Virtual ANC 2021: What to Expect and Frequently Asked Questions What to Expect As with a live face-to-face event, SNA’s Virtual Annual National Conference (ANC) will take place over four days, Monday (pre-conference sessions and exhibit hall) through Thursday, July 12-15, 2021. We will be limiting our educational sessions to mostly afternoons (Eastern time zone) but the exhibit hall will be open all day each day. We are laser-focused on bringing you the same exceptional educational content, exhibits, events and opportunities to connect at ANC 2021 as we would for an in-person event. Please plan to enthusiastically participate! As participants of ANC have come to expect, the virtual conference will continue to be the “School Nutrition Event of the Year,” with top-tier keynote speakers, a diverse offering of education featuring the hottest topics in school nutrition and pre-conference sessions, a full-scale virtual exhibit hall with the opportunity to watch culinary and product demonstrations as well as chat and book meetings with exhibitors, networking events and closing event entertainment. We have selected a highly robust virtual experience platform to deliver an event that is as close as possible to the real thing! Why is ANC 2021 being moved to a virtual format? Given the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic and especially due to continued concerns for the health and safety of all members, industry partners, volunteer leaders, speakers, staff, and other stakeholders, SNA made the difficult decision on March 17, 2021 to move the Annual National Conference from an in-person event in Chicago to a virtual-only format. Since March 2020, SNA has relied on public health guidance, federal and state-by-state event restrictions and member surveys to gauge whether to move major meetings to a virtual format. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the state of Illinois has placed an order in effect limiting gatherings to no more than 50 people. While this order could be modified prior to expiration, McCormick Place, the site of the conference, has conceded that their ability to re-open for large events is not currently definitive by the state regulation. We are confident that a new virtual format will allow us to provide an exceptional attendee experience that is the hallmark of the SNA Annual National Conference. We look forward to even more school nutrition professionals being able to attend with reduced registration fees and without the extra time and cost associated with travel. Attending ANC has never been more convenient! General Questions What dates will ANC 2021 be held? Monday, July 12 through Thursday, July 15 so as not to interfere with anyone’s weekend time. Pre-conference sessions will be scheduled for Monday July 12. What is the schedule going to be? Virtual ANC will take place over four days, with education sessions mostly starting in the afternoons (Eastern Daylight Time). You can think of the first day of the conference as a “warm-up” day with pre-conference sessions. The Exhibit Hall will be accessible each day of the conference for people to explore on their own. Please check the website in the coming days for a more detailed conference agenda and speaker information. What will I need in order to participate? A computer, tablet, or smartphone that has a camera, microphone, and internet access (preferably high speed). We recognize that this will be a new experience for many and we plan to hold a webinar prior to the conference to walk attendees and presenters through the technology. For those presenting, we will also be providing some recommendations for improving the quality of video and audio during your presentation. Who are the keynote speakers? We are excited to announce our two keynote speakers are Crystal Washington and Ben Nemtin, who will inspire us and set the tone for a truly immersive virtual experience. Who are the conference planning advisors? Chris Burkhardt, SNS Executive Director, School Nutrition Cleveland Public Schools, OH Richard Browder Director of School Nutrition Brighton School District, MI When will those who submitted for the ANC 2021 Call for Proposals be notified? We plan to notify presenters by April 15. Please note that this date is subject to change. Will recordings of the sessions be available after ANC2021? Yes, the on-demand version of ANC 2021 is included in your registration. We recognize that it may be difficult for all attendees to attend every session, therefore the on-demand conference recordings will be available to attendees until August 31, 2021 for you to catch up on anything that was missed. Can several of us participate in ANC 2021 as a group? Each attendee must be individually registered for the event. CEU credits can only be earned/applied to the registered individual. How many CEUs can I earn? Participants will earn 8.5 CEUs for the live virtual event. However, all education sessions will be available on-demand until August 31, 2021 after the conference concludes, allowing an individual to earn many more CEUs. Will handouts be available for attendees to print prior to the conference? Yes, key handouts will be available to print a few days prior to the conference. What time zone will Virtual ANC 2021 be offered in? Virtual ANC 2021 will take place in Eastern Daylight Time. Will you provide accommodations for persons with a disability? Once registration opens, please indicate your needs for accommodations on the registration form so that we can do our best to accommodate you. The conference will be close captioned. Registration When will registration open? Registration will open in mid-April and will be announced through SNA’s email system and website. What does registration cost and what does it include? Registration fees will be reduced for the virtual event and will include access to all education sessions, exhibit hall, networking and special events. Additionally, all education sessions and exhibits will be available until August 31, 2021 so you can catch up on any education or visit booths you may have missed. Please check the SNA website for more details about registration rates in the coming days, including early registration discounts. Are group discounts available? ANC 2021 rates are already significantly reduced. However, we do have some group discounts that will be available during the Early Bird registration period. Will there be a One Day Only option available for registration? We are unable to offer one-day rates. Registration fees for the Virtual ANC are already reduced. Isn’t Zoom free? Why are you charging registration fees? Webinar and video-conferencing platforms like Zoom are not free when used for events with 1000+ persons. Additionally, the complexity of a conference the size and scope of ANC requires a much more sophisticated and expensive technology platform to deliver the high caliber event attendees expect. To provide all our attendees with the best possible virtual experience, SNA will be using a state-of-the-art and robust virtual event platform. ANC will not be hosted on Zoom. Finally, conference fees ensure SNA can retain the staff needed to plan and run the event. With no travel and hotel costs this year, and reduced registration fees, attendee costs will be much lower this year and we hope many more will actually be able to attend. Sponsors and Exhibitors How will the Virtual ANC provide a valued experience for exhibitors and sponsors? We have selected a robust virtual experience platform to deliver a state-of-the-art virtual event with features that strive to provide valuable engagement opportunities such as: • Recorded and live feed booth demonstrations • On-the-spot opportunities to connect • Appointment setting capabilities and live chats • Real-time event analytics • Built in virtual networking events As with our in-person conference, SNA will offer exhibitors directors-only exhibit hall time and extended exhibit hall access over the course of all four days. Exhibitors will also have the option to work with our AV partner to create high-end audio-visual productions for additional fees. Sponsors will have an extended array of sponsorship opportunities within the digital platform, new opportunities through focus groups and the popular culinary demonstrations. Who can I contact about being a sponsor and/or exhibitor? For sponsorship opportunities, please email Nita Artis, Business Development Manager, at nartis@schoolnutrition.org. For exhibitor opportunities, please email Crystal Harper-Pierre, Exhibit Sales Manager, at charper@schoolnutrition.org. What if we want to transfer our exhibitor fees to next year’s conference? We are confident that we will be able to provide you with a superb exhibiting experience and hope you will continue to support school nutrition professionals this year by exhibiting at our virtual event. But if you wish to transfer your fees, please email Crystal Harper-Pierre, Exhibit Sales Manager, at charper@schoolnutrition.org. Please note: Information subject to change. For any additional questions, please email meetings@schoolnutrition.org. Back to the top