Northeast Spring 2016 Judge Conference

UPDATE (3/23/2016): There is no longer a wait list for foils. All currently confirmed and certified attendees are eligible for participation foils. You may still sign up for the conference. Please use the following late applications link: http://apps.magicjudges.org/events/apply/4459/?late_key=281d5186bf3594ba4fa75766fabbeddb

On behalf of the Northeast US, we're excited to invite you all to our region's next Judge Conference! This conference will be held on Saturday, March 26, 2016 at the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ. Beginning at 10 AM, the conference will feature six sessions and an hour break for lunch, and wrap up around 5 PM. We are looking to host up to 30 presentations on a wide variety of topics related to Magic Judging.

Your organizers are Dan Collins, Ian Marcellana, and Paul Baranay. Please feel free to email us at nejudgeconference@gmail.com with any questions or suggestions!

How to Register

If you are interested in attending, simply click the "Apply Now!" button up above! We will accept applications on a constant basis, so that you can quickly gain access to the event forums. We expect the forums to be a helpful resource for coordinating travel and hotel plans with other judges.

All are welcome to attend, including uncertified judges and judges from regions outside the Northeast! If you know an uncertified judge who is planning on attending, please encourage them to register for the event via JudgeApps so they can receive updates and information about the event, as well as help ensure an accurate headcount. If that is not immediately possible, please contact us at nejudgeconference@gmail.com with names and email addresses of anyone who wishes to attend.

Attendance Capacity

There are some potential limitations on attendance at this conference. As a sign of appreciation, Wizards of the Coast allows us to offer attendees a selection of promotional foil cards, proportional to the number of seminars attended.  However, a recent change to conference policy may limit us to requesting a maximum of 150 sets of foils. These foils are available if you meet the following criteria:

• Register for the conference by applying to this JudgeApps event

• Be a certified (Level 1 or higher) Judge with a correct level in JudgeApps at the time you apply, or if you certify after applying, email us at nejudgeconference@gmail.com with your updated level

• Be among the first 150 people to meet the above criteria

Separate from the above, the physical limitations of this venue require us to place a hard cap at 200 confirmed attendees. This is based on the space in our presentation rooms. Based on past conference attendances, it is a possibility that we will reach this cap. If you are "accepted" for this JudgeApps event, then there is confirmed to be space for you at this conference.

If either of these caps is reached, we will place an update at the top of this solicitation, and we will keep you advised if space opens up.

Presenters

Excellent presenters are an essential element of a successful conference. To that end, we are looking for high-quality, experienced presenters who are willing to push the envelope. We envision presenters as facilitators and discussion leaders, not lecturers. Most presentations will be given to an audience of around 40 judges.

If you are interested in presenting, please email us with your proposal at nejudgeconference@gmail.com as soon as possible, but no later than Saturday, February 13. Your proposal should include:

• Seminar topic

• Ideal audience size

• Necessary equipment (projector, AV, etc.)

• Information and materials about previous seminars you have presented

We are looking to accept up to 30 presentations, so there is plenty of space for proposed presentations. Past experience is by no means required or expected, and first time presenters are welcome! Finally, depending on attendance and the sizes of the rooms we reserve, some presenters may be asked to present twice to allow all interested attendees to see their presentation.

Schedule

The conference schedule will be posted to the forum once it is finalized. We will start at 10 AM, run three morning sessions, break for lunch, and run three more afternoon sessions.

Travel Plans

A comprehensive travel guide will be posted in the forums to help you plan to attend this conference.

Level 1 and Level 2 Testing

L1 and L2 testing will be available at this conference.

Testing and interviews can be guaranteed only if we have advance notice of your desire to test. If you wish to test, or you are coming with a candidate who wishes to test, please contact us at nejudgeconference@gmail.com and we will put you in touch with one of our testing coordinators. L2 candidates, please make sure to check out this page for make sure your pre-testing requirements are fulfilled. 

Help Wanted

We are looking for one or more staff photographers. Please email us at nejudgeconference@gmail.com if you are interested!

We are also looking for L2 and L3 judges to coordinate L1 and L2 testing. Please email us at nejudgeconference@gmail.com if you are interested!

Finally, we are looking for a few judges to be Room Leads throughout the day. Similar to a master of ceremonies, this role entails introducing each presenter, assisting with technology, and helping make sure everything goes smoothly. Please email us at nejudgeconference@gmail.com if you are interested, and we'll coordinate details as we solidify our schedule.

Contact Information

Questions? Suggestions? Let us know! Feel free to email us for any reason at nejudgeconference@gmail.com!