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What is Midwest Association of Colleges and Employers?

Midwest Association of Colleges and Employers (Midwest ACE) is an association of colleges and employers, and really the goal is to bring together staffing professionals as well as college and career professionals to help them connect. Addressing questions such as “How do we better find students? How do we mentor them on our college?” and there is a lot of networking.

How did you get involved with Midwest ACE?

I started in June at Association Management Ltd. (AML), which manages several associations – some are international, some are state – and Molly Lopez, the owner and president of AML, was serving as executive director of Midwest ACE, so I came in as the associate director. Then Molly wanted to focus more on growing AML, and so I made the transition into the executive director position and it was just a good fit.

How many associations do you manage through AML?

In total, AML manages nine associations; two of them are international associations. However, I personally work with three associations: Midwest ACE, the International Association of Lighting Management Companies and the Association of Image Consultants International, who are a really big group of wonderful people, and it’s fun to have them as clients because they give you good tips on appearance and image.

How do you spend your day?

I do a wide variety of things. As executive director, I really work predominantly with the board of directors. I’m the liaison, so I sit in on all of the meetings and I draft all of the agendas with the board president, and I also interact with all of the staff members. So there are all the pieces of the puzzle and I kind of oversee all of them and make sure that we are all on the same page with projects, so it is just really varied. That is what I love; no two days are ever the same. I need a lot of different activities to do. I’m not good at just doing one thing, so the variety is great and I love working with people from all over that have different interests. You could be putting out a huge fire one day and then the next day is quieter.

You have a degree in Spanish and education. How did you transition into association management?

I just happened upon an association management company in Minneapolis that was hiring about two weeks after I graduated from college, and so I answered an advertisement in the paper and I started working there as an administrative assistant. I managed three clients there and really got to know association management. I was at that company for about two years and then my husband and I moved to Des Moines, and I looked up this company and that’s how I came to work here.

What are some hobbies that you enjoy outside work?

My husband and I love to travel internationally. I was in China for a short time teaching English, and then I studied in Spain. Then I traveled with an orchestra in college – I played the viola – to Eastern Europe. I love Europe; I love Amsterdam. I love biking, and it’s very romantic with the canals and everything like that. But then there is something really intriguing about the Asian culture too, and it’s kind of nice to go back country to places where people haven’t necessarily been to.