by Hello SoACE members,
Happy Women’s History Month! We are excited to celebrate all the contributions of our female leaders this month. Be sure to check out the Administration Knowledge Group’s webinar later this month that highlights some of our notable women of SoACE. I am thrilled to see so many women leading in our association. Additionally, since we recently celebrated Black History Month, I must share that I am proud that SoACE has been a leader in engaging black and African American Career Center and recruiting professionals in our region. We have a lot to celebrate!
As I reflect on where we are in our world this March, it is hard to believe that we have been living during a global pandemic for a year. We have survived so much this year. We have become pros at Zoom and virtual career fairs, and we have blended our life and work more than ever. What have we learned? A lot. There is still a need for companies and organizations to hire college students. We have more options than ever before to provide our services. We have had to rethink our processes and many of us have learned new and more efficient ways to connect with students. Hopefully, we have also learned how to take better care of ourselves.
This year has been like none other. I was not expecting to be a virtual SoACE president this year, but we have made it work and it is still an honor and privilege to serve our great association. I am grateful for the community that we have built over the years that has positioned us to weather this storm and stay connected as colleagues and friends. Back in December, we were able to connect virtually during our largest conference ever! Thank you all for your amazing engagement. We will continue to think of our friends and colleagues affected by the winter storms in Texas and the southern region as you pick up the pieces from the devastating storm. We stand with you and want to help in any way we can.
The Board of Directors continues to think about how we can move SoACE forward and come out better on the other side. We have continued to work hard for you. In our upcoming board meeting, we will discuss strategic priorities to include our employer engagement initiatives, our annual budget, and the new sponsorship model. Next on deck is the Virtual Employer Relations Summit scheduled for June 23th – 24th. We hope you will join us and bring a colleague with you!
SoACE is a family. The relationships we have invested in for so many years have sustained us through these tough times, and we will continue to get through this together. We are optimistic about the future and are using this time to think creatively about the future of our profession and our association. Keep the faith my friends.
Yours truly,
Erica J. Lake
SoACE President
2020 – 2021
