--- title: "Tapping Into Attendee Expertise For Community Service Projects" id: "38190" type: "post" slug: "tapping-into-attendee-expertise-for-community-service-projects" published_at: "2017-05-19T11:58:31+00:00" modified_at: "2026-11-09T16:19:12+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2017/05/19/tapping-into-attendee-expertise-for-community-service-projects/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2017/05/19/tapping-into-attendee-expertise-for-community-service-projects.md" excerpt: "A look at how associations are tapping into the professional skills their attendees have for conference-related community service projects." taxonomy_category: - "Learning" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "community service" - "expertise" - "Meetings" - "volunteering" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Association CEO / Executive Director" - "Director" - "Manager" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Tapping Into Attendee Expertise For Community Service Projects Association conferences often feature a [community service project](http://associationsnow.com/2014/07/give-back-community-service-projects-conferences/) —a chance for attendees to give back to the local community where the meeting is being held. For example, at [ASAE’s 2017 Annual Meeting & Exposition (opens in a new tab)](http://annual.asaecenter.org/) in Toronto in August, attendees will have the opportunity [to support two local organizations (opens in a new tab)](https://annual.asaecenter.org/community.cfm) : the Toronto Humane Society and the Royal Canadian Legion. One will have participants working on projects to improve the lives of the animals they meet, while the other will have attendees planting trees along a stretch of highway to honor Canada’s fallen veterans. While these two service projects aren’t directly linked to the everyday work of association professionals, other organizations pick projects that allow attendees to bring their professional expertise to the local community. For instance, the American Statistical Association sponsors [Meeting Within a Meeting (opens in a new tab)](http://www.amstat.org/ASA/Education/MWM/home.aspx) (MWM) during the [Joint Statistical Meetings (opens in a new tab)](http://ww2.amstat.org/meetings/jsm/2017/conferenceinfo.cfm) (JSM). MWM is for local middle- and high-school science and math teachers who want to improve their statistics teaching. The program is taught by JSM attendees—mostly statistics professors from colleges and universities—who volunteer their time to provide the instruction over the course of three days. In addition to giving local educators a refresher on statistics fundamentals, these volunteers also provide suggestions for lesson plans and teaching strategies. Then there’s the American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, which teamed up with the nonprofit Neighborhood House during its 2016 Annual Meeting in San Diego. Around 10 ear, nose, and throat doctors [conducted complimentary hearing screenings for underprivileged children in the area (opens in a new tab)](https://aao-365.ascendeventmedia.com/2016-meeting-daily/screenings-at-local-head-start/) . (You can read more about this effort in the May/June issue of *Associations Now*, which will reach you by mail and post online the first week of June.) The [Association of Asthma Educators has done something similar (opens in a new tab)](https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiF5NiBmfrTAhXlJMAKHfsPC8YQFgguMAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.asthmaeducators.org%2Fevent-1833713&usg=AFQjCNFeYa8ttTrG2w-Q6IEDr56Z2S6fLQ&sig2=aOP_PcKeJzSVfev40_3jUg) . Attendees at past annual conferences have volunteered to be part of a two-hour education program that included free asthma screenings and fun, interactive asthma educational activities for the entire family. A final example, which I [stumbled across in Convene magazine (opens in a new tab)](http://www.pcmaconvene.org/departments/purple-heart-recipients-share-their-stories-at-ncras-annual-event/) , comes from the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA). During its 2016 Convention & Expo in Chicago last August, a team of court reporters volunteered to interview eight local Purple Heart recipients for the [Library of Congress’ Veterans History Project (opens in a new tab)](https://www.loc.gov/vets/) , which records the stories of American veterans. Since court reporters record a minimum of 225 words per minute, they are more than qualified to transcribe the stories of these veterans. However, NCRA members [don’t limit their volunteer time with the project to the annual meeting (opens in a new tab)](https://www.ncra.org/Foundation/content.cfm?ItemNumber=18388) . They work year-round with the Veterans History Project and, since 2003, have transcribed more than 4,000 interviews. Whether or not your conference’s community service project is related to your attendee’s professional expertise, they all have the same goal: to give back while having fun and learning more about the local community at the same time. How have you used your members’ and attendees’ professional knowledge and expertise to give back to the local community at your conferences? Please share in the comments. (iStock/Thinkstock) [Samantha Whitehorne](https://associationsnow.com/author/samantha-whitehorne/) Samantha Whitehorne is a former editorial director of Associations Now in Washington, DC. [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/samantha-whitehorne/) Tags: [#community service](https://associationsnow.com/tag/community-service/) [#expertise](https://associationsnow.com/tag/expertise/) [#Meetings](https://associationsnow.com/tag/meetings/) [#volunteering](https://associationsnow.com/tag/volunteering/) **Stay Informed** [Subscribe to our free newsletter](https://associationsnow.com/newsletter/) , *Associations Now Daily News*, to find out what’s happening in the association world every business day. ## You Might Like - [VideoWhy Do You Volunteer? Give backApril 17, 2020](https://associationsnow.com/2020/04/17/why-do-you-volunteer-give-back/) - [VideoAmerican College of Emergency Physicians: ACEP Geriatric Emergency Department Accreditation ProgramSeptember 24, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/09/24/american-college-of-emergency-physicians-acep-geriatric-emergency-department-accreditation-program/) - [PodcastAssociations NOW Presents Practical AI-How Associations Are Putting It To WorkJanuary 29, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/01/29/associations-now-presents-practical-ai-how-associations-are-putting-it-to-work/) - [PodcastWhy Associations Must Rethink Learning and Community TogetherMarch 26, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/03/26/why-associations-must-rethink-learning-and-community-together/) ## Comments **Comments are for ASAE members.** [Learn more about comments on this site.](https://associationsnow.com/comments/) [Log in](https://associationsnow.com/login?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fassociationsnow.com%2F2017%2F05%2F19%2Ftapping-into-attendee-expertise-for-community-service-projects%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !