NewsRelease

(Posted 5-17-04)
Contact: Dan Nonte, 336-334-5371

Counseling Association Honors Nicholas Vacc

GREENSBORO – The American Counseling Association has posthumously honored Dr. Nicholas A. Vacc, the longtime chair of the counseling department at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, at its annual convention in Kansas City in April.

Vacc received the Gilbert and Kathleen Wrenn Award for a Humanitarian and Caring Person. The award honors an ACA member who helps others without fanfare.

 “All who had the good fortune and pleasure to meet Nicholas knew him to be a gentleman and professional in the truest sense of these terms,” said his wife, Nancy.

“His success as a professional was testimony to his many talents and abilities. More importantly, his impact reflected his deep caring for others, a caring freely given without expectation of personal gain.”

Vacc was the Joe Rosenthal Excellence Professor in the UNCG School of Education. He was a faculty member from 1979 until his death in June of 2002. During his time as chair of the Department of Counseling and Educational Development, 1986-1996, the department was twice named the nation’s outstanding counselor education program.

“He built the department so that it now has national standing,” Dr. L. DiAnne Borders, current head of the department, said shortly after his death. “He brought a vision and left quite a legacy here.”

The university plans to build a 47-foot bell tower at the corner of Spring Garden Street and College Avenue as a memorial to Vacc. His wife, Nancy, a professor emeritus in the School of Education, is donating the money for the project.

Vacc served as president of the Association for Assessment in Counseling, editor of the Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development journal and as president of Chi Sigma Iota International, the counseling society. He also has received the David K. Brooks Distinguished Mentor award from the American Counseling Association.

With headquarters in Alexandria, Va., the American Counseling Association has more than 50,000 members.

Back to the Latest News Releases
Return to the University News Service Home Page