The Call for Proposals is now closed.

 

Call for Proposals

Thank you for your interest and commitment to help build the body of knowledge in the service-learning/community engagement field by presenting at the 12th Annual Continuums of Service Conference. We truly appreciate your contributions to the conference as session presenters, poster presenters, and active participants.

Download a 2009 COS Proposal Submission Form

Please review the Call for Proposals information included within this page, and email COS.Proposal.Question@wwu.edu with any questions about the Call for Proposals process.

Session Information

The Continuums of Service conference includes two types of sessions:

• a series of concurrent sessions (comprised of at least 50% active learning, and no more than 50% presentation/lecture)
• one poster session

There will be six sets of concurrent sessions on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday (April 16-18, 2009), each lasting one hour. The poster session will take place on Friday, April 17, 2009.

One goal of the conference is to build a regional network of practitioners; we therefore strongly encourage presenters to attend the entire conference. Please know that we cannot guarantee time slots for selected presenters and/or sessions.

Review Process and Selection Criteria

Washington Campus Compact staff will conduct an internal review of all submitted proposals in order to group them by topic. We will then match each set of proposals with at least two reviewers who have expertise and interest in the specific topic.

The Continuums of Service Review Committee will evaluate each proposal using the following criteria:

• Relevance to 2009 conference theme
• Articulation of learning/development objectives for session participants 
• Articulation of initiative (e.g., course, project, program, partnership) objectives, outcomes achieved, assessment, and dissemination
• Articulation of how you will present your initiative/model as one that other institutions can adopt
• Incorporation of diverse perspectives into your session, including incorporating co-presenters
• Quality of active-learning segment
• Overall contribution to the service-learning/community engagement field (e.g., by bringing new knowledge/approach to the field)
• Quality of written proposals (clarity, logic, organization, grammar, etc.)
• Historical quality of presentations/evaluations (if applicable)

Final selections will consider presenter, institution type, target audience, and geographic location diversity. We anticipate making final selections by Monday, December 22, 2008 and notifying each lead presenter of the results by Monday, January 5, 2009.

Q&A Conference Calls

Conference staff will facilitate two conference calls during which potential presenters can ask questions about the Call for Proposals process:

• Thursday, November 20, 2008, 1:00-2:00pm PST
• Tuesday, December 2, 2008, 11:00am-noon PST

To join either of these calls, please dial 866-414-2828 and enter the participant code 350086.

Audiovisual Information

In these challenging economic times, we are making every effort to keep the Continuums of Service conference as accessible and affordable as possible for both presenters and attendees.

We have simplified the registration process by eliminating presenter charges for audiovisual equipment. This year – through donations and a collective community effort – we will provide each presenter with a flip chart, LCD projector, and screen free of charge. We are requesting that presenters provide their own laptops. If your proposal is accepted and you need additional AV, contact Angela.Mischaikov@wwu.edu for pricing and availability.

Registration Information

The registration deadline for selected presenters is Friday, February 13, 2009. Please note that a presenter discount will not be available this year in part to offset elimination of presenter charges for audiovisual equipment.

Directions for Proposal Submission

1. Review the conference theme and proposal criteria, found on the Continuums of Service conference webpage.

2. Complete this Proposal Submission Form. If you would like to propose more than one session, please complete a separate Proposal Submission Form for each session. Incomplete forms will not be reviewed.

3. Save your Proposal Submission Form in Microsoft Word using the lead presenter’s last name (e.g., Flint_Proposal.doc). If you are submitting more than one form, please number each (e.g., Flint_Proposal_1.doc, and Flint_Proposal_2.doc).

4. Submit your form electronically by clicking on the “Submit Proposal” button below, or email your proposal form as an attachment to COS.Proposal@wwu.edu. The deadline for submission is Tuesday, December 9, 2008 at 5:00pm (PST).