2017 National PSUG Information Exchange F. A. Q. page

Does the $399* Early Bird/Past Attendee pricing include the hotel room reservation too?
No, this is the conference registration rate only.  *Current Early pricing is $399 and ends December 31st for past attendees.

What is the difference between a FAB and a GO Room?
The FAB room is their run of the house hotel room. In other words, what ever basic room they have available at the time of check in is what you get.  The Go Room is an upgraded hotel room that offers more upgrades than their standard room, including a TV display inside your bathroom mirror. They are about the same size as the standard room, they just have more upgrades. The standard room is $65 (72.80 w/tax)  per night and the Go Room is $95 ($106.40 w/tax) per night.   Hint hint... if you want to save even more money, sign up ASAP to grab one of the less expensive standard rooms!!

When will the schedule be online?
Spring of 2017!  We have over 200 sessions that will be going on at the conference. Over 100 of them are unique sessions.   This will be posted on psugevents.com and then for those of you that already registered, you will be able to log back in to your conference registration and begin choosing the sessions that you would like to attend at the conference.

What if we don't register before the Early Pricing ends? 
Our registration rates are set to go up at different points through the year up until the time of the conference when it is $599 (regular price).  You will pay the current price at the time that you register. Currently the early pricing is $399 regular rate is $599

Why do you offer early discounted pricing?
To be honest, it helps us in our planning. There are certain benchmark numbers that we know we need to hit to be able to do all of the things we want to do for you. So by offering a lower price initially, it encourages many of you to get signed up quickly to save money. We then know relatively quickly if we are going to hit our benchmarks so that we can do all the things that we want to do for you at the conference.  Then the rest of the registrations ensure that we cover all of our costs.

How can you do all of this for only $399 (early pricing)?
We have been doing conferences for years in Michigan and other areas.  We are pretty darn good at negotiating these events.  We spent months reviewing bids from all over the country and then once we picked Las Vegas as the host city, we spent months negotiating with properties all over Las Vegas. We also work closely with our friends that have products or services that work with PowerSchool and these vendors not only participate in our Vendor Expo but also help sponsor these events to bring our costs down.  We then have a bunch of GREAT PSUG contributors that volunteer their time to share their expertise with you at these events. So you get the benefit of one big PowerSchool family working together to save you money!   If you find a better use of your professional development dollars out there relating to PowerSchool, please let us know so we can help spread the word!!  We do our best to bring you the best possible event at the lowest possible cost!

Is this a PowerSchool Group, LLC event like PSU?
While PowerSchool usually is at all of our events and is very supportive of our user events, this is NOT a PowerSchool event. This is put on by PowerSchool users from all over the country for PowerSchool users.  You will learn from their experiences in their every day use of the application.  In a perfect world, it would be great if you could attend BOTH PSU & the National PSUG events this year!!  Again, this is not PSU and is not a PowerSchool event.  We would like to thank PowerSchool for their continued support of our event and hope many of you are fortunate enough to make one of the PSU's and our PSUG National Conference!

If we only have money for one, should we go to PSU or the PSUG event?
That is totally your call. Both are very unique events and both are events that you would benefit greatly from attending.  If you could only go to one, then I would suggest first looking at what is offered at both events and seeing if one of them appeals to you more than the other.   I have been to many PSU's and have loved those experiences. I have also attended many state PSUG conferences and the national PSUG conference and have loved those as well. It is all a matter of your needs and what might be the best fit for you at the time. If you have any questions about the PSUG conference, please let us know.

How many sessions will we have to choose from?
We will have nearly 100 unique PowerSchool sessions for you to choose from. You will be able to take up to 14 - 16 sessions depending on the type of sessions you choose. 

Why do we offer so many sessions?
We have so many different types of users that attend our events and at so many different experience levels that we do our best to offer beginning, intermediate & advanced sessions on a large variety of topics so we must offer a lot of sessions for you to be able to try to get the most out of our events.What types of sessions will you be offering? With around 100 unique sessions, you can be assured that we will be covering most topics that you can think of. 

 

Will we get to see vendor demonstrations?
With having 100 PowerSchool sessions going on at this event, we have very limited space for vendor sessions. So we are offering our sponsors times to do breakout sessions at the conference. The rest of the exhibitors will have time to show you what they have to offer your district at the Vendor Expo during exhibit times.

Who are the presenters?
For those of you reading this message from the yahoo group, you have probably already seen most of the names of our great presenters.  As an example, we have had people like Roger Sprik, Jason Treadwell, John Dunleavy, Bob Cornacchioli, Matt Freund, Sarah McFadden, Carla Dancz, Al Momrik, Dori Baldwin, Adam Larsen, Eric Schaietel, Staff from Computer Logic Group, Phoenix Learning Systems, Marcia Brenner Associates and Level Data and many other great PSUG contributors presenting. We will post the full list on psugevents.com in the days to come once we post the schedule. We have many other great presenters that we didn't list on here that will also be presenting!


What are these Networking Receptions you mentioned?
One of the very best thing about these PSUG events (State & National ones) is the seemingly endless networking opportunities that you have. You can spend hours talking to people from all over the country about how they use PowerSchool.  We will have TWO FREE receptions this year!  We have some really wonderful sponsors that have really stepped up and helping us  to bring you the best event we have ever done.  We will have TWO FREE  Networking receptions with National Headliner entertainment for you. You  will spend all day learning as much as you can about PowerSchool and  then have your evenings filled with networking opportunities  and great entertainment. Again, this is all included in your  registration!  No need to spend hundreds of dollars on tickets for shows  out there in Las Vegas as we are bringing some great shows to you!

What is a Vendor Expo?
Our Vendor Expo is our vendor exhibit area that we are expanding this year. We are only accepting vendors that have products or services that work with PowerSchool. So you will have common & exclusive time to spend with the many exhibitors that have products or services that work with PowerSchool. This is a great time to find out how other school districts are doing things. Be sure to stop by and say hi to them and feel free to thank them for helping us bring you this event. Did I mention many of them will be giving away some really cool prizes??

How do we get help once we are there?
Our Registration/Info Desk as well as our Help Desk will be open the duration of the conference. Be sure to stop by and get all of your questions answered. Whether it is a question on something relating to the conference itself or something specific to PowerSchool, we will have our crack team of volunteers on hand to assist you. Our Registration desk is a highly skilled team made up of consummate professionals  & truly all around wonderful people(our spouses & partners made us say that since that is who we usually have working the registration desk!! :)).  Our Help Desk will be staffed by some of the best & brightest PSUG contributors out there. When they are not teaching you what they know in breakout sessions, most of our PSUG presenters will be working up at the Help Desk along side of our full time Help Desk PSUG contributors. Be sure to stop by and say hi and get answers to all things PowerSchool.

What if we don't know what sessions we should take?
We get this one a lot from districts that are new to PowerSchool. We will be doing three things to help with this. One is that we will be doing a better job on our descriptions of the sessions we are offering on our web site and on the registration site so you will have a good idea of what each sessions is about. We will also have our Registration & Help desks open at the conference if you need help with picking your sessions.  We are also in the planning stages of updating our voluntary Conference Orientation on Sunday evening.  We will be offering an Orientation meeting for people that are new or newer to both PowerSchool and to Las Vegas. We will review many of the things to see and do in Las Vegas and then we will give you an overview of what to expect at the conference and answer any questions you may have.What if we change our minds when we get there and want to see a different session instead of the one we signed up for?We leave the session registration part of our software open through the end of the conference. You can change your mind at any point and switch to a different session as long as there is space in that session.  So no worries, you should be fine if you change your mind.

When should we register?
You will want to register ASAP to save $200 off the regular registration rate of $599! It is currently at $399 so you will want to sign up asap to save big dollars! Do you have to receive payment at the time we register to qualify for the early pricing? No, we just need you registered by the deadline to have you qualify for the early pricing. You can then go through the normal channels of getting your checks cut or you can pay by credit card after the fact. Please do make sure we do receive your payment prior to the conference as we have lots of bills to pay to pull this off.

What if we sign up and then we can't make it?
No refunds will be given after June 15th! We have already been making payments to the conference hotel and we have a great many costs associated with pulling an event like this off. While we do not allow cancellations after that point, we will allow substitutions if you can't make it.

Will there be wireless available to us?
We will have wireless available to you throughout the conference area and at the help desk area.  Almost none of the hotels in Las Vegas offer free internet access in the hotel rooms. We have negotiated a discounted price for you if you decide that you need it in your hotel room as well. But we will leave our network on 24 hours a day during the conference so you will have wireless available to you the duration of the conference in the conference area.

Should we bring a laptop?
A laptop is not required but most people do bring one. While many of the sessions are NOT hands on, you still may want your laptop there to take notes with or to practice on your own instances of PowerSchool. That is up to you.

What should we wear?
Casual attire is just fine. No need to dress formally.  Please keep in mind that this is Las Vegas and it will be July. Temperatures will exceed one hundred degrees while we are there. That being said, these hotels do like to crank up the air conditioning in the summer so please dress casually but you may need a sweater if the conference area becomes chilly. But for your evening hours, you are going to more than likely be wearing shorts in that heat!

How do we get to the conference hotel from the airport?
There are several ways to get to the conference hotel. You can take a taxi (about $20), a limo from the airport (about $50) or one of several shuttles that will drop you off at the Flamingo starting at around $7.50 each way. psugevents.com will post transportation info in the weeks to come.

Can we stay at a different hotel if we want to?
You can but it is not recommended.  All conference sessions and most of the entertainment will be at the Flamingo so it would be wise to stay there. We know some of you may have a favorite Las Vegas hotel or a time share or other places you enjoy staying at when you are there.    It would be hard to beat the rates we got for you at the Flamingo so we hope you all will stay with us there!

What do you recommend we do for dinner out there?
The sky is the limit in Las Vegas! There are literally over 2,000 restaurants within a few miles of the Flamingo Hotel!  The Flamingo probably has a dozen places to eat right there without ever leaving the hotel plus you have endless other dining opportunities. We will be sending our attendees much more information on dining, entertainment, shopping & show options prior to the conference to help you plan your free time.

What if we want to come out early or stay after the conference is over?
We figured many of you might want to add on a couple days before or after the conference so we worked it out with the Flamingo so that you can come in as early as Friday before the conference or stay through the Sunday after the conference at that same great rate!  You will be on your own for all of your meals on the days before or after the conference.

How can we find out what is happening in Las Vegas while we are out there?
This is one of my favorite places on Earth and my good friend Al Momrik & I will be updating all of our attendees in the weeks/months prior to the conference with many things to see & do while you are out there. So you will get email updates from us time to time on some of the many great things to see and do in Las Vegas. We also plan on having some discounted show ticket offers for you for when you are there as well. More details coming soon. We will also post some of our findings on psugmi.com. We already have links on our site regarding some of the things to see and do in Las Vegas. We also have information regarding the Buffet of Buffets offer and the All Stage Pass offer by Caesars.  The Flamingo is part of the Caesars family of resorts and they put together a great dining experience and a great show experience that you can take advantage of while you are there. See our site for more details.

Should we bring our spouse, partner or children?
This is entirely up to you!  Your spouse or partner will have plenty to keep them busy while you are in breakout sessions.  The Flamingo has a 15 acre wildlife habitat, multiple pools and other things to entertain them while you are in classes. Not to mention exploring Las Vegas Blvd (The Strip!) is a great way to spend free time.  Children on the other hand is one of those discussions that can go either way.  Not too many years ago Las Vegas tried to reinvent itself (again) as a family destination and had a TON of things for kids to do. Now they realized if parents were spending too much time with the kids that their gambling and entertainment profits went down so they went away from selling Las Vegas as a family destination. That being said, if you plan ahead, you can make this a fun trip for the kids if you know what to look for and where to consider taking them and what to avoid them seeing. We will try to post more information on Las Vegas for families on our site as well. We are also working hard to allow you to bring your spouse or partner to our evening receptions. Depending on the number of attendees we have, we are hoping this is possible. If we can work this out, this will also be FREE for your significant other (over 21 please!). No children will be allowed at these receptions by our conference attendees.  We were able to do that this past July but our numbers will be higher this year and we just need to make sure we can accommodate all of the extra people this year.

Session Schedule