OCDA November 2025 Newsletter
"Self-Care & Wellness for the Wayfinders"
A Message from OCDA President, Website Chair, & Social Media Co-Chair, Kaleigh Mahon
Dear OCDA Members,
Happy National Career Development Month! I hope that as we move into this holiday season you have the chance to get some well-deserved time for rest, relaxation, and the opportunity to pursue professional and personal activities of interest. OCDA has a number of robust presentations, available for both members and non-members, to support you in your professional development. In fact, expanding the focus of our presentation topics in order to meet the needs of each of OCDA’s constituency groups has been a priority in my goals as President. Some other areas of focus for my term as President have included/will include:
Enhancing the value of the OCDA membership and outreaching career professionals statewide
Developing new partnerships with other state CDA’s and maintaining strong relationships with current partner organizations
Finishing a thorough review and finalizing updates to OCDA By-Laws
- If you are interested in joining the review of the OCDA By-Laws, please contact committee chairs, Calvin Wagner (calvin.wagner@sinclair.edu) and Christine Yancey (christine.yancey@sinclair.edu)
Maintaining a strong connection with OCDA’s history through staying in contact with historical leadership, ensuring centralization and organization of records, and continuing our search of the missing OCDA “Archives Box”
I am immensely grateful that you have chosen to be a part of OCDA, and I hope that these initiatives make the organization even more beneficial to you. If you have any questions, would like to hear more about OCDA and the goals for this term, and/or would be interested in getting involved, please do not hesitate to reach out to me at ohiocda@gmail.com or mahonkaleigh@gmail.com.
Take care,
Kaleigh Mahon, LPCC, CDCA
OCDA President
Take a Breath with Us with NCD Month
Taking Time for Ourselves Can Be Hard
As we continue celebrating National Career Development Month, we’re grateful for the meaningful moments we’ve shared so far. This month, we’ve explored art and expression tools with Barbara Allen, reminding us how creativity can help us be kind to ourselves—and to our clients. We also took a refreshing self-care and mindfulness break with Earl Nichols, giving everyone a chance to pause and breathe. And the good news? There are still some wonderful events ahead (see in the next section), and we can’t wait to see you there.
As we step into this month’s newsletter, we’re taking a moment to honor you—the professionals who guide, support, and empower others on their career journeys. Your work is meaningful and deeply impactful, and it deserves to be matched with intentional care for your own well-being.
Before diving into our updates, we invite you to try a quick self-care reset: take one slow, full breath, unclench your jaw, and roll your shoulders back. Small pauses like these help us stay grounded, energized, and ready to continue the important work we do every day.
With this little moment of calm to start us off, we’re excited to share the stories, updates, and opportunities waiting for you in this month’s newsletter.
Community Reflection:
How do you practice self-care? This can be at work, at home, at the gym, or with loved ones. What are examples of self-care that you practice every day? What activities would you like to add?
Click here to share!
Upcoming Events
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR EVENTS
Thank you for being one of our members! As a member, you receive many benefits, including access to Professional Growth and Networking Opportunities:
Continuing education credits (CEUs)
Discounts on trainings (Free-$5)
Meet other professionals through attending events
OCDA Spring Conference Announcement!
Block your calendars! Think through your presentation proposals!
The OCDA Spring Conference will be taking place from May 28th-May 29th in Lima, Ohio! More details to come! We look foward to seeing you there!
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National Career Development Month NCDA Poetry & Art Contest
The OCDA board is excited to launch NCDA's 60th Annual National Poetry and Art Contest, a nationally recognized celebration held each November in honor of National Career Development Month.
This year’s theme, “The Evolution of Work: Careers in the Past, Present, and Future”, invites participants of ALL ages to reflect, imagine, and express their creativity through poetry or art.
This contest is a wonderful opportunity for students, professionals, community members, and Everyone alike to showcase their voices and visions while inspiring others to think deeply about how work shapes our lives, yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
The deadline for entries is Saturday, December 20, 2025.
We warmly encourage you to share this opportunity with your students, colleagues, networks, and communities. Together, we can inspire creativity, spark reflection, and empower others to dream about the future of work.
Have you been writing poetry, creating art, or just looking for some inspiration to be artistic? We have officially opened up our process for accepting entries for ! Below are the steps to participate.
STEPS FOR ENTRY:
1. Reflect on the theme: The Evolution of Work: Careers in the Past, Present and Future.
2. View the brochure for more information on requirements for entry and inspiration.
3. Share with anyone in your network who may also want to participate (students, coworkers, family) -- the contest is open to the public!
4. Create your piece of art!
5. Submit your art and poetry State contest entries HERE by December 20th at 11:59pm.
Thank you for your time, energy, and partnership in spreading the word. We can’t wait to see the incredible art of our community!
Click Here to Enter!
Government Relations Updates: Pulse on Ohio
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OCDA's 3rd Annual Legislative Advocacy Day
On October 21, 2025, OCDA members gathered at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus for our annual legislative day. Throughout the day, attendees advocated for career development through meetings with legislators in the Ohio House and Senate, raising awareness of the impact of career development services across the state.
This event was instrumental in articulating OCDA’s priorities and advocating for policies that support career professionals and the clients we serve. We are proud of the energy, professionalism, and purposeful dialogue our members demonstrated throughout the day. In particular, this year’s diverse legislative meetings helped ensure that the concerns and contributions of career development practitioners across Ohio were represented. This year’s agenda offered strategic advocacy activity that reinforced OCDA’s role as a leader in policy engagement for career development in Ohio.
As we reflect on this year’s event, we encourage all members to keep the momentum alive:
Follow up with your legislative contacts, share your experiences, and continue to integrate advocacy into your professional practice. Together, we amplify the voice of career development across Ohio, making a real difference for our clients.
We look forward to building on this success in future years and continuing to strengthen the relationship between OCDA members and Ohio’s policy-makers.
If there’s a piece of legislation you would like highlighted in this column, Pulse on Ohio, from the OCDA Government Relations committee, please send it our way! We welcome suggestions from committee members for bills to track, analyze, or write about. Your input helps ensure we’re covering the issues that matter most to our members. Please email your suggestions Sarah and Newton.
Sincerely,
Sarah JanTausch & Newton Kimberly
Co-Chairs, OCDA Government Relations Committee
Ohio Career Development Association - Advocacy
Featured Career Resource:
Career Practitioner Conversations with NCDA!
Looking to stay current on career development trends and best practices? The National Career Development Association (NCDA) offers a podcast series called "Career Practitioner Conversations" that brings together industry leaders to discuss relevant topics for today's career practitioners.
The podcast covers a wide variety of topics, including conversations with industry leaders on issues relevant to career development professionals. Whether you're working in higher education, workforce development, or private practice, these conversations provide practical insights and research-based approaches to support your clients' career journeys.
Visit https://ncda.buzzsprout.com/ to browse all episodes and subscribe on your preferred podcast platform (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and more!).
Click Here, Learn More!
Thank you to our sponsors!
YouScience
OCDA's 2025 Conference Gold Level Sponsor
Empower Ohio's future with data-driven career discovery
YouScience helps fulfill OCDA's mission by aligning student talents with meaningful, in-demand career pathways. Together, we empower lifelong career development through data-driven guidance and purpose-driven decisions.
Contact ohiocda@gmail.com if you or your organization would like to help sponsor the 2026 conference!
Visit YouScience
If you have any ideas for membership email content, please email Co-Chairs Ryana Munford at
munford.2@osu.edu & Taylor Lincicome at tslocum924@gmail.com
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