Keynote

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Spencer Niles served as Dean (2013-2020) for the School of Education at the College of William & Mary. He now serves as Co-Founder of the THRIVE Research and Intervention Center and Professor of Counselor Education at W&M. Previously he served as Distinguished Professor and Department Head for Educational Psychology, Counseling, and Special Education at the Pennsylvania State University from 2000-2013. Prior to joining the faculty at Penn State, he served as Professor of Counselor Education at the University of Virginia from 1987-2000 where he was also Assistant Dean for the Curry School of Education. He served as a Visiting Professor at Johns Hopkins University from 2020-2021. He is President-elect of the Association for Counselor Education and Supervision, Past-President of Chi Sigma Iota International and was twice the President of the National Career Development Association (NCDA). He is the recipient of the NCDA Eminent Career Award. He has received numerous awards from the American Counseling Association (ACA) including the Thomas Hohenshil Research Award, the Thomas Sweeney Visionary Leadership and Advocacy Award, the President’s Award, the David Brooks Distinguished Mentor Award, the ACA Extended Research Award, the ACES Legacy Award, and the Visionary Leader and Advocate Award. He received the Noted Scholar Award from the University of British Columbia. Niles is a Fellow of ACA and NCDA. He is the current Editor for Counselor Education and Supervision and served as two-term Editor for The Career Development Quarterly as well as Editor for the Journal of Counseling & Development. He has authored or co-authored approximately 150 publications and delivered over 170 presentations at national and international conferences. He is the lead developer of the Hope-Action Theory.