March 2017

Post date: Mar 11, 2017 10:15:13 PM

CONFERENCE COMMITTEE – March 9, 2017

Attending: Lisa Daigle, Margarent Browne, Rick Krouskop, Alice Waco, Nancy Shippen,. Notes by Nancy Hutchins

Scholarships. Through some prior conversation and confusion about who was to make the decision, scholarship applicants have been asked to pay $50 when applying. It was the consensus of the Committee to revert to the previous policy of NOT requiring any funds until after scholarships have been awarded.. Rick will revise the site to remove that requirement, though many or most scholarship applicants will pay part of their registration fee. (Communication with the Scholarship Committee after this meeting confirmed that the Scholarship Committee was on board with this change.)

Registration. Lisa Daigle, co-registrar with Julie Crawford, wanted to review understanding of registrar responsibilities. The registrar is accepting checks for registration and mailing them to the AVPUSA Treasurer. If payment or partial payment is made by check, the Registrar needs to know that a participant is paid up: therefore, checks have to come to the Registrar first. The Scholarship Committee will be reminded to follow up on scholarship recipients to make sure they pay balances or officially decline their scholarship. The Registrar may still have to ask Scholarship for help in getting closure from people with balances. The Registrar will know who the people under 18 are, and will send a list to Archer Bunner so that she can make sure all the paperwork is in. The Registrars will be prepared to accept credit card payment on site if there are changes or last minute registrations. Last minute registrations are dependent on how flexible the site will be.

The Registrars will send two communications to people who register: 1) A confirmation that the registration was received and what it contained; 2) A final letter with information people will need as they arrive.

Publicity. A series of articles are being prepared and will be sent out.

Transportation. A shuttle will operate on a schedule to Logan Airport. Some volunteers will be used to help people get from the train station.

Youth. We discussed what has to happen to get the registration process started. Chris will work on getting the pages up. Nancy Hutchins suggested that she –or someone-- contact the chaperone just as soon as the page was up.

Program. Nancy Shippen has a draft she shared with some and will send to everyone else. The program still has flexibility. The group discussed the importance of having speakers of stature vs. having more time for more focused AVP training and communication. The group seemed to be leaning toward the latter. Most potential presenters of breakout sessions have not yet sent in forms with details.

Because of a change in administration, the pre-conference prison day is “on shaky ground.”

NEXT MEETING: THURSDAY, MARCH 30, 8 PM.