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Tips [and a template!] for making your case to attend the 2019 Families Learning Conference

This November 4-6, the Families Learning Conference is returning to Louisville, Kentucky to celebrate the 30-year anniversary of the National Center for Families Learning! We want YOU to join our celebration and to discover evidence-based strategies and innovative practices in education. 

But how do you convince your manager to let you attend? Here are some tips to help you make your case:

DO YOUR HOMEWORK

Identify the greatest needs of your organization and select the specific sessions offered at the Conference that will help you address those needs. Over 100 sessions will be available to choose from in seven content strands including Adult Education, Early Childhood Education, Funding and Sustainability, K-12 Education, Library, Parent Leadership, and Research & Policy. A wide variety of topics will be covered, such as trauma-sensitive programming, equity, inclusion, and barriers to family participation. Click here to view the schedule of sessions.

ESTIMATE COSTS

In your request, include a budget of the estimated costs of registration, travel, lodging, and meals:

  • Registration for three days: $499
  • Airfare round-trip from [your location]
  • Hotel accommodations at Louisville Marriott Downtown: $176/nt plus 16.07% tax 
  • Ground transportation (from your home to your airport and from the airport to our hotel)
  • Meal per diem for Louisville, Kentucky: estimated at $40/day; appetizers Monday evening, dinner Tuesday, and brunch Wednesday are included in 3-day registration fee

PLAN FOR YOUR ABSENCE FROM WORK

Particularly for smaller organizations, it can be hard to take time away from work. As best you can, lay out your plan for what tasks can be accomplished ahead of time, what you can delegate temporarily to other staff while you’re away, and the times you’ll be able to answer emails onsite at the Conference.

Don’t have time to write all of this out? Good news! To save you time, we’ve packaged all of this up in a downloadable template! Click here to download and customize the template, making sure to edit the highlighted portions of text. Good luck making your case to join your peers at the 2019 Families Learning Conference!