A pilot program for hosting newcomers will be launched during the 2014 Annual Conference in Austin.
Will you be attending the SAH conference for the first time? We want to ensure that you feel included and welcome. As SAH expands its base and draws more attendees to our Annual Conference, especially from abroad, we think it is important to make first-time conference attendees feel welcome by helping them get oriented, familiarizing them with the Society, its activities and offerings, and helping them meet fellow attendees with whom they can start forming new networks.
At the 2014 Annual Conference in Austin we will be piloting a support program, and we would like to invite experienced SAH members to volunteer to become SAH Conference Hosts for first-time conference attendees.
Conference Hosts will be asked to meet the newcomers at the social event of the opening evening on Wednesday (April 9) and help them form new social circles by introducing them to other conference participants.
Conference Hosts will be easily identifiable by badges that indicate their role.
There are no set responsibilities during the conference itself, although occasionally the hosts maybe tapped for answering a quick informational question or two. Conference hosting is primarily a social role for the duration of the conference.
SAH colleagues interested in volunteering and first-time attendees should mark the appropriate box on the conference registration form beginning January 7. The necessary contact information for hosts and newcomers will be sent to the respective parties by mid-March.
