The Coalition announces new Executive Director

Annie Reznick worked on the University of Maryland admissions staff

The Coalition for Access, Affordability, and Success announced yesterday the appointment of its first Executive Director, Annie Reznik.  And it’s great news for the independent educational consultant (IEC) community.

In addition to recent appointments at several Rhode Island independent schools, Ms. Reznik also worked as an IEC, on staff at College Guidance Coach, providing “comprehensive college counseling services to individual families.”  To accept her position with the Coalition, Ms. Reznik resigned both her position as an IEC and as a professional member of the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA), but hopefully will retain strong connections with the independent counseling community of which she’s been a part since 2011.

“Annie has already reached out to IECA and we look forward to a close working relationship with the Coalition,” wrote Mark Sklarow, IECA’s chief executive officer, in a Facebook post announcing Ms. Reznik’s appointment.

Along with her IECA connection, Ms. Reznik also is an active member of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) and has blogged for the Association of College Counselors in Independent Schools (ACCIS).

Prior to coming to Rhode Island, Ms. Reznik worked in various capacities at the University of Maryland-College Park.  According to her biography, she directed the freshman review process for over 25,000 applications annually, chaired the admission review committee, and developed the recruitment strategy for managing annual enrollment goals.  She also engaged in numerous access-related projects, including leading a race-blind admission study, chairing the planning committee for the College Access Conference, and collaborating with campus TRIO programs.

“I’ve had the privilege to work with Annie,” said Barbara Gill, associate vice president at the University of Maryland.  “She is one of the most thoughtful, caring and committed people in our profession and we are so fortunate to have her lead our efforts.”

Ms. Reznik’s strong background on all sides of the admissions process, including her work as an IEC, should prove helpful as she steps into a new leadership role for the Coalition.  According to a statement on the Coalition website, she “is well equipped to provide new leadership for the Coalition’s member schools in our joint access activities for students and families and is deeply passionate about this important work.”

In the meantime, the Coalition is moving toward release of two of the three main elements of their new technology—the Student Locker and Collaboration Space. Essay prompts have been released, the software is being fine-tuned, and the counseling community is anxious for more details. 

There is no doubt that Annie Reznik is coming into a challenging job at a critical moment in the future of the Coalition.  And support from all her colleagues at IECA, NACAC and ACCIS will be key to her success.