Xello at the ASCA 2024 Fired UP Annual Conference

Xello Team | July 17, 2024

The ASCA 2024 Fired UP Conference brought together thousands of school counseling professionals in Kansas City, Mo., for an inspiring event filled with learning, networking, and rejuvenation.

This premier professional development opportunity allows attendees to discover best practices, resources, and evidence-based materials to enhance their school counseling practices, including their future readiness programs, while connecting with peers from across the country.

Event Details: July 13 – 16, 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri

Keynote Sessions

This year’s keynotes focused on empowering and inspiring change, emphasizing personal growth, societal issues, and community collaboration. Michele Norris explored the complexities of race, culture, and communication in America, encouraging open dialogues on sensitive topics to foster understanding and change within communities.

Alton Fitzgerald White shared his insights on aligning personal passions with purpose, using his experiences from Broadway to illustrate how to maintain peak performance in daily life. Meanwhile, Lea Nepomuceno highlighted the impact of youth advocacy and collaborative efforts in criminal justice reform, discussing her role in implementing significant changes in areas like campus policing and gun violence prevention. Collectively, these speakers provided powerful narratives on overcoming challenges and making impactful contributions both personally and within larger communities.

Highlighted Session: Elevate College & Career Readiness in Your Schools

Our Xello session featured Julie Durham, Success Ready Programming Lead at Wentzville School District and Chris Olford, Director of Strategy for Xello. They provided an insightful exploration into the evaluation and implementation of college and career readiness software in the Wentzville district. Julie shared the critical factors in selecting software vendors and managing change, using real-world examples from her very own school district in Missouri.

Key takeaways from the session: Prioritizing equity and access is paramount when selecting a CCR tool. It’s also about partnering with vendors to optimize support and training, which not only saves educators time in the long run but also enhances student outcomes as your program grows.

Download Our CCR Software Buyer’s Checklist here

Other Notable Sessions

Tech and AI for Student Success

This session delved into the revolutionary impact of artificial intelligence (AI) and technology on school counseling. Hanna Kemble and Travis True discussed how AI and technology enhance student outcomes through personalized interventions, task automation, and decision-making support. The session also addressed potential ethical concerns, including bias and discrimination, providing a comprehensive overview of the benefits and challenges of integrating AI into school counseling practices.

Learn how AI is being used in college applications from our partners at Collegewise

K–12 Career Development

The fourth Industrial Revolution has arrived, and students need to be prepared for jobs that don’t yet exist, in a world where what work looks like is changing faster than ever before. Get tips on how to best prepare iGen and Gen Alpha for the world of work. Focus on specific strategies, tools and tips to help you implement a career development program that prepares all of your students for the ever-evolving world of work.

Download our Future-Ready Careers in Technology White Paper

Better FAFSA

Sponsored by Sallie Mae, this session focused on the recent generational changes to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®). Speakers Kim Urenda, Michael Chavez, and Ed Recker reviewed initial data on FAFSA® completion and discussed effective strategies for helping students and families adapt to the changes. The session provided practical takeaways and highlighted areas for improvement in supporting students through the FAFSA® process.

See our Xello Guide to FAFSA here

Conclusion

At Xello, we’re proud to sponsor ASCA and our experience at ASCA 2024 Fired UP Annual Conference was yet another reason why we’ll continue to do so. A resounding success, ASCA offers school counseling professionals a wealth of knowledge, inspiration, and connections. This national event, coupled with the local school counseling events, foster the exchange of ideas and best practices that is so necessary for educators to expand their professional networks and build lasting relationships.

Those of us at Xello who were lucky to attend left energized and better informed of the challenges our clients (current or future) are facing. And we heard from those on the ground that they feel better equipped with new tools and strategies they need to enhance their work and support their students.

Learn more about how Xello partners with ASCA to support the school counseling community with future readiness best practices and tools.

About Xello

Xello is an engaging, online program that helps K-12 students define their future goals and transform their aspirations into actionable plans for success. The program puts students at the center of their college and career planning experience. It helps them build self-knowledge, explore their options, create a plan, and develop the 21st-century skills needed to thrive in the world of work. With over 20 years of experience in EdTech, our team has helped educators across America implement Xello to prepare students for college and career success.