NSHSS University Panel

Working in higher education for over 10 years, Derek Nido started working for a large test prep provider for 3 years before transitioning to the admissions space. He spent 6 years as a regional admissions counselor in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area serving rural students for Texas A&M University before moving to Nashville for an Assistant Director position at Vanderbilt University. Derek has been at Vanderbilt University for over 2 years and is currently a Senior Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions serving students and families in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC. Derek holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing from Texas A&M University and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Texas at Arlington.

Elisha Creighton is the Senior Assistant Director of Southern California Outreach for the University of California, Berkeley. You might recognize her from the California Collegiate Panel if you attended our UCLA Member Event! She is excited to share even more about Cal with our members!

Rick Clark is the AVP of Enrollment Management and Executive Director of Undergraduate Admission at Georgia Tech. In this role, he directs the Institute’s recruitment and enrollment efforts, manages the review and selection of all undergraduate applications, and leads the admission team. Under his leadership, the Institute has dramatically increased brand awareness, improved its overall academic class profile, and exceeded strategic goals. Rick has served on regional and national councils and boards. He is currently a member of NACAC’s Committee on Leadership in College Admission and Past Chair of both the National Government Relations Committee and Georgia Tech’s Staff Council. Rick travels annually to U.S. embassies through the Department of State to discuss the admission process and landscape of higher education. He is part of Leadership Georgia, an organization that seeks to cultivate and connect leaders across the state. Over the last six years, he has written a regular blog on the college admission process, and last year began The College Admission Brief, a podcast for students considering or applying to college. Rick is frequently quoted and referenced in national and international publications. He is the co-author of both the book and workbook The Truth about College Admission: A Family Guide to Getting In and Staying Together. A native of Atlanta, he earned a B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a M.Ed. from Georgia State University. Prior to coming to Tech, Rick was on the admissions staff at Georgia State, The McCallie School, and Wake Forest University. He and his family live in Avondale Estates, Ga.