Women of Color STEM Conference Frequently Asked Questions 2015 WOC STEM Conference Detroit Marriott Renaissance Center Detroit, MI Phone: (214) 748-1200 October 15-17, 2015 Book Your Room Today! Room Rate is $129/ Night (Plus Tax) Award Winners When will the WOC Awards recipients be announced? The schedule for notifying award winners can be found here: http://intouch.ccgmag.com/page/awards_dates/. Is there a write-up on my WOC Award that I can add to our company newsletter? Contact Imani Carter, icarter@ccgmag.com, for a copy of the official WOC STEM Conference press release. I m trying to learn more about a particular WOC Award. Where can I go to find this information? All WOC Awards information can be downloaded from the Career Communications Group Corporate website, www.ccgmag.com. Is there a rehearsal for WOC Award recipients? There is no formal rehearsal. However, there is a Teleprompter Ready Room in which the WOC Awards Gala Scriptwriter will be available to do run-throughs that will help participants get acclimated to the Teleprompter. The scriptwriter will send the Teleprompter Ready Room assignments and hours of operation to you. Due to an illness, I will be unable to attend the WOC Awards Gala. When and where can I pick up my award? Career Communications Group (CCG) will send your WOC Award to you only when we assess an award recipient s inability to attend the event to be unplanned and unavoidable. Please send your mailing information to registrar@ccgmag.com Are winners travel arrangements covered by CCG? Career Communications Group does not cover travel costs to the WOC STEM Conference for WOC Award recipients. Can you tell me the difference between a Peer-reviewed (PR) award recipient and an Outstanding Achievement Award (OAA) recipient? Page 1 of 6 May 2015
A Peer-reviewed award recipient s nomination application is subjected to review and ranking by a panel of judges. Outstanding Achievement Awards are recommendations from your employer that you receive recognition for outstanding achievement within your workplace. I am an award recipient. How do I register for the WOC STEM Conference? All awards recipients should visit www.womenofcolor.net and select the Register Now for WOC button to access the conference s registration portal. Follow the instructions to complete your registration. Peer-reviewed award recipients will need a Discount Code to receive the complimentary registration. Your Discount Code will be sent by email. Please contact us if you have not received it. I am an award recipient and I d like to bring my family to the WOC Gala. What does it cost? All WOC Award recipients receive a 25% discount on all event tickets and/or full registrations. WOC Conference fees can be found on the women of color website. Do WOC Award winners need to purchase tickets for guests, and if so, how to they do so? Award recipients may purchase additional tickets or full conference registrations for their guests. Guests of award recipients are eligible to receive a 25% discount when the discount code is used. All discount codes are sent by email. When should I expect to hear from the CCG speechwriter regarding my acceptance remarks? The CCG speechwriter will begin contacting honorees as soon as you submit your first draft. What does the $500 Technology All-Star and Rising Star registration package include? The $500 All-Star and Rising Star package is a full WOC registration package and includes all seminars and workshops, the Alumnae Welcome Reception, Professional Development Meet & Greet, Technology Recognition Luncheon, Women of Color Recognition Dinner, Breakfast with Leaders and Legends, WOC Gala and the WOC Closing Reception. Sponsors & Exhibitors I haven t received information to register my staff attending the conference. What should I do? Please contact your account manager to discuss the registration process for your organization When should I expect my exhibitor kit and booth assignment? Page 2 of 6 May 2015
The exhibitor kit will be available in your registration portal. Your organization will receive access credentials to the portal once your participation has been finalized. What is the attire for the job fair, specifically for those manning our booth? Career Communications Group (CCG) recommends business attire for the WOC STEM Career Fair. This includes garments with your company logo. Who do I contact if I want to display a motorized vehicle? Please contact your account manager to review our vehicle placement policy. Is there a specific hotel address to ship client giveaways? No, Please contact Leslie Mitchell, lmitchell@teamrutherford.net for additional information. Who should I contact regarding booth related issues prior to the conference? Please contact Leslie Mitchell, lmitchell@teamrutherford.net Is there a map of the Career Fair floor plan? A WOC STEM Conference Career Fair floor plan will be published in the official Conference Guide, available at the conference. General I will not be attending the WOC Conference. Can I give my tickets to somebody else? Yes, another person may use your WOC tickets. Please send the name of the person, the name of their organization, and their email address to registrar@ccgmag.com to request a name change before the conference. Can I get tickets for my children? You will need to purchase tickets for children attending any meal functions. I will be attending the WOC Alumnae Reception. Do I need a ticket to this event? Yes, the Alumnae Welcome Reception is included in a full WOC Registration package. The full WOC Conference registration includes all seminars and workshops, the Alumnae Welcome Reception, Professional Development Meet & Greet, Technology Recognition Luncheon, Women of Color Recognition Dinner, Breakfast with Leaders and Legends, WOC Awards Gala, and the WOC Closing Reception. How can I become involved as a speaker or panel participant during future WOC Conferences? Career Communications Group (CCG) encourages and welcomes qualified subject matter experts to participate as speakers or panelists. Please send your request to seminars@ccgmag.com for more information. Does the WOC have programming for children? Page 3 of 6 May 2015
Each year, WOC holds a K-12 program. This year s program will be held on Saturday, October 17, 2015. Space is limited. Please contact Ana Bertrand, abertrand@ccgmag.com, to get more information about the program. What are the hotel rates for the Detroit Marriott Renaissance Center? Hotel sleeping room rate is $129 / night (plus tax) Please note that this rate expires on September 29, 2015. What is the dress code for the WOC Conference? All events require business attire except for the WOC Gala, which is black-tie optional. Clothing has to be formal. Registration Will the people attending the Technology Recognition Luncheon and WOC Awards Gala receive name badges with their tickets? Name badges are issued to all WOC Conference attendees. Tickets are issued for all events (except the seminars and workshops) and they are included in all registration packages or they can be purchased separately. Where are my guest and I seated? All conference attendees will have the opportunity to select their seats during the registration process. Register early to ensure that you and your guests are seated together. How can I make sure that my guests are seated with me? We recommend that you register yourself and your guest at the same time. If that is not possible, you can select a table with sufficient room for you and your guest, then ask your guests to register immediately. Register early as this offers greater likelihood that you group will be able to sit at the same table. We reserve seats for award recipients and one (1) guest who are receiving their award at the Saturday Gala and the Friday Women of Color Recognition Dinner. What if my organization is providing me with a complimentary registration? Your organization may simply register you or send you a special code called a Comp Pass Code to register for a complimentary Full Registration. Your employer tables are pre-assigned and the Comp Pass code will direct you to select from the pre-assigned table(s). Alternatively, your employer may have you to select any seat from their inventory of reserved tables and then re-arrange the seating later. What if I register on my own and then my employer gives me a complimentary registration? Simply cancel your registration and send a refund request to registrar@ccgmag.com. Page 4 of 6 May 2015
The refund and cancellation policies does apply if your written request is not received one (1) week before the start of the conference. What happens to my seat if my employer upgrades my seat to a table they purchase? Your employer may, at their discretion upgrade your seating to a corporate sponsored table. When this occurs, your original seat is released back into the general pool of seats. No refund is given in this situation. Where do I place the Discount Code that my employer gave me? And, how is the Discount Code different form a Comp Pass Code? A Discount Code is a negotiated rate for Full registrations that your employer secured for additional attendees from your organization. It is entered at the end of the registration process just before the payment information is requested. Your employer uses a Comp Pass Code to distribute their complimentary full registrations included in their participation package. The Comp Pass Code is entered at the beginning of the registration process. Unlike the Discount Code, the Comp Pass Code is attached to specific seats assigned to your employer. When you use a Discount Code, you select your seats from the general inventory of available seats. My organization requires that I pay my registration fee by check, how do I do that? There are two (2) ways to do this: 1. Fill out this registration form. Send registration form and check to address above. Once we receive your check we will pre-register you and send you a confirmation by email. Your email confirmation will contain information for you to login to your personal registration portal and complete your registration. 2. Register online and for Payment Type, select Purchase Order. Your registration will be placed in pending state. When we receive your payment or a valid purchase order, we will approve your registration and send you a registration confirmation email with your credentials to access your personal registration portal where you can modify your registration if necessary. Which events can I attend? A full WOC Awards Conference registration includes the Alumnae Welcome Reception, all seminars and workshops, Professional Development Meet & Greet, Technology Recognition Luncheon, Women of Color Recognition, Breakfast with Leaders and Legends, WOC Awards Gala, and the WOC Closing Reception. When is the deadline for registering for the WOC Gala? We recommend that you register on or before September 30, 2015. The full registration fees increase after September 30th. Page 5 of 6 May 2015
What is your registration cancelation policy? All cancellations and refund requests must be received in writing by September 30, 2015. Refunds will not be issued for cancellations made after this date regardless of registration date or for no-shows. Refunds will be issued within 48 hours after notification, and a $100 processing fee will be deducted. Substitutions from the same company will be accepted in writing without penalty. Send requests to registrar@ccgmag.com How do I cancel my registration? Please find the link and login information to your personal registration portal in your registration confirmation letter. Login to your registration portal and cancel your registration. I didn t add all of my sessions when I initially registered. How do I go back and add other sessions? Your registration confirmation letter contains a link and login username and password to your registration portal. Login and follow the instructions to modify you registration. Miscellaneous Can you recommend any sites and tourist attractions around Detroit? Please visit the official visitor information for Detroit website at www.visitdetroit.com Can you tell me when and where future conferences will be held? The 30th BEYA STEM Conference will be held on February 18-20, 2016 at the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown in Philadelphia, PA. Contact Us 729 E Pratt Street, Suite 504 Baltimore, MD 21202 410-244-7101 registrar@ccgmag.com Page 6 of 6 May 2015