	Oregon Career Development Association
	Promoting quality career development in Oregon

OCDA Professional Development Scholarship

The Oregon Career Development Association is pleased to offer Professional Development Scholarships in order to “Promote Quality Career Development in Oregon”. Scholarship may be used to attend a conference, training, or class related to career development. In order to apply for this scholarship, one must meet the following criteria:

OCDA member in good standing for a minimum of the past two consecutive years
Willing to write an article related to the training to be posted on the OCDA website

One or more scholarships will be offered each year, depending upon funds available. Maximum scholarship amount is $250.00. Scholarships awarded must be utilized within one year of the date awarded. In order to apply, complete the following application form and submit to Membership Coordinator.

Download OCDA Professional Development Scholarship Application (MS Word, 47KB)

2007 Scholarship Recipient Darlene Fritz

Darlene Fritz having fun at the Career Conference in Madison, Wisconsin

A Letter from the 2007 Scholarship Recipient Darlene Fritz

I would like to formally thank the Oregon Career Development Association for standing behind its commitment to supporting professional development for its members. Earlier this year, I was granted the OCDA Professional Development Scholarship so that I could attend the Careers Conference in Madison, Wisconsin. After a career change a few years ago to become the Guidance Counselor at a small, private school, I had not been able to maintain my previous pattern of attending a professional conference each year due to financial restrictions. The OCDA Professional Development Scholarship gave me the opportunity to connect with career development professionals from all over the United States and the World, re-energize myself professionally, and gain specific tools to take back and immediately use in my job.

The Careers Conference in Wisconsin had an exceptional variety of workshops, general sessions, and industry tours for career development professionals from a variety of settings. Since I recently transitioned from working at a community college to working with 6th-12th grade students, I found the sessions specific to middle school and high school counselors most helpful. During the evening hours, it was also great to really explore the local community and try some new foods. Have you ever had deep-fried cheese curds? They’re amazing! Overall, I came away from this conference energized and inspired.

I would encourage all members of OCDA to make the commitment to participating in a national or international conference sometime soon. The Center on Education and Work at the University of Wisconsin hosts an annual winter Careers Conference each year for career development professionals at all educational levels; next year’s Career Conference is January 26-28, 2009 http://www.cew.wisc.edu/careersConf/default.aspx . Other great conferences include the National Career Development Association in Washington, DC on July 9-11, 2008 http://www.ncda.org/ and the International Career Development Conference in Los Angeles, CA on November 5-9, 2008 http://www.careerccc.com/locationhighlights.html.

Darlene Fritz, MA, NCC, MCC, GCDF
Guidance Counselor
Western Mennonite School