ncur event proposal
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NCUR AT ITHACA: Proposal for host event
Submitted by
Patricia LangenauStudent
PLangen1@Ithaca.edu(845) 242 – 1921
Lia MicheelsStudent
LMichee1@Ithaca.edu(978) 273 – 6345
Heather MuellerStudent
Hmuelle1@ithaca.edu(242) 506-3733
Ithaca CollegeRoy H. Park School of Communications
953 Danby Rd.Ithaca, NY 14850
Signed:
____________________________________Patricia LangenauStudent
____________________________________Lia MicheelsStudent
Authorizing Official
____________________________________David PruntyDirector of Conference and Event Services at Ithaca College
____________________________________Date
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Executive Summary...............................................................3Goals......................................................................................3Theme & Description.............................................................3Dance Variety........................................................................4Location & Decorations.........................................................5Transportation........................................................................6Food & Beverage...................................................................7Marketing...............................................................................8Safety & Security...................................................................8Registration & Attendance Fee..............................................9Challenges & Solutions..........................................................9Budget....................................................................................10Measuring Success.................................................................10Conclusion.............................................................................10Appendixes............................................................................11References..............................................................................15
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Ithaca College will be hosting the National Conference on Undergraduate Research
(NCUR) during March of 2011. NCUR is, “dedicated to promoting undergraduate research,
scholarship, and creative activity in all fields of study by sponsoring an annual conference for
students,” (Dolan, J., & National Conference on Undergraduate Research, 2009). NCUR was
first held in 1987 and currently hosts approximately 2,000 students and their faculty mentors
annually (Dolan, J., & National Conference on Undergraduate Research, 2009). Beyond being an
opportunity for participants to show what they have learned and learn from others, it is also an
opportunity for Ithaca College to showcase itself. The host event is a perfect opportunity to do
this. The purpose of this proposal is to explain why an event where dinner will be served,
dancers will entertain, and then dance lessons will be provided would make an enjoyable and
unique conference experience.
GOALS
Our goals for this event are as follows:
Create a fun and unique experience for conference attendees Give attendees participation choices; if they do not want to dance we want to
provide them with a relaxing alternative Create an atmosphere that lends itself to socializing Stay within a reasonable budget
THEME AND DESCRIPTION
The theme of our event is “Footloose” after the famous film where teenagers rebel
against extreme structure by throwing their own dance (The Internet Movie Database, 2009). We
have chosen this theme because although research conferences are engaging, they are
academically focused and we want to provide attendees with an opportunity to release some
energy. This event is good for our target audience because most of them are college students. It
will give the students an opportunity to relax and socialize, while at the same time mentors and
students who choose not to dance can go to the lounge.
Our theme can be seen throughout the entire event. We propose hiring three different
dance professionals and some of their dancers. During the meal, the professional dancers will
each perform a different style of dance. Then, after the meal, attendees will have the choice to
either go learn a dance or socialize in the lounge area. Only one style of dance will be taught at
one time to ensure that there are not sound complications and to allow attendees to have breaks
in between. The lounge area will have a large television set up showing different dance films and
clips, couches, a bar serving mocktails, and games. This will provide attendees with the option to
learn a dance or relax in the lounge and will ensure that we meet everyone’s entertainment
needs.
DANCE VARIETY
In order to be cost-effective and avoid complications, we have chosen to pick no more
then three styles of dance. Although these styles and the people teaching them can be changed,
we recommend staying within this number. We have chosen to have belly dancing, hip-hop, and
the hustle at our event. We have chosen these dances for many reasons. One reason being that
they show variety and will illustrate the diversity of the region. Furthermore, these are dances
that do not require a partner. Thus, although people will be mingling and coming together
towards the common goal of creating a great dance, attendees will not be forced to be physically
close to people they do not know. These dances are also great because they are fast and group
oriented. This is imperative because if someone feels uncomfortable they will not have fun at our
event. Furthermore, group dances are easier to teach because the steps are simple and do not
require one-on-one attention between the instructor and the student.
Hip-hop lessons can be taught by Roger M. Christian from Ithaca Dance. He
has an extensive resume and has expressed interest in the conference. He
offers a variety of dances during a four hour time slot for $400.00. Since we
only need him for about two hours, the performance and dance lesson would
be approximately $200.00. Belly dancing and line dancing will not be as
expensive. Belly dancing will be taught by Yasmina’s Joy of Belly Dancing
Company. Yasmina provides two-hour workshops for events and can provide
a variety of different kinds of belly dancing depending on our needs. The
hustle will be taught by Kurt Lichtmann who, like Mr. Christian has a lot of dance and
experience and could be hired to teach another kind of dance if we desired.
Overall, our goal with the dance lessons is to not only create a fun experience for
attendees, but to also make it as easy and comfortable for the instructors as possible. This is why
we recommend hiring three different groups. Although this may be a little more complicated in
regards to contracting and budgeting, it will allow the instructors to take breaks.
LOCATION & DECORATIONS
We propose having the event at Barton Hall because it is large, transformable, only 10
minutes from Ithaca, and geographically close to most lodging. Barton Hall is an on-campus
field house on the campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. It is a large multi-purpose
venue that can hold any type of event. We chose Barton Hall to host our event instead of a
location on Ithaca College’s campus, because unlike any venues on the Ithaca Campus, Barton
Hall can hold up to 7000 people. Because Barton Hall can hold so many more people than we
actually need, there will be plenty of space for the dancing, tables, and lounge. Even though it is
more expensive to hold the event in Barton Hall, it makes sense in terms of space. In addition,
the hall has well-located parking facilities within short walking distance for attendees who
choose to transport themselves. The Hall costs $1000.00 per night, plus site staff fees, which is
$7,200.00. To have a stage that is 24X32 feet with steps and a skirt for performances costs
$1,800.00. Table and chairs will cost $1,562.50 in total.
This event will depend a lot on atmosphere. Thus, we have strategically chosen
decorations to create our desired mood. Beyond using creative lighting, there will be a music
note centerpiece on each table, and the music note will be either an eight note, a one sixteenth
note, or a G-Clef (Appendix A). There will also be gold star confetti placed on the tables along
with the centerpieces. There will be 300 9” mylar balloons, with 100 black, 100 white, and 100
purple to be placed around the hall (Bargainballoons.com & Themusicspot.com, 2009). In total,
these decorations will cost approximately $532.30. In addition, there will be gold foil musical
instrument cutouts, and musical note silhouettes to display around the hall. We will also utilize
curtains to make the general feel of the hall more formal. For an event like this, you'd probably
want to hang the curtains to block the equipment up against the wall. Custodian set-up of these
curtains would cost approximately $1,000.
TRANSPORTATION
Attendees have two options: they can transport themselves from their lodging to Barton
Hall by their own means, or attendees can sign up to take a shuttle bus from Ithaca College to
Barton Hall for a small fee of about $1.00. We will only provide the shuttle service for 1,000
attendees. For this reason, we will require attendees to register for the event and shuttle service
by February 1, 2011 so that we have ample time to confirm all of our arrangements. Participants
who choose to take advantage of the shuttle service, will still be responsible for getting
themselves from their lodging to Ithaca College and vice versa.
We propose taking advantage of Ithaca College’s relationship with Ithaca Airline Limo
Vans and Busses for the transportation for this event. The shuttle service will begin one hour
prior to the event and two runs will need to be made. Upon registration, attendees will be
informed of which shuttle run they will be on. This will ensure that the runs are punctual and
organized. There will be Ithaca College event-planning staff at the college to help attendees with
transportation questions and to keep everything moving in a timely fashion. One staff member
will be assigned to two buses and will be responsible for checking attendance on the bus,
answering questions, and leading the attendees off the bus and into the event. One Ithaca College
staff member will be stationed at the college to organize attendee arrival prior to boarding the
buses. Each bus can carry 72 passengers and we will need 14 buses to bring 1,000 participants
and 7 Ithaca College chaperones. This will cost approximately $1,148.00 resulting in a minor fee
of $1.48 to each attendee riding the shuttle (Appendix B).
Overall, the benefits of using a shuttle service are that it gives attendees a choice and
ensures that the majority of attendees will make it to the event on time and safely. It will also
relieve some strain off of the Ithaca public transportation system. This is important to keep in
mind not only to keep positive relations with the Ithaca community, but also since both colleges
will still be in session during the time of the conference and students use a lot of public
transportation.
FOOD & BEVERAGE
For this event, we will take advantage of the Ithaca College Event Services catering
menu. This is cost-effective and since it is on the Ithaca College campus we know that it will be
easier to communicate, make changes, and trust has already been established in comparison to
working with an outside vendor.
Due to the large group of attendees a buffet will be most efficient. Dinner buffets include
china service, food tables draped, guest seating tables covered and production, delivery, set-up,
pick-up, and attendant labor. China service outside the Campus Center or Dining Hall will be an
additional $1.25 per person. Upon registration, attendees will be required to let us of know of
any special dietary needs. However, our buffet menu was strategically selected to ensure that
most dietary needs will be met (Appendix D). The lounge will also provide food including
cheese and crackers, fruit, vegetables, and cookies.
MARKETING
Our marketing decisions were based on being cost-effective, sparking interest, and
having a flexible budget. We will be sending out a poster with the bundle of NCUR materials
that will be sent to the participants (Appendix E). Sending it out with the bundle will not only
spark interest in the event, but it will also remind people to register and save on mailing costs.
The cost to print 2,000 posters will be $3,845.20 through FedEx office. However, this number
could be negotiated since we have such a large order. At the event itself, we will have a menu
and agenda. It will cost $410.00 to print 2,000 menus/agendas. We also propose printing 50
posters to be distributed throughout the campus during the event costing $96.13.
SAFETY & SECURITY
Since this event involves physical movement, it is imperative that all attendees are
contracted. We propose having them do this via the internet upon registration. Because they will
not be able to complete registration without agreeing to our terms and conditions, this will ensure
that all attendees are contracted. It will also be more convenient logistically to have all of the
contracts ready to be printed one month prior to the conference and to have a digital backup. The
contracts will state that Ithaca College is not responsible for any injuries, food allergies, or stolen
items among other liabilities discussed with risk management as the event nears. We will also
contract the dance instructors to confirm their attendance, dances that they will be teaching,
amount of help they are allowed to bring, and to agree that Ithaca College is not responsible for
any injuries, food allergies, or stolen items among other negotiations.
In regards to security of the location during the event, 1-2 officers would need to be hired
at $60.00 per hour. EHS personnel would not need to be hired, but would need to do a
walkthrough prior to the event and this should be free-of-charge. Overall, since our event is not
controversial and is organized, we will not have to spend too much on security.
REGISTRATION & ATTENDANCE FEE
Attendees will be required to register by February 1, 2011. This will give the event
planning committee time to make last-minute changes, and will ensure that everything is
organized. Furthermore, it will help to reduce costs since we will know exactly how many
materials to print by that date. There will be no registration fee for the event itself. However, if
attendees choose to use the shuttle service they will be charged.
CHALLENGES & SOLUTIONS
The main challenges we see in hosting this event are the amount of people we are
hosting, noise control, interest in entertainment provided, and comfort of attendees. We plan on
dealing with the large amount of people through being extremely organized and well staffed.
Again, we have chosen dances that can easily be taught to groups so that everyone can
participate with little instruction. It is our hope that having people pre-register will help with
logistics. We also want to keep an open floor plan for our event so that people do not feel
cramped. In regards to noise control, we have chosen to only have one dance taught at one time.
This will ensure that only one kind of music will be played. All of our instructors will have
microphones so that they can be heard. In regards to keeping people entertained, we created the
lounge with the intention of giving people choices of what to do. The lounge also contributes to
the challenge of keeping our attendees comfortable because it will provide ample seating and
snacks. However, it is also imperative that our attendees are notified to wear comfortable shoes
to this event so that they can participate. Finally, we want to make sure the room temperature
does not get too hot and we seek to work closely with Barton Hall management to successfully
combat this issue.
BUDGET
The total cost of this event will be approximately $61,000.00 (Appendix B). However,
one benefit of our budget is that it is flexible. We could save approximately $2,000.00 by
changing the size of our posters and printing them in black and white. We should also save
money in regards to using Ithaca College Event ad Catering Services because we will not need
them to set up any tables/decorations. Attendees will pay us back the $1,148.00 for
transportation and of course, we could always cut some of our decorations if necessary. These
changes alone could bring our budget down approximately $5,000.00.
MEASURING SUCCESS
Success will be measured by attendance and participation. If people are participating in
the dancing we will know that our dance choices and instructors were correct. If there is high
attendance, we will know that we made effective marketing choices. We also propose that Ithaca
College and NCUR send out a survey after the conference to gain feedback. Because there is no
real appropriate place during this event for us to gain tangible feedback, we would like the
following questions to be asked about our event in the general NCUR feedback survey:
1. “Did you enjoy the NCUR host event, why/why not?”
2. “What would you have changed about the NCUR host event?”
We feel that a combination of getting these questions answered and watching the reactions of
participants will give us an understanding of our success.
CONCLUSION
Overall, “Footloose” would be a successful host event because it is entertaining, has a
flexible budget, and provides attendees with options for participation.
APPENDIX A
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APPENDIX B
APPENDIX D
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Figure 1: Side 1
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Figure 2: Side 2
APPENDIX E
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References
Barginballoons.com. (2009). 9” Latex Balloons. In Bargin balloons. Retrieved May 3, 2009,
from Special Buys Co. Inc. Web site: http://www.bargainballoons.com/10browse.asp
?Category=9%22+Latex&Page=1&Display=High
Dolan, J., & National Conference on Undergraduate Research. (2009, January 29). National
conference on undergraduate research. Retrieved March 20, 2009, from
http://www.ncur.org/theconference.htm
The Internet Movie Database. (2009). Plot summary for footloose. Retrieved April
1, 2009, from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087277/plotsummary
Themusicdepot.com. (2009). Party supplies. In The music depot. Retrieved May 3, 2009, from
Sure Solutions Web site: http://www.themusicdepot.com/acatalog/Party_Supplies.html
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