Large-scale career fairs can be exciting—but also overwhelming—for students navigating high expectations, crowded environments, and performance pressure. This 30-minute roundtable will explore an innovative Standard Operating Procedure: the Care Spotter Team model implemented at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University during the Spring Career Fair and Fall Career EXPO. Participants will learn how cross-campus collaboration between the Center for Career and Professional Development, the ERAU Counseling Center, and trained Eagle-2-Eagle peer supporters creates a proactive response system for students experiencing mental health events or physical distress.
The discussion will outline identification protocols, peer-to-peer de-escalation strategies, escort procedures, and the implementation of a “Rest & Re-Set Room” equipped with calming resources and on-site professional staff. Attendees will engage in dialogue about staffing models, training considerations, risk management, and scalable implementation strategies. This session is ideal for institutions seeking to intentionally integrate well-being, belonging, and student-centered care into high-impact recruiting events.
Career Center Outreach and Expo Manager, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Lizz Giordano is a career services professional with more than eight years of experience in employer relations, career advising, and large-scale recruiting initiatives. She currently serves as Career Center Outreach & Expo Manager at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, where she... Read More →
Today's career decision making process is influenced by rapidly changing labor markets, competitive academic environments, and societal pressure to achieve. These factors may intensify student stress, burnout, and self doubt which directly shape how students select majors, engage in career exploration, and build professional identities. This roundtable will examine the deeply interconnected relationship between student well-being and career development in higher education. Career development professionals play a significant role in creating environments that support not only student career success but also student career wellbeing. By focusing more on building a supportive career development, higher education institutions can help this next generation navigate their paths with confidence, clarity, and resilience.The session invites participants to collectively rethink advising practices, program design, and collaboration strategies that contribute to a supportive career development ecosystem. Through shared dialogue, participants will explore approaches that emphasize balance, purpose, and student well-being related to the career decision-making process.
Assistant Director, Career Planning, University of Central Florida
Alexandra Minnick is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who currently works with traditional and nontraditional college students in the Central Florida community. She currently works as the Assistant Director of Career Planning at UCF Career Services for the last 3 years. She has 6... Read More →
OBBBA is now law, and career centers across Florida are racing to figure out what "demonstrated experiential learning" and "measurable career outcomes" actually require in practice. Most directors are still building the answer in real time. This roundtable convenes career services leaders for a tactical exchange: what counts as experiential learning under the new requirements, how are you tracking it, what audit trail are you building, and where are your current systems most exposed? Facilitated by Rahul Jindal, the conversation draws on lessons from 200+ career center director interviews to surface concrete approaches institutions are already piloting. Participants leave with a working checklist of what to track, what to document, and what to fix before the next academic year. Bring one question, one example, and one challenge from your campus.
We help students across 80+ universities get hired with scalable career readiness tools: professional attire (CareerCloset), formulaic prep for career fairs, and international student visa support. Designed for tight budgets, our solutions are employer-funded and impact-driven.
This roundtable explores best practices for the ethical, responsible, and effective use of artificial intelligence in career coaching. As AI-powered tools increasingly shape resume development, career exploration, skills assessment, and job search strategies, career professionals must balance innovation with student-centered, values-driven practice. Participants will discuss opportunities for AI tools that enhance human coaching, while addressing concerns related to bias, data privacy, accessibility, transparency, and overreliance on automation. The session will emphasize equity-minded decision-making, institutional guidelines, and coaching frameworks that preserve empathy, agency, and critical thinking. Through discussion and shared experiences, attendees will leave with initial ideas to start designing, or bettering their processes for strategies, guiding principles, and reflective questions to support responsible AI integration in career services. This roundtable is designed for career educators seeking to thoughtfully adopt emerging technologies while maintaining professional ethics and meaningful student engagement.
To better guide the next generation of students at the University of Central Florida, the Kenneth G. Dixon Career Development Center is evolving its outreach strategy from independent departmental efforts into a unified, centralized model. This innovation in connectivity provides a single "front door" for faculty and student organizations, ensuring a cohesive approach to classroom presentations, labs, and workshops.This roundtable explores the integration of three distinct teams into one collective system: career services, internship opportunities, and graduate/professional school preparation. We will discuss the logistics of a centralized request form and the deployment of a diverse speaker pool to deliver NACE-aligned content, such as the "Don't Cancel That Class" initiative. In comparing 2024-2026 trends, we have developed a data-driven strategy to forecast needs the guide students. Participants will discuss leveraging these insights to build the long-lasting partnerships necessary to turn student career aspirations into reality.
Academic Support Coordinator I, University of Central Florida
As an Academic Support Coordinator I at the University of Central Florida, Riya N. Patel partners closely with faculty partners, ensuring they have the technological tools and resources to drive student success. From managing the Career Services Canvas course to streamlining outreach... Read More →
As AI becomes a foundational workforce skill, institutions must find ways to integrate practical AI experiences across all majors-not just technical fields. This roundtable explores how vibe Coding, a no-code, prompt-driven approach to building AI-powered tools, can be embedded into any course using the Base44. Participants will discuss strategies for incorporating AI skill-building into diverse disciplines, enabling students to move from ideas to functional prototypes-such as portfolios, business tools, or class-specific applications-without prior coding experience.This interactive session will engage attendees through guided prompts, peer discussion, and collaborative brainstorming to identify opportunities and challenges within their own courses. Participants will leave with practical ideas, adaptable frameworks, and strategies to integrate AI-driven learning into their curriculum, enhancing student engagement, creativity, and career readiness outcomes across disciplines.
Elery Rojas is the Director of University Programs and Outreach at Base44, where she empowers educators and innovators to lead in AI and digital presence. With over a decade of experience in higher education, Elery has dedicated her career to advancing student success through career... Read More →
Wellness in the Workplace is an interactive 30-minute roundtable designed for employers, career professionals, and organizational leaders committed to cultivating healthy, human-centered work environments. Together, we will explore how companies are supporting employee wellbeing through meaningful initiatives, ranging from mental health benefits and flexible work structures to creative perks that promote balance, belonging, and resilience. Participants will share current practices, discuss evolving employee expectations, and examine how wellness directly influences engagement, retention, and organizational culture. The session will also highlight how career professionals can empower students to prioritize wellbeing during the job search and evaluate employer wellness offerings. Attendees will leave with actionable ideas and a deeper understanding of how to integrate wellness principles into both workplace strategy and career development support.
Employer Relations Coordinator & Career Coach, University of South Florida, St. Petersburg
Sara A. Sabourin, M.A.Ed. is an Employer Relations Coordinator & Career Coach at the University of South Florida. She is also a certified Sound Healing Practitioner; a certified Mental Health First Aider; and an entrepreneur facilitating Stress Management Technique workshops to corporate... Read More →
This presentation shares the results of a statewide benchmarking study of career services technology across 19 Florida colleges and universities. Evaluating more than 18 platforms across job skills, career exploration, and job search, the study identifies dominant tools such as LinkedIn Learning, Big Interview, and Handshake, highlights emerging momentum around Career Forge, and surfaces widespread dissatisfaction with cost versus actual student utilization. While most platforms are functionally sound, the data reveals consistent challenges: fragmented systems, limited integration, rising subscription costs, and underuse by students. As institutions increasingly turn to free or low-cost AI tools to fill gaps, the presentation argues that technology is no longer the primary bottleneck. Instead, effective adoption depends on intentional team roles, ownership of the student journey, and strategic integration into advising workflows.
Kelli Grogan leads the Career Services Center at Florida College in Tampa, Florida. She holds a Master of Public Administration from Northern Kentucky University, as well as a Master of Rehabilitation Counseling and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, both from the University of Kentucky... Read More →
The transition back to work after a significant leave is often viewed as a hurdle to be cleared rather than a creative opportunity. Traditional career models demand linear progression, but life is rarely linear. This roundtable explores how Life Design principles can transform the return to work after life transitions into an intentional, innovative journey. Participants will discuss high-level strategies for reframing re-entry challenges and prototyping flexible pathways that harmonize professional ambition with personal priorities.
Interim Executive Director, New College of Florida
Ciara Suarez has been working in Higher Education since 2019, and returned to the New College of Florida in September 2023 as the Coordinator of Office and Recruitment Services in the Center for Career Engagement and Opportunity. She is also the Coordinator in the Office of Global... Read More →
