Speaker Information Letter
Dear Annual Conference Speaker:
The American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc. (AOTA) would like to thank you for agreeing to participate in the 2008 Annual Conference & Expo. Your contribution to the conference program allows AOTA to continue providing quality continuing education opportunities to occupational therapists, occupational therapy assistants, and students. Please follow the link for important information about your presentation:
Please print and save the following information for future reference.
Speaker Guidelines: The AOTA Presenter’s Handbook has been revised and posted to the AOTA Web site. The link is http://www.aota.org/ConfandEvents/Conf/SpeakerUpdates.aspx. Please be sure to review the guidelines on "Making Your Presentation Accessible" so that all participants can benefit from your session.
Registration: As a speaker you are eligible for reduced conference fees. All OT, OTA, and Student speakers are required to register for Conference. The program announcement with complete program information will be mailed to all AOTA members in late December. If you are not a member, you may request a program announcement by sending your request to conference@aota.org. Speakers may register online at the speaker rate (www.aota.org), beginning on January 7, 2008, and selecting the “Conference Speaker” rate. The speaker rate also applies if you are presenting a poster.
Continuing Education: If you need confirmation of your speaking hours for continuing education, you may pick up your speaker verification letter at the Speaker Desk after the completion of your session. Speakers are requested not to have their badge scanned for the sessions in which they present.
Accessibility Services: Speakers with accessibility needs should include a detailed description of the type of accommodation required on the Registration Form or e-mail Accessibility Services at accessibilityservices@aota.org. Also, please provide written notification of any accessibility issues that you may have regarding the actual presentation of your session via the Accessibility Services Center e-mail address. Please do so no later than March 7, 2008.
On-site Check-in: For your convenience we have set up a Speaker Concierge in the Registration Area of the Long Beach Convention Center. All speakers are welcome to check in at any time, but are requested to do so at least 1 hour before their scheduled session. Pre-registered speakers must pick up their badge and conference bag at this location.
Speaker Concierge: A laptop computer, monitor, LCD projector, screen, and VHS player will be available for previewing your presentation in the Speaker Concierge Room at the Long Beach Convention Center in room 103C during the following hours:
|
Date |
Hours |
|
Wednesday, April 9 |
10:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m. |
|
Thursday, April 10 |
7:00 a.m.–5:30 p.m. |
|
Friday, April 11 |
7:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m. |
|
Saturday, April 12 |
7:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m. |
|
Sunday, April 13 |
7:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. |
Poster Sessions: Posters will be set up in the Long Beach Convention Center in Grand Ballroom A, according to your assigned date and time.
|
Date of Poster Session |
Set-up Time |
Poster Session Time |
Teardown Time |
|
Thursday, April 10 |
11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. |
1:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. |
3:00–3:30 p.m. |
|
Friday morning, April 11 |
7:30–8:30 a.m. |
9:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m. |
11:00–11:30 a.m. |
|
Friday afternoon, April 11 |
1:00-2:00 p.m. |
2:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m. |
4:30-5:00 p.m. |
|
Saturday, April 12 |
12:00-1:00 p.m. |
1:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. |
3:30-4:00 p.m. |
AOTA cannot assume responsibility for any poster left after tear down time for each day. You are required to be present at your poster during the entire assigned poster session.
Research Platform: If you submitted a Research Paper, it may have been scheduled as part of a 1 hour or 1.5 hour Research Platform. Research Papers with similar subject matters were grouped together in order to provide the attendee with different research findings. Please present your paper in the order it is listed in the Conference Program Announcement and Conference Program Guide. Your individual presentation will total 30 minutes (20-25 presentation and 5-10 minutes of Q & A for a total of 30 minutes). Check the Conference Program Announcement to find the name of your co-presenter and contact him/her to coordinate your presentation. If you need assistance with contact information please send an e-mail message to conference@aota.org.
Handouts: The biggest complaint AOTA receives from attendees is that there are not enough handouts. AOTA will reimburse speakers for duplication expenses incurred in preparation of handouts according to the following criteria:
A maximum of 10 cents per page/side per session as listed below. Institute speakers can contact AOTA after March 26, 2008 to get an estimated number of attendees registered for their sessions. Other sessions are not ticketed; therefore we cannot identify the number of attendees in your session, however, we will be glad to assist with an estimate. Please contact me at fgainer@aota.org starting March 26, 2008. Room sizes vary from 100–350 seats. Room sizes will be posted on the web at www.aota.org beginning March 26, 2008.
As a reminder - speakers are responsible for obtaining permission to use copyrighted material.
Institutes: 20 pages/sides
Workshops: 10 pages/sides
All Others: 2 pages/sides
It is not required that you provide a copy of your entire presentation; however, your audience may appreciate having something to follow. We suggest using an outline format or 6 slides per page format for this purpose. It is always a good idea to include your contact information.
Speaker expense forms can be downloaded from the speaker page http://www.aota.org/ConfandEvents/Conf/SpeakerUpdates.aspx for those who request reimbursement. Remember, the deadline for submitting your report is 60 days post conference (June 20, 2008). Expense reports submitted after this date will not be reimbursed.
Session Evaluations: Attendees will have the option to complete a short evaluation of every educational session they attend. This information will be collected by the speakers at the conclusion of their sessions.
Audiovisual: AOTA offers all speakers a full complement of audiovisual equipment. All educational session rooms will be equipped with a laptop computer, projection screen, LCD projector, wired lavaliere podium microphone, wired table microphone. PowerPoint will be available on the computer to view your presentation slides. Internet access is not an available option. If your presentation requires any other additional equipment please notify Professional Development at conference@aota.org no later than March 24th. Any equipment not requested by March 24, 2008 will be at the presenter’s expense. Please include “A/V Request” in the subject line of your e-mail.
If any questions arise, please do not hesitate to send a message to conference@aota.org. Periodic updates to Speakers will be provided over the next several months.
As the primary presenter it is your responsibility to forward this information to your copresenters. We look forward to seeing you in Long Beach!
Sincerely,
Frank E. Gainer, MHS, OTR/L, FAOTA
Conference Program Manager