MAI Development Page

MAI Development Page:

This page is an effort to consolidate knowledge on how to plan and execute MAI. We have found the use of Google docs, particularly forms, to be invaluable in registration and execution of this program.

Please add your ideas to this website so that we can preserve and improve this institution.

Click here to find out about MAI Vision, Mission, and History.

Event Summary:

Friday:
Check in and art gallery set up - have a signed, secured area for bags
Critique
Dinner - provide vegetarian & gluten free options
Workshop #1
Whole Group Ice Breaker Activity
Bed - turn off the lights at 11PM

Saturday:
Wake Up - turn on gym lights at 6AM
Breakfast - provide vegetarian & gluten free options
Workshop #2 - selected by student
Workshop #3 - selected by student
Lunch - provide vegetarian & gluten free options
Workshop #4 - selected by student
Closing - have everyone on the road by 3PM

Timeline:

Here is a general checklist:

Spring Before: Begin general planning. Set up a working group (we met once a month the following academic year). Set a date (usually the third week in April to avoid most other spring activities). Check the MHSA website for events from sports to music festivals to minimize conflict. If desired, send the proposed dates to MAEA list serve via the president to vet the date for spring breaks.

Seek grant funding and community partners.

Summer through September: Start getting 25-30 Artists to commit to the date and workshops (these will be used in the development of your registration). Get facility requests completed. (Sleeping, working, eating). Plan spaces to sleep next to bathrooms to limit movement at night. Monitor state legislation, however honor gender identification as possible. Develop promo materials.

Oct: Provide promotional material for distribution at the state teacher conference and post information on the MAEA website. Solidify Artists. Work on food pricing.

Nov: Develop a schedule of events. Have artist facilitators fill out a Google Form providing a title, description, and image to go with their workshop offering. Link a spreadsheet in the Google Form for facilitators to list the supplies they will need purchased for their workshop. Wait to order until you know the number of actual registrants. Try to align workshops so each media/activity has coverage through the day.

Dec: Use the artist/facilitator Google Form to generate a list of workshop choices.  Get your website, and chaperone/student Google Forms started. Send an email reminder of the event dates to the MAEA president so they can send it out via the MAEA mist serve.

Jan: Solidify your Registration Form (separate registration for students and adults) and post it on the MAEA website. Launch website and registration form. Google Forms work great. Send regular emails to the MAEA president to distribute. Set Deadlines for Registration and Money (it is suggested to close registration four weeks prior event for scheduling, catering numbers, and ordering of supplies). Send reminders to teachers. Check on Artists.

Feb/Two Month Before Event: Print t-shirt for participants, if you are doing shirts.

Month Before Event: Close registration and send confirmation lists of students to chaperones. Don't start sorting students yet. Inevitably you will have to open a late registration, but keep the deadline tight. Assign someone to invoice schools and handle transaction records.

Month Leading to the Event: Once you have a final deadline you can export data from the registration Google Forms into a spreadsheet and manipulate the information from there to generate invoices for schools, assign students to workshops, etc. For popular workshops use the time stamp to provide a first come first serve approach. Make sure students get an alternate of their choice if they don't get in a top choice. It is suggested to have Friday night critique groups heterogenous so students meet new people. You can organize the list by school and then just number off for Friday nights activities. Try to balance class sizes throughout the day. Communicate with facilitators on the number of workshops that filled, the times they will be offered, and how many students are in each group. Please note this is a great time to see if there will be room for chaperone workshops.  Amass supplies based in registration. Don't forget to order name badge materials and any other things you may need for the general sessions. Plan the Friday night activities. Seek volunteers to support if you are shy chaperones in sleeping quarters. Ideally you will have a 5 students to 1 chaperone ratio or better.

Two Weeks Prior: Do a second confirmation of participants with teachers and print name tags that include assigned workshops, ice breaker/critique groupings, school, chaperone name, and sleeping preference. Print rosters for chaperones with workshop lists. Print rosters and name tags for presenters. Pack presenter packets and chaperone/school bags. Bags will include map, roster, and name tags for the whole group. Presenter packets will include rosters, name badge, and W-9 with attached invoice if you are paying them an honorarium. Send a Google Form to generate name tags for works of art. Make sure to ask the size and if they are 3-D so you can plan appropriately. For students who do not fill out the Google Form for their artwork just indicate "Untitled" and print a tag. Most people indicated they appreciated the inclusion of preferred pronouns and names. Communicate, communicate, communicate! Plan out responsibilities for all team members.

The EVENT Weekend: Have a runner to photo document activities and support presenters. Have someone assigned to handle attendance concerns. The weekend is crazy. Breath deep. Have support to help clean up and collect presenter packets, etc.

Month After Event: Evaluate your event. Send Feedback Forms to chaperones, facilitators, and students. Provide observations to the next chair for consideration.

Administrative Set up:

Having support to spread the workload is ideal. Suggested areas of managements are admin, logistics, operations, and command/ control. You really need at least one person who is comfortable with spreadsheets and data so they can sort registrants, assign classes, print name tags, rosters, etc. There is a ton of data sorting.

Keep diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion in the forefront of your mind when planning.

Workshop presenters appreciate an honorarium, if you can afford it. Make it an option to receive or not on their form. Exclude this option if you don't think you will have the money to cover the honorariums.

Working together at monthly meetings to develop tasks to be completed by the next meeting helps keep everyone on task and details from being dropped.

The more organized you are, the less stress you will have at the event. Having good communication with artists, chaperones, and team members before, during, and after the event will hopefully prevent some last minute mayhem.

Collect cell phone numbers from everyone. Have chaperones register too.

Sign post everything. Schedules, Workshops, Maps, Contact info, etc. Have a central location/tent set up for coordination.

Provide chaperones with a roster of their students and their locations in their registration packet as well as a map with locations marked for workshops.

Print name badges for chaperones and presenters too.

Chaperone opportunities for workshops is appreciated, if feasible. If they are taught by a master instructor you can contact the leadership of MAEA to offer OPI renewal units.

Advice:

Here is an assortment of key points:

Kids want to make! Try to make sure your artists know this. (Also good for ice breaker).

Plan a place for students to store their projects throughout the day Saturday.

Food is expensive....but likely to be the thing that makes your event great. Its hard to find the balance. You will need to provide the Friday night dinner as well as Saturday breakfast and lunch. Gluten free and vegetarian options should be offered.

Artists will flake out on you. Make sure you have backups. It isn't bad to have chaperones indicate workshops they could sub for in a pinch.

COMMUNICATE, COMMUNICATE, COMMUNICATE! Make sure chaperones and artists are hearing from you.

Test your Registration form and make a separate one for adults/chaperones. Include:

student name
student preferred pronouns
student preferred sleeping arrangements (he/she/they)
student email
student emergency contact
student school
student chaperone
student chaperone email
selection for Saturday workshops - have them select five in order of preference; they will be assigned three

Classes should cap at 15. Most MAI events will draw 150-250 students. Be prepared.

Fees should be no lower than $45. In 2023 catering alone was $30 per student. Without grants the event would have lost money or had to request a larger registration fee. Registration in 2023 was $55 per student and $20 per chaperone.