PCA Annual Conference

BIO

Cheryl Holcomb-McCoy is Professor and Chair of the Department of Counseling and Human Services at Johns Hopkins University.  She earned a Ph.D. in counseling and educational development from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG), an M.Ed. in school counseling, and a B.S. in elementary education both from the University of Virginia. Prior to her appointment as Professor at Johns Hopkins University, Dr. Holcomb-McCoy was an Associate Professor in the Department of Counseling and Personnel Services at the University of Maryland, College Park.  She also served as the Director of the School Counseling Program at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York (1996-1998). Her areas of research specialization include the measurement of multicultural self-efficacy in school counseling, measuring high school college-going culture, and best practices in urban school counselor preparation.  Dr. Holcomb-McCoy was recently the principal investigator of a three-year research project funded by The College Board that examined school counselors’ impact on the college-going rates of urban high school students (2006-2009).

            Dr. Holcomb-McCoy is a nationally recognized expert in school counseling. She has authored over 40 articles in refereed national journals and is the author of the best-selling school counseling book entitled, “School Counseling to Close the Achievement Gap:  A Social Justice Framework for Success” (Corwin Press).  She has served as guest editor for the Professional School Counseling journal and is currently co-editing a special issue on school-family-community partnerships in that same journal.  Dr. Holcomb-McCoy has been a presenter at international, national, and state conferences and her professional colleagues have recognized her with awards for outstanding counselor education and research, excellence in teaching, and exemplar service.  In 2009, she was awarded the prestigious Mary Smith Arnold Anti-Oppression Award at the American Counseling Association conference in Charlotte NC.  And in 2007, the Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development (AMCD) selected her for the Exemplary Diversity Leadership Award.  In 2008, Dr. Holcomb-McCoy was selected by Maryland’s State Superintendent, Nancy Grasmick, to be a member of the Achievement Initiative for Maryland’s Minority Students (AIMMS) Steering Committee.

Dr. Holcomb-McCoy currently serves on the editorial boards of the Professional School Counseling journal, Journal of Specialists in Group Work, and the Counselor Education and Supervision journal. She is an ad-hoc reviewer for the Black Women, Gender, & Families journal.  Dr. Holcomb-McCoy is the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Diversity Professional Network Chairperson and is a consultant for The College Board’s National Office of School Counselor Advocacy (NOSCA) and The Education Trust.

A former elementary school counselor and kindergarten teacher in Montgomery County (MD) Schools, Dr. Holcomb-McCoy resides with her husband and two children in Potomac, Maryland where she enjoys cooking, gardening, and collecting African Art.

Call For Programs

It is time to get ready for the 2010 annual PCA Conference to be held

 October 15 - 17, 2010 at the Penn Stater Conference Center in State

 College.  The theme for our conference this year is "Counseling in a

 Multicultural World."  Here is the link for program proposals which

 are due no later than June 1, 2010

Call for Programs

If you are not a PCA member but would like to take advantage of the membership discounts for the Conference, join now. 

PCA Membership Application Form

Want to apply for PCA membership on-line?  Click here

PCA members, please note that you will also be receiving a PCA Annual Conference Registration Form in the mail.

CONFERENCE CANCELLATION/REFUND POLICY:  PCA has a policy regarding Conference Cancellation and refunds. Refunds requested in writing and received by a particular date will be issued minus a $50 processing fee. No refunds will be issued after the published date.  Refund requests should be sent to the PCA Conference Chair.

Room Reservations

Check back later for special rates for rooms for the 2010 conference.

Exhibitor Information

The PCA Annual Conference provides your organization with an excellent opportunity to communicate your message to an ever-increasing number of professional counselors at a very minimal cost.  Exhibit opportunities include table displays or "Take-One" areas (spaces where materials and information can be displayed without a representative being present).  Other opportunities for increasing your organization's visibility include advertising in the conference program, sponsoring conference breaks or the graduate student reception, and/or providing give-away items such as key chains, pens, notebooks, etc. (No advertising flyers will be accepted as give-away items.) 

More information about exhibiting opportunities, including prices, can be found on the PCA Exhibitor/Sponsor Application form.

2009 Exhibitor/Sponsor Application form 

If you have any questions about exhibiting your business at the 2009 PCA Conference, please contact Jennifer Eaton at jenn.eaton@verizon.net .    

Visitor Information

The Penn Stater Conference Center is adjacent to the campus of Pennsylvania State University in State College, PA, right in the heart of Pennsylvania.  To learn more about this beautiful and vibrant region, visit the Central Pennsylvania Convention & Visitors Bureau Web site.  There you will find information on lodging alternatives, leisure activities, shopping, places to eat, and more, as well as a page for directions to State College from all points on the compass.

Conference center and resort sales professionals, to discuss the opportunities that your center or resort has to offer, contact PCA Conference Committee chair Jennifer Eaton at jenn.eaton@verizon.net