Coordinating the Spring Fling
January - Select at least two coordinators.
February - Set a date for the event in active consultation with Food Services (preferably keeping Facilities and Sound in the loop). Encourage folks to start thinking about the Lip Sync Contest (LSC). Preferably delegating the LSC to a co-coordinator.
March - Begin more serious planning.
- The timing of the events
- Searching for a band
- The menu
- Consultations with facilities
- What other games are being planned
- What publicity
- Prizes
- Science store
- Bad weather plans (reserve rooms you might need to use)
- Judges for the LSC
Discuss your plans openly with the EAC so there is sufficient support for your ideas. And time to change the plans that are discouraged.
April - Finalize plans and begin execution
Create a clear timeline for the event. Here's a sample.
2:00 - setup
3:00 - folks arrive and kegs are tapped
3:30 - LSC
4:30 - Band plays
5:00 - Winners are announced
7:00 - Everybody goes home
Show EVERYBODY your timeline and make sure Food Service, Sound, and Facilities concur with it. It was a good idea to hold a meeting with Food Service, Sound, Traffic, and Facilities. Here's what needs to be discussed at the meeting:
- Locations of different activities (e.g. Where's the LSC going to be? The bar? The buffet line?)
- How many tables will be needed and where should they be set up?
- What are the logistical needs of the LSC? Sound setup? Will the music be all on CD or what? Changing screens for behind the stage? Special props?
- Chair setup for the LSC. How many chairs? Around 200
- Outdoor sports? Volleyball or horseshoes? Are the facilities maintained?
- Bad weather contingencies
- Electrical power needs for the band and where they will setup
- Do any areas of the parking lot need to be blocked off? Will there be any weird or dangerous traffic patterns created?
- Request a moratorium on pesticide/herbicide spraying for the two weeks prior to the event.
Begin publicity. Make flyers that are CONSISTENT with the timeline everybody has agreed to. Post them in all the buildings (including JEFFCO). Three weeks prior to the event is sufficient. Begin sending occasional announcements or teasers via TW.
Decide for sure:
- Who the LSC judges will be and their authority
- What prizes will be needed and acquire them
- What equipment is desired (i.e. horseshoes, volleyball, chalk art)?
- Find an MC for the LSC
- Have all the LSC acts lined up
- Videographer and/or photographer
Get a contract drawn up by Finance for the band to sign. Get the signed copy back to finance so a check can be prepared to give to the band at the gig.
May - Allocate volunteer assignments to the EAC. Possibly decide on some sort of uniform to identify each other (e.g. tie-dye or hats).
In the week before, make daily announcements via TW. Begin strenuously praying for good weather.
On the day of the event, your role is to make sure people are doing what they're supposed to be doing. Make sure the band is set up in the right place at the right volume. Make sure Food Service is happy. Coordinate the judges and plan an entrance for them with the MC of the LSC. Make sure the other activities are set up.
Enjoy the party!
Cleanup - stick around and collect lost & found articles. Make sure all the LSC props are collected. Make sure the sports equipment is secured.
Go home and bask in the glory of a great service to NCAR.