One of the cornerstones of IMPACT is hosting our conference at a different campus each year. Becoming a host campus allows you to create authentic, grassroots partnerships with the IMPACT Conference, our nationwide (and sometimes global!) attendees, and community members that participate in the event. We are always looking for new campus partners that align with our mission and values.
After two years of virtual conferences, we returned to University of Massachusetts Amherst for the 2023 conference and to Stephen F. Austin State University, a member of The University of Texas System, in 2024. Prior to 2021, the conference was most recently hosted by ChangeMaker Central at Arizona State University, and Madison House at University of Virginia.
Why host the IMPACT Conference?
- Hosting IMPACT raises your school’s service program profile – within the local community, state and region; with other colleges and universities throughout the nation; and among the dozens of national and regional nonprofit organizations that also participate in the conference.
- Hosting IMPACT at your school not only helps advance the field of community service, service-learning, and civic engagement, but it brings a wide variety of growth and professional development opportunities for staff and students.
- Hosting provides the opportunity for a large number of your students, staff, and faculty to attend the conference for a discounted fee.
- Host campus students are encouraged to join the planning committee, and they gain valuable leadership skills and experiences.
- Hosting the conference helps raise the visibility of your school’s community service, service-learning, and civic engagement programs both among the hundreds of attendees from across the country and with your university’s senior leadership.
- The college/university president or other senior official has the opportunity to welcome and address the conference participants. The process of preparing the president’s remarks often serves to deepen the president’s understanding and appreciation of civic engagement and service-learning at your institution.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the time commitment for hosting the IMPACT Conference?
Once your application has been accepted and dates have been set for the conference, the majority of the planning will fall on the shoulders of our Planning Committee (16-20 members) and Board (17 members). We will require a main point of contact who can help connect our team to the relevant campus contact(s) related to different aspects of planning (facilities, catering, connecting to campus and community partners, etc). During the Fall semester you can expect 1-4 hours of calls a month to assist the planning committee. In the Spring semester leading up to the conference, you can expect 3-6 hours of calls a month.
How much will it cost my institution to host the IMPACT Conference?
The conference should not cost your institution anything. IMPACT covers the cost of all aspects of the conference, as will be outlined in your proposal. Any costs incurred by your office or department are completely optional.
What can I expect from the application process?
The application process has three phases.
- Phase 1: You’ll complete our Phase 1 – FY25 IMPACT Host Campus Application. This allows IMPACT and your organization to review the top level requirements before building the proposal.
- Phase 2: We all think you’d be a great host campus! Next, you’ll be invited to create and submit a more in-depth proposal that includes full costs and logistics (this is posted an example but is not the final version, as we are updating the Phase 2 template). IMPACT will use this information to determine if your campus is aligned with both our values and logistics needs to host the conference.
- Phase 3: Your proposal has been accepted! Now, we sign an MOU and lock in dates for the conference. Planning can officially begin now!
How to Submit Your Institution as a Potential Future Host of the IMPACT Conference
If you are interested in your institution hosting a future IMPACT conference, we first ask that you review our checklist of basic requirements for a host campus. Once you have confirmed that you can accommodate the event and have sent your completed Phase 1 form to boardchair@impactconference.org, we will review and be in touch regarding next steps.
We find that it’s usually very helpful to be engaged in conversation with us throughout the process of considering whether to apply. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact boardchair@impactconference.org.