Affinity Group Request Guidelines
As a new feature of the C.O.O.L. Idealist National Conference, participants are encouraged to display their work at a poster session that will take place on the morning of Friday, March 3, 2006. These displays will offer an opportunity for conference participants to discuss their work and to distribute relevant materials and resources to other participants.
As a new feature of the C.O.O.L. Idealist National Conference, conference participants are encouraged to moderate or participate in an affinity group meeting. Affinity groups provide a place for conference participants with common interests and concerns to come together in a supportive environment. Our hope is that these group meetings will allow conference participants to meet, share stories, and plan next steps with others who share affinity in an issue area (such as women's health), a set of skills (such as grant writing), a geographical region (the U.S. South), or an identity (such as Hispanic students) within the overall event.
Each affinity group will be moderated by a conference participant who has an investment in the issue, skill set, region, or identity of the group and will be a place to share experiences, find common ground, encourage post-conference communication, and rally together for social change. Idealist On Campus will set up a listserv after the conference for any group that would like one; groups are also encouraged to remain in communication in other ways.
All group moderators are expected to register and pay for the entire conference, as well as to attend a conference call with the Affinity Groups Coordinator before the event. During this call, moderators will receive more information about the logistics of these meetings at the conference, as well as to give some tips on moderating and ideas for post-conference communication.
Any conference participant is welcome to be the moderator of an affinity group, while space remains. Those who wish to moderate an affinity group must submit an Affinity Group Request Form. Groups will be admitted into the conference program based on available space and admission will be first-come, first-served. If there is more than one request for an issue, skill set, region, or identity, applicants may be asked to co-moderate. Please be aware that, in order for a meeting to be included in the conference program, it must be open for all conference participants to attend.
Affinity Group Request Form
You can make a request to moderate an affinity group by completing an online Affinity Group Request Form by the preferred deadline, November 21, or by the final deadline, January 23. Remember that these requests are first-come, first-served, so submit your application as early as possible!! In order for your affinity group meeting to be included in the conference program, you must submit this form online. If you cannot submit online or if you have questions about the request process, please email Heather Cronk at Heather@idealist.org.
To best serve your needs and to avoid potential miscommunication, please remember:
- We will rely only on the written information you supply in your Affinity Group Request Form for the printed conference program
- Requests received after the preferred deadline (November 21) will be accommodated on a space-available only basis
- If you choose co-moderators to join you, she/he/they must also register for the conference and the primary contact person will be responsible for relaying all conference-oriented communication
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