Graduate student and new professionals community of practice

Thank you for stopping by to learn more about the ACPA Graduate Students and New Professionals Community of Practice (GSNPCOP). Take some time to look through our content and don’t hesitate to share how you’d like to get involved. Use the menu below to jump to a section of interest. 

Please contact us at gsnpcop@acpa.nche.edu or connect with the members of our Directorate Body with questions or ideas.

Our Mission

The Graduate Students and New Professionals Community of Practice (GSNPCOP) is one of the entity groups within ACPA charged to develop and deliver year-round programs and services focused on enriching and supporting the needs of graduate students and new professionals in student affairs and higher education.

Our Vision

GSNPCOP strives to be the centralized gateway, network, and resource for graduate students and new professionals that elevates current issues, addresses institutionalized culture, produces scholarly work, and implements innovative practices that promote systemic change in order to transform higher education and student affairs.

our history

1988 // The Graduate Students and New Professionals Community of Practice (GSNPCOP) was created as a standing committee through the work of 1987’s Graduate Student Member-at-Large, Anne Eskridge. The purpose of this standing committee was to create a system of support for graduate students and new professionals in ACPA by recognizing the need to have affordable convention registration, housing options, as well as programs and events focused on graduate students.

2011 // The Standing Committee matured to a more defined Directorate structure with positions and requisite skills defined.  Communication with the Standing Committee constituency was improved by an improved newsletter, including regular versions made available online through the ACPA homepage. The “inverted funnel model” of leadership development through the Standing Committee was introduced. The goal was to enable graduate students and new professionals to move in to the Standing Committee up through the Directorate and on to positions of great responsibility within the Association.

2015 // The Standing Committee transitioned to be a Coalition. The change represented several positive advances the Standing Committee was able to accomplish for the support of graduate students and new professionals within the field of student affairs. While working as a Coalition, Graduate Students and New Professionals helped emphasized the importance of partnership and collaboration and helped make our entity group more inclusive to the entirety of our membership.

2017 // After conversations with ACPA in 2017, it was decided that a Coalition was not the best place for Graduate Student and New Professionals. Shortly after, Communities of Practices were established, and one Community of Practice was established for Mid-Level Professionals. In the summer of that same year, the Coalition officially changed its name to the Graduate Students and New Professionals Community of Practice.

News & Updates

Apply to Serve as an ACPA23 Graduate Intern
Apply to Serve as an ACPA23 Graduate Intern

APPLICATION DEADLINE: 28 OCTOBER 2022 ACPA is excited to recruit Graduate Interns to assist with the execution of the ACPA Annual Convention in New Orleans, Louisiana. Convention Interns assist with numerous administrative responsibilities related to the execution of...

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upcoming events

There are no upcoming events at this time.

Meet the Directorate

Julie Townley

Chair

she/her/hers

University of North Carolina at Asheville

Tye Wesley

Past Chair

she/her/hers

University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Convention Experience Team

J Ravancho

Vice Chair

They/Them/Theirs

Miami University

Ally Keller

Coordinator, Special Events

She/Her/Hers

Louisiana State University

McKenzie Kitzmiller

Coordinator, Special Events

She/Her/Hers

Clemson University

Sydney Rubin

Coordinator, Awards & Scholarships

She/Her/Hers

Lehigh University

Nick Malendowski

Coordinator, Ambassadors

He/Him/His

Eastern Michigan University

Rose Glenn

Coordinator, Ambassadors

She/Her/Hers

Notre Dame of Maryland University

Networking Team

Taylor Swan

Vice Chair

She/Her/Hers

Virginia Tech

Allison L. Garcia

Coordinator, Member Engagement

She/Her/Hers

University of the Incarnate Word

Zita Toth Gaddis

Coordinator, Member Engagement

She/Her/Hers

St. Olaf College

Kristen Shimko

Coordinator, Cross-Org Involvement

She/Her/Hers

University of Kentucky

Maddy Wilson

Coordinator, Cross-Org Involvement

She/Her/Hers

University of Iowa

Operations Team

Liv Maldonado

Vice Chair

She/Her/Hers

Appalachian State University

 

Steven Feldman

Coordinator, Records & Website

He/They

Indiana University Bloomington

Michael Chapman

Coordinator, Communications

He/Him/His

Colorado State University

Jon McCullough

Coordinator, Assessment

He/Him/His

The Ohio State University

Professional Development Team

Alex Rosenberry

Vice Chair

They/Them/Theirs

Duke University

Blanca Moncada

Coordinator, Professional Engagement

She/Her/Ella

University of San Francisco

Kirwin Seger

Coordinator, Professional Engagement

He/Him/His

Hofstra University

Adam Coshal

Coordinator, Professional Engagement

They/Them/Theirs

Duke University

Karla Monroy

Coordinator, Special Events

She/Her/Ella

University of Maryland-College Park

Elizabeth "Liz" Dietrich-Selgrath

Coordinator, Special Events

She/Her/Hers

University of North Carolina Greensboro

Get Involved in gsnpcop

Become a member of the Graduate Students & New Professionals Community of Practice! Actively participate in opportunities that provide resources and support to members, both personally and professionally, with care, respect, and encouragement.

Ready to join?

Joining an Entity through the ACPA Member Portal automatically identifies you as a member of that Entity! You will begin to receive Entity communications through their respective email listserv and have access to any resources they share!

  1. Login to your ACPA Member Account
  2. Click on Community Groups (Chatter)
  3. Click Groups
  4. Click Active Groups
  5. Find the entity you want to join and within that group, click +Join

Contact GSNPCOP via email at gsnpcop@acpa.nche.edu to learn more about ACPA’s Graduate Students & New Professionals Community of Practice.

 

Any ACPA member can become involved and there are varying levels of involvement:

  • Become a Convention Ambassador
  • Attend our open business meeting and awards session at the annual ACPA convention
  • Submit a program proposal for Convention
  • Review award and scholarship submissions
  • Host a webinar

Additional Involvement Opportunities

ACPA Convention Ambassadors

Please check back soon for more information.

Apply to join the GSNPCOP Directorate!

Apply to join the GSNPCOP Directorate!

We are currently seeking to fill all of our Coordinator positions on our Directorate for the 2022-2023 cycle. Before completing the application, please be sure you have reviewed the Directorate Interest Packet for Coordinator Positions. For full consideration, please...

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gsnpcop Awards

The depth and quality of work by student affairs educators, higher education scholars, and faculty colleagues too often goes unrecognized. Get Involved with GSNPCOP by recognizing and nominating a colleague, supervisor or supervisee, mentor, or other leader for an Award.

Start gathering information today and get ready to recognize colleagues!

Nominations are closed for 2022 Convention Awards.

 
Outstanding Master’s Student

This award is given to a current master’s degree student in a higher education or student affairs related program. The recipient of this award will have made a positive contribution (either through research or service to the profession) to the field of student affairs and/or has made significant contributions to their graduate program and institution.

Outstanding Doctoral Student

This award is given to a current doctoral student in a higher education or student affairs related program. The recipient of this award will have made a positive contribution (either through research or service to the profession) to the field of student affairs and/or has made significant contributions to their graduate program and institution

Outstanding New Professional

This award is given to an individual in their first five years of professional (post-graduate) employment. The recipient of this award will have demonstrated outstanding contributions to their department, institution, and the field of student affairs (either through research or professional service). This individual should demonstrate a propensity for developing students and utilizing theory in practice.

Outstanding Mentor to Graduate Students

This award is given to an outstanding student affairs professional or graduate preparation faculty member who goes above and beyond in their efforts to provide guidance and support to graduate students in higher education or a student affairs related graduate program.

Outstanding Mentor to New Professionals

This award is given to an outstanding student affairs professional who goes above and beyond in their efforts to provide guidance and support to new practitioners in the field of Student Affairs.

Outstanding Dedication to Professional Service

This award is given to a new professional or graduate student in higher education or a student affairs related field who demonstrates an outstanding commitment to the field of student affairs through involvement in professional associations (both local, regional, and national), committees, conferences, and/or graduate program recruitment.

Unsung Hero Award

This award is given to a graduate student or new professional initiating and leading action to remove barriers and improve equity and access in higher education. They constantly seek to improve the campus environment to enhance the experience of historically underrepresented student populations through concrete action in their communities.

Advancing Equity Award

This award is given to a graduate student or new professional initiating and leading action to remove barriers and improve equity in higher education. This person is dedicated to researching, understanding, and improving systemic barriers to historically underrepresented students.