SACSA News > 2026 Annual Conference with NASPA Region III > Micro-Mentorship: Career Connections Start with a 15-Minute Conversations

Micro-Mentorship: Career Connections Start with a 15-Minute Conversations

Graduate students and early to mid-career professionals are connecting with senior leaders across the region for impactful mentoring conversations.

	20 Oct 2026
	Written by Makayla Vasek
	2026 Annual Conference with NASPA Region III

Connect with SACSA Mentors in Greenville

Featured

	Alicia Golston		Beau Seagraves		Bob Glenn		Eric Bailey		DaVina Hamilton
	Kristin Walker-Donnelly		Nichole Lewis		Robert Valdez		Joy Hartfield		Makayla Vasek

SACSA has always demonstrated a commitment to professional development for its members and community. This year, President Joy Hartfield and Presidential Scholar Makayla Vasek furthered that commitment by facilitating short-term, intentional mentorship events.

Virtual Mentorship Day

On October 13, 2026, SACSA held its inaugural Virtual Mentorship Day. The vision for this program was to create an opportunity for graduate students and early to mid-career professionals to engage in micro-mentorship conversations with senior leaders from across the region.

Through 15-minute, 1:1 conversations, Virtual Mentorship Day strived to:

Generate knowledge sharing
Remove barriers to mentorship (i.e. time constraints)
Build professional community across the SACSA region

Ultimately, 7 inspirational mentors and 22 eager participants engaged in a total of 49 micro-mentorship conversations throughout the day!

Participants and mentors shared positive feedback about the accessibility of the program and the quality of their conversations:

I loved the conversations I had and people I met with. 15 minutes was the perfect amount of time that made this an accessible experience to engage in between classes, meetings, etc.

After my conversations, I officially signed up to be a SACSA member…I also plan to remain in contact with the professionals I met to gain more mentorship knowledge from them in the future.

It felt very rewarding to assist participants in thinking about continued growth in the higher education profession.

Micro-Mentorship at the Annual Conference

As SACSA continues to create spaces for mentorship, we are looking forward to hosting a Micro-Mentorship Program at the 2026 SACSA Annual Conference with NASPA Region III in Greenville.

Whether you are seeking advice on a higher education challenge or looking for a way to expand your network, this is a great opportunity to engage in conversation and community with one of our nine wonderful mentors!

Mentorship time slots will be available from 12:30pm to 1:30pm on Tuesday, November 3rd during the “Lunch On Your Own” segment of the conference.

Even a 15-minute conversation can lead to a lifelong connection and insight on your next career move.

We have limited availability, so sign up today: https://tinyurl.com/2ve3mx4a