Remarks on Winning the Antonoff Award

Excerpts of my Comments in Detroit on Being Recognized with the Highest Honor in the Profession of Independent Educational Consulting

On Tuesday, May 6, I arrived in Detroit to accept the Steven Antonoff Award for Professional Achievement. So many have supported me over the years, I wanted to share my thoughts with those who couldn’t make the trip to IECA’s National Conference:

Thank you.

Needless to say, I am deeply touched by this recognition—and not just because I know I didn’t exactly meet the qualifications to receive it.

I’m especially honored because I had the privilege of giving the very first Professional Achievement Award to Steve Antonoff himself, and informing him that the award would forever carry his name. I’m further humbled when I consider the exceptional individuals who preceded me as Antonoff Award recipients: Bill Dingledine, Judy Berg, Alan Haas, Marilyn Emerson, Charlotte Klaar, Marcia Rubinstein, Pam Jobin... and several who are here today: Jeff Levy, Luisa Rabe, and Judy Bass.

This award has always stood for something bigger than any one person. It honors those who have given generously to the profession by dedicating themselves to the training, support, and growth of their colleagues.

So it may surprise you to know that kind of commitment wasn’t always welcomed or admired.

In 1994, when I first arrived, I didn’t realize a battle was going on. Many—probably most in the profession—wanted to keep the field small and exclusive. Newcomers weren’t exactly embraced. And mentoring? Teaching? Sharing knowledge? That was often dismissed outright. I heard more than once: “Why would I teach others what it took me years to figure out?” or “Why should I hand someone answers I had to learn through trial and error?”

Imagine if Florence Nightingale had taken that approach: “I’m not going to share what I learned—let the next generation of nurses figure it out with a little trial and error!”

But there was a smaller, visionary group who thought differently—Judy Berg, Lloyd Paradiso, Dodge Johnson, and especially Steve Antonoff. Once elected to the Board, they quickly set to work turning the avocation of educational consulting into a true profession. They were joined by so many others, helping to develop and teach best practices. They launched IECA’s first campus tours, the Practices and Principles Workshop, the Summer Training Institute, and online webinars, which led to more recent programs like IECA’s European Symposium, Business Forum, and Business Growth Institute.

So, why the history lesson?

Because the Antonoff Award isn’t just a personal honor. It’s a celebration of that larger commitment—to elevate our profession through action. To mentor, to teach, to share. To raise the bar for all of us.

That mission has always been at the heart of my work. Whether it was teaching at STI, leading the “One Great Idea” sessions at retreats, questioning speakers at conferences, presenting at NACAC, TABS, or NATSAP, answering questions from members (and non-member IECs) in moments of need—or even today, through my blog on Substack—helping others and advancing our profession has been the most fulfilling part of my 30 years at IECA.

To those who continue that work—by mentoring, presenting, and engaging with peers, I thank you. I urge all of us to stay involved, to give back, and to keep raising one another up. Our shared commitment to excellence and ethics involves us all.