Press Release: Call for Workshops and Panel Proposals for Schools, Health and Libraries Broadband Conference

Call for Workshops/Panel Proposals

2015 SHLB Annual Conference – May 20-22

WASHINGTON, January 12, 2015 – The Schools, Health & Libraries (SHLB) Broadband Coalition’s fifth Annual Conference will be held on May 20-22nd at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City Hotel in Crystal City, Virginia (near DC Reagan National Airport).  The SHLB Conference is likely to attract 350-450 people from D.C and across the country who gather to discuss key broadband policy issues that are important to anchor institutions and their communities. The conference is a great platform for broadband experts to interact through plenary sessions, breakout panels and networking opportunities.

Listed below are details about the two opportunities for participation in the 2015 SHLB Annual Conference.  Please submit your proposals for either of these opportunities by email to Emily Olson at

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Call for Pre-Conference Workshop Proposals

The SHLB Coalition will host Pre-Conference Workshops in the afternoon of May 20th, 2015. These workshops provide the opportunity for specific topics to be discussed in-depth and allow the participants to be engaged and interact with the speaker(s). Potential areas of interest include but are not limited to:

• The FCC’s Healthcare Connect Fund
• BTOP Analysis and Project Sustainability
• Gigabit Network Applications and Use
• Current Broadband Research

Call for Breakout Session Topics and Speakers
This year’s Conference agenda will include as many as 18, one-hour long breakout sessions where attendees will focus on a particular area of interest.  Depending on the topic, on average 50-150 people attend each breakout session. While the SHLB conference planning committee is interested in all broadband topics, it is particularly interested in proposals that are interactive and engaging for the audience. Keep in mind that breakout sessions may not be used to advertise a particular product, service or company. Proposals must address a topic of general interest to our audience.

The majority of the breakout sessions include a moderator and 3 panelists. However, the conference planning committee is open to alternative formats that depart from the norm.  Submissions may propose certain speakers, certain topics, or both. Greater weight will be given to fully developed proposals.  The SHLB will work with applicants who have interesting ideas but are uncertain of how to identify the best speakers or materials.

Please Note: Commercial company employees who are selected to speak will be expected to pay the discounted conference registration fee paid by anchor institutions and government representatives. Employees of anchor institutions, governments or other non-commercial organizations who are chosen to speak will be entitled to register for the Annual Conference free of charge.

The SHLB conference planning committee welcomes submissions as soon as possible.  We plan to fill out our agenda by the end of January.  Please submit your proposals no later than January 16, 2015 to Emily Olson at

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