SSS 2023 is One Week Away- Here is Everything You Need To Know

Subject: SSS 2023 is One Week Away – Here is Everything You Need To Know

To: Everyone

From: David L. Brunsma, SSS Executive Officer and Lyla Byers, SSS Assistant Executive Officer

How amazing that in just one week we will be gathering in Myrtle Beach, SC for President Earl Wright II’s amazing program: “I Will Find A Way or Make One”: Embracing and Advancing the American South’s Tradition of Sociological Innovation and Scholar-Activism.

This email contains the basics that everyone should know as we all make our final preparations for SSS 2023. 

This email contains information on:

·  The SSS 2023 Mobile App

·  Pre- and OnSite Registration

·  OnSite Accommodations at SSS 2023

·  COVID Precautions and Protocols

·  Presenting, Presiding, and Posters

·  And more!

Mobile App

Everyone should download the mobile app (Whova) for SSS 2023. In addition to the PDF of the Final Program, the mobile app is the best way to navigate the annual meeting. 

  • You can download the Whova app directly on your phone or access the information through a web browser. 
  • Sign up for Whova to join the event. If you aren’t automatically taken to the SSS 2023 page through the links above, search for “SSS 2023,” click on “join” at the bottom of the event description page.
  • Create your profile and begin connecting with others at SSS 2023 through the Community tab. This tab is also where you can start conversations and create/join meet-ups.
  • We will use #SSS2023 to share all things SSS 2023 on the app and social media platforms.
  • There is an easily searchable and complete agenda that can be filtered by day. You can also build your own personalized schedule.
  • The Executive Office will also send out push notifications throughout the meeting for key events and updates.
  • Behavior on the SSS 2023 Mobile App is also covered by the SSS Anti-Harassment Policy.

Pre Registration and Onsite Registration

  • Pre Registration and Onsite Registration will both be located in the “Hall of Fame” area of the Sheraton Myrtle Beach
  • If you have paid both your membership dues AND conference registration fees on or before March 27th, 2023 you should visit the Pre-Registration desk to pick up your conference materials. To check the status of your dues and fees, visit http: join.southernsociologicalsociety.org
  • If you need to pay either your dues and/or fees on-site, visit the OnSite registration table. We accept card, check, and cash. (At this time we are unable to process AMEX or Discover cards)
  • All attendees registering OnSite must have either already uploaded a COVID-19 vaccination card and/or proof of COVID-19 vaccination during online registration (we have communicated with those who have not) and/or bring theirs to the registration desks, sign a COVID Liability Waiver, and agree to adhere to the SSS Anti-Harassment policy
  • Each attendee with a paid membership and registration will receive a name tag and a lanyard that will be required for access to event spaces
  • Please note that per SSS Policy: All conference participants listed in the annual program are required to be current dues-paying members and each author must register for the conference by paying conference fees. To check the status of your registration or to renew your membership/pay dues, you may visit https://www.meetingsavvy.org/sss/frmLogin.aspx to check your SSS Member Portal (accessed via your email).

On-Site Accommodations 

  • Lactation Space (Room 209)
  • Gender Neutral Bathrooms (central to our conference, atop the escalator)
  • Safe Space/Low Stimulation Room (Room 207)
  • Community Space (Ballroom A)
  • Coffee and Tea (Registration Area)
  • Free WiFi in all Sheraton Myrtle Beach conference space
  • Organization and Publisher Exhibitions
  • Keep an eye out for all the book signings going on throughout the conference
  • See program for dates, times, and availability for each accommodation. This list can also be found on our mobile app!

COVID Precautions and Procedures

SSS 2023 was designed with the ongoing pandemic in mind as we work to have a safe in-person academic conference.

  • All registered attendees of SSS 2023 must be vaccinated against COVID-19. Those registering Onsite must have a COVID-19 vaccination card
  • All registered attendees of SSS 2023 must wear a mask at all times in the hotel/conference spaces. Those actively presenting are encouraged to do so. SSS will provide each attendee with a KN95 mask at registration.
  • If a session has no available chairs, that session will be closed to more people
  • Members can use a red, yellow, or green sticker affixed to their name tag to indicate their individual comfort with social distancing during interactions. 
  • See the Mobile App for more information

Presentations, Posters, Presiding, Oh My

  • Both presenters and presiders will be receiving communications about those responsibilities – please check your email records (and spam!) later this week, here are some basics…
  • Presiders please ensure that you have communicated to those in your session and familiarize yourself with the role. Communicate the time that each person will have for their presentation and ensure that someone will bring a laptop. When there, make sure to keep time and leave time for Q&A
  • Breakout rooms will be equipped with a projector and a screen but not a laptop. Presiders should have communicated with presenters to ensure that ONE laptop is at each and every session. Some larger rooms will have a small PA for audio.
  • The projectors owned by SSS have HDMI and VGA cords. Due to the wide variety of laptops and required connections, SSS does not own converters. Whichever laptop is being used for the session, make sure to have a converter from whatever output the laptop has to HDMI (or VGA).
  • Note that the Sheraton rooms WILL have WiFi (see access info above and on the Mobile App)
  • Presenters should plan on having their presentations on USB drives and/or send them to the Presider (if directed to do so by the Presider) beforehand. 
  • As a reminder, all attendees, and, thus, all presenters, will be vaccinated and masked. Those actively presenting are encouraged to wear a mask. 
  • Once all chairs in a room are filled, there will be no more individuals allowed in the session room (i.e., there will be no standing or sitting on the floor).
  • Each room will have a sheet of A/V equipment troubleshooting along with contact information for our A/V Coordinator, Anne Patrick.
  • For those in Poster sessions, SSS has easels and 30” x 40” foam boards along with binder clips for presenters to affix their Posters. Please take your poster with you after your session.

Parking

If you need parking while at SSS 2023, parking is free for those staying at the conference hotel – you should park in the attached parking garage. For those not staying at the conference hotel, please park at the Convention Center (the lot behind the Center) at $5.00/day, per car.

On-site Dissertation Research

SSS Executive Committee approved an exciting data collection effort onsite this year! Virginia Tech PhD Candidate Whitney Hayes will be conducting data collection for her dissertation titled “Identity, Networks, and Meanings,” which will use identity theory to explore people’s networks and how they see themselves. Participation involves taking a series of short surveys throughout the conference and respondents will be compensated with a $20 online gift card. Please be sure to stop by her survey table near the Pre-Registration desk to learn more.

Our Collective Responsibility at SSS 2023

At SSS 2022 all members will adhere to the COVID protocols [ hyperlink] and Anti-Harassment policy [ hyperlink]. Please respect all COVID protocols while participating in SSS 2023 events. And, as a reminder, our annual meeting is convened for the purposes of professional development and scholarly educational interchange in the spirit of free inquiry and free expression. Harassment of colleagues, students, hotel staff or other conference participants undermines the principle of equity at the heart of these professional fora and is inconsistent with the principles of free inquiry and free expression. Consequently, harassment is considered by SSS to be a serious form of professional misconduct.

We hope you will thoroughly enjoy SSS 2023, President Wright II’s theme, Anita Bledsoe-Gardner and DeMond Miller’s Program Committee’s all-encompassing program of sessions and events, the Local Arrangement Committee’s advice on engaging with all things Myrtle Beach, and Vice President Brown’s Honors Convocation and slate of SSS candidates (you can meet some of them at the Welcome Reception, the Student Mixer, and other spaces – look for their buttons), and, a variety of new and traditional elements as we come together for the 86th time at SSS 2023!

We are very excited!

Stop by and say hello.

Sincerely,

David L. Brunsma, SSS Executive Officer

Lyla Byers, SSS Assistant Executive Officer