Legislative Update - October 2022

Governance & Higher Education 

In a Washington Post op-ed, the title read Higher Education Is About to Get Even More Political. The headline begs those at the front of the proverbial Ivory Tower to invest in regularly staying abreast of and understanding the legislative landscape. Being conscious of the legislative landscape directly impacts the Strategic Enrollment Management roles of higher education from the Office Associate to the Vice President. Lens, perspective, and positionality awareness matter because our students, many of us, have been and are students, and the impact on higher education as an industry will ripple for years. 

Keeping Up with Legislative Updates - AACRAO Governance Tool

So, how does one keep up with legislative news?

How can one make it manageable to connect within this ever-evolving space of legal jargon and updates to bills?

AACRAO is the Strategic Enrollment Management Association of Higher Education. AACRAO offers a complete overview and updates regarding legislative issues via their Advocacy page: https://www.aacrao.org/advocacy.

Within this site:

  • You can access the Advocacy Action Center, a directory of your state congressional leaders, bills, votes, media, and more,
  • Email your congressional leaders using AACRAO templates, 
  • Review Compliance for FERPA, Clery to name a few, 
  • View AACRAO's stance on bills and even work with CAPACRAO to advocate for/against bills as a collective.

Ways To Advocate - Within CAPACRAO

Collective work is helpful. Considering many of our institutions are state funded, acting as individuals may be a conflict of interest. However, CAPACRAO is a collective membership of SEM practitioners. As a non-profit business operated within the State of Maryland, representing both Maryland and Washington, DC, congressional leaders will want to hear from our diverse membership of 600. As the saying goes, there is power in numbers. 

Is there an issue you've identified from the AACRAO Advocacy Center that you believe would benefit CAPACRAO to advocate for/against?
Email the Executive Board at [email protected] to get started. 

Within Your Institution 

From a leadership perspective, identify individuals within your team who are interested in the legislative area. Inquire if they are interested in connecting their interest to the industry and if they are willing to provide updates at staff meetings as a professional development opportunity. You can also craft a newsletter or ask/suggest the idea to a team member. Most importantly, share this open-access AACRAO resource. In viewing the AACRAO website, feel free to share this resource with your colleagues even if you need clarification on their legislative interest or awareness.

Individually, peruse the AACRAO Advocacy website for all of your one-stop stop educational legislative updates.

Advocacy Is Connected to Professional Development

Higher education has gotten more political. And for the individuals within the AACRAO Professional Proficiency areas, particularly those who wish to achieve advanced positions within higher education, expanding your awareness of politics is necessary. If you start where you sit, you can make a huge impact - personally and professionally. Increasing your engagement with the legislative issues that impact higher education, especially the changing legislation affecting the areas of Strategic Enrollment Management, all connect to the AACRAO Core Competencies. Targeted learning and development are always beneficial; Now is a prime opportunity to reconnect with our colleagues and combat the ongoing skills gap with this innovative tool.

AACRAO Legislative Course

Ready to get your feet wet? AACRAO offers an on-demand Federal Legislative Process and Advocacy 101 course. The course is open and accessible to all AACRAO (roster) members and provides a concise breakdown of the federal legislative process. Add this badge to your social media feed as a micro-credential upon completion.

AACRAO roster members, you will need an account. Click here to create one. Utilize your institution's email address.

AACRAO Hill Day

An excellent professional development opportunity for AACRAO members is the ability to participate in AACRAO Hill Day. AACRAO Hill Day allows members to engage with congressional offices to discuss their work and share their perspectives, as practitioners, on how policy impacts daily work.

AACRAO Hill Day Advocates discuss the association's legislative priorities, including:

No legislative experience, no worries. There are plenty of learning and development opportunities facilitated by phenomenal AACRAO Governance staff to prepare you. I participated as a 2019 AACRAO Hill Day Advocate. It was a very remarkable opportunity. 

Rock Your AACRAO Vote 

Calling all eligible AACRAO Roster members, please take a look at the 2022-2023 AACRAO Slate and cast your vote. We have two CAPACRAO members running for positions - Cassandra Moore and Dr. Kimberly McNair.

Remember, your vote counts. 

Voting ends November 23, 2022.

Rock Your Vote - Tuesday, November 8

Every election, both Presidential and Mid-Term, means something, and taking time to identify the candidates needed to move forward in Maryland and Washington, DC, is a communal good. Please rock your vote in Maryland or Washington, DC, on Tuesday, November 8.

CAPACRAO members - let's talk. Share your thoughts. Were you aware of AACRAO's Advocacy Center? Will you use it? How best can leaders engage their colleagues in legislative work?

This synopsis was written by Johnika Dreher from the CAPACRAO Legislations Committee

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