Creating Community Through Active Citizenship


CONFERENCE DETAILS


BUFFALO


NATIONAL EMPOWERMENT CENTER

Alternatives Announcement to print and distribute:

English version (pdf)

En español (pdf)

 

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Scholarships

The Federal Scholarship Deadline Has Passed

The deadline to apply for federal scholarships was May 28, 2008. People who have applied for scholarships will be notified by July 17, 2008.

Funding Information

The National Empowerment Center would like everyone to be able to attend Alternatives 2008 regardless of income. If you are looking for financial assistance to attend, the time to start is NOW!  Below you will find some ideas and resources for you to use in your search for funding (also available as PDF).  We hope you find these useful.

Alternatives Fund Search (PDF, 145 KB)

How much does it cost?

The cost of attending Alternatives 2008, including registration, lodging, transportation, and meals:

Registration:

Early Bird (deadline Aug. 1) $350.00;
Regular registration (Aug. 2 – Sept. 30) $400.00;
Oct. 1 through On-site registration: $425.00

The full registration fee includes all conference sessions; dinner on Wednesday night; two meals per day (breakfast and lunch) on Thursday, Friday and Saturday; and a brunch on Sunday.

Hotel accommodations:

Most people will stay 4 nights at the hotel. Special rate room costs per night are as follows: $126 each night for one, two, three, or four people in a hotel room. A 14% Hotel Tax will be additional. So, the cost of a 4 night stay is $574.56 (one person in the room) to $143.64 (with 4 people sharing one room).

NOTE: If you are from a nonprofit organization, and you bring a copy of your Nonprofit form, you will not be charged part of the room tax.

Spending Money:

We recommend about $40 per day to cover additional expenses, such as the evening meal.

Transportation: (See chart at Hotels & Transportation page)

Bus Transportation - Bus tickets may be purchase in advance from Greyhound or New York Trailways:

Greyhound - (800) 231-2222 or (716) 855-7531, or visit www.greyhound.com. 
New York Trailways - (800) 776-7548 or (716) 852-1750, or visit www.trailwaysny.com.

Airfare: Buffalo, NY (BUF) Get your tickets early for the best prices.

Trains: AMTRAK tickets to Buffalo may be purchased in advance at (800) 872-7245, or visit www.amtrak.com

Ground Transportation: Taxi from the airport is about $27.50.

Driving: Parking is available at the hotel. We have negotiated for reduced rate parking.

The National Empowerment Center encourages you to seek funding now at the local and state level.

See below for a sample letter that you may complete and use in seeking funding [also included in Alternatives Fund Search (PDF, 145 KB)]. The letter could be changed as appropriate to be from you or your group. We encourage you to make a direct contact with a potential funding source by composing your own letter.

Some ideas of possible sources of funding include:

  • Your employer, for work-related training opportunities
  • Committees of which you are a part, including:
    • State Mental Health Planning Councils
    • Consumer advisory boards of provider organizations or local mental health authorities
    • State Protection & Advocacy (P&A) boards
    • State Protection & Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) advisory boards
  • City or county mental health authorities
  • National or State Organizations such as NAMI or Mental Health Association chapters.
  • State Departments of mental health
    • Community Support Program Office
    • Officer of Consumer Affairs
  • Provider agencies, including community mental health providers and managed care organizations.
  • Consumer groups (a fundraising event like a car wash can help establish a scholarship fund)
  • Civic, service, or religious organizations, such as Kiwanis club, Rotary club, Lions Club, American Legion Auxiliary, Knights of Columbus, or your church, synagogue, or place of worship.

When asking for funding:

Make your initial approach by either making a phone call or writing a letter. (sample letter follows)

  1. If you know someone in the organization, contact that person. If you do not know anyone at the organization, call to find out the name of the most appropriate person to ask for financial assistance with conference fees and then contact that person. *If you feel that talking to a possible funding source is not something you are comfortable with, you might ask a friend, peer, or drop-in/self-help contact person to help you with this, and/or accompany you.
  2. Discuss your goals and motivations for attending Alternatives 2008. Be sure to stress the well-established value of the Alternatives conference as a source of technical assistance on consumer-delivered services. The attached letter from The National Empowerment Center might be helpful.
  3. Follow up on your initial contact. It is unlikely that just a letter or a telephone call will get you the money you need to attend the conference. Try to schedule a meeting with the person you contact. After the meeting, write a letter to thank the person for his or her time and summarize the points covered in the meeting. This will document what you agreed upon. Ask for help with this if needed.

Start immediately. Alternatives 2008 will be October 29 to November 2. The early bird registration deadline is August 1, 2008. Some companies or organizations may have money left at end of their fiscal year that they need to spend during the summer; this could be a good time to seek support. Let the potential funding sources know that you need their decision as soon as possible so that you can make your arrangements. The longer you wait to make hotel and flight reservations, the more expensive they may become. You also run the risk of not being able to make reservations at all if you wait too long.

Be persistent. Don’t give up. You may need to ask several places before you obtain funding, and/or get funding from several sources. If you can raise part of the money yourself, a funding source may be willing to help with part of the expense to attend this worthwhile conference.

Make this a “funding campaign for Alternatives 2008”. Often when students or teams want to go somewhere, they have to raise money. They tell all their friends, have fund raising events and get people to rally around their plan to attend the event they are excited about. Try writing a letter that briefly states why you want to go to Alternatives and ask your friends, co-workers etc. to contribute to your trip.

GOOD LUCK! See you in Buffalo

[Sample Letter]
May be completed and given to possible funding organizations

Your Name
Your Address
City, State Zip
Date

Local Mental Health Program or other possible funding source
Address
City, State Zip
 

Dear ______________________

I am a mental health consumer and attend the local mental health program. I have been involved in ….

(We recommend including information on your mental health involvement and reasons they might sponsor you.)

The Alternatives Conference is a national conference organized by and for mental health consumers & survivors to share ideas and experiences to transform our lives and the mental health system. Information is enclosed on the Alternatives conference.

I am requesting financial support to attend the Alternatives Conference in Buffalo, New York from October 29 – November 2, 2008. The cost of registration is: _________; Travel to the conference: __________; hotel cost __________. I am able to pay for ________.

(Please add information that you think is important.)

I would appreciate any assistance that you can provide for my attendance to the Alternatives Conference.

Sincerely,

[Your name]

Receive information as it becomes available

If you would like to be added to the mailing list (or email list) to receive information about the Alternatives Conference as it becomes available, please email via our contact form located at www.power2u.org/contact.html or call 800-POWER2U.