ITEC 2010 redux......

well, the trip home wasn't nearly as interesting as getting there, at least flight-wise.  Why?  Because I slept almost the entirety of both flights--which shouldn't be surprising since I didn't go to bed on Saturday night!  I know, I know, but since my flight was at 5:45 am, and the shuttle picked me up at 3:30.........just made sense.  I never thought I would be happy to have the sensation of feeling humidity, but it really did make my body feel better once I was in the humid Atlanta air.  (Unfortunately, I missed the Spirit drumcorps picnic on Sunday afternoon, but my wife, daughter, father-in-law and others from that side of our family were able to go and hear my son in, what by all accounts, was some very good early season playing.  Can't wait to see their first performance on June 20 in Rock Hill, SC.)

In looking back on this conference, I believe we have hit levels of consistency that we just never hit before, in terms of the overall production.  With the efficiency of ITEC 2006 in Denver, 2008 in Cincy, and now 2010 in Tucson, we have laid the groundwork for new standards in international conferences.  This time was the first time that ITEA actually owned the conference financially.  I know that may sound odd, but until this conference, the host was responsible for the financial bottom line. Regrettably, we've had several former hosts go into significant financial debt, even with a good amount of organizational $$ to help out.  (amazingly, this change was still met with some resistance, and had been discussed over the years and voted down, until now!)   Kelly Thomas and Mark Nelson put together a very strong, but conservative, budget and stuck with it--as a result, moving forward with this blueprint will be quite easy, I feel.

Our Board of Directors meetings held throughout the week were amazingly fruitful. Everyone involved with those meetings feels energized and empowered to move the organization  forward--the next few years are going to be fun, I think!

Artistically, the conference was top notch--the new method of having every performance be submitted via proposal allowed the hosts to program interesting, entertaining, insightful, and educational performances, presentations, discussions and lectures. The after hours hangs were just as invigorating--lots of tours, guest recitals, etc. were negotiated, as well as times of just plain, good ol' camaraderie.  Just a time to be remembered. 

While this one is gone and over, there will be significant reviews coming later in the summer in the ITEA Journal and on the ITEA website, to give more than this overview I've been rambling through.

all the best to you as you continue through what the next months bring you!