Five Voices of HECMA Leadership Why should you apply to join the HECMA Leadership Team? Our outgoing leaders will tell you why. These testimonials from 5 members of our HECMA Leadership Team are certain to encourage you to join our Leadership team! There are 5 leadership positions available in the upcoming HECMA elections! Please go to https://www.hecma.org/elections-2016.html for the candidate application and for leadership position descriptions. The new deadline is March 31st. Katherine Zilmer, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. “My two years as the Membership and Conference Chair have been two of the most professionally and personally rewarding I’ve experienced since starting my career in higher education case management. The experience, while challenging at times, has been more than I ever expected. I have gained invaluable skills in event planning and management that I would not have otherwise had the ability to develop. But more importantly, I have created wonderful and lasting relationships with brilliant, talented, and creative colleagues across the country. The leadership team is a true team and I have been fortunate to create connections with HECM’s through the membership portion of my role. I know that my career will see the benefit of this work through both my expanded skill set and the relationships I have been able to cultivate. If you are at all considering a role on the Leadership Team, I can’t recommend it enough.” Nina Critz, James Madison University. “HECMA has meant so much to me since I became a Case Manager in James Madison University’s Counseling Center 6 years ago. The support, resources, and best practice guidelines as well as the annual Roundtable conference has been invaluable in my professional development. It has been an honor to be involved on the Leadership Team for the past 6 months; I have learned so much from the talented and passionate leaders of this organization! Being involved in the Leadership Team has allowed me to find ways to provide support back to the organization that has done so much for me. The opportunities for professional growth and leadership development are endless! I hope that you will consider lending your time and talent to this incredible organization!” Karen Minero, UCLA. “I was first introduced to this amazing organization when I took a leap of faith and flew to Tennessee for the 2010 HECMA Roundtable. As the first case manager at UCLA, it was amazing to gain the collegial support of professionals in similar roles who spoke a shared language – thank goodness for HECMA! Serving as the Communications Chair since 2014 has been the icing on the cake, as the members of the HECMA Leadership Team have continually inspired me with their commitment and passion for the work. As well, working directly with Case Managers from all across the nation as the Communications Chair has been an incredibly rewarding experience. I strongly encourage you to consider running for a position in our upcoming election – it is a unique and wonderful opportunity to serve in a leadership role with HECMA!” Beth Riley, Binghamton University. “Being on the HECMA Leadership team means learning from the best of the best! I have worked with amazingly talented colleagues who are leaders in the field. Being part of the Quality Improvement Team has been a growth opportunity to assist with setting industry standards by collaborating with case managers from across the country. I have benefited greatly from this experience.” JJ Larson, Southern Methodist University. “I have been with HECMA since it was an idea and vision. Providing leadership to this group the past two years has been an amazing gift in my professional development, stretching my management and development skills far beyond what my university role had been. The feedback and support from HECMA has helped me expand and elevate my individual, professional and association work. As I stand here at the end of this 2 year commitment to HECMA, the big secret is that even more than all the things we have accomplished to together I have treasured the relationships and connections that I have with professionals I may never have known had I not been part of this group.” ~~~~ Karen Minero, PhD. Communications Chair communications@hecma.org