How the Idea Formed
The meeting now known as the Southeast Regional Cooperative Education Conference (SERCEC) began with a discussion between John Cain of Auburn University, Ed Finnell of University of Alabama, Bill Wheeler of Southern Bell/Birmingham and Jim Wohlford of Georgia Tech, while attending the 1965 Mid-Winter Cooperative Education Division (CED) meeting at the University of Cincinnati. They were concerned that few, if any, Southern employers attended national co-op conferences and that most of those who did represented a corporate headquarters or other unit removed from actual participation in co-op selection and supervision.
The Early Years
Through Wheeler's influence, Southern Bell hosted a planning session for an informal conference targeted to co-op employers of the South and supplied the start-up financing for the first meeting in Birmingham, Ala. The response was so positive that a second meeting, sponsored by Georgia Tech and Auburn, was held at Callaway Gardens, Ga., the following year. The charter group thought that the second year would probably be the last time that employers would wish to meet for some time. Within two or three weeks of the Callaway Gardens meeting, however, Bill Wheeler was back in touch, responding to prompts from other employers, with the plea – keep it going!
Informality is Treasured
According to Wohlford, when it became obvious that the conference would continue, an early criticism was that the lack of permanent structure would encourage "someone to take over.” Rather than that happening, the informality was treasured and regarded as a unique attraction of the SERCEC. Those who would have never committed themselves to membership in an additional professional organization attended the SERCEC either regularly or as it rotated into their geographic area, often choosing it in preference to the less-personalized national conferences of formal organizations.
The Importance of Employer Involvement
The original emphasis on employer concerns underwent a considerable revision with the expansion of co-op programs in institutions via federal funding. Schools just entering the co-op endeavor soon found SERCEC as a prime place to meet employers. However, it is good to not to lose sight of the original purpose and need: to give representatives of employing facilities an opportunity to get together and share mutual problems and insights, as well as to meet with their academic counterparts. This must be remembered since it is often the representative of employing facilities who tends to not participate regularly in national co-op organizations and who often feels somewhat inundated by the mound of specifically institutional concerns when they do attend.
Maintaining the Unique Nature of SERCEC
In 1986, a need was recognized to provide guidelines for passing along the dual responsibilities of hosting and financing future SERCECs. The number of potential sponsors has increased significantly, and hosting is no longer just an obligation assumed in turn by various schools but often is an honor to a particular state or organization. Pre-conference activities and responsibilities have multiplied as organizations and conferences in general have become more complex. There exists, however, a strong commitment by many traditional attendees to retain the original character of the early conferences by remaining free of permanent executive structure of "membership" activities in the usual sense.
