Volunteer
The WRRI conference needs many hands and helpers to make it a success. We’d love to have you involved. Please read about the volunteer opportunities below.
You may volunteer for more than one role, but please fill out the appropriate form at each individual link provided below. While we understand that unplanned situations arise, by completing a form, you are indicating your commitment to volunteering and attending the conference. All conference participants are required to register and pay any relevant registration fees.
Moderators
Who can moderate?
Open to all students and professionals, but students are highly encouraged.
When will this happen?
Either day of the conference. You can let us know if you only plan to attend one of the days and we’ll assign you accordingly. Moderators must be in person at the conference.
What’s this opportunity about?
Moderating is a low-stress and highly impactful way to contribute to the conference, and a great opportunity for students who have never moderated sessions before!
Moderators keep speakers in concurrent sessions on track by holding up time cards and changing out presentations between talks. You do not have to be an expert (or have any prior knowledge) on the subjects being presented during your session in order to be a successful moderator. You’ll also be responsible for helping to address technical glitches if they arise during your session – there are A/V techs at McKimmon who will help you with this task, but it’s the moderator’s job to contact them to come assist if needed.
WRRI hosts brief (10-minute) moderator orientation calls prior to the conference, so you know exactly what to expect. You can view the moderator guidelines if you would like more details.
Moderators will be able to indicate their top three topics of interest or expertise when they sign up and we will do our best to pair you with a session that matches your interests. Moderators will be assigned sessions based on their availability and the program needs.
Questions?
Email Kaitlin Tucker.
Poster Judges
Sign up to be a poster judge by March 11. Poster judges must be physically in person at the conference center on March 22.
Who can volunteer?
Open to recent graduates, post-docs, faculty and professionals. Sorry, no student judges!
When will judging happen?
You must be available, in-person at the conference, on Day 1 of the conference (March 22) and must be able to attend the evening reception (5-7 p.m.) to interact with students in order to serve as a judge.
What’s this opportunity about?
Poster judges are assigned 2-3 student posters (4 max) to review during the conference and at the evening poster reception. In-person communication with the student is part of the judging criteria. You will evaluate posters for things like content, organization and visual appeal, presentation and reasoning. You can preview sample poster judging criteria here.
You will not be assigned based on areas of expertise. This is intentional, as it is the job of an effective student poster presenter to speak to diverse audiences about her or his work in a clear manner. WRRI will ask you to identify conflicts of interest upon assignments to ensure you are not judging someone you’ve worked closely with.
Cash prizes go to first-, second-, and third-place and honorable-mention winners.