APSA's Siting Policy

In siting its meetings and conferences, particularly the Annual Meeting, the American Political Science Association strives to ensure that meeting locations are accessible and welcoming to all APSA members. With every location, there are competing factors from within the siting decision, and we do our best to balance the factors when making a selection. The current siting policy, developed in collaboration with Council in 2008 and reviewed in 2019, is as follows:  

1. Geographically accessible siting: APSA will strive to site meetings in areas that are geographically accessible both to travel to and to travel around.  

a) Rotation of meeting sites: APSA rotates its meetings within North America to increase regional access.  

b) National airport accessibility: APSA meetings will be sited in areas that have access to airports with sufficient capacity and accessibility to accommodate a large number of attendees from around the country and the world.  

c) Accessibility to transportation, hospitality, and cultural resources: APSA meetings will be sited in areas with good accessibility to public transportation options as well as hospitality and cultural resources.  

d) Contiguous properties: APSA selects locations with adequate hotel space within walking distance of meeting rooms*.  

2. Low costs: In determining the siting and timing of meetings APSA will strive to keep attendee costs as low as possible. This increases accessibility for members with relatively fewer resources including graduate students, community college faculty and faculty at non-PhD granting departments. 

3. Welcoming atmosphere: APSA will make siting decisions such that all members have a reasonable basis for feeling welcome to attend the meeting.  

a) Non-discrimination and minority rights: Discriminatory settings and policies that abridge any member’s rights clearly make a welcoming atmosphere impossible to achieve. APSA will not site meetings or conferences in locations with policies and practices that discriminate against members for their actual or perceived gender, gender identity, race, color, national origin, sexual orientation, physical handicap, disability, or religion.  

b) Family-friendly setting: Feeling welcome extends to personal relationships as well as to professional ones. APSA endorses “family-friendly” policy in professional life and strives to make siting decisions such that members with families feel welcome at APSA meetings and conferences.  

c) Accessible facilities: APSA works closely with our hotel partners to assure accessibility to facilities at our meeting, including American Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance and full accessibility for transgender members. We provide other reasonable accommodations to members notifying us of their needs.  

4. Organized labor: APSA shall make every effort to give preference to a suitable unionized hotel and/or service provider, cost considerations being otherwise similar.  

5. Sustainability: APSA is cognizant of the environmental consequences of holding large meetings and is committed to working closely with the hospitality industry and local visitor bureaus to make the local sites as green as possible, cost considerations, and the quality of meeting services otherwise similar.  

6. Partnership with the convention and hospitality industry: APSA strives to work with local Convention Visitors Bureaus (CVBs), hotel chains, and other vendors in ways that build long-term positive relationships because such relationships are good business and assure APSA of favorable terms for its meetings in the long run. APSA also strives to work with minority and/or women-owned businesses and contractors where circumstances allow. 

Siting & Planning an Annual Meeting

5-7 Years Out 

The process for planning an Annual Meeting of this size starts five to seven years in advance of the meeting to ensure space and desirable room rates are available. Taking the criteria into consideration, the Meetings Team, in conjunction with the Executive Director and Meetings Policy Committee, will develop a list of locations to consider distributing a Request for Proposals to.  

With the help of a third-party vendor, a comprehensive Request for Proposals will be created and sent to the cities.  

Proposals are received and reviewed against the criteria

The list is narrowed down to 2-3 options that may be a good fit, and site visits to those cities to see the space, package, etc. commence. 

After the site visit, a recommendation will be made to the Executive Director and the Meetings Policy Committee on the best city package for the event 

The city/CVB sends a letter of interest/intent that we sign to indicate our commitment and that holds the CVB to putting the desired dates on hold 

APSA Legal-approved contract templates are sent to the HQ property and the larger overflow properties. Terms and conditions are negotiated with the hotels. Once a satisfactory point is reached between all parties, the contracts are signed. 

2-4 Years in Advance  

• Overflow hotel contracts are developed using the steps listed above.  
• Deposits are made to hotels. 
• Convention center agreements are received, reviewed, negotiated, and signed.  

1-2 years in Advance 

• The submission site and website are created 
• Program chairs and a theme are selected 
• Division and related group chairs are selected, and their calls are drafted 
• A site inspection is completed just over a year out to see the meeting space again, determine allocations for space, and develop an exhibit hall floor plan to sell 
• The space diagrams are drafted 

9 Months – 1 Year Out 

• Requests for proposals go out to vendors (A/V, exhibits, registration, temporary employees, security, etc.) 
• Vendor selection and contracting begins  
• Submission system is created and opened 
• Content pages are added to the website 
• Affiliated event (business meeting and reception) request form is opened 
• Exhibitors contract booths onsite at the previous year meeting 

 

6-9 Months Out 

• Proposal submission deadline occurs 
• Review and construction of the program begins by the division/related group chairs 
• Acceptances/declines go out; attendees begin making travel arrangements 
• Participants RSVP for their roles 
• Declined roles are backfilled  
• Vendor selection wraps up for most things 

 

3-6 Months Out 

• Registration and housing open; Attendees begin making arrangements 
• Travel grant application open 
• Affiliated event form deadline  
• Exhibitor kit goes out and exhibitors begin ordering booth supplies  
• Scheduling is complete  
• Preliminary program is released 
• Preliminary event specs are sent to the venues to begin making their plans 
• Catering menus are sent to affiliated event groups  

3 Months Out 

• Program participant registration deadline 
• Initial catering selections are due from business meetings and receptions 
• Specs finalization  
• Program book content creation 
• Event sign creation and order placed 
• Sponsored materials ordered 
• Travel grant notifications go out  

2 Months Out 

• Early bird registration deadline  
• Review of final catering orders and get treasurer approval for section orders 
• Final orders due for A/V, signs, temps, security, and registration equipment  

1 Month Out 

• Hotel cutoff date for our block 
• Review and sign off on event orders for 1,500 events (catering, room sets, etc.) 
• Final signatures on all event order for vendors 
• Mobile app finalized 
• APSA shipment is sent to the site  
• Exhibit booths ship to site 
• Welcome emails sent  
• Paper and poster publishing deadline  
• Finalize event evaluation  
• Finalize production schedules for A/V and GSC 

Geographically accessible siting

 
We take the climate during the time of the meeting in the city into account. We strive to keep all properties within a half mile of the convention center and not to exceed one mile.

Low costs

To help keep costs as low as possible, we review meeting dates based on the hotel cost, as well as airport load and average fare costs. When reviewing proposals, we look closely at the hotel room rates, and select the hotels across as wide of a spectrum of pricing, tiers, and brands as the city offerings and distance from the convention center allow.

Welcoming atmosphere

 APSA looks at the Human Rights Campaign’s rankings for the city and state when evaluating the location. We conduct site visits to the cities to ensure there are family-friendly attractions and venues, as well as accessible facilities.

Organized labor

APSA looks at the Fair Hotels site and includes language in its contracts about labor disputes.

Sustainability

 
APSA requests all venues submit their sustainability practices for evaluation.

Partnership with the convention and hospitality industry

Request for Proposals are sent to the Convention Visitor Bureaus (CVBs), starting the partnership with the organization off from the very first step. Relationships are maintained with CVBs, hoteliers, and vendors to create long-lasting partnerships.