What is the status of the PIO Conference in 2020?
Why is the conference held in St. George?
Can the Association block out more hotel rooms for the conference?
Can we move the conference to a different location?
Is it possible to move the date of the conference?
Is it possible to change the temperature in the meeting rooms?
Can we move to a bigger venue?
Is it possible to open conference registration sooner?
Can we get a copy of the PowerPoints and handouts used during the conference?
What if I have dietary needs?
Can we get the media panel back?
Can I get a recorded copy of the conference?
Why is the annual conference held in St. George?
The main reason the conference is held in St. George is to allow PIOs the time to attend the PIO Conference and not be pulled away for work or other reasons. The Utah PIO Association Board spends a lot of time and money scheduling the presenters and the workshops to ensure the presentations are beneficial to all PIOs. Holding the conference at the same venue year after year provides financial savings to the association. St. George has the added benefit of having a new, regional airport that allows us to fly presenters directly to our location.
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Can the association block more rooms for attendees? The hotel didn’t have any rooms left when I tried to book.
We can only block a specific number of rooms for attendees. There are other groups that block rooms during that same week and have seniority. We do offer a block of rooms at the Hampton Inn, a block away, and TownPlace Suites next door to the hotel venue. The association can get more hotels if needed. If you can’t get a room within one of the blocks then let Patrice know.
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Can we move the conference to a different location?
If we move the conference closer to Salt Lake City, we risk losing attendees. Typically, home agencies will call PIOs to come back to work. If we leave the current hotel venue in St. George, we wouldn’t be able to get this venue back. The hotel venue has a waiting list of people wanting our spot.
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Is it possible to move the date of the conference?
The PIO conference is held at the end of September for a few reasons. First, September is the last Utah PIO Association meeting of the year. This is when we recap incidents that took place throughout the year and honor those PIOs who went above and beyond. Second, moving the conference conflicts with other trainings and conferences taking place throughout the year. Third, if we move the date of the conference we may not be able to use the same conference venue.
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Is it possible to change the temperature in the conference hotel?
Yes, if the conference rooms are too cold, please let Patrice know and she can adjust the temperature. We encourage all participants to bring a sweater or light jacket with them to the conference. Temperatures in the rooms may be slightly cool to adjust for the St. George heat.
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The location seems limiting. Can we move the location to accommodate more PIOs?
This location can accommodate 250 people. The past years’ attendance:
2015 – 179 attendees
2016 – 172 attendees
2017 – 188 attendees
2018 – 227 attendees
2019 – 209 attendees
2020 – cancelled due to COVID-19
2021 – 199 attendees
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Is it possible to open conference registration Sooner?
Due to fiscal year closeout, we are unable to open registration sooner. We will try to have it open after July 1. Hotel registration is opened usually by December if not before.
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Can we get a copy of the PowerPoints and handouts used during the conference?
We ask every presenter to share their PowerPoint and handouts with the PIO Association. Some presenters may choose to not share their slides due to the sensitive information. If presenters do share their slides and handouts we make them available on the Utah PIO Association website.
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Can we get the media panel back?
We offer the media panel every other year to help save travel costs for all the presenters and to allow for a variety of topics each conference. One of the goals of the UT PIO Association Board is to keep the annual conference at a low cost while maintaining a high value of information.
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What if I have dietary needs?
We try our best to pick a variety of food, but keep in mind we are limited to state per diem. Those with special dietary needs can request them on the registration. You will receive your meal tickets at conference registration (usually in the back of your name badge). Give these tickets to the Courtyard Marriott staff and they will bring you your meal.
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Can I get a recorded copy of the conference?
We are unable to record the conference/classes. And due to the sensitivity of some of the content, we can’t share all the presentations. Some presenters decline to share their presentations with us, as well.
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Feel free to submit any other questions to Tina Brown (tbrown@unifiedfire.org) or Patrice Thomas (pthomas@utah.gov).
Utah PIO Association 