Board Blog: Time to Start Thinking about the 2108 CBI National Student Electronic Media Convention

The 2018 convention will be in glorious Seattle, October 25-27, 2018 at the Renaissance Seattle, located at 515 Madison Street. If you have not already financially planned for this convention, now is the time to do so. Registration fees remain at $100 per person. This fee has not gone up since CBI started doing its own conventions. Room nights? Rooms are $190 per night whether you book a single, double, triple or quad. That is a fantastic deal which includes free wifi in the guest rooms and convention space.

Will Robedee, CBI Executive Director

If you have ever been to a CBI convention, you already know that there are over 100 sessions and events every year and we could not do it without your help. CBI needs you to propose sessions, arrange tours, bring in local media talent, social media experts, technical people, sales people, promotion people, etc., who will talk about their experiences in the real world.  Of course CBI will also work with their legal contacts to help you learn about the rules of the road, the new construction and how to avoid accidents. During the first week of April, CBI will begin its call for session proposals, so think about what you and your peers can put together.  Keep in mind that sessions with presenters from multiple outlets are highly rated by attendees and greatly encouraged by CBI.

In addition to the great variety of sessions for students and their advisers, attendees will enjoy the keynote speaker and the awards ceremony, which are held on the Saturday of the convention. These special events will end mid-afternoon, so you may be able to catch a flight back home that evening if need be. The call for entries for the awards program will be announced very soon via the website and the email lists.

One of the great things about the CBI conventions is the locations we visit.  Seattle is no exception. You will be close to Seattle Center, the Space Needle, Pikes Market, Chihuly Garden, The Museum of Flight and so much more. There is even night life at the convention with a student reception on Wednesday evening, an all-delegate reception on Thursday and the advisers’ reception Friday night.

While you are likely just starting to think about this year’s event, CBI has already booked the 2019 convention which will be in St. Louis, right next to the Gateway Arch National Park, which is undergoing major renovations. The last time CBI was in St. Louis, it shared the hotel with the Detroit Tigers during the World Series.

This year’s convention will sneak up on you quickly, so start planning now for your budget and your session proposals.