This year’s HMG Virtual Forum will feature many of the same elements offered in previous Forums – including Content (breakout) Sessions, Posters, and Networking Events – but in fresh, new, and virtual ways.
The National Center is looking to the National Affiliate Network and partners to showcase their early childhood system building efforts and bring powerful content to promote shared learning and highlight promising practices for the HMG community.
Present a Content Session
CONTENT SESSIONS
Call for Content Sessions is now closed.
Content Sessions will allow presenters to engage a targeted audience around a topic relevant to the Help Me Grow (HMG) Model, child health & development, and/or early childhood system building.
Content Sessions will be offered during several 75-minute periods throughout the virtual Forum and will be organized according to eight content areas:
1. Validating Help Me Grow’s impact model
2. Use of data to achieve community change
3. Advancing equity in early childhood systems
4. Accelerating Help Me Grow implementation
5. Strengthening an early childhood policy and advocacy agenda
6. Family/parent leader engagement
7. Novel partnerships and integration with other early childhood programs and services
8. Community response to COVID-19
Priority will be given to ensure a robust and balanced number of presentations across all themes, should a disproportionate number of proposals be submitted for any of the eight themes. Applicants are encouraged to share their approach to the session and interactive/discussion elements that are conducive to a fully virtual event. Applications are open to HMG affiliates and their state/local partners, as well as national partners.
Accepted Content Session presentations will require all presenters to register for the National Forum for (at least) the day of their presentation. Applicants can submit more than one Content Session proposal, and each will be reviewed by the Forum Planning Committee on level of anticipated interest and practical application.
Applicants will be notified of proposal decisions no later than mid-June.
Content Session Presenter Experience
75-minute Content Sessions will be offered throughout this year’s Forum, with multiple concurrent sessions, allowing attendees the opportunity to choose sessions that are of most interest to them.
Content Session presenters will host their session on the Forum’s virtual attendee hub, where where the audience will attend their presentation live. The audience will be in listen-only mode and will only have access to interact with the Content Session presenter using the Q&A and chat features.
Each Content Session presenter will be supported by a National Center staff member to moderate the Q&A during the last 15-minutes of the presentation and to help troubleshoot any technical challenges, should they arise. Presentation materials, a description of the session, and biographic information about each presenter will be uploaded to the event platform’s Content Session information page in advance of the session so that attendees can view this information prior to attending the presentation.
Lead a Topic-Based Networking Session
TOPIC-BASED NETWORKING
Applications to Facilitate a Topic-Based Networking Session due July 7, 2021
Networking with other system building and early childhood leaders has become an essential activity in the HMG Annual Forum agenda. As we transition to hosting a virtual event, networking and maintaining connection has remained of the upmost importance for the HMG National Affiliate Network. This year’s HMG Virtual Forum will offer a variety of networking opportunities for the HMG community to connect, including a Topic-Based Networking period where attendees will be able to select from different topics and join the conversation that interests them the most.
Topic-Based Networking Sessions are designed to bring affiliates together for facilitated networking discussions on a variety of relevant, engaging topics. Forum attendees interested in facilitating a structured Networking Session on a specific topic should submit an application through the link below with information about the topic, a brief description of its relevance to Help Me Grow efforts, and proposed discussion questions for attendees. Accepted Networking Sessions will require presenters to register for the virtual Forum for (at least) the day of the session. Applicants will be notified of their acceptance no later than early- August.
Apply Here
Topic-Based Networking Session Facilitator Experience
During the Virtual Forum, Topic-Based Networking facilitators will join a Zoom meeting room hosted on the Forum’s virtual attendee hub, where conference attendees can enter to engage in the discussion and connect with others who are interested in this topic area. During the live presentation, a facilitator and their visitors will be able to utilize the Zoom chat, Q &A, audio and visual capabilities to interact with one another. Presenters will receive guidance and resources in advance of the event on the technical features of their Zoom meeting room as well as 24/7 tech support from CVENT, Inc., should it be needed.
Present a Poster
POSTER SESSION
Applications to Present a Poster due July 7, 2021
Poster Presentations enable Help Me Grow (HMG) affiliates to showcase an area of their work relevant to the HMG Model. Posters often highlight affiliate innovations, engagement strategies for community partners and families and continuous quality improvement projects. Poster presentations are intended to be short in length and highlight high-level findings and strategies.
A virtual Poster Session will enable attendees to showcase progress, accomplishments, results and more from their early childhood system. “Posters” are PDF and PPT files displayed for presentations during a dedicated period in the agenda to allow Forum attendees to join, listen, ask questions, and learn from each other. Every HMG affiliate is encouraged to submit at least one poster and are welcome to include local partners; multiple poster submissions are allowed. While we expect to include all submitted posters as part of the virtual Forum, please complete an submission form to ensure that this information is included in the conference agenda.
Apply Here
Poster Presenter Experience
Presenters are welcome to design a poster in PDF format or create 3-5 PowerPoint slides (a mini-presentation). On day 3 of the Forum (September, 22, 2021), poster presenters will join a Zoom meeting hosted on the Forum’s virtual attendee hub from 11:00-11:45 AM EST, where attendees of the conference can enter to discuss the posters.
During the live presentation, a presenter and their visitors will be able to utilize the Zoom chat, Q&A, and audio & visual capabilities to interact with one another. Presenters will receive guidance and resources in advance of the event on the technical features of their Zoom room as well as 24/7 tech support from CVENT, Inc., should it be needed.
In addition to the 45-minute poster presentation session on day 3 of the Forum, poster materials will also be made available for viewing throughout the duration of the four-day HMG Forum on the Poster Session tab of the Forum’s virtual attendee hub.
Virtual Forum Platform Features
Forum’s Virtual Attendee Hub: Audience will be in listen only mode, cameras off, audio muted, and can only interact with presenters through the Q/A and Chat features of live attendee hub.
Zoom Meeting: Audience will have the option for video and audio sharing available to them if they wish to utilize and can interact with presenters in a variety of ways. Audience members will be able to utilize the chat function, reactions, breakout sessions, and simply talk and virtually engage with the presenters and other attendees.
Ways to Contribute to the HMG National Virtual Forum in downloadable format here