In response to the recent spread of the delta variant, new masking mandate, and travel restrictions for certain counties, The 63rd Annual Conference will now be a hybrid event, offering two registration types for members and their staff, which will be in-person and virtual.
WACO understands that a select number of WACO members are either unable or concerned to travel for our Annual Conference in Tacoma, Washington.
Although WACO will continue to host a safe, in-person conference, we hope to include our entire membership in this exciting annual event. Thus, WACO will offer a virtual member & their staff registration for those unable to attend the conference in-person.
Beginning Tuesday, September 7th, WACO members and their staff will be able to choose the way conference content is delivered to them, either in-person or virtually. Although the logistics behind a virtual attendee is more costly than an in-person attendee, WACO is delighted to offer this registration at the same price as in-person registration.
Virtual attendees will join our in-person attendees on our hybrid event software, Whova, which will allow virtual attendees to engage with all conference participants, including fellow WACO members, conference speakers, vendors, and sponsors. Here, virtual attendees will be able to stream conference programming, educational breakout sessions and browse our virtual exhibitor fair.
We understand this development may bring some questions, so we hope to address a few below:
Why is the virtual registration price the same as the in-person registration?
This is not your typical Zoom meeting from 2020. WACO has invested in superb hybrid conference software and AV support to ensure virtual attendees feel immersed in the Annual Conference – even from a distance. The logistics behind hosting a virtual attendee is more costly than those for hosting an in-person attendee, however, WACO is offering these two attendee options at the same rate.
If I register as a virtual attendee and change my mind, can I attend the conference?
Yes! Virtual attendees can choose to attend the conference up until our hotel cut-off date which is September 15th, 2021. You will need to contact Melanie Terry, at melanie@countyofficials.org to request this change.
If I registered as a virtual attendee but I also want my office staff to participate in the conference, do I need to register them too?
If the WACO Member has registered as an attendee and wishes to include their staff, we encourage them to register their additional staff members, in order for staff members to take advantage of the interactive aspects of the conference app.
I registered as an in-person attendee but wish to attend virtually. Can I change my registration type?
You may change your registration type up until September 15th, 2021. To change your registration type please contact Member Services Manager, Melanie Terry, at melanie@countyofficials.org