Caring for the Caregivers at NAACL 2019

To foster inclusion of caregivers and families at NAACL, the Diversity and Inclusion Committee has embarked on several initiatives to provide support for conference attendees who are balancing professional and family commitments. We recognize that different families have different childcare needs. This year, you can apply for a subsidy from NAACL to offset the additional childcare costs associated with bringing your children with you or with being away from home overnight. The subsidy can be used to compensate a self-arranged childcare provider at the conference or at home, or to defray the cost of a plane ticket for your children or caregiver to accompany you to the conference.

You can request a subsidy by responding to question 10 on the NAACL 2019 ​Special Requests Form​. If you are presenting at the conference and your schedule is complicated by your own childcare duties (e.g., naptime, meals), please use question 12 to tell the organizers about your time constraints.

To help you connect with other families at the conference, we are creating a mailing list for attendees who indicate during ​registration​ that they might bring children to NAACL. (If you have already registered but would like to be added to the list, please ​let us know​.) You will also be invited to participate in a virtual discussion space before and during the conference.

The conference will provide rooms for nursing and for spending time with your children, and you can bring your children at no cost to the Welcome Reception where there will be a Kidz Corner. You will also have the chance to participate in conversations and mentoring on work-life balance with members of the D&I Committee. More details will be shared on the email list and in the virtual discussion space.

Here are some links to explore as you plan your visit:

• Local childcare provider service recommended by the conference hotel: www.urbansitter.com​. We have no experience in using this service and only recommend it as a potential option you can explore.
• Local family activities: ​www.minneapolis.org/things-to-do/family/

Your questions, suggestions, or comments are warmly welcomed. Please feel free to contact the Diversity and Inclusion committee. We are all looking forward to helping you and your family enjoy NAACL 2019!