ABOUT 30 PROFESSIONAL SND members
are selected each year to assist with the annual Best of Newspaper
Design™ Creative Competition in February at Syracuse University,
Syracuse, N.Y., according to Marshall Matlock, SND's Competition
Committee director.
Any SND member is eligible to volunteer to assist at the next Edition judging that will take place at Syracuse University in February.
Interested
members need to e-mail Matlock on July 1 to let him know they wish to
help at the judging. They must be SND members at the time they make the
contact and remain members through the competition. The facilitator's
list is normally put together by mid-July.
Past experience
shows that normally all positions are filled by the end of the day July
1 so you should not wait long if you are interested.
No requests are taken before midnight July 1,
Matlock says, since it would be unfair to those who stay up to be the
first to get their names on the list. Time zones are taken into
consideration when the information arrives by e-mail so don't change
your computer's clock in hopes of being the first person on the list
since that could hurt your chances, Matlock says.
Include your name, affiliation, work title (please be specific), work
phone number with area code, number of years you've previously assisted
(excluding judging), e-mail address(es), expiration date of your
present SND membership (you can get this from the SND Web site),
languages you read and speak if other than English, and other
responsibilities you have with SND now or in the near future (Board
appointments, officers, etc.)
If you're not sure when your SND membership expires go HERE to do a search for your name.
You do not have to have past experience to be a facilitator but you must be a SND member.
“Facilitators,” as these assistants are called, are an important
element in the judging process, Matlock says. In the past more people
volunteer than can be used, thus a waiting list is created in case some
invited facilitators decide they cannot make it when the official
invitation goes out in mid-July.
Facilitators work in teams helping judges do their work. They spend
time placing entries on tables, picking up entries, sorting voting
chips and placing and picking up voting cups. “Facilitators do anything
needed to help expedite the process,” Matlock says.
Most food is furnished as part of the judging. Assistants pay their own
transportation to and from Syracuse as well as room charges that are
estimated at $114 per night plus 13 percent tax. Many publications
cover these costs because of the tremendous learning experience for the
assistant, Matlock says.
I'm told the experience cannot be duplicated, Matlock says.
“Facilitators work long days but they say it's worth it to see the
entries and listen to the judges discuss the pros and cons of the
entries," he says. Many facilitators say the work is the best learning
experience they have had, Matlock says.
If you are interested in assisting, send an e-mail July 1 to Prof. Matlock.
If you miss the July 1 deadline you may still send an e-mail after that
date to see if there is still room at the judging. The Competition
Committee director will get back to you quickly. This is a first-come,
first-served membership benefit with three general exceptions; don't
miss the July 1 deadline.
The exception is that a long-time facilitator may not be selected for a
given year to allow new people the opportunity to participate. Or, if a
person has extensive experience that is needed for a judging year, he
or she may be selected before someone who is higher on the list.
Finally, if a person judged in the last competition he or she is not eligible to return as a facilitator the following year.
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