Greetings, AEA365 readers! Liz DiLuzio here, Lead Curator of the blog. Registration for this year’s conference is officially open, and our local hosts at the Indiana Evaluation Association (IEA) are working with the AEA team to ensure our time in lovely Indianapolis is a fulfilling one. This week’s posts feature the voices of IEA’s members. Happy reading!
Liz DiLuzio here with the honor of wrapping up this fascinating week of posts about Indianapolis. Did you know that the conference is just six weeks away? Here are some tips for you as you prepare:
Planning Your Trip
If you haven’t booked your flight or hotel yet, now’s the time to do so. The Marriott will sell out so, if you’d like to stay in the conference’s designated hotel, now is the time to make your arrangements.
Scheduling Your Time
- The itinerary for the week is available, and there are tons of interesting sessions to choose from. Take some time to scan the possibilities, sketching out where you’d like to be and when.
- Reach out to evaluators you don’t regularly see – or those you’ve only had a virtual relationship with to date – to see if they’ll be in attendance. Leverage your breakfast, lunch, dinner, and downtime to catch up.
Packing Your Bags
Some things to consider when it comes time for packing include:
- A pair of walking shoes. Plan to take a break during the day to explore some of the exercise paths, museums, historical sites, and restaurants/bars/things to do that Robert, Susan, and Kyle shared with us.
- A light jacket and a warm coat. It’s predicted to be in the 60s-70s during the day and upper 30s at night.
- Lots of layers. Convention centers are notorious for their variable temperatures. Be prepared!
- A notebook and pens. These will inevitably come in handy as you bounce from session to session.
How else do you prepare in the weeks leading up to a conference? Share with us in the chat box!
We’re looking forward to the Evaluation 2023 conference all this week with our colleagues in the Local Arrangements Working Group (LAWG). Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this AEA365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the AEA365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to contribute to AEA365? Review the contribution guidelines and send your draft post to AEA365@eval.org. The views and opinions expressed on the AEA365 blog are solely those of the original authors and other contributors. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of the American Evaluation Association, and/or any/all contributors to this site.