By Rachel Williams, NACAC Communications

Los Angeles (Sept. 28, 2024) – Nearly five years ago, a NACAC ad hoc committee sought to answer a central question: What does the future of accessible, inclusive, equitable, and affordable postsecondary education look like, and what does NACAC need to change to make that a reality?

That question has been the association’s North Star ever since. In his annual State of the Association address at NACAC Conference 2024, Angel B. PĂ©rez, NACAC CEO, shared the widespread changes that NACAC has made and the impact they’ve had on students, the profession, and the association’s place as a changemaker.

“After such a tumultuous period, our leadership felt it was important to shine a light on how the organization has advanced,” said PĂ©rez. “The committee was way ahead of its time. They could not have predicted all the challenges we’ve faced. They were adamant that it was time for the organization to evolve and be prepared for the unknown.”

To begin, NACAC first looked inward. The association’s mission and vision were refined, and strategic internal investments were made in staffing, leadership, technology, and more. The association’s governance was strengthened, and new partnerships helped grow the association’s impact and provide students and families with greater college-going support.

Thanks to these investments, NACAC has seen results:

  • Membership has nearly doubled from more than 14,000 in 2020 to more than 28,000 today.
  • NACAC established new professional certificate programs and other educational offerings, leading to more than 5,700 participants in 2024 so far.
  • Greater advocacy efforts for social responsibility, access, and equity.
  • Consistent growth in attendance at Guiding the Way to Inclusion and annual conference.
  • A greater presence in U.S. and international media, bolstering NACAC’s reputation as the trusted, go-to source for matters on college admission.
  • Growth in college fairs, including NACAC’s new Global Universities Fairs, that in total reached 110,000 students in 2023.

These results and others are detailed in NACAC’s first-ever Impact Report, published today.

And NACAC isn’t stopping there. As announced at last year’s State of the Association address, NACAC is creating a center for reimagining college access with generous support from philanthropist Alexander Clark, Lumina Foundation, and Stuart Foundation. A new blueprint of the center focuses on four key areas: evolving the admission process, evolving the college access workforce, evolving the scholar-practitioner model, and evolving how students connect to colleges.

“It [the center] will serve as a future-facing pillar of the association that will redesign outdated, inequitable structures in college access,” said PĂ©rez, who added that NACAC will begin searching for the center’s inaugural leader later this year.

In his closing remarks, PĂ©rez asked the crowd to consider donating to NACAC, as the association can’t do this work alone.

“We are a non-profit organization driving extraordinary change and we’re going to need all the help we can get to advance our bold agenda,” he said. “Make NACAC part of your annual philanthropic plans because friends, the transformation you’ve heard about today is only the beginning.”

NACAC CEO Angel B. PĂ©rez delivering the 2024 State of the Association address