At AL1GN we believe the best way to support students is to listen to them. Each year, several faculty, staff, administrators, and representatives from organizations like research institutions and non-profits choose to attend AL1GN to do just that.
AL1GN gives faculty, staff and admin a clear view of just how much first-generation and low-income students can accomplish. Most of our organizers begin conference planning with no prior experience and leave feeling confident in their abilities to plan, organize, negotiate, and troubleshoot. Due to its size and impact, many attendees are surprised when they learn the conference is student-led.
What is an ally?
An ally is a friend who supports and protects you. If you’re not a first-generation or low-income student, but still believe that higher education should be attainable for all – then we want you in our AL1GN family! We hope you’ll join us by attending a conference and learning more about what you can do to support FGLI students.
Is there faculty/staff/administrator-specific programming at AL1GN?
Because our main goal is to support undergraduate students, in the past few years our organizers have not created separate programming for different attendee populations. While some of our sessions may be more applicable to professionals working in higher ed (such as research-focused presentations, certain keynotes, etc), we believe that it’s also important for our professional attendees and our students to meet and interact. AL1GN gives professionals the opportunity to hear directly from students about issues that are important to them, and we believe that’s one of our conference’s most valuable aspects.
Who from my institution should attend AL1GN?
Anyone and everyone! We’ve hosted staff and administrators affiliated with offices like First Year Experience (FYE), New Student Transitions, TRiO Student Support Services (SSS), Lifelong Learning, and First-in-Family – among others. Members of non-profits and other organizations have also attended or presented at AL1GN, such as representatives from FirstGenerationCollegeStudents.Org and NASPA’s Center for First-Generation Student Success. Anyone looking to learn more about the barriers to inclusion for FGLI students and novel strategies to empower students can benefit from AL1GN.
When is AL1GN and how do I attend?
AL1GN is generally hosted in the Spring over the course of a weekend (Friday-Sunday). You can stay updated on the exact date and location of the next conference by following us on Facebook or Twitter. Admission to the conference is free. Professional attendees generally request for their institution or organization to cover the cost of transportation and lodging in the host city.
P.S. – bring your students with you!
Interested in supervising a team of undergraduate organizers?
Organizing a conference is hard work and you’re probably wondering how you can fit such a commitment into your already busy schedule. At AL1GN we give our undergraduate organizers significant autonomy to design a conference that they’re proud of and that will accomplish the goals they have for their institution (ie. cultivate community, encourage self-identification, etc). We expect our faculty/staff/admin supervisor to do the same.
Undergraduate organizers are passionate and resourceful – they generally don’t need much supervision. However, we know they can’t do it all alone. Most organizers need assistance navigating institutional bureaucracy, securing funding through institutional grants or in-kind donations, and considering programming options based on available research. Supervisors should be employed by the home institution and have significant knowledge of its organization.
al1gnconference.com 