The Program Committee works diligently to develop the Annual Meeting program, ensuring that the four days are full of insightful and exciting workshops, sessions, plenaries and networking opportunities. We caught up with Patrick McLaughlin, 2015 Annual Meeting Program Committee Chair, on planning for the Annual Meeting, serving as Program Chair and what we can look forward to in Baltimore. (Learn more about AACRAO Committees here.)
What have you and the program committee done differently this year?
In the past, slotting the sessions was ultimately up to the program committee coordinators. The coordinators would slot everything prior to meeting in June, and it was up to the Program Chair to run multiple reports and watch out for duplicate presenters and content overlap within a time slot. Before I was Program Chair, I was the Group 4: Leadership and Management Development Coordinator. I would slot the number of sessions required for each time slot, not aware of what others were slotting during that time. This led to a lot of overlapping content, and we found ourselves often shifting sessions from one time slot to the other.
When we met in Baltimore last June to build the program, we decided to try something different that I found successful when I was chair of another organization's program committee. We placed giant sticky pads on the walls, and used post-it notes to group and move sessions to potential time slots. We were able to slot sessions together as a group.
To me, that made a difference in the program changes we made down the road, and I think it really made an impact -- it certainly made my life much easier. This holistic approach to building the program ensured a stronger group effort in making sure the program content had depth and breadth. I think this method of slotting sessions will be continued in the 2016 Annual Meeting in Phoenix and future meetings as well.
Also new to the 2015 Annual Meeting are poster sessions.
I'm pretty proud of these poster sessions because we've been talking about setting these up for the past several years. Last year, I observed how other organizations developed poster sessions and pulled together guidelines for creating our own.
Poster sessions are a great way for someone who has valuable information to share with attendees, but perhaps not enough for a full-hour session. This was also a great opportunity for people who have not presented at an AACRAO meeting before, but wanted to start. We didn't turn away anyone who proposed a poster session.
There's been a great response from the membership. I was hoping that we would have a half dozen participants at this meeting, but we will have about 20 poster sessions in Baltimore covering a number of important topics including grade inflation, international student athletes, transitioning challenges, and moving toward a paperless office.
What are you looking forward to do in Baltimore?
I actually haven't even thought of that -- I don't know when I'll have free time! I'm going to enjoy having some good seafood. I love crab cakes, so I'll be in the right place to have some.
What is something you look forward to doing every Annual Meeting?
I've been to at least 10 Annual Meetings by now. For the past five years, I enjoyed going to the First-Time Attendees Orientation & Welcome on Sunday afternoon. I'm always excited to meet new people who've never been to the Annual Meeting and share with them what they can get out of their conference experience. I've made many friends with AACRAO colleagues across the country and it's so enjoyable to spend time with them and make new acquaintances.
It's common to go through a period of withdrawal after your stint as Program Chair. One of of the board members host a very casual Past Program Chairs get-together during the Annual Meeting to reminisce about our experiences. It's such an honor to be part of that group, and that event is something I really look forward to.
Being Program Chair and serving on the Program Committee are some of the most rewarding things I've done in my professional career. I will value that experience forever.
Here are some sessions that Patrick is particularly excited about at the Annual Meeting:
Military/Veteran Track: (9 sessions and 2 posters)
M1.3380: Iowa Consortium of Veteran Excellence: A Pilot Program for Disabled and Recently Discharged Veterans
M3.3551: Learning from the Field: A Veterans’ Panel Discussion
M4.2896: Emerging Trends in Academic Outcomes and Progress of Student Veterans
M6.3331: Collaboration: It Can Lead to a More Inclusive Environment for Students with Disabilities
T1.3068: Recruiting and Retaining the Military Student
T3.3359: Promising Practices for Advising Military and Veteran Students Through the Admissions Process
T5.3070: Using the Joint Services Transcript (JST) and the ACE Military Guide
W1.3186: Military Friendly: The Difference Between an Award and a Commitment
W3.3294: Military Outreach: Strategies for Serving Our Veterans
Poster Sessions:
T5.3192: Traumatic Brain Injuries and Campus Life: Creating and Sustaining a Supportive Campus Environment
T5.3206: Exploring the Challenges of Academic Advising for Student Veterans
Room Scheduling Track (Sponsored by Infosilem): (6 sessions)
M2.4004: Student Success Driven by Course Scheduling Initiatives
M4.3244: Online Course and Curriculum Management
M6.3213: How is the Explosion of Online Education Impacting On-Campus Pedagogy and Facilities?
T6.3180: Best Practices Regarding Offering Blended or Hybrid Classes
W2.3246: Modeling Space: Using Current Classroom Data to Project Future Need
W3.2885: Roundtable: Academic Scheduling and Classroom Utilization
Sessions of Special Interest:
M3.3479: A Great Global Conversation: The Redesigned SAT and International Students
T3.3897: The Implementation of the Common Core State Standards and Assessments: Finding Solutions to Cross-State Challenges
W2.3515: I am Woman: See Me Achieve My Dream