Our History

A Brief Timeline

  • 1910 - AACRAO (American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Offices) was formed

  • 1931 - the first Annual Conference was held

  • 1934 - WACRAO was established

  • 1942 - 1945 - there were no annual conferences; this time was also know as “the war years”

  • 1958 - the Constitution and By-Laws were created

  • 1958 - the Executive Board was expanded to include positions beyond President and Secretary

  • 1960 - 51 people attended the Annual Conference

  • 1964 - Standing Committees were created

    • 1960 was the first creation of a committee, but until 1964 all committees were ad hoc committees

    • 7 standing committees were created

      past WACRAO documentas showing past dues

  • 1968 - the WACRAO Handbook was created

  • 1971 - Membership pricing

    • Individual membership pricing: $1

    • Institutional membership pricing

      • 1 - 1,999: $10

      • 2,000 - 3,999: $15

      • 4,000 - 7,999: $20

      • 8,000 +: $25



Awards and Gifts Traditions

The Nominations and Awards Committee comprises the three most recent Past Presidents still active in WACRAO. The Committee is responsible for identifying and recommending former members for Honorary Membership. This honor is reserved for individuals retiring after at least ten years of service who have made significant contributions to the profession and WACRAO. All WACRAO Gifts/Awards require approval from the Executive Committee.

Coveted WACRAO Pen Set: Presented to opening and closing speakers, outgoing Executive Committee members, AACRAO attendees at WACRAO (such as the AACRAO rep, UMACRAO rep, or other state/regional reps), and any special requests from the LAC chair/co-chairs. The President will determine the number of pen sets distributed at the annual conference. Opening and closing speakers typically receive an additional gift as decided by the LAC and approved by the Executive Committee. 

Rosewood Gift Box: Presented to Executive Board members at the end of their term, outgoing Presidents, and individual receiving Honorary Membership. The Coveted Pen Set is also included as a gift.


10-Year/25-Year Pins: Presented to colleagues at the time they have earned 10 or 25 years of service to WACRAO.

Honorary Membership: Retiring individuals with at least 10 years of service and significant contributions to WACRAO and the profession may be recommended for honorary membership. 


Certificate of Appreciation: Presented for dedicated service to WACRAO, typically to individuals leaving the profession (but not retiring) or those who have provided valuable service but don't qualify for honorary membership.


Other Special Awards: The Committee may grant special awards with Executive Committee approval. For example, the T.J. Tie Award was first presented in November 2002 to Thomas L. W. Johnson for exemplary service to WACRAO.

Emerging Leader Award: This award recognizes a WACRAO member who is early in their leadership journey but shows strong potential and impact. This award is given to a WACRAO member with up to 5 years of service within the organization, has made an exceptional or unique contribution to the organization and demonstrates promise as a future WACRAO leader.


Established Leader: This award recognizes professionals who have demonstrated consistent leadership, experience, and sustained results, given to a WACRAO member who has served within the organization from 6-10 years and is a strong WACRAO leader.


Note: During WACRAO/UMACRAO joint conference years, gifts and awards are presented during the Business Luncheon, which follows the UMACRAO's format.



Additional WACRAO Traditions

President passing of the Gavel and the Tom Johnson Briefcase

  •  During the Business Luncheon, the outgoing President shares remarks from the past year and invites the incoming President to the podium. The passing of the gavel and the Tom Johnson briefcase symbolizes the transition of WACRAO leadership. While the gavel has long been a tradition, the briefcase was introduced after Tom’s presidency.
  • Each outgoing President adds a humorous item (e.g., duct tape, WD-40, magic 8-ball) to the briefcase as a playful aid for the new President, making it a time capsule for the transition.
  • The current President presents a small gift to the new President, who reciprocates with a gift for the outgoing President. These tokens are exchanged along with the Rosewood Gift Box and WACRAO pen set that is given to the outgoing President.  After the exchange, the new President adjourns the meeting if there is no new business, concluding with a motion and a strike of the gavel.

New Member Social: New and recent members are invited to a Wednesday evening social and Thursday breakfast to learn about the association, explore involvement, and connect with colleagues.

Philanthropy: The Local Arrangements Committee selects a charity for the fall conference, encouraging members to donate and buy raffle tickets. Winners are announced after the closing speaker.

Vendor Socials: A Vendor Social on the first night offers refreshments and a chance to thank vendors for their conference sponsorship.

Session Evaluations: Evaluations are collected during the conference, with top presentations nominated for the AACRAO Annual Conference. An email evaluation of the overall conference is sent at the end.

Reimbursement for President/President-Elect to attend AACRAO: To ensure all Presidents (or their designee) can attend the annual AACRAO conference, WACRAO will reimburse travel costs not covered by their home institution. Expenses may include early bird registration, airfare, hotel (from the night before the conference to the final night), and meals up to the current UW System per diem. This reimbursement policy was established in 2017 in honor of Denny Roark's legacy of involvement in higher education.