Meeting Rooms and Food Functions
Audio/Visual Equipment for Meetings and Programs
Annual Meeting Program Committee-selected Educational Programs
Independently-produced SIS Educational Programs
Scheduling of SIS Meetings
SIS Exhibits
SIS VIP Program
Meeting Rooms and Food Functions
Headquarters will contact each SIS chair about requirements for meetings and/or food functions at the Annual Meeting. A memo will accompany scheduling forms that are emailed in early November and due back at in early December. Sections will work under the guidance of the SIS council chair to establish a matrix of SIS meeting requests that allow all SISs to view scheduled meetings and avoid potential conflicts.
The Annual Meeting Program Committee is responsible for scheduling its Annual Meeting. There are certain no-conflict times that must be observed. There is no charge for the use of meeting rooms.
The Director of Meetings will determine meeting room allocation based on inventory available at the convention center and/or headquarters hotel. There is no charge to the SIS for AALL's contracted meeting space.
Sections may choose to provide food and beverage service at any of their meetings; menus and order forms are emailed to the contact person listed on the scheduling form in February and are due back by mid-May. Each SIS is expected to pay all charges for food/beverage service within 30 days after the Annual Meeting. Payment is usually made by a charge against the Section’s account or by turning in funds collected from members for any large food function.
Sections wishing to hold meal functions for which members are to register and pay (in addition to their registration for the AALL Annual Meeting and Conference), should select the appropriate box on the scheduling form and will be contacted by the Director of Meetings at AALL Headquarters in mid-December. The Director of Meetings will contact the SIS chair to provide menus and establish what fees will be charged. This process is completed in January. Any funds collected by the SIS for their functions can be submitted to the AALL Director of Finance to be applied to their account.
Each SIS is responsible for maintaining historical records of these events to assist with ordering in future years. Information should be compiled at the end of the Annual Meeting, after event costs have been charged to the SIS’s account. This information should be added to that which was compiled from previous years to give an ongoing record of the SIS’s event history. SISs are urged to keep this information on AALLNET in the My Communities section for easy access. Information should include:
- Name of the Event
- Person planning the event
- Number of people ordered for (food & beverage guarantee)
- Menu selected
- Audio/visual selected
- Amount of sponsorship money received (include name of vendor sponsor)
- Final cost of event (available from SIS treasurer or through Director of Meetings)
- Comments: (an opportunity to share what was successful and what wasn’t and make recommendations for the next year’s planner)
Audio/Visual Equipment for Meetings and Programs
SISs may
order audio/visual equipment for their meetings or independently-produced educational programs. (Equipment for AALL Annual Meeting Program Committee selected programs held during the Annual Meeting is ordered separately; these expenses are covered by AALL.)
Audio-visual equipment order forms will be sent to each SIS chair in February and are due to AALL in mid-April.
The SIS is responsible for paying for all ordered equipment (including microphones). The cost of equipment will be charged against the SIS's account.
Educational Programs
A. Annual Meeting Program Committee-selected Programs
In the summer, program proposal information for the subsequent year is available on AALLNET.
Sections are encouraged to work with their members to submit needs-based program and workshop proposals to the Annual Meeting Program Committee by its deadline, in mid-October. Proposals must be submitted online.
SIS Education Committees should review the program proposer’s materials on AALLNET for complete information on planning programs and workshops for the following year’s Annual Meeting.
If a program or workshop is selected for presentation, the Annual Meeting Program Committee liaison notifies the proposer. These programs are funded by AALL as part of the Annual Meeting's expenses.
All program and workshop coordinators of AMPC-selected programs will be subscribed to a listserv where pertinent planning information, reminders of deadlines, etc. will be posted. Coordinators must operate within the budget agreed upon with the Annual Meeting Program Committee.
When the AALL Annual Meeting Program Committee approves a pre-conference workshop for presentation at an AALL annual conference, the Education and Programs Manager prepares the budget and sets the registration fee in accordance with AALL Financial Policies and the Budget Guidelines for the fiscal year in which the workshop is held. AALL assumes all financial risk for potential losses from institutes and workshops, and retains net revenues generated from institutes and workshops.
B. Independently-produced SIS Educational Programs
Each SIS will have the opportunity to propose an independently-produced (IP) program (following the initial AMPC program selection process). The AMPC will review and schedule these proposals (due in early January), taking into account the following:
• The content covered by the already-selected programs (so as to avoid duplication, and to achieve a balance of relevant programming options across program time slots and conference days)
• The available remaining program time slots (and proposals from other SISs)
• The suitability of the proposed program for the length of time requested
• The suitability of the content when considering the specific and/or unique needs of the SIS’s members
Proposals
In considering all of the above, the AMPC will work strategically with SISs, keeping the focus on delivering the content that members need. Designing a thorough and thoughtful program lineup requires careful assembly of many puzzle pieces, so some flexibility may be asked of SISs during this process. The Independently-produced SIS Program Proposal Form should be used to explain your proposal; this form applies the same criteria as the proposal form for individually-proposed programs. You can find more detailed information about the elements of strong proposals here.
Your proposal should answer the following questions:
• What are the takeaways that attendees will be able to use and apply to perform their jobs better?
• How would you describe the problem/opportunity/scenario/challenge that reflects the takeaways?
• Who needs to attend this session?
• How much time is needed to effectively deliver this content?
• What methods do you plan to employ to engage attendees and keep the energy level up?
• Who should deliver this content, and why is he/she qualified to do it?
A member of the AMPC will contact you later in January, once review of all received proposals is complete. The first deadline for scheduled IP SIS programs is February 15, when any modifications requested by the AMPC must be completed. If you have questions, please contact any member of the AMPC.
Responsibilities of the Sponsoring SIS
The SIS is responsible for all costs related to the program (including any speaker expenses):
• Audio visual equipment - $650 (estimated for basic microphone and projection equipment)
• Inclusion in online evaluations - $80
• Recording the session (and obtaining recording consent from speakers) - $195/hour
If non-AALL member speakers on IP SIS programs require reimbursement of
travel-related expenses, the sponsoring SIS is responsible for these
expenses and should work directly with the speaker.
SISs are responsible for securing Speaking Commitment and Copyright Releases from all presenters on IP SIS programs. SISs may request a complimentary one-day registration for non-AALL member speakers so that they may participate; such requests must be made to AALL in advance of the conference so that registration materials can be provided. (All AALL members attending or participating in any conference events must register.)
All scheduling will be based on room availability, and AALL will provide no additional funds for these opportunities. These programs must be open to all registered attendees.
Scheduling of SIS Meetings
Each SIS typically conducts at least one business meeting at the AALL Annual Meeting, with business meetings of the three 'type of library' SISs (Private Law Libraries, Academic, and State/Court/County) meeting on Sunday morning. SISs may schedule additional meetings during designated meeting times. The SIS Meeting Matrix will be made available to SIS chairs, along with detailed instructions for scheduling meetings, and scheduling forms are due in December. Every effort shall be made to accommodate special needs. All scheduling will be based on room availability, and AALL will provide no additional funds for these opportunities.
A Few Important Deadlines for Sponsored and Ticketed Events
November is an important month for the SIS Chairs to plan their meetings, independently-produced programs, meals, receptions, and other social events to be held at the Annual Meeting. Preliminary Scheduling Forms are distributed to SIS Chairs in November. In coordination with the SIS Council Chair, all meetings, programs, and events are to be submitted to AALL to display for viewing on the SIS Meeting Matrix on AALLNET.
In December all Preliminary Scheduling Forms are due to be submitted to headquarters, once the SIS Meeting Matrix is complete. During early January, a list of scheduled events can be viewed on AALLNET to check for accuracy and conflicts.
In January and early February, the text and registration information for promoting the Annual Meeting is completed. All SIS meals and social events that are ticketed should have registration prices determined at that time.
On May 1, the text for the printed Annual Meeting Conference Program and the Awards and Acknowledgements Brochure (distributed to all registrants) is completed and it includes an acknowledgement of all sponsorships, even those received between December and May, the deadline for the Conference Program.
SIS Exhibits
The exhibit area at the AALL annual meeting includes an
Activities Area for displaying materials illustrative of the work of the Association's SISs, chapters, committees and caucuses. AALL Headquarters sends a form to each SIS Chair regarding their participation. If not returned, no table will be reserved for the SIS.
All SISs are encouraged to submit items such as brochures, section publications, reports of projects, and posters, etc. for the exhibit. Materials can usually be mailed to the exhibit hall in advance of the conference, or materials can be brought to the hall before the exhibit hall opens. Mailing instructions are sent to SIS contacts identified on the table reservation form. All materials that are not removed at the close of the exhibit hall (3:00 p.m. on Tuesday) will be discarded. The SISs are responsible for staffing their display during the conference.
SIS VIP Program
The AALL
SIS VIP Program presents an opportunity for your SIS to invite special guests from your area’s legal, governmental, or information communities to receive a complimentary full registration to AALL’s Annual Meeting. In order to emphasize and publicize AALL’s preeminent role in legal information management to the community at large, individuals selected to participated in the Annual Meeting’s educational and networking experiences shall not be AALL members.
The timetable for inviting SIS VIPs is as follows:
January - Identify VIP Candidates
February - Extend invitations to VIP candidates (earlier if possible)
March - Confirm acceptance with candidates
April - Follow up phone call
May - Schedule escorts
June - Schedule Events/activities with VIP
[June 1st: Deadline for
SIS VIP Registration Forms]
Note that the SIS VIP program is different from existing SIS grant programs that might fund a member’s attendance at the Annual Meeting. The VIP program is designed for non-AALL members to be introduced to the Association’s work.