This email was sent on Jan. 24, 2025.

Dear Colleagues,

I hope this email finds you well, despite the uncertainty many of us are feeling.

I want to acknowledge that there is a lot of news emerging from Washington, D.C. that will have an impact on NACAC members and the communities we serve, not just in the United States, but also abroad.

I would like to reassure you that NACAC leadership is monitoring all executive orders, policy proposals, and mandates as they surface. Many of our members across the globe have contacted me asking for guidance or reassurance. I want to acknowledge that we don’t have all the answers, and we must proceed with caution. Our goal in the coming weeks is to work with our partners at EducationCounsel. They have extensive experience in civil rights legislation. They supported NACAC in the creation of our policy priorities and guided our work during the Supreme Court case on the use of race in college admission. We want to make sure our guidance and support for members is strategic and calculated, given the complexity of the environment in which we are operating.

As we learn more, we will keep you updated. I want to emphasize that NACAC will not move away from upholding its mission and values. We recently sent a letter to Congress and the new administration to remind them of our values and policy priorities.

NACAC has historically met with the Department of Education on a weekly basis. If those meetings continue under the new administration, we will continue to attend to ensure our members’ voices and concerns are communicated directly.

Friends, we are living in challenging times. As leaders, many of us will feel the pressure to speak out, to fight for what’s right — and we should. However, I would like to ask that we remain judicious and methodical in our responses. We are operating in a very different political and legal landscape, and we want to make sure our actions do not produce more harm than good. I believe we must all take the long view. Complex issues require more from us than social media posts and organizational statements. Let’s allow strategy to guide our work.

Finally, I implore you to take care of each other. Challenging times can provoke us into counterproductive action, to direct our frustration at our friends and allies. If there was ever a moment for our community to come together, it is now. United in our mission, vision, and values, there is nothing we can’t achieve.

Onward!

Angel

Angel B. Pérez, PhD
Chief Executive Officer
National Association for College Admission Counseling