Hello Oona Schmid,

The Board has analyzed the 2024 per-user costs of its virtual components pilot and the potential expenses for 2025 virtual components. With regret, we feel compelled to forego this additional expense for the 2025 meeting. The Board remains very concerned about increasing meeting access and understands that for some members there are substantial hurdles to attending the annual meeting. 

The timeline does not allow SAA staff to make changes to the 2025 Call for Submission site. More specifically, the timing of the 2024 annual meeting meant that the Board received data about its virtual components pilot after the 2025 call for submissions opened on May 1st. The data indicate that for a cost of over $200,000 the overwhelming majority of our 2024 sessions had fewer than 3 virtual users (and many had none), even though there was a wide distribution of international members.

Feedback from the 2024 meeting made it clear that to do virtual components right, we need a dedicated technician in each room. The expense associated with this support is sobering. It would cost SAA members about $75,000 for only two hybrid session rooms with designated technical assistance. If the 2025 conference were in 30 concurrent rooms, the cost for dedicated technicians alone would be $456,750 and that investment would not include the costs of equipment rental, Zoom licenses, and boosted internet. The Board thinks this is an unacceptable allocation of member dues. 

Presenters in symposia and general sessions will continue to have the option of sending prerecorded presentations to their organizers allowing them to present virtually in 2025.

The Board will look at the 2025 budget at its September meeting to see how many additional meeting access grants can be funded to help reduce barriers to participating in the annual meeting. We hope that funding more meeting access grants will expand participation from underrepresented groups, including international members. The Board will also examine what virtual options can be part of the 2026 Call for Submissions, so that organizers could potentially self-identify if they have a session that would benefit from being hybrid.

Sincerely,

Dan Sandweiss

SAA President