|
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
USM Conference Planners
Win Top International Prize
April 15, 2004
The University of Southern Maine's Department of Conferences has won
the nation's top award for conference planning and management for its
coordination of the 2003 International Conference on the History of
Cartography, co-sponsored by USM's Osher Map Library and the Harvard
Map Collection. It was held June 2003, in Cambridge, Mass., and in
Portland.
The Outstanding Institutional Achievement Award for 2003, presented
to USM by the Association for Collegiate Conference and Event
Directors International, cited the conference organizers' expertise
in coordinating multiple conference locales, developing effective
electronic registration, and providing detailed assistance in housing
and travel information for a largely international audience.
“We are so grateful for this recognition,” said USM Director of
Conferences Elizabeth Morin. "It says that we're setting the pace for
how conference operations are being run in a worldwide arena." The
USM Department of Conference plans nearly 20 major conferences
annually.
Morin noted that USM's limited on-campus conference facilities have
prompted planners to be resourceful in developing a wide network of
off-site contacts. “Ultimately, that has been our strength,” she
said. “We have developed expertise in working with hotels, meeting
sites, transportation and food services, all of which came into play
during this conference.”
The construction of the new Abromson Community Education Center at
USM -- due to be completed next year -- will add meeting spaces,
conference rooms and a 500-seat auditorium to the Portland campus,
allowing conference planners to bring more conferences in-house. "It
will be a tremendous resource for the whole community," said Morin.
The Association for Collegiate Conference and Event Directors
International, established in 1980, is a leading professional
association for college conference directors and professionals. See more information
on the USM
Conference's award.
For more information, contact USM Director of Conferences
Elizabeth Morin, ph. 780-5960; e-mail: eamorin@usm.maine.edu
|
