HighEdWebDev 2007 will take place on October 14-17 in Rochester NY.
This year, I’m going to Rochester but I put out a call for guest bloggers last week to try to offer the best possible conference coverage. Two readers, Stephen and Martine, have already offered to help (if you want to share your notes about one or two sessions you plan to attend, you’re still welcome to let me know by email at karine@collegewebeditor.com – you’ll get a byline on your favorite blog ;-)
Whether or not you plan to go to Rochester in a month, I’m sure you’ll be interested to read the Conference’s Program Chair Doug Tschopp’s perspective on this big event in the higher ed Web world.
1) This year’s theme is “Collaborate, Participate, Innovate.†What’s behind this catchy phrase?
Since this conference is run by web professionals in higher education featuring content from our higher ed colleagues, it says exactly what the conference is about. It is all about sharing information with others, networking and affecting change. A chance to “collaborate†with people from other institutions you would otherwise never meet… you can “participate†by presenting or attending… and through the knowledge and connections you make, you can “innovate†on your own campus.
2) You’ve recently announced that the conference will change location next year. Can you explain this decision?
This has been in the back of our minds since the decision was made to combine the expertise of the program committee of the former WebDevShare with the experienced program committee of the HighEdWeb group in New York. We have built the reputation and attendance for the conference over the last few years and now feel confident to be able to move it around the country.
As some may know, a group (associated with this conference) has been working through the legalities of forming a national professional organization for web professionals in higher education. To better serve professionals across the country, we know the conference needs to move every couple of years.
It is a big commitment for a school to host the conference, but the rewards include ease of attending for all personnel at that school and national recognition as the host for a major conference. We have some proposals for host locations, but if someone would like to host a conference of about 500 higher ed web professionals you can still apply.
3) Can you tell us a bit more about this year program? If somebody can only attend a few presentations or workshops, what should they be and why?
Luckily very few attendees only come for part of the conference, but if someone did they should go to the repeat sessions on Wednesday morning. These are all of the best of conference winners. DON’T LEAVE EARLY!
The amount of content is out of control this year with 5 tracks of 13 presentations each… think of how many topics one can explore… or how many you will have to miss (bring a colleague from your school). The track titles give you a good idea of how varied the sessions will be from marketing to programming.
There are great workshops that range from no-tech to high-tech (we call them propeller hat sessions). Just check out the list.
And don’t miss the poster session! It is always one of my favorite parts of the conference.