Executive Director’s Corner February 2019

Notices regarding acceptances and rejections for submissions for our 2019 Annual Meeting in Lisbon went out earlier this month. If you submitted a proposal and did not receive notice of acceptance or rejection, please e-mail our Program Committee HERE. We had nearly a record number of submissions for this year, and our reviewers had to make difficult decisions, but they are working to accommodate as many as possible in a quality program.

Registration for the conference in Lisbon is NOW OPEN! An announcement was sent out via e-mail on 19 February and the link is also posted on the ISPP web site and 2019 conference site: www.ispp.org/meetings and https://ispp.eventsair.com/QuickEventWebsitePortal/2019-ispp-annual-meeting/event-site. Accepted presenters, please note that you must complete your registration by 17 March 2019 to secure your place on the program. Those not registered by 17 March will be dropped from the program.

Also relating to the conference:

Summer Academy notices of acceptance will be sent out at the end of February. Applicants, watch your e-mail!
The application process for Early Career Scholars Travel Grants is now open. Please see https://www.ispp.org/funding/travel-grants for details and the link to the application form.
ISPP is working to reduce the conference’s carbon footprint. At this year’s conference the program will be available in PDF and in our conference app; printed copies of the program booklet can be ordered for $5.00 USD when you register for the conference. Name badges will be clip-on – no lanyards (feel free to bring your own if you have one from a past ISPP conference). We will have information on local sites and points of interest, but we will not have ISPP bags at the conference. The local brochures will be available at the registration tables for you to take.
Due to the overwhelming response for this year’s conference, we will be splitting the registration across the two floors with our meeting rooms in an effort to reduce crowding and get everyone their materials as quickly as possible. We will have volunteers in the hotel lobby to direct you to the registration area according to your last name.
ISPP is striving to make the conference more family-friendly. When you register this year, you will still find the Guest option, where you can register a colleague or other person who will be attending the full conference. But for those who will be bringing adult family members and/or children, perhaps for a family vacation or to attend the Welcome Reception and just your presentation, we have added an option to register those persons at no charge. They will have name badges to confirm that they are there for ISPP, and we ask you to provide a bit of information about children attending so that we can have name badges for them, too, and some small items to keep the younger ones occupied (ex., coloring books and crayons).
For new mothers who need to nurse or use a breast pump during the conference, ISPP staff will gladly store your pump while you are at the conference and provide a private room for you when needed if you are not staying in the conference hotel, and materials for you to label bottles and ship milk home, if necessary.
For those who need child care during the conference, ISPP staff will again have information on local options. We encourage you to do your own research and select a child care option with which you feel comfortable and confident.
Did you know that ISPP staff members are trained in CPR (including child and infant), first aid, and the use of AEDs? It’s training we hope we never need to use, but is part of ISPP’s efforts to protect its meeting attendees. We also have a first aid kit at the registration table at the conference, should you need something.

These are initial steps, and ISPP is exploring ways to expand the family-friendliness of our annual meeting, and we already have plans to gradually work in additional aspects to support and encourage the inclusion of family members.

Elections for the newest Governing Council members and officers will be coming up in March/April. Elections are open to all current ISPP members. With the ballot there will also be an opportunity to vote on proposed changes to ISPP’s Constitution. An explanatory document and the proposed changes have been posted on ISPP’s website HERE for your review and consideration prior to the voting process. We ask members to please be sure and vote on these important decisions on the leadership and governance of ISPP.

If anyone has any questions on the above, or problems with any aspect of their membership or renewal, conference registration, or receiving the journal or online access, please do not hesitate to contact Heather Schlabach or me in the Central Office. Thank you all for your membership and we will see you in Lisbon in a few months!

Sev

Severine Bennett, CMP, PMP

Executive Director, ISPP