Student employees are at the heart of successful conference and event operations—but recruiting, training, and developing them effectively continues to evolve. This three-part education series brings together award-winning ideas and real-world strategies to help you rethink your approach from start to finish.
Explore how to design training that actually resonates with today’s students, build a high-performing summer conference team, and create meaningful, internship-level experiences that develop future leaders. Whether you’re refining your current model or starting fresh, you’ll walk away with practical tools, new perspectives, and actionable ideas you can implement right away.
Session Information
What Do You Meme Training Isn’t Working?
Monday, April 13th: 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM PDT / 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM MDT / 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM CDT / 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM EDT
Presented by: Hilary Brenneman, CCEP, Assistant Director for Conference Services, and Joel Hoversten, Cheyenne Arapaho Hall Director, University of Colorado Boulder
Recipient of the “Session of the Year” Award, join us for an update on this popular session. As our student populations change, so does the effectiveness of our student staff training. Using research about the Gen Z generation, we will talk about what works and what maybe doesn’t and how to effectively recreate a training design with high levels of engagement and retention.
Learning Objectives:
Monday, April 13th: 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM PDT / 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM MDT / 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM CDT / 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM EDT
Presented by: Hilary Brenneman, CCEP, Assistant Director for Conference Services, and Joel Hoversten, Cheyenne Arapaho Hall Director, University of Colorado Boulder
Recipient of the “Session of the Year” Award, join us for an update on this popular session. As our student populations change, so does the effectiveness of our student staff training. Using research about the Gen Z generation, we will talk about what works and what maybe doesn’t and how to effectively recreate a training design with high levels of engagement and retention.
Learning Objectives:
- Learn basic characteristics of Generation Z and how those characteristics impact potential student employees
- Gain implementable ideas for training that include both hands-on and digital formats as well as group and on-own learning experiences
- Learn assessment options for measuring student understanding, retention, and satisfaction
Hiring the Summer Dream Team - Revolutionizing Your Summer Conference Staff
Wednesday, April 15th: 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM PDT / 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM MDT / 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM CDT / 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM EDT
Presented by: Brandy Daniels, Associate Director, East Carolina University; Olivia Sachtleben, Assistant Director, North Carolina State University; and Joshua Ingebretson, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
This program is geared towards professionals whose major responsibility is to provide conference and events services at their educational organizations. We will discuss how institutions approach recruiting, hiring, training, and retaining students to work with summer camps & conferences. We’ll also elaborate on benefits and concerns with hiring hourly employees opposed to hiring employees that live on-campus. How do you determine what’s best for your institution?
Learning Objectives:
Wednesday, April 15th: 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM PDT / 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM MDT / 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM CDT / 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM EDT
Presented by: Brandy Daniels, Associate Director, East Carolina University; Olivia Sachtleben, Assistant Director, North Carolina State University; and Joshua Ingebretson, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
This program is geared towards professionals whose major responsibility is to provide conference and events services at their educational organizations. We will discuss how institutions approach recruiting, hiring, training, and retaining students to work with summer camps & conferences. We’ll also elaborate on benefits and concerns with hiring hourly employees opposed to hiring employees that live on-campus. How do you determine what’s best for your institution?
Learning Objectives:
- Describe the similarities and differences between flat/stipend rate summer employees & hourly employees
- Discover different hiring processes and timelines for summer camps & conferences employees
- Discuss provided benefits student employees receive for working conferences at your institution
Taking Student Workers to the Next Level
Friday, April 17th: 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM PDT / 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM MDT / 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM CDT / 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM EDT
Presented by: Jody Bryant, Associate Vice President, Anderson University
Internships matter more than ever on today’s résumés. This session will help supervisors create a win-win game plan that elevates student workers into meaningful internship-level experiences. Learn how to structure roles that allow students to contribute to your department and the university at a higher level while gaining valuable experience.
Learning Objectives:
Friday, April 17th: 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM PDT / 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM MDT / 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM CDT / 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM EDT
Presented by: Jody Bryant, Associate Vice President, Anderson University
Internships matter more than ever on today’s résumés. This session will help supervisors create a win-win game plan that elevates student workers into meaningful internship-level experiences. Learn how to structure roles that allow students to contribute to your department and the university at a higher level while gaining valuable experience.
Learning Objectives:
- Identify gaps or needs in current operation where a student intern could assist
- Explore how to increase responsibility and opportunity for strong performers while preserving morale, fairness, and collaboration across your student staff
- Create internship positions that will be appealing for stand out workers and leaders, regardless of long-term interest in the field of events