Evolving NACA Events & Year-Round Engagement

When the Board approved the Regional Leadership Team structure and conference offerings back in 2021, it committed to regularly evaluating that structure as the Association evolves its programs, events, and resources to meet current and future needs of the Association and its members. To that end, the Board has made several strategic decisions related to conferences and how they are supported by volunteers.

2025-2026 NACA Conferences

Next year, the Association will host four NACA Conferences in addition to the 2026 NACA^® Live in Columbus. The full conference schedule will be:

• NACA Savannah (GA) - Oct. 2-4, 2025
• NACA Hartford (CT) - Oct. 16-18, 2025
• NACA Riverside (CA) - Nov. 20-22, 2025
• NACA Live in Columbus (OH) - Feb. 14-16, 2026
• NACA Milwaukee (WI) - Apr. 9-11, 2026

The number of conferences hosted each year considers many variables such as site availability, timing, proximity of schools, attendance patterns, member feedback, costs, amenities, and the location of NACA Live. School members can continue to attend the conference that best fits their calendars, travel needs, and budgets regardless of their regional affiliation. Review upcoming conference locations and dates here.

Revised Attendee Age Requirements

The Board will revise its attendee age requirements policy. Starting January 1, 2025, minors who are 16 or 17 years of age and a student at a higher education institution or affiliate member may be permitted to attend a NACA event that is not located on a college campus, but only with prior approval by the Executive Director. Additional information and waivers will be required from members seeking to bring a minor as part of the event registration process. Minors may be prohibited from certain activities that are age restrictive while attending NACA Live or conferences. If a minor is permitted to attend, the school/affiliate member shall remain responsible for the minor. Review the updated attendee age policies here.

Updates to Volunteer Opportunities

The Board has reviewed information from volunteers, data, and reflected on the strategic purpose of volunteerism and conferences in the Association. As a result, the Board has identified a need to isolate the conference responsibilities from the Regional Leadership Teams (RLTs) and will create Conference Teams that focus solely on supporting conferences, while RLTs maintain their focus on year-round engagement opportunities.

• Conference Teams will assist solely with fall and spring conferences, with each conference team supporting a specific conference. Each conference team will be open to those NACA school members who plan to attend that specific conference, regardless of their institution’s regional affiliation. For 2025-26, the Conference Teams will be:
  • NACA Savannah Conference Team
  • NACA Hartford Conference Team
  • NACA Riverside Conference Team
  • NACA Milwaukee Conference Team
• Regional Leadership Teams will focus on year-round engagement opportunities for members within their region and no longer assist with conference planning. RLTs will maintain their strategic focus on initiatives like awards programs, drive-ins, membership, business, networking, and educational webinars. These teams will continue to be open to NACA school members within their respective regions.

By separating the responsibilities and creating new volunteer opportunities, the Association hopes to address many of the volunteer challenges by reducing volunteer workload, creating opportunities to network outside their region, offering more project-based and shorter-term opportunities, and allowing for further professional development of competencies to those who desire them. This will provide equitable opportunities for members to volunteer in ways that align better with their time, talent, and needs.

Moving Forward

Volunteers currently in Regional Leadership Team roles will not be impacted. These new opportunities will go into effect after most terms end on January 31, 2025, and our Northern Plains RLT will continue to function as planned through the end of their terms.

All of the RLT and Conference Team volunteer opportunities will open on December 1, 2024, with the exception of the NACA Milwaukee Conference Team whose applications will open on June 1, 2025. We hope these new opportunities will provide equity for volunteers throughout the Association and better meet the needs of our volunteers, the Association, and conferences. You can learn more about these new opportunities, job descriptions, and application timelines here.

Webinar

The Association will host a webinar on Tues., Nov. 26 at 3:00 p.m. ET to review the new conference teams, regional structure, and other national volunteer opportunities with the general membership. You can register for the webinar here.

NACA continues to innovate, adjust, and elevate programs and services to address member needs and advance the Association vision to create college communities where everyone belongs. We look forward to seeing you at a future NACA event.