Important COVID-19 Update

March 9, 2020

 Attend RESPECT 2020 online & livestream in-person at OCC

Dear RESPECT attendees and presenters,

RESPECT 2020 is to be held as an all-online event according to the original schedule from 8am PDT – 5pm PDT, but two welcome sessions will be offered, one at 8 am (to accommodate virtual RPP for CS participants) and one at 8:30 (as originally scheduled for all attendees).  

*** Please note that all attendees are STRONGLY encouraged to download and install Zoom and Whova (see links below) BEFORE the conference begins. ***

In addition, we plan to offer a livestream viewing and presenting option for those who will be present in Portland in the OCC conference rooms listed on the Whova schedule. 

Presenters
Presenters must be prepared to present via Zoom. This means you must prepare your presentation in advance, download and install zoom, find the correct Zoom room that will be linked in the Whova app, join a Zoom room, and be ready to share your screen. 

  • Presenters should join via computer online, or in person in your originally-scheduled rooms and times. We will have a podium laptop with internet, but please plan to bring a USB or have a direct link that does not require login to access your presentation.
  • Please arrive (online/in-person) 15 mins prior to your session to set up.
  • Here is how to share your screen: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362153-How-Do-I-Share-My-Screen-

Attending in Portland:
We understand that you may find it challenging to connect to the online conference using WiFi in your hotel room. We will be broadcasting the livestream of the online RESPECT conference in the rooms at the Oregon County Convention Center with the support of a wired network connection. You are welcome to join the online meeting via the livestream broadcast in those rooms (and if you’re presenting, this may be a good place to do it so that you can ensure you have a quality internet connection). 

Please let us know via our In-Person RESPECT attendee form if you plan to attend or present at the livestream broadcast in-person at OCC, and if you can volunteer to support our on-site broadcast logistics! Access to WiFi, food (breaks/lunch/reception) will be provided to registered attendees during the scheduled times. The in-person reception will still be held 5-7pm PDT. 

All attendees:
In preparation for the conference on Wednesday, please download and install Zoom & Whova 

Registration is still open! Encourage your colleagues to join if they are able to attend.

Christina Gardner-McCune and Nicki Washington
RESPECT 2020 General Chairs

Jamie Payton and Tiffany Barnes
RESPECT Steering Committee Co-Chairs

Get Whova Now

 

March 8, 2020

Dear RESPECT attendees and contributors,

The RESPECT organizers are deeply concerned for the health and wellness of our community and have decided to hold the RESPECT conference virtually. The state of Oregon has declared a state of emergency, and we know that many of you have concerns and travel restrictions.

Please ***adjust your travel plans accordingly*** and ***hold Wednesday for RESPECT***  to participate online via Zoom. 

We will send out detailed information for all attendees and presenters Monday, March 9.

All Speakers, Paper/Lightning Talk Presenters, and Panelists:
  • Look for an email from us Mon, March 9 with instructions 
  • Please be available during the full conference Pacific time originally scheduled so that we can keep on schedule — NOTE your presentation time may change, but we will notify you latest Tuesday, March 10.
  • Please continue to follow the prior instructions to submit your presentations so that we may provide them to all the attendees via several venues. 
Poster Presenters:
  • Please get your poster ready to share digitally and look for instructions from us on Monday, March 9.
Everyone:
  • Please keep RESPECT on your calendar (as originally scheduled in the US Pacific time zone). A full virtual meeting will enable us all to contribute to a vibrant conversation about diversity, inclusion, and equity in computing.
  • Don’t forget to download Whova from https://whova.com/webapp/e/respe_202003/ so you can get the latest schedule changes and network with others. 
Registration/Refund Policy:
  • Unfortunately, since we have already paid non-refundable costs for the conference, we cannot offer any refunds. 
  • Registration is required to attend online. If you are already registered, you will receive login instructions for the online conference.

Thank you for your patience as we work through the decision making process. We are looking forward to connecting with you virtually this week! 

Best regards,

Christina Gardner-McCune and Nicki Washington

RESPECT 2020 General Chairs

Jamie Payton and Tiffany Barnes

RESPECT Steering Committee Co-Chairs

Get Whova Now

March 6, 2020

Dear RESPECT 2020 Attendees,
We are looking forward to seeing you next week. As a pre-conference symposium for SIGCSE 2020, we plan to follow their lead on conference hosting. As of this morning, the SIGCSE conference chairs announced that the SIGCSE conference will be held as planned next week (announcement included at the end of this message). SIGCSE 2020 has provided guidelines, precautions, and policies to keep attendees healthy.

** As of March 6, RESPECT 2020 is still scheduled for a face-to-face conference meeting on March 11, 2020.**

Unable to travel?
We understand that not everyone will feel comfortable attending the conference due to health concerns, company travel policies, or other concerns. We respect your decisions and want you to choose what is best for you and your family.

Not feeling well?
If you are sick or have any signs of illness please seek and follow advice from a medical professional and guidelines CDC or WHO for safe travel.

Refunds
As we are less than 1 week out from the conference date, we have financial commitments that have already been paid for food, space, and AV. Thus, we are unable to offer refunds.
Presenters & No Show Policy
For presenters who are considering not attending the conference, please review the IEEE & RESPECT Conference Presenter Policy.
Also, see the updated general guidelines for presenters that now features a new section on the Coronavirus Alternate Presentation Options listed below.

Recommended Guidelines for Alternate Presentations (in order of preference)
1. Co-author presents the paper
2. Substitute Presenter to present the work or play your video and then manage your virtual presence during the Q&A (add substitute presenter contact information to the presentation submission form by 3/9/2020)
3. Pre-recorded video (add links to downloadable video presentation and slides to the presentation submission form by 3/9/2020

If you are unable to attend or present, please send email to respect2020@easychair.org so that we can have an accurate attendee count and make program adjustments if needed.
If you have any questions or concerns, please send email to respect2020@easychair.org. We look forward to seeing you next week in Portland, OR!
Best,

Jamie Payton & Tiffany Barnes
RESPECT 2020 Steering Committee Co-Chairs

 

Information for Attendees (Per SIGSCE Website)

For those still coming to Portland, we will be taking additional steps to help protect the health of those at the Technical Symposium:

  • We’re instituting a “no handshake rule,” with attendees encouraged to be creative (elbow bumps, bows, hand-on-heart gestures, etc.).
  • Extra hand sanitizing stations will be available throughout the Oregon Convention Center. We encourage attendees to bring your own sanitation supplies.
  • We encourage attendees to bring your own water bottle to refill throughout the week.
  • As always, there will be an EMT on-site if you feel ill.

Again, we thank you for your patience during this time and your understanding as we work through this challenging situation. If anything changes, we will inform everyone as soon as possible. Otherwise, we will plan to send an update at the end of the week regardless.

We hope to see many of you in Portland next week.

Portland Statement (March 3)

“The Oregon Health Authority, the City of Portland and Travel Portland are all closely monitoring the situation in our community. Portland is currently open for business, and travel is not restricted. According to authorities, the risk of exposure in Portland is still low. That said, things could change, and it is impossible to predict how the situation will unfold in the future. Because of this, we are relying on public health officials to provide the best information and guidance.

The Oregon Health Authority provides daily updates of the situation in Oregon <https://www.oregon.gov/oha/PH/DISEASESCONDITIONS/DISEASESAZ/Pages/emerging-respiratory-infections.aspx>, and you can monitor developments at the national level by visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website for COVID-19<https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html>.

At this time, the Multnomah County<https://multco.us/health-officer/novel-coronavirus-covid-19> and state health authorities are prioritizing healthy work and travel habits around hygiene and have not advised on any other level of guidance at this point. The CDC is simply encouraging individuals to take the same routine precautions as for the flu:

  • Avoid contact with sick people.
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth with unwashed hands.
  • Clean your hands often by washing them with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at 60%–95% alcohol.
    • Soap and water should be used if hands are visibly dirty.
    • It is especially important to clean hands after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after coughing, sneezing or blowing your nose.

As the situation changes, the CDC will provide updated information and revised guidance, if necessary.

We will continue to monitor developments and keep you informed of response locally so you can make the best decisions moving forward. The health and safety of your presenters and delegates is our top priority, and we will follow all guidance from local, state and national public health officials. At this time, the local response is encouraging individuals to follow the CDC recommendations listed above.

Travel Portland will be sure to provide relevant updates in as close to real time as possible, The resources shared above and below will utilize real-time updates.

In the meantime, we recommend that you check regularly for updates from the health authorities.

Local Portland/Oregon resources with regular updates on COVID-19 include:

Additional resources related to COVID-19 that may be helpful include: