Workshop Proposal Guidelines

WORKSHOP PRESENTATION PROPOSAL GUIDELINES
Submission Deadline: Friday, December 12, 2014
2015 National Migrant Education Conference
Seattle, Washington
March 22 – 25, 2015
Introduction
Each year, the National Association of State Directors of Migrant Education (NASDME) sponsors the National Migrant
Education Conference in order to provide an important, broad, and cutting-edge professional development opportunity
to all who work in migrant education and others who provide services to, and advocate for, migrant children and their
families. It is the largest migrant conference in the U.S. each year.
For the 2015 conference, NASDME is looking for high quality workshop proposals with strong substantive content that
will enrich the work of conference attendees and which will energize all who work on behalf of migrant children and
families. NASDME prides itself on the very large number of important workshops and topics offered each year at the
National Conference.
We are especially looking for educational strategies, models that have worked in implementing the program in all its
aspects, and new, creative or innovative ideas that will spark discussion and expand approaches to the Migrant
Education Program. To conduct those workshops, we are looking for well-informed, organized, well-prepared, and
dynamic speakers.
The workshop presentations should focus on educational solutions which will ensure that migrant children are given
equal access to all educational resources. We welcome presentations regarding a wide variety of topics.
I. Meeting the challenges of the ESEA/NCLB and Federal and State Accountability Standards...
The enactment of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 presented educators of migrant children with additional
challenges beyond those inherent in meeting the needs of children of mobile agricultural workers and fishers. How do
educators ensure that migrant children receive full and appropriate opportunities to learn, meet state standards, and
master challenging academic content? Additionally, how do migrant program service providers:
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Guarantee that migrant children are not penalized by state-to-state differences in standards and assessment?
Address the needs of migrant children through joint planning?
Integrate services and measurable program goals and outcomes?
Use Common Core curriculum (where it has been adopted) to benefit migrant students?
Provide family literacy services?
Implement a high standard of parental involvement?
Target funds and services to meet the unique educational needs of migrant children?
Ensure that Title I, Part C, Migrant Education Program funds are used to supplement those from other
programs, including Title I, Part A?
The National Association of State Directors of Migrant Education (NASDME) seeks educators, practitioners,
administrators, advocates, parents, and others to provide training, share expertise, teach skills, and build professional
capacity for carrying out the broad mission of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act/No Child Left Behind Act by
presenting workshops at the 2015 National Migrant Education Conference. We are looking for research-based and
pragmatic, experience-based presentations that provide direct answers to common questions and concerns. We also
welcome workshops on coping with the current state and local fiscal crises, as well as analysis and review of policies
driving current law, and related matters.
II. Responding to recurring issues...
Of course, we will also schedule traditional workshops addressing the important continuing concerns of migrant
educators, including:
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Advocacy
Alternative Programs
Assessment
Bi-national Education
Curriculum Issues
Dropout Prevention
Early Childhood
English Language Learning
Health
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HEP/CAMP
Identification and Recruitment
Interagency Coordination
Interstate Coordination
Multiculturalism
Out-of-school Immigrant and
Non-Immigrant Youth
Parent Involvement
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Parenting Skills
Legal/Policy Issues
Postsecondary Education
Reading/Language Arts
Secondary Programs
Student Records Transfer
Summer Programs
Technology
We are recruiting presenters who can deliver the very best in professional development workshops and demonstrations
of best practices for the expected 1,500 or more teachers, administrators, support staff, parents, and other attendees.
III. New for the 2015 National Conference!
For the 2015 National Conference, NASDME proposes two new Workshop Strands:
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Guidance Counselor Track
As more migrant students embrace the possibility of college attendance, it becomes increasingly important that school
counselors, whether funded with Migrant Education Program funds or not, become more aware of the educational
challenges and unique educational needs of migrant students, including credit accrual, immigrant access to postsecondary institutions, migration patterns resulting in early withdrawal and late arrival, and a variety of other issues.
We encourage school counselors to present successful models and strategies in workshop sessions on these issues for
other counselors as well as migrant staff in general. We also encourage migrant staff to present sessions on what
issues are important to understand when counseling a migrant student.
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English as a Second Language Track
While the National Migrant Education Conference has always provided a full array of sessions in this area, for the 2015
Conference we encourage a larger number and greater variety of sessions on this topic. We would like to see more
sessions on ESL/bilingual educational theories, strategies, and approaches; practical problems and issues regarding
ESL services; how to engage general content teachers in effectively instructing English Learners; and how to encourage
school and district administrators in fully supporting these programs.
IV. Looking to the future...
As we look at a changing educational landscape for all children, how will migrant students fit in? How will they benefit
from the new ideas and educational innovation? How can we be sure they benefit from new initiatives? How can we be
sure they are not hurt disproportionately by budget cuts? And for a very timely topic: How can we encourage migrant
students to pursue STEM curriculum offerings?
WHAT KIND OF PRESENTATION IS MOST SUITABLE?
Proposals will be reviewed closely and carefully by experts in the field of migrant education and related topics.
Suggestions may be made by these reviewer experts regarding additional topics to be included in accepted workshop
proposals. The committee will evaluate proposals based on the importance and relevance of the topic to the audience,
the expertise of presenters, and the quality of the presentation. All presenters are expected to provide participants with
handouts or other tangible products summarizing their presentations. Please note that not all proposals may be
accepted.
All workshops are 90 minutes in length.
SELECTION CRITERIA FOR PRESENTATION PROPOSALS
1. CLEAR STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVE(S): The expected outcome(s) should be explicitly stated -- to the
greatest practical extent, they should be measurable.
2. ABSTRACT (A short narrative please, not an outline): The description of the presentation provided on the
proposal form must be fully and logically developed. It must be in narrative form and not be an outline. It should
summarize expected outcomes of the session, and refer to presentation techniques. The abstract must be at
least 75 and no more than 150 words in length, and should provide an accurate description of the presentation.
The abstract should be clearly written in the LANGUAGE (English or Spanish) in which it will be presented (with
correct spelling, grammar, and construction) and complete so it can be published "as is" in the conference
program. If the presentation is in Spanish, the title and description must be in Spanish. Please note: If the
presentation is in both English and Spanish, the title and description must be in both languages.
3. RELEVANCE: The proposal and presentation should be consistent with the topic areas outlined on the
presentation proposal form. The title, objectives, and content should be clearly and logically aligned. Please
check all topic areas listed on the accompanying proposal form that are to be discussed. However, we ask you
to please read the explanation of the topics carefully.
4. OTHER EXPECTATIONS: As stated above, all presenters are expected to have handouts for distribution to
participants and should be prepared to distribute up to 100 sets. Presentations delivered in Spanish must
provide handouts in Spanish. Additionally, all presenters must be willing to present at any time during the
Conference as scheduled by the Program Committee. (Workshops will be scheduled Monday, March 23;
Tuesday, March 24; and the morning of Wednesday, March 25, 2015.)
PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THE FOLLOWING:
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We very strongly prefer that proposals be sent online, but we will accept proposals by mail where that is not
possible.
Proposals must be received no later than Friday, December 12, in order to allow sufficient time to review the
proposals and provide timely notification of workshop approval.
To ensure consideration for inclusion in the program, please complete the entire proposal. Incomplete proposals
will NOT be reviewed.
Please do not call NASDME or the Conference Management Office regarding the status of your proposal. You
will be informed in January 2015 of your status.
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The Early Bird Conference Registration deadline is January 23, 2015. We will make every effort to complete
review of workshop proposals before that date. Nevertheless, any proposals received after the deadline of
Friday, December 12 are not guaranteed review by the Early Bird Registration deadline.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
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Does NASDME cover presenter expenses?
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Due to our budget limitations, all presenters will be responsible for their own expenses related to the
national conference, including travel, registration and photocopying of handouts. NASDME does not
provide honoraria for workshop presentations at the conference.
Do presenters have to pay the conference registration fee?
A. Yes, if the presenter is attending the conference or any of its events, the presenter must pay the
conference registration fee. If the presenter will only present the workshop and not remain for any
additional conference activities, registration is not required. However, in this case the presenter will not
receive any conference materials (name badge, bag, program, etc.)
Do I need prior State Director approval to submit a workshop proposal?
A. All proposals by ESEA Title I, Part C Migrant Education personnel or those whose travel will be funded
by the Title I Migrant Education Program, must be submitted to the appropriate State Director for review
prior to submission to NASDME. Proposals submitted without such approval are likely to be rejected or
returned to the prospective presenter to obtain such approval.
I need audio visual equipment, what does NASDME provide?
A. Indicate your AV equipment needs on the Workshop Proposal Form. Please note that NASDME does
NOT provide LCD projectors or computers. You must provide your own or arrange for onsite rental.
What if I need internet access for my presentation?
A. Please be advised that internet access will NOT be provided by NASDME at NASDME expense in the
workshop rooms. Furthermore, arrangements for such services or equipment must be made by the
presenter and any expenses associated with the provision of such services or equipment are solely the
responsibility of the presenter.
I am a Vendor. May I submit a proposal?
A. Workshop presentations are noncommercial forums. Attendees do not like sales pitches or product
descriptions. Presenters must refrain from the use of brand names and any product endorsement and/or
marketing. You may submit a proposal if you agree to follow the principles, guidelines, and procedures
outlined above and on the workshop proposal form.
HOW DO I SUBMIT A PROPOSAL?
STEP ONE:
Complete the entire Workshop Proposal Form.
 Click “Next” to go to the next page of the form.
 Click “Print” if you wish to print the current page you are viewing.
 You may also click “Save for Later” at any time and you will receive a link to return to the proposal form to
complete it at a later time. Make sure you save the link somewhere easy to retrieve.
STEP TWO:
Once you are finished, click "Preview Submission" at the bottom of this page and you will have a chance to review
your Workshop Proposal. Please carefully check all fields to ensure completeness and accuracy.
 If you need to make any changes, click “Go Back” and you may edit any of the fields.
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Click “Print” to print a copy of the full proposal for your records.
Once you are satisfied, please click "Send". A copy of your proposal will be sent to NASDME by email.
STEP THREE:
Once you click “Send” you will be directed to a confirmation page. At the bottom of the confirmation message is a link
to your form. If you want to edit your form at a later time, you will need the link. Make sure you save it somewhere
easy to retrieve.
STEP FOUR:
You will receive a confirmation e-mail notifying you that your proposal has been submitted to NASDME. A copy of the
information you submitted on the form will be included with the email. If you do not receive a confirmation via email, please contact [email protected] or call 505-508-2999.
Please complete all pages of the Workshop Proposal Form online or if you are unable to complete the form
online, please mail a hard copy to:
2015 National Migrant Education Conference
Attn: Workshop Review Committee
1001 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 915
Washington, DC 20036