations, and its implications for counselor relevance in an AI-driven era.
Robert London, R.M. London
#101 Creative Resilience in Women’s Career Development: Biopsychosocial Perspectives on Life-Work Role Transitions
This session examines creative resilience in women’s career development through a biopsychosocial lens. Presenters highlight transferable skills from motherhood, research on life-work role transitions, and evidence-based strategies. Counselor educators and researchers will gain tools to integrate resilience and creativity into teaching, supervision, and scholarship for women’s workforce reentry and thriving.
Abby Bjornsen-Ramig; Kara Schneider; Ashley Blount
#102 Creating Serendipity: How AI Builds Unexpected Value for Career Clients
Career professionals must adapt quickly in today's volatile job market. This session demonstrates how AI creates serendipitous discoveries while building client value through enhanced career exploration and market intelligence. Participants will learn to craft reusable prompts that streamline research, multiply impact, and deliver personalized insights that enhance client confidence and outcomes.
Laura Koepsell; Jessica Bickley
#103 What Veterans Wish Career Professionals Knew About Transitioning
Transitioning from military to civilian life is immensely stressful for veterans. This session uses Schlossberg’s 4S Model to help career professionals understand these challenges and apply practical strategies. Participants will gain tools to support veterans in leveraging strengths, rebuilding networks, and finding purposeful careers, moving from coping to thriving.
Rod Key
#104 From Insight to Impact: Leveraging the Career State Inventory for Targeted Student Support at Auburn University
Auburn University uses the Career State Inventory (CSI) during orientation to identify students uncertain about majors or careers and offer proactive interventions. This session outlines CSI implementation, outreach, collaboration, and early outcomes. Attendees will explore collaboration strategies to support still-deciding students and apply insights to their own campus.
Erica Stallings
#105 Advancing Professional Practice: NCDA Training & Education Council Programs (FCD & SCDA)
This session introduces the NCDA Training & Education Council and its role in advancing professional practice through Facilitating Career Development (FCD) and School Career Development Advisor (SCDA) programs. Participants will explore training pathways, credentialing opportunities, and practical applications across education and workforce settings.
Travis Lightsey
#106 Bolstering Career Resilience Through Mindfulness and Expressive Arts
In this interactive workshop, career development professionals will explore mindfulness and expressive arts as pathways for self-care and resilience. Participants will engage in a creative exercise and reflective dialogue with peers, and discuss strategies to integrate creativity into the career development process for themselves and their clients.
Breanne Cahoy
#107 The New Bottom Line: Integrating Financial Wellness into the Career Development Model
Financial wellness and career readiness go hand in hand. This session offers practical, research-based strategies for integrating financial literacy into career counseling, helping students manage debt, reduce stress, and make informed, sustainable career choices. These are essential skills for building creative resilience in an uncertain economic and employment future.
Lakeisha Mathews; Janet Wall
#108 Overcoming Employment Challenges: Creative Resilience in Practice
Reflecting the 2026 theme of Creative Resilience, this session introduces Overcoming Employment Challenges, the newest chapter in NCDA’s Facilitating Career Development manual. Co-author Maisie Lynch will guide participants in exploring innovative, research-based strategies and adaptable tools, directly from the book, that help career professionals transform employment barriers into opportunities for growth, access, and client empowerment.
Maisie Lynch
#109 Cultivating Resilient and Meaningful Careers: Integrating Hope-Action Theory and Depth Psychology
This presentation integrates Hope-Action Theory and Depth Psychology to promote creative resilience in career development. Through experiential activities, participants will learn to translate hope into action, integrate symbolic and reflective processes, and construct meaningful, adaptable career plans that foster purpose, authenticity, and resilience amid continuous personal and professional change.
Spencer Niles; Jennifer Niles
#110 Students as Creative Consultants: Designing Resources for Students, by Students
What happens when we treat students not just as recipients of support, but as creative collaborators in designing it? This session introduces a framework for engaging students as consultants to co-create student-facing resources, programs, and services. By tapping into their lived experience and knowledge, we can reimagine how our offices meet student needs: with authenticity, relevance, and innovation. Participants will explore a hands-on model for launching student-led consulting projects, grounded in design thinking and creative problem-solving.
Annie Vangsnes
#111 Survival Challenge: A Playful Approach to Exploring Career Readiness Competencies
Can you survive on a mysterious island? Take the challenge! Discover how this interactive activity introduces career readiness competencies in a fun, engaging way. Participants will experience the activity firsthand, reflect on its impact, and explore strategies to implement it in their own classrooms, workshops, or student programs.
Rosie Ruoci Shen; Emma Andruczyk; Leigh Deusinger
#112 Live Demonstrations of Cognitive Information Processing Theory: A dynamic approach to client decision-making and thinking
Experience Cognitive Information Processing (CIP) Theory in action through engaging role plays that highlight creative, resilience-building strategies. Attendees will observe and practice CIP-based interventions, including the CASVE cycle and techniques for reframing negative career thinking. Participants leave with adaptable, evidence-based tools to enhance dynamic career solutions for diverse clients.
Emily Bullock-Yowell; Seth Hayden; Deb Osborn
#113 Creative Resilience in Action: School Counselors & Career Development Coordinators Supporting Student's Unique C.A.S.E. with Career Development Plans
Discover how North Carolina K-12 school counselors and Career Development Coordinators use C.A.S.E (Career, Academic, Social, and Emotional) as a framework to personalize Career Development Plans. Learn strategies for collaboration, creative resilience, and whole-student support preparing every learner for the “Three E's:" Enlist, Enroll, or Employ.
Amy Policastro-Schroeder; Kisha Bryant
#201 Reimagining Career Adventures: Career Development Solutions for Corporate Career Guidance in a Changing Kingdom
Discover how Saudi Aramco, a global energy leader, pioneered career guidance in Saudi Arabia, scaling services to 75,000 employees through practitioner credentialing, upskilling, tool development, supervision, and partnerships. By reimagining classical career journeys as career adventures with obstacles, triumphs, a compass, a map, and treasures to be found, this session showcases resilience-based solutions leveraging synergies across training, service delivery, and networks, offering transferable career guidance implementation strategies for workforce transformation in large organizations.
Eman Bukhari; Afnan Abdulkader
#202 Creative Career Interventions: Integrating Transpersonal and Spiritual Approaches with Career Construction Theory to Facilitate Growth
Because of changes in the political climate and in innovation, the workforce is constantly changing. These changes have led to hopelessness regarding the job market, job-seeking, and remaining in the workforce. The purpose of this program is to assist career practitioners in using Mark Savickas' Career Counseling Theory (CCT) to instill hope into their clients. The presenters will guide participants in integrating Transpersonal and Spiritual techniques into CCT, through a social justice lens. Participants will leave the program with a ready-to-use-toolkit activity to use with clients.
David Julius Ford, Jr.; Phyllis Alongi; Sumedha Therthani; Amelia Shannon
#203 Evolving Work Values Across Adulthood: Supporting Proactive and Resilient Career Transitions
Conflicting findings exist in the literature regarding the stability of work values, despite their essential role in career planning and decision-making. Curious about what our study will reveal? This presentation will also highlight key factors that may contribute to changes in work values across different life stages.
Qiong Li; Jillian Schiller
#204 Using Online Resources to Implement Effective Interventions, Support Diverse Populations and Reimagine Practices
An abundance of professional development, publications, standards, resources and advocacy tools exists on the web. The career development professional may need help identifying and creatively utilizing these. Walking through online resources together, you will gain dynamic solutions from NCDA.org to assist you in inspiring and empowering yourself and your clients/students. First-timers encouraged to attend!
Melanie Reinersman
#205 Level Up Your Supervision: Career Practitioner Supervision Training + Alumni Panel
Join us for a brief conference information session on the NCDA Career Practitioner Supervision Training—a 45-hour, cohort-based program delivered through weekly live virtual sessions. Hear a concise program overview, then learn from a panel of program completers sharing real-world takeaways and how they applied supervision tools across settings. Q&A included.
Tina Peterman
#206 Creative Resilience at the Crossroads: Integrating Mental Health Competency into Career Development Practice
Explore how mental health diagnoses like depression, anxiety, ADHD, and PTSD impact career development. Participants will learn strategies to reduce stigma, support disclosure and accommodations, foster resilience, and turn client challenges into growth opportunities.
Jennifer Curry; Jodi Manton
#207 Staying Well While Doing Good: Best Practices for Managing Compassion Fatigue
This session explores compassion fatigue and its impact across occupations. Attendees will learn to recognize symptoms in themselves and others, review current research, and discuss practical strategies to minimize effects of compassion fatigue. The presenter will lead participants through experiential techniques including guided meditation and breathing exercises to support wellbeing.
Holly Klenk
#208 Designing Your Future Self: A Three-Year Framework for Career and Life Growth
This session explores the power of focusing on the future in career development. Participants will engage in interactive activities based on Benjamin Hardy’s and Hal Hershfield's research and my coaching framework, learning how to guide clients in envisioning their future selves three years out. Leave with tools to inspire clarity, motivation, and sustained growth.
Mark Danaher
#209 NCDA 2025-2026 AI Taskforce Progress and Insights: Advancing Career Services
Join members of the NCDA 2025–2026 AI Taskforce as we share progress, challenges, and opportunities in advancing AI in career services. This session highlights lessons learned, ethical considerations, and actionable strategies that career practitioners can apply to strengthen practice and resilience in a rapidly evolving technological landscape.
Logann Todd; Conquaya James
#210 Coaching Counts: An Student-Centered Framework for New Career Advisors
This workshop introduces NWTC’s Coaching Counts framework, designed to support diverse learners and empower career advisors, especially those new to the field. Participants will explore eight practical coaching skills, including transparency, normalization, prioritization, and motivation, while engaging in peer discussion to co-create strategies that build client resilience and success.
Allyson Baue; Lauren Cram; Jennifer Parks-Tigert; Amy Peterson
#211 From Nebulous to Navigable—Building A Four-Year Career Readiness Plan
Discover how a four-year Career Readiness Plan transforms vague concepts into a clear, student-centered journey. Through four phases—explore, engage, plan, activate—participants will see how scaffolding NACE competencies, milestones, and emerging trends in AI literacy and human connectedness creates a forward-looking, measurable framework that equips students for future success.
Ashley Bigda
#212 Creative Collaboration in Practice: Empowering Multicultural Student's Career Development Through Intentional First Year Programming
The Academy of Excellence: Representation in Involvement and Engagement (AERIE) program at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse is a collaborative initiative led by the Office of Multicultural Student Resources. In partnership with Academic Advising Center & Career Services, AERIE is designed to enhance the academic, personal, and career success of first-year multicultural students by fostering belonging, promoting wellness, and cultivating leadership and self-advocacy. This session will spotlight the Tune In to Strive Out Career Wellness Program as a key component of creativity in AERIE.
Sarah Hines; Reg Hawkins
#213 The 4 Habits of Highly Effective K-12 Career Counselors
This workshop provides the tools for counselors to engage students in productive conversations about their futures. Research shows that college doesn’t resonate with many students, particularly first-generation students. Nonetheless, a majority of high-growth high-wage jobs require education and training after high school, including credentials, certificates, apprenticeships and degrees.
Ellen Bagnato
#301 Second Wind: Reintegrate Older Adults in Gainful Employment Through Real-Work and Creative Role Design & Mindset Shifts
This session introduces the “Second Wind” framework to address the employment challenges of retirees and displaced older adults. Using Singapore’s ageing yet low-unemployment context, it explores the business case for age-inclusive hiring, strategies for age-apt job redesign, and techniques to support post-retirement mindset shifts.
Mun Wai Ho
#302 CareerOneStop for Justice-Impacted Job Seekers
CareerOneStop’s Justice-Impacted portal provides tools and guidance for individuals with criminal records seeking employment. This presentation highlights three goals: introducing the portal’s purpose and audience, demonstrating its career exploration and job search resources, and showcasing strategies to overcome hiring barriers—empowering justice-impacted job seekers to build skills, gain confidence, and achieve meaningful careers.
Kelly Tenner; Julie Remington
#303 Strength in the Margins: Supporting the STEM Career Development of Black Students Through Culturally Responsive and Systemic Approaches
This session highlights research-based strategies for supporting Black STEM students through culturally responsive career development frameworks. Black students in higher education STEM fields face systemic and interpersonal barriers that impact their success and well-being. Attendees will explore barriers such as racial microaggressions and stereotype threat, and learn how to foster STEM identity, self-efficacy, and institutional belonging through intentional counseling interventions.
Diandra Prescod
#304 PAUSE & Prompt- Sustainable, Ethical AI for Career Services
Discover how to use AI responsibly with the PAUSE & Prompt framework—Purpose, Accessibility, Underpinning Evidence, Sustainability, and Ethics. This interactive session highlights strategies to reduce AI’s environmental impact, safeguard privacy, and design inclusive tools, helping career professionals build creative resilience while integrating ethical, sustainable AI into their daily practice.
Angie Thompson
#305 NCDA Credentialing Commission, Who We Are, What We Do and Where We are Headed
The National Career Development Association Credentialing Commission will provide an overview of its purpose, leadership, and strategic direction, emphasizing its role in upholding professional standards and ethical practice. This session will introduce Commissioners and their credentials, summarize current program benchmarks – including recent credential-holder survey results and updated statistics – and outline future plans to strengthen professional development pathways and maintain the integrity of NCDA credentials.
Charlie Raphael
#306 NCDA Professional Development: Updates, Insights, and Future Plans
This session highlights continuing education activities available through the Association's Webinar Series, Career Practitioner Conversations Podcast, and The NCDA Hub. NCDA's Professional Development Director will provide programming updates, findings of a recent feedback initiative for The Hub, a preview of upcoming events, and an opportunity to share ideas and recommendations.
Melissa Venable
#307 Helping your NeuroSpicy Client Achieve Career Engagement and Success: Neuro-Focused Ways to Adapt Your Coaching Practice
Neurodiversity is easy to discuss and debate but can you provide real life ways to help your NeuroSpicy client be successful? As we help our clients adapt and grow, we can challenge ourselves to uncover assumptions and biases. Gain insights on how neurodiverse people experience information exchange, masking, varied sensory and executive functioning issues, and learn about inertia and demand avoidance. Better serve clients with a structured process offering neuro-friendly self-discovery and structured career techniques which fuel resilience. Discover the power of partnerships, join us.
Cindy Edwards; Jessica Ayub
#308 Creative Resilience in Action: Discovering the Unspoken Narrative in Job Search Struggles
Why do some students appear to “seek” struggle? Through a case of reframing repeated rejections as self-formation, we introduce story-discovery—where telling becomes a catalyst for awareness—moving beyond technique-led re-authoring to reveal the non-obvious beliefs that organize action and fuel creative resilience.
Rie Takanuma
#309 Bridging the Gap: Integrating Psychosocial Well-Being into Career Development for Resilient Workforces
Career development professionals need foster psychosocial well-being and resilience skills in order to collaborate on a competitive global stage. This session shares Jordanian case studies on counselor capacity building and National Occupational Standards for Labour Mobility Counselors, alongside U.S. on resilience and emotional intelligence in higher education. In comparing the experiences of two countries, we will show how creative solutions aid psychosocial competencies into practice and policy, offering transferable strategies to build resilient workforces through global collaborations.
Sujata Ives
#310 The Power of Self Disclosure and Authentic Storytelling: Helping Build Student Resilience
Discover how authentic storytelling and intentional self-disclosure by career practitioners can reduce student anxiety and decision paralysis. Learn practical techniques to build trust, normalize uncertainty, and foster resilience through narrative-based advising, grounded in theory, data, and practice.
Victoria Sexton; Beka Moore
#311 Creative and Resilient Approaches to Scaling Paraprofessional Career Services for Diverse Student Needs
Drawing insights from four distinct programs, discover strategies to integrate creative solutions when designing and implementing resilient student paraprofessional programs in large, decentralized universities. Engage in interactive discussions to address challenges such as budgeting, federal mandates, and service gaps while fostering innovation and equity in student career development.
Pankaj Desai; Zella Walden; Grace Yun; Bryanna Brooks
#312 Faculty Fellows: Establishing Partnerships with Career Services and Faculty Across Campus
Tulsa Community College found a unique way to boost student awareness and involvement in Career Services through the Faculty Fellows program. This program allows faculty to learn from and engage with Career Services staff. Faculty Fellows has been very successful in extending the reach of Career Services across the college.
Lindsey Jensen; Heather Crain
#313 Making Sense of the Mess: Can Organized Chaos Spark Creative Career Programming?
Behind every polished program is a mountain of sticky notes, color-coded lists, and scattered ideas. This session helps K–12 career specialists embrace organized chaos to design creative, sustainable programming. Through stories and strategies, participants will learn that success comes not from perfection, but from refining the process.
Kimberly Cartledge
#314 Overview of the NCDA Counselor Educator Academy
The Counselor Educator Academy (CEA) will be offered by NCDA in 2027 and is for counselor educators, instructors, and advanced doctoral students who teach graduate level Career Counseling courses. Learn about this unique opportunity designed to support your work teaching future counselors about their role in career-related counseling. The 2027 CEA will continue to build off the outstanding projects and progress of previous CEA cohorts to support the field of teaching career counseling.
Arden Szepe; Jackie Peila-Shuster
#401 Doing More with Less: Scalable Career Services Through Technology, Partnerships, and Innovation
Discover how resource-constrained career centers maximize impact through strategic technology, innovative partnerships, and scalable programs. Learn to implement a Career Champions faculty training, mass employer mock interviews, AI tools for scalability, Canvas modules demonstrating content expertise, and a campus-wide internship expansion model that serve hundreds of students efficiently.
Rose Fuller
#402 Rest Will Save Us: Creative Approaches to Healing Burnout in Career Counseling
This session reframes rest as a clinical and creative intervention in career development. Participants will explore the seven types of rest and learn how creative rest, grounded in a Womanist Political Economy framework, can heal burnout, restore regulation, and spark resilience for counselors and the clients they serve.
Cecily Moore
#403 Reframing Regret: Integrating Theory and Practice in Career Counseling
This session explores how regret influences career decision-making and satisfaction. Attendees will examine its emotional and cognitive impacts, learn to identify and reframe regret as a catalyst for growth, and gain practical, research-based, and culturally-responsive strategies to help clients make more confident, informed career choices.
Lisa Cardello; Michael Bobbitt; Stephanie Bobbitt
#404 Write Now! How to Get Published with NCDA
Contribute to your profession by sharing through the written word! Prospective authors range in work settings, experience, and education level. Learn about writing for NCDA's magazines and journal: Career Convergence, Career Developments, and The Career Development Quarterly. The editors will compare/contrast the three publications, offer CEs and brainstorm ideas with you.
Melanie Reinersman; Melissa Venable; Melinda Gibbons
#405 Creatively Deconstructing Dominant Discourses to Construct Career Possibilities
In a challenging world, it is imperative for career practitioners to creatively use deconstruction to disrupt dominant discourses so individuals can better construct careers that help them thrive. Information presented will be brought to life through interactive case examples and practice using deconstruction processes that are part of career construction counseling.
Jackie Peila-Shuster
#406 Interculturalism as a Dynamic Solution for Resilience, Engagement, and Connection
Are you tired of toxic workplaces and misunderstandings? Then this presentation is for you! Interculturalism is an evidence-based construct that provides a dynamic solution for navigating diverse societies and workplaces. Interculturalism stresses interaction, dialogue, and mutual transformation. Intercultural and global competence is essential for individuals, teams, and systems in today's competitive global stage. Interculturalism creates unified and resilient workplaces by encouraging bidirectional learning and peaceful contact across cultural variances through a Story Circle Models.
Sujata Ives; Sonja Robinson
#407 Tapping Into Resiliency when Addressing Ethical Challenges in the Workplace
This workshop is designed to explore unethical behavior, resiliency and the foundational concepts of ethical decision-making. Complex dilemmas invariably occur in the workplace, so it is important to help clients incorporate the use of resiliency as a tool when addressing these complex, “real world” issues.
Carolyn Jones; Stacy Van Horn
#408 Scaling Career Center Services and Driving Innovation through Peer-Led Programming
Learn how Georgetown’s Wayfinder peer mentor program integrates dynamic solutions into career development, from AI pilots to equity-focused initiatives. Explore strategies to scale services, foster innovation, and adapt programs to evolving student needs.
Alexander Ricciuti
#409 Building Career Resilience: The Three Pillars Framework for International Student Success
International students navigate invisible barriers to career success. This session introduces the Three Pillars Framework—Culture, Communication, and Community—empowering career practitioners to move beyond job search tactics and build student resilience through cultural interpretation, authentic voice development, and strategic relationship building.
Daniel Pack; Maggie Luo
#410 Ethics by Design: Creative Solutions for the Use of AI in Career Services
As AI transforms career development, ethics guide innovation. This interactive session, presented by members of the NCDA AI Task Force, explores two ethical frameworks for professionals and students. Discussions of real-world scenarios by participants will discover creative approaches for integrating AI responsibly while preserving the human core of career services.
Janet Wall; Daniel Greenwood; Keith Okrosy
#411 Leveraging Creative Connections for University Career Readiness
Explore how a large R-1 university fosters creative resilience through cross-campus partnerships that enhance career readiness. Career and advising leaders share adaptable models bridging coaching and student support. Through interactive brainstorming, participants will design collaborations that embed career readiness into daily student interactions—gaining practical tools and inspiration for sustainable integration.
Danielle Shu; Sierra McVeigh; Alison Noonan
#412 “Do I Need an Anglo Name to Succeed?” Navigating Name-Based Bias in Career Advising for International Students
This session explores how international students navigate name-based bias during the job search. Drawing on a qualitative study, I’ll present identity-related challenges and decisions around name use among international students. Attendees will gain insights and strategies to support students in building resilience, self-advocacy, and navigating career development more consciously.
Shiyu Sun
#413 Creative Resilience in Leadership: Insights from NCDA Past Presidents
As work and client needs evolve, career professionals must lead with creativity, adaptability, and collaboration. Select NCDA Past Presidents share how they have applied creative resilience—reimagining traditional models, piloting innovative initiatives, and fostering partnerships—offering lessons and practical strategies to inspire participants to integrate dynamic solutions in their own career development practice.
Mallory Becraft; Rich Feller; Mark Danaher; Lakeisha Mathews; Sharon Givens
#414 Creative Resilience: Dynamic Career Counseling for Adult Education Students Impacted by Trauma
Explore trauma-informed, creative approaches to career counseling for adult education learners. Grounded in Cognitive Information Processing, Chaos, and Resilience theories, this interactive session equips professionals with dynamic strategies to build adaptability, foster resilience, and design strength-based career pathways through experiential activities, community partnerships, and culturally responsive practices.
Sophie Manigo Fuller
#501 Supporting Veterans’ Career Transition: Research, Models, and Resources
Veterans encounter both successes and struggles as they navigate the military to civilian transition (MCT) process. This presentation will examine research on Veteran help-seeking and a model for working with Veteran MCT. Attendees will participate in an interactive resource sharing session outlining potential career and counseling interventions to support MCT.
Heather Robertson
#502 Creative Resilience in Action: Empowering Underserved Youth Through Leadership and Communication
Youth in underserved communities often face systemic barriers: poverty, stigma, limited access to quality education, and exposure to violence that hinder career readiness. This session explores how International Samaritan Jamaica and Toastmasters International foster creative resilience among underserved youth through an adapted Youth Leadership Program. Two scholars share how communication, mentorship, and storytelling transformed their lives. Participants gain practical strategies to replicate low-cost, culturally responsive leadership models that build confidence and sustainable growth.
Sonja Robinson; Ann Nakaska
#503 Developing Opportunities for Collaborative Writing Between Students and Educators in Career Development Spaces
This panel discussion will highlight strategies to promote collaboration between educators and students around career-related writing projects. We will focus on a partnernship between NCDA and a graduate-level career development course taught at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities in Spring 2025. Editors and students share their experiences writing for a recent NCDA-sponsored monograph, "Analyzing Current and Future Workforce Issues." Topics include designing and organizing projects, building partnerships, fostering communication skills, and writing and editing processes.
Michael Stebleton; Melissa Venable; Shannon McCrady; Kirsten Koerth; Nathan Price
#504 Using Happenstance Learning Theory to Improve Resiliency Amongst Asians in At-Risk Professions Threatened by Advancements in genAI
This presentation explores the disproportionate impact of job loss for Asian Americans in STEM fields due to generative AI. Krumboltz’s happenstance learning theory is used to demonstrate how career counselors can reframe workplace insecurity into opportunities for growth, curiosity, persistence, flexibility, optimism, and risk-taking to foster resilience and adaptability.
Brandon Blue; Benjamin Deets; Gabrielle Bunch
#505 Creative Resilience in the Algorithmic Age: Merging SFT and ATS Strategy for Career Clients
Discover a dual-pathway model that blends solution-focused therapy with ATS/AI-optimized resume design. Learn to help clients thrive amid algorithmic hiring by building psychological resilience while strategically navigating AI-driven systems—ensuring their humanity isn’t lost in the machine.
Janet Hicks; Patricia McMillan
#506 Using Career Development Quarterly to Inform your Practice
Career Development Quarterly, NCDA's academic journal, is available to all members. Come learn how CDQ can inform your work as a career development professional and keep you updated on evidence-based practice. Participants will discover how the practical implications section of all articles can support their work with clients.
Melinda Gibbons; Seth Hayden; Louis Rocconi
#507 How to Incorporate the NCDA Strategic Plan as a Dynamic Mindset for Creative Resilience and Success
Have you ever thought of incorporating the values of the NCDA Strategic Plan to create a dynamic mindset? Think of it as an organizational roadmap to design a living framework that cultivates creative resilience for you and your clients. The NCDA plan prioritizes principles that can support resilience in a rapidly transitioning world. When professionals internalize these strategic priorities, they move beyond compliance and begin leading with intention, using the plan as a compass for navigating uncertainty and complexity. Join this interactive session to connect the neuro-dots!
Sujata Ives
#508 Innovation Through Advocacy - Equipping Career Practitioners to Influence Policy and Drive Change
Career practitioners’ work is increasingly impacted by policy and legislation - are you prepared to advocate for your work and your clients on this systemic level? Join the NCDA Government Relations Committee for this training to demystify the legislative process, access free advocacy resources, and learn practical strategies to influence change.
Shelby McIntyre Steven Thomas; Carolyn Jones; Natalie Kauffman; Amy Policastro-Schroeder
#509 The Narrative Among Trauma, Resilience, and Career Development: Preliminary Analysis from a Qualitative Study
Explore how trauma shapes career development in this interactive session. Participants will examine themes from a qualitative study, engage in reflective discussions, and apply trauma-informed strategies for practice and teaching. Activities include case analysis and group dialogue, with real-time feedback to deepen learning and enhance professional effectiveness.
Galaxina Wright; Lisa Cardello; Marcus Dolce
#510 International Students and Career Development; Creative Solutions to Challenging Regulations
There are a million international students studying in the United States, most of whom are eager to gain work experience to supplement their academic objectives. Immigration regulations, however, can present restrictive obstacles when advising international students on allowable work experience, and more pointedly, on career development opportunities. In line with this year’s theme, this session will present current information on the regulatory context and also present some creative ideas with regard to encouraging international student’s access to the benefits of career services advising.
Robin Catmur-Smith; Kyle Sommer; Nicole Bennett
#511 Creative Resilience: Encouraging Entry into School Counseling - Insights from Practitioner Journeys
Many parts of the country are experiencing a shortage of K-12 educators, including school counselors. This session describes a study conducted in collaboration with a state level school counseling association to understand the pathways members pursued to become school counselors. Findings indicate that supportive counselors and advisors, and undergraduate education experiences are critically important to helping people identify their career pathway. Actions for undergraduate and graduate career advisors will be emphasized.
Tim Poynton; Sherri Turner; Sophie Whynacht
#512 Limited Capacity with Maximum Results: An Impactful Internship Program
This session explores how strategic internship programs maximize career readiness, job skills development, and institutional success. Attendees will learn actionable steps to deliver high-impact, inclusive internship initiatives with limited staff capacity and decreased budgets on their campuses that align with student academic goals, institutional strategic plans and employer needs.
Courtney Pearson
#513 Scaling Strategically: Using Creative Frameworks to Prioritize and Support Your Team
Asked to do more with the same resources? In this session, explore how Design Thinking and the Eisenhower Matrix can help you think creatively and scale strategically in career services. You’ll leave with the foundation of an action plan to address a pressing challenge and guide your team forward.
Jordan Hansen; Katie Dunn
#514 Career Choices Among High School Students: Decidedness, Motivators, Confidence, and Implications for Interventions
We will present results from a study of high school students who were decided or undecided about their career choices, comparing reasons important for choosing careers, and confidence in making good fit choices, future skill development, and job performance. Findings have practical implications for dynamically incorporating career choice status, motivators, and confidence into career counseling interventions.
Becky Bobek; Joyce Schnieders
#601 The E.L.I.T.E.™ Framework: Building Resilient Careers for Career Professionals
Career pros need resilience too. The E.L.I.T.E.™ Framework offers practical tools to grow your practice and serve clients at a higher level. Learn how Elevate, Leverage, Innovate, Transform, and Expand strategies can help you build a thriving business while guiding clients toward creative, lasting career success.
Nickquolette Barrett
#602 The Art of Adaptation: Designing Creative Resilience with the Career Construction Interview
Experience the Career Construction Interview as a creative framework for building client resilience. This session demonstrates how narrative methods help clients creatively reconstruct meaning, adapt to uncertainty, and navigate career transitions with purpose and self-direction. Includes a live demonstration and discussion of innovative CCI applications.
Kevin Glavin
#603 NCDA Tech Committee Panel: Career Development in an AI Driven World- Tools, Ethics, and Strategies
Join the NCDA Tech Committee for an engaging panel discussion on career readiness in the age of AI. Panelists will share insights, tools, and ethical perspectives gained through ongoing committee collaborations. This Q&A format encourages audience participation, fostering shared learning and practical takeaways for career professionals navigating an AI-driven workforce.
Angie Thompson; Janet Wall; Young Choi-Plass; Erik Hines; Jaana Kettunen
#604 Counselors Feel, Too!
As the motivation and pressure to design effective, inclusive, and innovative practices grows, so too do ethical challenges. Join members of the NCDA Ethics Committee and the 2024-2026 AI Task Force to explore emotional responses to ethical dilemmas and engage with a practical model for ethical decision-making.
Conquaya James; Keith Okrosy
#605 Surfacing the Villain: Reimagining the Hero’s Journey in Career Conversations
How can “villains to defeat” and “challenges to solve” help clients craft their unique story? Explore a bridge between narrative career theory and the Challenge Mindset to explore work as both rewarding and challenging. Experience a creative approach that helps transform obstacles into catalysts for growth, promoting resilience and meaning-making.
Marty Apodaca; JP Miche;
#606 Developing Future Leaders in Career Development: An Overview of the NCDA Leadership Academy
The National Career Development Association's Leadership Academy, established in 2006, is a biennial, experiential leadership development program designed to cultivate future leaders within the NCDA. Selected Mentees engage in targeted leadership workshops, gain insight into NCDA's history and governance, build relationships with current and past leader Mentors, and undertake a two-year Leadership Action Learning Project that aligns with organizational needs and Strategic Plan.
Sujata Ives
#607 The Hero’s Journey through Career Development: Social Cognitive Career Theory, Resilience, and Tolerating the Unknown
This session bridges Social Cognitive Career Theory with worldview-based resilience and ambiguity tolerance. Participants will explore how counselors can help clients and students harness uncertainty through meaning-making, adaptability, and SCCT-informed strategies. Cultural immersion and online learning insights support practical application in evolving career contexts.
Jonathan Smith; Amanda Weldon; Katie Rojas; Yanjing Elfman
#608 Scaling Impact: Student Leaders, Faculty Partnerships & Smart Tech
Learn how Worcester State scaled its impact without increasing staff by leveraging student leaders, faculty partnerships, employer collaboration, and AI technology. Attendees will leave with replicable strategies and actionable tools.
Dannie Lacks
#609 Game On! Using Gamification to Boost Engagement in Career Education
Discover how gamification enhances student engagement and reflection in career development. This interactive session presents strategies used in career services workshops and classes, followed by a team-based design challenge. Participants will experience gamification firsthand and reflect on how to adapt these approaches to their own professional contexts.
Rosie Ruoci Shen; Emma Andruczyk; Leigh Deusinger
#610 Resilience in Action: How Office Adaptation Fuels Purpose-Driven Programs
Learn how Highland Community College's Career Services Office built departmental resilience and institutional alignment, which, in turn, fueled the development of scalable content, course offerings, and staff additions. Discover how campus partnerships, administrative support, use of the learning management system, and other tools, such as SparkPath and PathwayU, enable purpose-driven career planning and adaptability.
Anthony Musso
#611 AI and the Art of Being Human: Cultivating Empathy, Curiosity, and Meaning at Work
Rather than replacing us, AI can remind us who we are. This interactive session explores how technology can spark empathy, curiosity, and adaptability, revealing how the art of being human fosters connection, meaning, and creative resilience in a world where technology is reshaping work and relationships.
Rachel Nihart; Victor Massaglia
#612 Work Happy, Learn Happier: A Career Course That Scales
Happiness at Work, a new career-focused academic course at the University of Iowa, teaches students to connect purpose, well-being, and career readiness while scaling career center impact. Learn actionable strategies, reflective exercises, and scalable approaches for integrating happiness and resilience into curricular offerings that prepare students for meaningful, adaptable careers.
Mallory Becraft
#613 Resilient from the Inside Out: Strengths-Based Wellbeing for Frontline Career Professionals
Discover how to boost your personal and professional resilience by aligning wellbeing with your natural strengths. In this interactive session, you’ll explore practical ways to move from surviving to thriving, using strengths-based strategies to restore energy, foster engagement, and create sustainable wellbeing as a frontline career services professional.
Keri Aaver
#701 Drawing Out Career Conversations: What Practitioners and Art Therapists See in Visual Arts Interventions
This session presents survey results related to career practitioners’ attitudes toward incorporating creative strategies, including visual arts, into career sessions. Findings include predictors of integration, perceived barriers, and comparisons with art therapists’ arts-based intervention inquiry approaches. Attendees will learn implications for training, theory, and innovative career counseling practices.
Deb Osborn; Barbara Parker Bell
#702 Innovative AI Tools to Address Intersecting Forms of Career Marginalization
Although AI is poised to deliver promising results in career and employment outcomes, it requires a careful examination in practice with historically marginalized communities. Through live AI demonstrations and examples of applied practice, the presenters will elaborate on ways that AI can be beneficial in addressing career barriers and marginalization.
Christian D. Chan; Elle O'Flaherty; Janet Wall
#703 From Badge to Beyond: Supporting First Responders in Career Transitions and Retirement
When transitioning out of a first responder career, individuals face unique challenges, including loss of identity, difficulty generalizing skills, and emotional adjustment. This session will provide career practitioners with resilience-based tools to help first responders find meaning, purpose, and wellness during the process of transitioning to new careers or retirement.
Janita Daggy; Stacey Coyne; Deepa Emmanuel
#704 Empowering Career Confidence: Applying Social Cognitive Theory in Business Education
This session explores a cross-disciplinary collaboration between counselor education and business instructors to enhance career readiness through a required experiential course grounded in social cognitive theory. Participants will gain strategies for integrating theory into career interventions and learn how self-efficacy impacts post-graduate outcomes.
Kristen Tuxbury; Katybeth Lee; Kaitlin Hinchey
#705 Integration of AI in Career Counseling: A Critical Examination of ChatGPT in Clinical Practice
This interactive workshop explores the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into career counseling. Participants will engage in case-based exercises to compare AI-generated and counselor-developed treatment plans. The session emphasizes ethical use, critical evaluation, and practical application. Participants will learn a framework for using AI to support—not replace—counselor expertise.
Brian Stevenson
#706 Who Am I and Why Am I Here? Exploring Culture, Identity, and Purpose through SCCT
This conceptual session integrates Social Cognitive Career Theory with the worldview questions “Who am I?” and “Why am I here?” to examine identity and purpose. Participants will explore how multicultural factors and lived experience shape self-efficacy and outcome expectations, influencing career meaning and direction across the lifespan.
Jonathan Smith
#707 Stories that Stick: Using Program Assessment to Advocate the Impact of Career Services
Want your career services story to inspire action? Join NCDA’s Assessment, Evaluation, and Outcomes Committee to explore how intentional program assessment and data-informed storytelling can address key challenges, demonstrate impact, and strengthen advocacy for career services. Learn to transform your data into narratives that engage stakeholders and drive meaningful support.
Julia Makela; Sarah LaFrance
#708 Black Men in Community Colleges: Why Do They Choose Engineering as an Educational and Career Pathway?
This session presents a qualitative study examining the individual and interrelated factors that shape Black men and boys’ decisions to pursue engineering at a 2-year community college versus a 4-year college or university. Recommendations are offered on career and postsecondary readiness to improve retention and recruitment of Black men and boys in engineering majors, specifically at community colleges.
Erik Hines; James L. Moore III
#709 Supporting International Student Internship Success: Case Examples from Large Public and Liberal Arts Universities
International students often complete internships as part of their education while navigating unique challenges in career development. For career services practitioners, finding creative ways to support the internship experience is crucial for student success. This panel will explore innovative strategies for internship course design, administration, and career services advocacy.
Jane Sitter; Mai Xiong; Jinna Johnson; Joshua Gory
#710 Design Thinking as a Catalyst for Creative Connection: From First-Year to PhD
Discover how the University at Buffalo Career Design Center applies Design Thinking to foster creative connection and resilience across the student journey—from first-year exploration to PhD development. Learn adaptable tools and strategies for integrating Design Thinking into programs, spaces, and mentoring communities to enhance engagement and belonging.
Holly Justice
#711 Guiding Student Career Success: Scalable, Asynchronous Career Development Through Strategic Guidebook Design
The goal of this presentation is to provide context for why generating asynchronous career resources demonstrates a dynamic, creative approach to addressing accessibility to career readiness information. We will discuss our process for building asynchronous guidebooks, where they are utilized, and how they impact student success at UMSI.
Emily Cutlip; Carina Wilson
#712 Laying A Strong Foundation for Career Readiness: Career Intervention in Middle School
Implementing a career intervention system for middle school students, particularly at-risk students, can be challenging. This session introduces an innovative approach that would streamline this complex process. The intervention strategies integrate the concepts of Career Construction, Social Cognitive Career Development, and Hope-Based approaches to help students develop self-awareness, explore future careers, and develop skills to cope with changes and barriers.
Drews Mitchell; Mei Tang; Machen Champion; Aneesa Bhimani-Trimble; Brian Lee; Erika Provencio
#713 Trauma-informed Career Development: Empowering Professional Growth after Adversity
Traumatic experiences can have significant impacts on core beliefs, self-efficacy, and self-concept. Recognizing this complexity and its impact on career decision making, career development, and barriers in the world of work, career development professionals need to be able to appropriately intervene. In this session, participants will learn about trauma-informed approaches to support processing in conjunction with considerations for avoiding the influence of trauma in inhibiting the exploration of career development. Participants will be given examples and the opportunity to apply skills.
Christopher LaFever; Sarah Shelby; Qiong Li; Alfiya Mustafina
DEI State of the Union Panel - Creative Resilience: Integrating Dynamic Solutions in Career Development - Mentorship
FOCUS:
Cheryl Love; Nina Talley; Ruben Britt; Deborah Sgro
Integrating Anti-Racism, Wellness, and Career Development
FOCUS:
Vic Massaglia; Denise Felder
Professionalism: The Code Word for White Supremacy and Implications for Career Counselors
FOCUS:
Frank Gorritz
Beyond Automation: Using AI-Powered Resumes to Advance Equity and Access
FOCUS:
Karina Augustus
Creative Strategies to Refuse Complicity: Career Development Interventions to Challenge Oppressive Systems
FOCUS:
Shelby McIntyre
Using Ethics to Dismantle Cultural Encapsulation for Career Development Professionals
FOCUS:
Natasha Barnes-Gwynn
Deconstructing "Professionalism": Identifying and Confronting Oppressive Norms in Career Development
FOCUS:
Allison Levine; Rachel Valentine
The Human Factor: Navigating AI Bias in Hiring and Recruitment
FOCUS:
Alicia Monroe
Let's Talk about Being a Career Practitioner in these Turbulent Times
FOCUS:
Denise Felder
Expanding Capacity for the Volatile Political Structures
FOCUS:
Kenya Johns
Agency: A Key Ingredient in Creative Resilience
FOCUS:
Kyle Inselman
Nurturing Hope and Resilience in Climate Aware Career Development
FOCUS:
Breanne Cahoy; Michelle Doerr
Equity-Minded Practices for Career Development: Navigating Identity Gaps Between Students and Coaches
FOCUS:
Jae Louwagie
Dialogue with Dignity: Civil Discourse for Career Development Practitioners in DEI Conversations
FOCUS:
Greta Davis
Beyond Accommodations: Universal Design as Creative Resilience in Career Practice
FOCUS:
Nulty Lynch; Maisie Lynch
Breaking Barriers: Elevating BIPOC Student Voices in Advanced Placement Education
FOCUS:
Lillian Martz; Maritza Cha
Broadening Participation in Engineering through Professional Learning
FOCUS:
Renae Mayes; Medha Dalal
#RT1-1 Context Matters: Dynamic Strategies to Facilitate Elementary Students' STEAM Self-Efficacy and Career Exploration
Presenters will share research findings on STEAM-based project learning among elementary students in an urban setting. Grounded in Social Cognitive Career Theory, they will highlight results from ongoing studies examining contextual factors that facilitate the development of STEAM self-efficacy. Participants will explore creative ways to support students and establish innovative community partnerships.
Patrick Rottinghaus; Gabriela Montañez; John Elmer; Jiehye Han
#RT1-2 Staff and Faculty Led Innovation Through the Learning Academy
The Learning Academy at the University of Pittsburgh, School of Computing and Information, is a year-long professional development opportunity and pitch competition for staff/faculty to learn leadership and project management skills, as well as come together to design and develop new initiatives, benefiting both employees and students.
Emily Bennett
#RT1-3 Making Connections: Building University-Community Partnerships to Support Youth Career Development
University-community partnerships can be a powerful support for youth career development, but sustaining relationships serving the needs of both university and community partners can be difficult. This session highlights how a university team established a partnership to support career development in rural Appalachian high schools through in- and out-of-school activities.
Melinda Gibbons; Katherine Cook; Haley Ault
#RT1-4 Major Doesn’t Equal Career – Using Transferrable Skills to Expand College Students’ Mindsets and Career Options
Students may assume they can only find work specifically aligned with their major. Transferrable skills are not only valued by employers, but also expand students’ potential post-graduate career opportunities. Recommendations for incorporating transferrable skills into career exploration and post-graduation planning will be discussed.
Mackenzie Fisher; Sarah Shelby
#RT1-5 Modernizing the Classics: Interactive Activities for Traditional Career Theories
Classic career theorists like Super and Holland are foundational in career development. Yet for today’s clients facing rapid change, globalization, and shifting career expectations, traditional concepts may not resonate. This session introduces practical, interactive activities that make these theories engaging and relevant for today’s clients.
Paige McDonough; Kim Oppelt
#RT1-6 Reflection & Reciprocity: The Tole of Community in the Decision-Making Processes of Indigenous & Non-Indigenous College Students
Individual-based career development approaches have dominated career development research missing key components of community, relationships and interaction in how individuals make career decisions. Come learn about and discuss a new Community-Embedded Career Decision-Making model based on qualitative research with 45 participants including a subsequent model with distinctions for Indigenous students. Walk away with handouts and models to utilize with clients and students interested in community-embedded career decision-making.
Amanda Langhorst
#RT1-8 Rewriting the Story: Creativity and the Power of Narrative in Career Development
Our careers are not just a series of jobs, they are deeply woven into our identities, cultures, and life experiences. This session explores how narrative-based career development can help individuals navigate uncertainty, transitions, and trauma by constructing meaningful and resilient personal and professional identities. Drawing from narrative career construction theory, storytelling practices, and guiding methods, this session equips practitioners with tools to help clients make sense of their pasts, envision future possibilities, and craft empowering career stories.
Dan Erikson
#RT2-1 Think Out of the Box: Reimagining International Students’ Job Search During the Era of Uncertainty
Geopolitical tensions, changing immigration policies, and limited awareness of available pathways often leave international students unsure of their futures. Join us to uncover the hidden curriculum of job searching, including alternative visa options, self-petition pathways, and global career opportunities, that can open new doors and empower students’ decisions.
Shiyu Sun; Rosie Ruoci Shen
#RT2-2 Developing an Employer Sponsorship Program: A Toolkit for Success
This session will share strategies used by an academic program to develop and facilitate an employer sponsorship program. In four years, the program engaged 60 companies and raised $160,000 to support student and faculty initiatives. Ideas for creating sponsorship guidelines and marketing and recruitment strategies for employers will be shared.
Jennifer Warrner
#RT2-3 Calling in College: Early Findings of the Longitudinal Investigation of Vocational Exploration (LIVE) Project
How do today’s students understand calling, vocation, and purpose? And how can colleges support students in developing a sense of calling in their career development? Join us to hear preliminary findings from the first year of a four-year longitudinal study of students and recent graduates across 35 colleges and universities.
Kyle Inselman; Tenzin Nyima
#RT2-4 Transformative Strategies for Engaging Students
A career-ready student must be able to navigate the pathways that connect education and employment to achieve a fulfilling and successful career. Therefore, career readiness begins once a student is enrolled in college. Through this course, students will be able to plan a more direct route to their long-term career goals by anticipating and acquiring the requisite skill sets, industry knowledge, and experiences for their chosen career path.
Bascillia Toussaint
#RT2-5 Developing and Evaluating College Students’ Career Competencies Through a Higher Education Course: An Intelligent Careers Theory Approach
Are you interested in developing and evaluating career competencies through a learner-centered career education in your setting? Are you considering applying a dominant theoretical approach from career competencies studies to your practices or settings in the context of higher education? You can learn how to integrate the Intelligent Careers Theory (ICT) approach into your practices or settings with valid assessments of career competencies using an example of a higher education course to develop and evaluate college students’ career competencies which will be introduced in this presentation.
Jeong Rok Oh; Sungsik Ahn; Junwoo Park
#RT2-6 Resilience Across Borders: Coaching Lessons from the UK, India, and Nepal
This interactive roundtable highlights lessons from coaching 700+ students across the UK, India, and Nepal. Participants will discuss how culture, expectations, and systemic factors shape career resilience. Attendees will exchange strategies for adapting coaching and admissions practices to support diverse learners and integrate cross-cultural insights into everyday practice.
Mohit Jain
#RT2-7 Career Adaptability Research to Practice: Preparing Students for the Changing World
The world of work is rapidly changing, creating challenges for preparing students for their future careers. This roundtable presents ongoing research on career adaptability among high school and college students. Discussion will explore how career assessment tools and research findings can inform programs that foster students’ adaptability and career readiness.
Haoyuan Qu; Patrick Rottinghaus; Jiehye Han; Gabriela Montañez; James Cullen
#RT2-8 Creating Career-Focused Affinity Groups During Challenging Times to Support Students’ Identities and Needs
During this session, we will share our experience with implementing career-focused affinity groups at WashU. We will discuss challenges we faced, and creative solutions used to provide resources for students/alumni. Through small group discussions and shared insights, participants will gain valuable knowledge, tools and strategies for success.
Amber Brown; Jennifer Finney
#RT3-1 Supporting the Budding Social Media Influencer: Fostering Creative Resilience in Next-Gen Careers
Are you unsure of how to respond when your student expresses interest in becoming a social media influencer? Do you see this as an unrealistic career goal? Let's come together to explore this interest, student motivation, and strategies to support.
Danielle Bean Jackson
#RT3-2 Sustaining Workplace Well-Being to Drive Community-Building Initiatives
In this workshop attendees will take away effective, personable, and sustainable strategies for building workplace well-being and community-building practices. The Career Development Office (CDO) at the University of Michigan's School of Information (UMSI) will share the history behind their wellness culture and how this has led to key community-building initiatives and influence within the wider UMSI school community. From emoji check-ins at team meetings to established structural time and funding for professional development; the CDO hopes to dream with others in fostering similar practices.
Carina Wilson; Krystle Forbes; Emily Cutlip
#RT3-3 Playful Toolbox: Activities for Promoting Resilience & Joy in Career Exploration
This roundtable will provide attendees a toolkit with concrete strategies for updating their career development practices through activities that encourage play and creativity in career exploration. Attendees will leave with a communal resource of tools for multiple settings (e.g. one-on-one, curricular, presentations), founded in a chaos theory framework.
Meagan Baker; Abi Case
#RT3-4 Incorporating Faith and Spirituality to Build Career Adaptability
This roundtable session will seek to build awareness about how faith and spirituality facilitate career adaptability. Participants will learn about research on how faith and spirituality can increase career choice commitment and career decision self-efficacy. Each participant will have an opportunity to discuss and identify real-life implications for career counselors seeking to incorporate such elements.
Usman Khan
#RT3-5 Do Physical Career Libraries Have a Place in an Increasingly Virtual World?
Why maintain a physical career library? Clients just ask AI-bots, right? Let’s reconsider the benefits of physical career library resources in contemporary career services. We explore building a collection that connects to specific client populations and needs. We share strategies for obtaining, organizing, and maintaining materials -- and encouraging use.
Julia Makela; Julie Higgs
#RT3-6 Mind Over Machine: Keeping Critical Thinking Alive in the Age of AI
Critical thinking isn’t dead; it’s evolving. In this session, discover how AI is reshaping essential career skills and learn strategies to help clients think critically, creatively, and authentically in an AI-driven world. Walk away with practical tools to guide students and job seekers toward resilient career success.
Logann Todd
#RT3-7 Breaking Barriers with Avatar Counselling: Insights from Japan on Creative Resilience Solutions for Unreachable Populations
Drawing on research conducted in Japan, avatar counselling offers innovative solutions for reaching previously inaccessible populations, including those who are resistant to leaving home or are unaware of their counselling needs. Drawing on experimental evidence from 20 participants, this roundtable examines how avatar technology opens new pathways for meaningful conversations, ultimately facilitating connections within traditional counselling relationships.
Mami Miyake
#RT3-8 Lifelong Career Agility Models: Purpose-Driven Pathways to Empower Clients of Color
For clients of color, purpose is more than motivation, it is a source of values, strength, identity, and resilience in navigating systemic barriers. This session introduces Lifelong Career Agility Models for clients of color, integrating cultural identity, adaptability, and values-based decision-making. Participants will explore how to incorporate purpose-driven frameworks and tools to help clients pivot, align work with purpose, and thrive despite any barriers.
Tita Gray
#RT4-2 Blending Theory & Practice in Delivering a Reimagined Undergraduate Career Planning Course
Gain insight and learn strategies to implement a theory-based approach to design or redesign undergraduate career planning courses. Grounded in creative pedagogy, learn innovative strategies to ensure engaged students who build self-efficacy for decision-making, and prompt proactivity with meaningful career exploration and experiential learning. Participants will gain assignment ideas and tools to strengthen career education practices.
Vivian Senior
#RT4-3 Human Intelligence in AI Careers - Career Development Trends
The rise of AI presents ethical and cognitive risks to human intelligence. This presentation assesses these challenges, detailing three core career trends (Hybrid Skills, Augmentation, Lifelong Learning) and providing an action plan for colleges. The goal is to build Creative Resilience in the next-generation workforce for college graduates by 2030.
Professor Rick
#RT4-4 Creating Personable, Trustworthy, and Welcoming Communication Practices Using Relational-Cultural Theory (RCT) and Psychological Safety (PS)
This roundtable highlights how the UMSI Career Development Office (CDO) uses Relational-Cultural Theory and psychological safety to craft inclusive, authentic communication. Attendees will gain strategies—proven through testimonials and focus groups—to foster welcoming, trustworthy engagement through email and bios, enhancing student connection and trust from initial contact onward.
Carina Wilson; Jordan Hansen
#RT4-5 Whole-Person Assessment via the ASVAB Career Exploration Program (CEP)
Learn how the ASVAB Career Exploration Program uses whole-person assessment, which measures abilities, interests, and work values, to help students explore multiple career paths. This no-cost resource serves over 1 million students annually, providing comprehensive career exploration beyond traditional interest inventories for better person-job matching.
Emma Allen; Irina Rader; Executive Director, ASVAB Career Exploration Program (CEP) Rodney McCloy
#RT4-6 Creative Teaching Interventions for Career Development Courses
This program will introduce and provide guided practice with three creative teaching interventions: the Career River/Lifeline, Holland Guess Who, and the Circles of Influence. These interventions may be useful for counselor educators or career counselors looking for career development activities for groups.
Diana Charnley; Galaxina Wright
#RT4-7 Creative Pathways to Resilience: Insights from Career Crafting Interventions for Diverse Populations
This presentation shares creative insights from a systematic review of seven career and job crafting interventions designed for diverse populations, including women in STEM, low-income workers, underrepresented students, and survivors of intimate partner violence. Findings highlight context-specific, theory-driven approaches that foster self-efficacy, goal setting, and resource-seeking behaviors. The review emphasizes the importance of creative, context-sensitive, and culturally responsive intervention designs to promote resilience.
Jewel Lee; Minji Cho
#RT4-8 Recreating the Work Lives of Justice-Involved Individuals
This roundtable discussion introduces participants to the unique employment challenges facing justice-involved people. Participants will learn how vocational programming can effectively help this population, along with understanding principles of effective interventions and current issues and trends. They will gain practical knowledge to better support justice-involved individuals in their work lives.
Femina Varghese; Evan Faidley
#RT5-1 The Impact of Asynchronous, Co-Curricular Digital Badge Courses on Higher Education Student Career Decision Self-EfficacyDigital badges offer a dynamic solution for career readiness in higher-education students. This presentation describes how user experience of a digital badge course impacts the career decision self-efficacy of ~200 higher education students. Recommended design principles for creating digital badges that support career readiness will be shared.
Alex Barrett; Alexis Fraites
#RT5-2 Dearly Beloved, We are Gathered Here Today to...Champion Career Exploration on Campus
We will share our experiences with the early stages of building a career exploration community at WashU. We’ll discuss challenges and creative solutions for building an exploration mindset among students/alumni. Participants will gain knowledge, tools and strategies for integrating career exploration coaching techniques and program approaches into their practice.
April McLellan
#RT5-3 Dual Enrollment Students: Adapting Career Development Strategies to Ensure Excellence
Dual enrollment has increased by 23% in the United States over the past five years. If career service practitioners are to adapt to this evolving trend, they must consider the ethical dimensions and unique needs of this population. Scholarly insights and innovative strategies from multiple institutions will be highlighted.
Molly Stonesifer; Billie Streufert
#RT5-4 Beyond Metrics: Reframing ROI in Career Services and Higher Education
As ROI in higher education is often reduced to salary or placement rates, this roundtable explores broader measures of success. Participants will examine holistic outcomes such as fulfillment, resilience, and impact, and discuss strategies for reframing ROI through narratives and frameworks that better communicate graduates’ full value to stakeholders.
Jessica Schueller
#RT5-5 Innovative Career Exploration: Integrating Virtual Reality for Student Success
Discover how Virtual Reality is transforming career readiness in Howard County, MD. This hands-on session highlights adaptable VR program models, best practices from field implementation, and strategies for fostering student engagement, creative resilience, and strong school-business partnerships—equipping educators and career professionals with innovative tools to prepare students for meaningful career pathways.
Gail d'Almeida; Linsey Malig-Mayhew; Corinne Marino
#RT5-6 Access and Equity in Action: Practical Career Development Strategies That Advance Inclusion, Belonging, and Opportunity—Without Saying “DEI.”
In the shifting landscape of DEI work and terminology, discover how the University of Michigan changed framing towards access and opportunity to continue and expand vital career development. Explore practical and scalable models for mentorship, funding, curriculum integration, and asynchronous resources. Leave with adaptable ideas, insights, and solutions to promote student inclusion.
Krystle Forbes; Nick Jones
#RT5-7 Rebuilding After the Fall: Trauma-Informed Career Counseling for Adults 55+ Facing Layoff and Workforce Displacement
This session presents trauma-informed career counseling approaches for adults 55+ who have faced layoffs or career disruptions. Grounded in solution-focused trauma informed work, it offers practical tools to support identity reconstruction, foster resilience, and navigate ageism and workforce reentry with purpose and confidence.
Diandra Prescod
#RT5-8 A New Career Management Paradigm: Advancing the Inclusion, Assessment and Utilization of Resilience into the Career Development Field
To advance the role of resilience in career theory and practice requires innovation. This roundtable is designed to introduce participants to a new career management paradigm aligned with today's workforce needs. Career practitioners will identify multiple resilience tools and techniques that can serve clients during times of instability and uncertainty.
Bob Tiell
#RT6-2 From Volition to Vocation: Practical Strategies for Cultivating Holistic Support for College Students with Disabilities
Presenters will share results from a study using a national sample of students with disabilities (SWD ). Grounded in the Psychology of Working Theory, presenters will highlight how structural constraints influence work volition and work expectations among SWD. Participants will explore methods of empowering SWD to access supports and overcome barriers to decent work.
John Elmer; Patrick Rottinghaus
#RT6-3 Creative Ways to Bridge the Gap Between International Students, Employers, and Staff
Changes in policies and the job market have caused a lot of uncertainties and challenges for international students’ job search. Join two career professionals at public universities to learn about how to collaborate and create innovative opportunities to support international students with their career development in our current moment.
Shihling Chui-Dwyer; Jane Sitter
#RT6-4 Planetary Restoration Workforces – Asia Pacific Regional Systems in EcoCareer Development Services
This Roundtable explores how the Planetary Restoration Workforce model connects career development to ecological restoration, workforce resilience, and peacebuilding. Participants will engage in dialogues about integrating sustainable job systems, regional leadership, and cross-sector collaboration to prepare communities for a future of creative, regenerative work across the Asia Pacific and beyond.
Elisabeth Montgomery; Marilyn Maze; Derick Lee
#RT6-5 Ghost Jobs: The Mirage of Opportunity
"I applied for a job online weeks ago and it is still posted, why have I not heard anything?" Upcoming and seasoned professionals are experiencing the same circumstance of apply, apply, apply and never hear anything in return. Ghost jobs are postings that appear open but are no longer active or worse were never intended to be filled. Electronic job boards opened up the world to job seekers and now potentially waste their time. This roundtable discussion will cover ghost jobs, the reasons, and identifiers in job postings. As well as explore the impact on the consumer.
Andrea Haken-Hughes
#RT6-6 Integrating the Chip Strategy: A Dynamic Value Clarification Tool for Creative Resilience in Career Counseling
This session introduces a dynamic “chip strategy” that remedies limits of traditional value-card ranking. By simulating scarcity and forcing strategic trade-offs across work–life domains, the method transforms abstract values into concrete, measurable steps, strengthens decision resilience, and helps clients pivot smoothly from clarification to value-congruent committed action.
YenJu Hung
#RT6-7 Autism at Work: SCCT-Based Career Counseling Strategies for Late-Diagnosed Autism
This session applies Social Cognitive Career Theory to support adults diagnosed with autism later in life. Participants will explore creative, strength-based strategies to enhance self-efficacy, reshape outcome expectations, and address workplace barriers, leaving with practical tools to foster resilience, inclusion, and thriving career narratives for neurodiverse clients.
Lindsay Allen; Autumn Cabell
#RT6-8 Resilience by Design: Using AI to Protect the Perception of Purpose in High-Demand Roles
The pursuit of purpose in the workplace exposes individuals to the "dark side of calling." This interactive session presents a dynamic solution: integrating AI tools for self-monitoring and narrative reflection (Dale, 2022) to protect purpose. Participants will learn how to coach a flexible calling narrative (Swen, 2024), thereby strengthening necessary career competencies.
Simone Stewart
#RT7-1 Living Legacy Career Pathways: Creative Resilience Models for Diverse Communities
This session explores “Living Legacy” models that integrate creative resilience into career development. Drawing from educational, nonprofit, and community-based practices, we will highlight innovative interventions, partnerships, and mentorship strategies that support career pathways for diverse populations while addressing evolving workforce challenges.
Lennora Pierrot
#RT7-2 From Classroom to Career - A Dynamic Solution for Students of the Arts and Humanities
Students in the arts and humanities possess a wealth of essential career skills, yet often face challenges in articulating their value to potential employers and graduate programs. This presentation introduces APEX (Achieving Professional Excellence), a comprehensive certificate program designed to bridge this critical gap.
Jennifer Madsen
#RT7-3 Artificially Ingenious: Creative Career Programming with AI
Explore how generative AI can transform career programming into fun, interactive, and innovative experiences. In this hands-on roundtable, participants will practice prompt writing, experiment with AI-generated activities, and leave with practical strategies to adapt tools for their own institutions, enhancing creativity, engagement, and resilience in career development practice.
Logann Todd
#RT7-4 Underemployment Among College Graduates: Examining the Roles and Responsibilities of Career Development Educators
A recent report, Talent Disrupted, found that 52% of college graduates are underemployed a year after graduation. Underemployed graduates hold jobs that typically do not require a bachelor's degree. Underemployment is a persistent problem that can have lasting implications. This roundtable will examine underemployment and discuss the roles and responsibilities of career development educators.
Michael Stebleton
#RT7-5 Big Impact, Small Lessons: The Value of Micro-Learning in Career Development
Micro-learning can make a big impact in career development practice, even with limited time and resources. This session explores and models how bite-sized, intentional learning experiences aligned with NCDA’s core competencies such as career facilitation, assessment interpretation, and ethical practice can enhance engagement, retention, and skill-building for both practitioners and the individuals they serve.
Kim Oppelt; Paige McDonough
#RT7-6 Creative Assessment and Interpretive Strategies for Enhancing Career Self-Efficacy
Presenters will highlight research and creative interpretive strategies using the Skills Confidence Inventory (SCI) and Strong Interest Inventory (SII). Results will be shared from research examining a new adolescent version of the SCI. Participants will discuss best practices for career interventions with clients across high school, college, and adult populations.
Patrick Rottinghaus; Jiehye Han; Gabriela Montañez; Haoyuan Qu; James Cullen
#RT7-7 Structural Barriers and Vocational Development among Tibetan Refugees: A Systematic Review
Tibetan refugees face complex vocational challenges shaped by historical displacement, legal precarity, and sociopolitical marginalization. This systematic review synthesizes empirical evidence and theoretical frameworks to identify structural barriers that constrain Tibetan refugees’ vocational development in the U.S. Drawing on the Psychology of Working Theory and Emancipatory Career Theory, the presentation will highlight findings and offer implications for culturally responsive counseling, social justice advocacy, and career practice that strengthen resilience among refugee populations.
Tenzin Nyima; Kyle Inselman
#RT7-8 Interested in Money: How Valuing Money Influences Career Decision Making and Well-Being
Instead of asking our clients if they value money, we should be asking them why. Learn about the consequences of when people choose a job or career that ignores their interests or values for the sake of money, and help clients make value-congruent career choices.
John Hanes; Tyler Ward
Conference Hotel
ALL CONFERENCE SESSIONS TAKE PLACE AT:
Hilton Minneapolis
1001 Marquette Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55403
Ph: 612-376-1000
Room Rate: $209 plus taxes.
Reservations must be made by June 6, 2026 in order to receive the group rate. Room block may fill prior to June 6, so please make your reservations in advance.
On-site parking is available.
**NCDA DOES NOT use third party booking sites. If you receive an email from a third party with hotel reservation "codes" and links, it is not legitimate and not authorized by NCDA.
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Phone: (918) 663-7060
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