Over the past few years, av福利社 has asked for your feedback after each conference and study tour with the hope of being able to make improvements and provide a better experience for all of you. As a result of the feedback received, av福利社 is implementing the following improvements and additions. Some may be familiar and others are brand new.  

Annual Conference

Session Schedule
Moving the few sessions on Saturday morning to Thursday or Friday, with the other sessions offered, allows for a more cohesive presentation of the intellectual content of the conference.

We have found that inviting the local community to participate during the av福利社 Saturday Seminar, has added to the discussion of not only historic preservation but of many other issues and hot topics that are of interest to both the local community and av福利社 members. The seminar in Austin was a success and the attendance by both members and the local community increased 60%.

 In order to accommodate the 35 paper sessions and the Graduate Student Lightning Talks, we will use a three-track module for Thursday and Friday. The schedule used in Austin received a lot of feedback, and we have modified it to allow more time for midday tours, meetings and programs. This will prevent an overlap of sessions and tours. The new schedule for Thursday and Friday paper sessions will be:

Track 1: 8:15-10:30am
Track 2: 10:45am -1:00pm
Mid-day break: 1:15 – 2:45pm
Track 3: 3:00-5:15pm

Session Chairs
In order to give as many people as possible the opportunity to participate in the paper sessions and Graduate Student Lightning Talks, session chairs will not be able to present a paper at the conference of the same year they chair a session for the 2016 conference and beyond.

Calls for Papers
The Call for Sessions, the Call for Papers, the Graduate Student Lightning Talks Call for Topics and the GSLT Call for Presenters will be on the same submission schedule for the 2016 conference and beyond. Be sure to read the av福利社 Newsletter, av福利社 Opportunities and the av福利社 website for updates and details. An official Call will be emailed to all av福利社 members, and we ask that you share this communication with colleagues as av福利社 continues to experience a global presence in the field.

As a reminder, only one submission per conference, a maximum of two authors per abstract, and all must attend and present at the conference to be listed in the printed and online program, but more importantly, to be listed in the Jav福利社 which is the official record. av福利社 uses the Chicago Manual Style, and all submissions should be presented using this style.

Opening Reception
You suggested extending the Opening Reception to allow more time to catch up with friends and colleagues and get to know those who are new to av福利社 and the conference. As a result of this suggestion, the av福利社 Opening Reception will be 90 minutes.

av福利社 Annual Business Meeting and Awards Ceremony
You suggested shortening the time and presentation of the information at the av福利社 Annual Business Meeting and Awards Ceremony. As we continue to plan the schedule and the content to be presented and required by the bylaws of av福利社, a concerted effort will be made to shorten the amount of time for these important events during the Annual Conference. We ask that you support those being recognized for their achievements.

Registration Fees
As the conference continues to grow in content and resulting related expenses, we find that the registration fees will need to increase. av福利社 has not had an increase since 2008. The new fee structure’s modest increases will continue to help those who find attending academic conferences financially imposing, but recognize the av福利社 conference as beneficial and a way to advance one’s career.

The fees for 2015 are as follows and will increase 2% each year moving forward:

The av福利社 Member and av福利社 Non-Member fees are $100 more if the registrant chooses not to stay at the conference hotel(s). Students are exempt.

av福利社 will be implementing a Day Rate structure to the conference fees for general attendees. (Speakers, session chairs and av福利社 Board members are not eligible for this rate.) This will allow those interested in experiencing the conference to attend and is no longer limited to those living within an 80-mile radius of the conference city. The rates are as follows:

Example: You wish to participate on Thursday only. The Day Rate will apply, and you will able to partake in the sessions scheduled on Thursday, the Awards Ceremony and Plenary Talk, as well as any of the midday programs. You are then eligible to register for receptions and tours offered on Thursday at an additional expense.

We are currently working on offering a limited number of Guest Passes for each session to allow family and/or friends to listen to specific papers. Once the details are finalized, we will make an announcement. Each Guest Pass will be $40. Watch for further details and information.

Use of Alternate Hotels
In 2014, av福利社 waived the additional $100 registration fee due to a restriction on the number of hotel rooms available to av福利社 when we met in Austin. av福利社 will be reinstating the $100 fee for 2015.  

Study Tour Programs

av福利社 is expanding the current study tour programs to include seminars, lectures and roundtable discussions in addition to many site visits. We want to be able to properly reflect that change to help our members and potential members understand the high level of content presented in av福利社’s educational programs. Many of you can and do attest to the high quality of our tours, and we will continue to present the quality you have come to expect and raise the bar once again.

We are removing the term tour from the program title. The av福利社 International Study Tours will now be known as the av福利社 Field Seminar. av福利社 has a growing global presence, and we wish to ensure that all of our members feel included in any of the programs presented by av福利社, and to better reflect the level of analysis and discussion of the visited sites.

av福利社 Study Day
This will remain the same.

av福利社 Field Education Program
This is a new program being developed by av福利社 that will offer a hands-on/onsite experience and is intended to attract faculty who are in the midst of building up their basic course offerings in architectural history or those who are looking to expand their knowledge and experience of the built environment, with a special focus, at least at first, on American architecture. Thus, its purpose is to provide participants with core pedagogical material for a special-focus course. The week-long seminar would be comprised of daily enrichment activities including lectures by noted scholars, roundtables, panel discussions and site visits so participants can experience firsthand the relevant architecture, landscapes and urban design. The seminar will include a “tool box” of essential items that participants can customize for their own courses at their university, local av福利社 chapter or other organization. Those tools will include a seminar syllabus, bibliography, readings, sample assignments, copies of all PowerPoint lectures, and instructions in the use of av福利社ARA and av福利社 Archipedia. Participants also will have the opportunity to take their own photographs on afternoon excursions. Each day will end with a social hour where lecturers and participants can discuss the topic of the day, the nature of teaching architectural history, as well as their own work. The av福利社 Education Seminar fulfills a key mission of the av福利社 study tour program: to provide faculty, adjuncts, graduate students, independent scholars and others with highly focused lectures and site visits that can be adapted easily to coursework. To simplify planning for participants, the Seminar will be scheduled for the same time every year. The first seminar is being planned for the summer of 2015. 

Kathy Sturm
av福利社 Director of Progams