Call for Speaker Proposals
Special Districts Association of Oregon (SDAO) is actively seeking speaker proposals for its 2025 annual conference. The conference will take place February 6-9, 2025 at Riverhouse on the Deschutes in Bend, Oregon. All proposals will be reviewed by the SDAO Conference & Education Committee.
About SDAO and the SDAO Annual Conference
SDAO was formed in 1979 to give special districts a stronger and united voice at the Oregon Legislature. SDAO provides advocacy with state administrative agencies and other units of government, training, information resources, and other support programs. Membership has grown to over 950 local government members.
The anticipated number of attendees for the 2025 conference is 400-500. There will be representation from a wide variety of district types (there are over 30 total district types in Oregon) with board members, management staff, staff, and volunteers attending.
CATEGORIES FOR PROPOSALS
Keynote Speaker: The conference keynote speaker will deliver a message to the conference attendees on Friday, February 7th at 8:45am. This will last one hour to one hour and fifteen minutes in length. For 2025, we are looking for a speaker to speak on the topic of cybersecurity.
Pre-Conference Sessions: Pre-conference sessions will be held for a half day (three to three and half hours) or full day (six to seven hours) on Thursday, February 6th. Examples of past session topics include board training, risk management, and grant writing.
Breakout Sessions: Breakout sessions are 75 or 90 minutes in length and will be held on Friday, February 7th and Saturday, February 8th. Session topics should align with one of four categories: board member development, human resources/legal, risk management, or miscellaneous.
Proposals for pre-conference and breakout sessions are encouraged, but not required, to address a topic in our SDAO Academy, Board Leadership Academy, or Fire District Directors Academy (please review these for curriculum).
SPEAKER PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS
- Brief overview of your presentation, including at least three learning objectives.
- Brief speaker biography including professional background and speaking experience.
- Preferences for day and time to present. Requests cannot be guaranteed but are helpful when scheduling.
- Any other requirements such as speaking fee, travel/transportation needs, etc.
SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS & DEADLINES
Please submit your proposal by August 1, 2024 for consideration. Our committee will begin reviewing proposals in August. Speakers will be selected and confirmed by October 1, 2024, at the latest.
Please email your speaker proposal to both: Jennifer Quisenberry and Kaylie Bahnsen
SPEAKER SELECTION
SDAO staff will review all proposals. Final decisions will be made by the SDAO Conference & Education Committee. Proposals from organizations listed in our Vendor Solutions Network (online vendor directory) will get first priority for proposal review. If you would like to join the Vendor Solutions Network, please contact Jennifer Quisenberry.
MORE INFORMATION
If you have questions, please contact:
Jennifer Quisenberry
Director of Association Services