General Tips
We understand that many travel and training budgets have been slashed, which often means that regardless of the merits of a conference, you'll probably need to justify the expense. So here are some things you might want to consider:
- Focus on what you will specifically bring back to your school as return for the investment.
- Offer to prepare and deliver a short presentation and Q&A to your colleagues to share what you learned so that others at your school can benefit from your attendance.
- Share the speaker handouts with your colleagues. As an attendee, you have unlimited access to materials posted by speakers.
- Be ready with a plan that shows who will cover for you while you are attending the conference.
Sample Letter to your school owner or administrator
Below, you'll find a justification letter template—a letter to your school owner or administrator explaining all of the benefits you'll get from attending the AMTA Schools Summit, how attendance will make you a better educator, and help advance your school. This general template will get you started while allowing you to customize it to your organization's particular needs.
Download the Word document version
Dear <name>,
I would like to attend the AMTA 2013 Schools Summit, February 7-8, in Chicago, Illinois. The Schools Summit has many educational sessions that are directly applicable to my work and will allow me to network with a variety of education experts and colleagues from around the country. Some of this year's topics include:
- Managing student behavior in the classroom
- Exploring ethics as right use of power
- Best practices in the classroom
- Blending face-to-face and online learning
In addition, I will be able to take advantage of the top notch exhibitors.
I am seeking sponsorship for the registration fee, travel expenses to the conference, and living expenses during the conference. A detailed cost breakdown is included below:
Before submitting to your school, you will need to insert your travel cost numbers in here:
- Roundtrip Airfare: $xxxx
- Gound transportation (to and from airport): $xxxx
- Hotel: $132 plus tax (if you stay at the Summit meeting hotel)
- Meals: $xxxx
- Summit registration fee*: $395 (if registered by January 14)
- The total costs associated with attending this conference are: $xxxx.
The opportunity for me to develop better contacts and gain knowledge from top educators makes my attendance at the AMTA Schools Summit a wise investment, which will yield great returns for <name of your school>.
Sincerely,
<your name here>
*Please note, if you are not sure if you are an AMTA member, contact us.