June 20th, 2019
Pictured above, from left to right: Nicole Batt, University of Utah Office of Engagement Managing Director; Dallyn Hallows; Tanner Telford; Cassandra Fa’amuli; and Rachel Everett, Utah College Advising Corp Assistant Director
Under the direction of the Board of Regents, by the 2021-22 school year every high school in Utah will have a full-time, permanent college access advisor, contingent on legislative funding. As a first step in the statewide expansion of the Utah College Advising Corps, 33 Utah high schools will have a full-time college access advisor for fall 2019.
Three regional coordinators have been hired to oversee these advisors and to coordinate with regional public colleges and universities, high school counselors and administration, as well as community partners.
Dallyn Hallows graduated from Brigham Young University with a Bachelor of Science in Family and Consumer Sciences Education. Shortly after graduating, she became a college access advisor at Pine View High School for the Utah College Advising Corps and has served in that role for the past three years. Dallyn is passionate about helping bridge the gap that exists for first-generation, low-income, and underrepresented students and helping students find their best fit for post-secondary education. Dallyn is thrilled for the opportunity to help expand this program across the state and continue this work in a new capacity as the regional coordinator at Dixie State University overseeing the college access advisors in Washington County.
Cassandra Fa’amuli‘s career in education started at the elementary level as an after-school program assistant. After earning her bachelor’s degree in education from Brigham Young University-Hawaii, she moved into various roles at the intermediate and high school level. She most recently worked with underrepresented populations as an outreach admissions counselor for Utah Valley University. She is excited to now be the regional coordinator at Utah Valley University overseeing the college access advisors in Utah County.
Tanner Telford graduated from Weber State University in 2018, where he worked within the admissions office and as an Upward Bound instructor. He continued his graduate studies at the University of Oxford, where he is currently finishing a master’s degree in higher education. A first-generation, low-income student himself, Tanner’s research and interests lie in the area of access and educational equity. He will work as the regional coordinator at Weber State University and will supervise college access advisers within the Ogden, Weber, and Davis school districts.
The regional coordinators will be housed at the regional USHE institution in the area near the advisors that they oversee.
Utah college access advisors guide high school students through college entrance exam preparation, admissions procedures, and financial aid processes to ensure that all Utah students have access to higher education opportunities. High schools with a college access advisor are anticipated to see the college enrollment rates of their graduates increase 5 to 9%.
This statewide college access advising program expands the Utah College Advising Corps at the University of Utah, which was initially established in 2007 under a joint grant from the Board of Regents and the University of Utah from the Jack Kent Cook Foundation. The program has been in 12 high schools for nearly a dozen years, 11 high schools in Salt Lake County and one in St. George.
