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<P><FONT SIZE=2>Rick, I really appreciate your perceptions. I agree fully with the location, and this was what I was hoping to gain support with on Sat. I feel strongly that it would enhance INAAPT to hold the meeting centrally and at the same location each year. I suugested Purdue as the annual site, not because of its central location, but because most/all other professional groups (biology, earth and atmospheric, chemistry) meet at Purdue and Purdue supports the groups by handling mailings, websites, etc. To my knowlege, Purdue is the only college/university that has 6 full-time outeach coordinators in the College of Science. We dedicate ourselves FULL TIME to the needs of K-12 teachers. <BR>
<BR>
More importantly, last year I gained support to pay entirely for the costs of the meeting, including $100 apiece awards (this year this equated to $300) and all the food--a full supper on Fri, breakfast, lunch. I have no reason not to think I couldn't raise these funds from Purdue alumni if Purdue hosted the meetings, because the particular individual and the company he owns is supportive of physics education.<BR>
<BR>
The complaints I heard at Saturday's meeting were coming not from those who have actively participated in executing a meeting. <BR>
<BR>
But, no matter what, we must begin to think out of a box that isn't working well. One idea the team of outreach coordinators had was to TRY hosting all the professional organizations on one day so teachers from a school might travel together. Will it work? We don't know--we haven't tried it. I do know that if 6 outreach coordinators are all working to invite teachers, it could work. There may be other innovative ideas. We need to do some creative problem solving.<BR>
<BR>
Julie<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
----- Original Message -----<BR>
From: inaapt-bounces@inaapt.org <inaapt-bounces@inaapt.org><BR>
To: Steve Spicklemire <steve@spvi.com>; inaapt@inaapt.org <inaapt@inaapt.org><BR>
Sent: Thu Apr 26 12:01:42 2007<BR>
Subject: Re: [INAAPT] INAAPT meeting<BR>
<BR>
Let me discuss just the logistics of the meeting.<BR>
<BR>
IF--big IF, we continue to think of the yearly meeting as a 1-day, drive in,<BR>
drive out meeting, then for maximum coverage the meeting should always be in<BR>
Indianapolis. Indy is no more than 3 hours away from any point in the<BR>
state--well the south-west may be a problem until Mitch builds his highway!<BR>
The other three corners of the state are linked by interstates and the<BR>
central north and south areas are only 100-120 miles away even though the<BR>
roads have so many stoplights that it takes the 3 hours.<BR>
<BR>
To really accommodate this, I would suggest a 10-4 or even 10-5 time frame<BR>
for the meeting. Starting later to allow people to come in from the corners<BR>
without leaving at 4AM and now, thanks to DST (and Mitch), late April<BR>
meetings would still get people home before dark.<BR>
<BR>
Let me also suggest a change (or perhaps return) to a format that would have<BR>
3 hours of contributed talks--concurrent sessions (but not too many)--a<BR>
lunch break with awards--then either a single high interest topical talk,<BR>
two or three concurrent workshops, or break-up into topical round-table<BR>
discussion groups. End the day with the business meeting. The afternoon<BR>
program could rotate through the different forms, or always be the same,<BR>
depending on interest. (A survey of members might help determine that.)<BR>
<BR>
I would still offer a Friday evening optional session for those who can and<BR>
want to arrive early and stay overnight.<BR>
<BR>
Moving the meeting around the state serves some good purposes, but only if<BR>
we can actually get more people in the region to come. In the past that was<BR>
not really the case. We might get 10 regional people and then the 30-40<BR>
regulars no matter where we went -- We've been at Tri-State, Saint Mary's,<BR>
Calumet, Hanover, etc. Unless we gave someone an award and immediately<BR>
drafted them into the officer ranks, we seldom saw any of the '10' newbies<BR>
again. So as much as I enjoy going to other campuses (discovered Madison<BR>
Indiana through a meeting at Hanover), I would say that Indianapolis offers<BR>
the best chance of attracting a 50 person crowd. However, I agree with the<BR>
comment that we need to do some recruiting and some advertising--much on a<BR>
personal basis--to get more High School teachers to come. The cadre of<BR>
University and College types that have been regulars is getting thinned out<BR>
through retirement (and worse), and so there may be the need for some arm<BR>
twisting with younger AAPT members at those institutions.<BR>
<BR>
Joint meetings can be great, but since we would really be in the position of<BR>
needing to go to Illinois or go to Ohio for such meetings (having gotten<BR>
both states to come here in the past--Purdue and Ball State) and such<BR>
meetings would necessarily be two day affairs, you have travel and lodging<BR>
to worry about. Will people go that far and spend the money?<BR>
<BR>
Just my thoughts,<BR>
<BR>
Rick<BR>
<BR>
***************************<BR>
Richard W. Tarara<BR>
Professor of Physics<BR>
Saint Mary's College<BR>
Notre Dame, IN<BR>
rtarara@saintmarys.edu<BR>
******************************<BR>
Free Physics Software<BR>
PC & Mac<BR>
www.saintmarys.edu/~rtarara/software.html<BR>
*******************************<BR>
<BR>
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