• Sections of the MAA
• Section Officers Info
• Section Secretaries
• Section Meeting Calendar

V. Local Arrangements for Section Meetings

A. The Local Arrangements Committee

The section chair should appoint a local arrangements committee and a chair of that committee far in advance of a section meeting. The committee members, and especially the chair, should be faculty members of the host institution, or they should at least reside close to the physical facilities to be used for the meeting.

These guidelines provide a resource and a guide for the local arrangements chair and committee. Local arrangements chairs are encouraged to also consult programs from recent meetings, past local arrangements chairs, members of the section executive committee, and long-time section members. Certain details of the local arrangements vary from site to site, but any major departure from section traditions should be discussed with the section officers. In some sections, some of the following duties may be assigned to other section officers; but every task should be assigned to someone.

The local arrangement committee must make arrangements and reservations as early as possible, a year or more in advance of the section meeting.

B. The Host College or University

In general, section meetings are held on the campus of a college or university, which provides an appropriate setting for the meeting and helps to reduce costs of the meeting. The section should expect the host institution to offer the use of its facilities without either direct or indirect charges such as charges for custodial staff. The host institution usually absorbs costs for secretarial work, printing the program, the folders, and any postage. Sometimes the institution also provides refreshments. The institution as a result benefits from exposure and publicity while it provides a service to the larger academic community.

C. Responsibilities of the Local Arrangements Committee

In the list of responsibilities that follows, the assumption is made that the meeting takes place on a college campus, but some section meetings may be held at other locations, such as a hotel. In any event, the local arrangements committee should work to minimize the cost of the meeting and must make sure that all financial arrangements are discussed in advance and are obtained in writing.

The local arrangements committee is responsible for:

• obtaining from the program committee, as early as possible, specific information about the planned section meeting, including:
  1. the date of the meeting;
  2. the precise time for starting and ending the meeting;
  3. the approximate number of persons expected to attend the meeting;
  4. the rooms required for the meeting;
  5. the required special equipment, such as overhead projectors, slide projectors, movie projectors, computers, and other audiovisual equipment, as well as all appropriate and requested software; and
  6. specific details on requirements for any luncheon, dinner, reception or overnight accommodations;
• obtaining approval and support from appropriate campus administrators to hold the meeting; acknowledging all discussions, keeping all correspondence, and keeping records of any discussion of special funding for the section meeting;
• contacting the campus facilities office about any needed special considerations or arrangements such as custodial service;
• reserving the rooms and equipment needed for the talks and other program features immediately when requirements are known;
• arranging for the spatial and support needs of any special activities such as executive committee meetings, section NExT and ACCCESS programs, student competitions or poster sessions, a book sale, and planned social events including refreshments, luncheons and banquets;
• arranging for parking for the meeting, including parking for the handicapped, and obtaining any required parking passes, to be distributed upon arrival rather than through the mail if possible;
• meeting with campus security to discuss the arrangements for any needed security protection during the meeting and providing the security office with a copy of the meeting schedule;
• making arrangements with the campus security office or the facilities office to ensure that buildings and rooms are unlocked and properly heated or cooled during the meeting;
• checking the rooms for readiness just prior to the meeting;
• making sure that meeting facilities are accessible to all attendees;
• planning all the necessary meals and snacks, including location, menu, and cost, checking the food service’s hidden costs and extra charges for off-campus groups, which may be avoided through department sponsorship and being careful not to violate any contracts with the food service;
• checking the college’s policies for any (cash) bar to be held at the meeting so that the section does not violate college policy, or the law;
• arranging for refreshments and trying to obtain support from a book representative or from an on-campus entity, such as the mathematics department, dean, alumni association, career services office, or any campus program that seems to have money available;
• developing a list of area hotels and motels with addresses, phone numbers, and prices as well as arranging for on-campus housing in the residence halls; making reservations up to a year in advance of the meeting; keeping costs down by using hotels with special arrangements with the college, consulting AAA materials, and asking for discounts based on the number of people; considering special features such as a free continental breakfast or van transportation between the hotel and meeting site;
• providing the newsletter editor and webmaster with any needed information: a description of the college, directions to the college from all directions, a campus map with buildings and parking facilities to be used clearly indicated, room locations for program events, cost of meals and meal options for the banquet, the list of area hotels and motels with addresses, phone numbers and prices, as well as the cost of any available on-campus housing;
• sending letters to area schools to invite local teachers to the meeting;
• obtaining from the program committee the titles, abstracts, and biographical information of speakers as well as the schedule for the meeting from the program committee and all the coordinators of special sessions for contributed papers, student papers, and NExT and ACCCESS activities; discussing with the program chair the format of the meeting program and types of files to be sent; then creating and printing copies of the meeting program for all the participants;
• preparing folders for meeting attendees with the program, a badge (preferably the plastic hanging type) with the person’s name and affiliation, a campus map, a list of pre-registered participants with affiliation and e-mail addresses, and possibly other materials such as paper, pen, and information about the host college; keeping costs down by seeking subsidy from a college dean or president and by comparison shopping for materials;
• helping the section member in charge of book sales with the following: contacting MAA to arrange for books and sample copies of journals to be sent for the meeting; contacting local book representatives to arrange displays (generally for a fee for display space) and donations of books;
• appointing a section member to take special responsibility for each guest speaker, to confirm travel and accommodation plans, arrange local transportation between airport, hotel, and meeting; and generally act as a good host;
• contacting software companies to arrange displays, demonstrations, or donations for a raffle;
• arranging for someone to handle the book sales during the meeting;
• arranging for the president, dean, or other college official to give welcoming remarks at the beginning of the meeting;
• administering pre-registration and on-site registration; keeping careful records (in a spreadsheet preferably) of registrants and their payments; organizing a group of students and faculty to assist with registration at the meeting; keeping all checks and cash in a lockable box until deposited; using a two-copy receipt book for on-site registration;
• sending the section secretary-treasurer all registration forms, receipts for expenses, cash, and checks after recording each check number on the person’s registration form and copying all checks;
• placing signs leading from the edge of campus to the parking lots and from the parking lots to the registration site;
• attending to any local travel arrangements for speakers from outside the section, including obtaining information on transportation from the airport and on rental cars as well as finding a volunteer to transport the speaker where needed;
• dealing with any local arrangements issues that arise during the meeting;
• providing faculty and students to help with on-site registration, set up and clean up book and technology displays, monitor workshops and sessions for possible problems, and generally provide help as needed;
• arranging for technology help from the mathematics department or computer services department to be available during the meeting and providing alternatives if insurmountable technology problems arise;
• arranging publicity with local media and campus publications possibly with the help of campus college relations or alumni offices;
• maintaining communication with the program committee, which includes the local arrangements chair, particularly with regards to the room and equipment needs for the meeting; and
• contacting the national MAA office to deal with any insurance matters if the local institution requires proof of MAA insurance.

D. Rooms Required for a Section Meeting

The space needs of the meeting largely depend on the program and should be communicated by the program committee to the local arrangements committee well in advance of the meeting so that reservations can be made. The required rooms include the following:

• a large lecture hall to accommodate all the participants of the meeting;
• several classrooms ideally located close together for concurrent sessions such as contributed paper sessions and student presentations;
• computer labs if needed for the program;
• a registration area, frequently a lobby area;
• a place for refreshments, preferably near the registration and exhibits areas; an exhibit area located near registration and refreshments and provided with tables for the publishers, software companies, and MAA book sales; and
• a dining area for meals.

Every room reserved for talks and workshops should have an overhead projector as well as a blackboard or whiteboard with chalk or whiteboard with markers and erasers. The local arrangements committee should work with the program committee to learn of requests for computers, PowerPoint, projection capability, mathematical software and Internet access, and then these requests should be accommodated.

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Questions about Sections? | email Madeline Palmer at mpalmer@maa.org