Structure of the SIGCSE Global Conference

Approved by SIGCSE Board on February 21, 2018
The Global Conference is now called CompEd.

At its October, 2017 meeting, the SIGCSE Board agreed to run a three-conference pilot to introduce a fourth annual conference. The working title is the “Global Conference”. The global conference will be offered every other year initially (e.g., 2019, 2021, 2023). The Board will commit to 3-offering pilot. Evaluation will be ongoing and a decision about continuation will be made in a timely fashion so as to avoid pipeline stoppage.This document is a draft of a framework for introducing and running such a conference.

Identity

• The SIGCSE Global Computing Education Conference is intended to promote computing and computer science education around the world, and particularly in areas of the world that are not served by an annual SIGCSE-sponsored conference.
• SIGCSE Global is committed to providing a high-quality experience for conference authors, attendees, and exhibitors.
• The conference submissions will include papers, panels and posters.
• Other submission categories may be added at the discretion of the steering committee, in consultation with the SIGCSE Board. Ideally this conference will develop some unique features over time.

Ongoing steering committee

• A steering committee of 6 people will be established to maintain the conference.
• The steering committee will initially include at least two people well-versed in running SIGCSE conferences.
• The steering committee will include a SIGCSE Board liaison.
• Typically, steering committee members will not reside in the US.
• The steering committee will include 2 regular members, a SIGCSE board liaison, and up to 3 conference-leader members (the immediate past conference host, the current conference host and the immediately future conference host.) A host will join the steering committee before the conference which precedes the one they are hosting and will stay on the steering committee as the past host until after the next conference.
• One of the two regular steering committee members will chair the group.
• Regular steering committee members will be appointed by the SIGCSE Board and will serve for four years with an option to serve a second four-year term. Initially some members may serve more or less than four years so that term expirations become staggered.
• When an opening occurs on the steering committee, the Board liaison will issue a call for volunteers.
• Steering committee members will be SIGCSE members.
• The steering committee will work to recruit proposals from local hosts.
• The role of the steering committee is to
  • Recruit potential local hosts for future conferences
  • Assist local hosts to generate viable proposals for future conferences
  • Evaluate proposals and make recommendations to the SIGCSE board for final approval. Once a future location has been approved, the host will join the steering committee (either immediately or 6 months before the conference which precedes the one they are hosting.)
  • Issue a public call for program chairs. Receive and evaluate applications for program chairs and make recommendations to the SIGCSE board for final approval.
  • Promote and attend the conference.
• The steering committee will have one face to face meeting before or after each conference at the conference site. Other meetings will be by teleconference.
• SIGCSE will pay for reasonable priced flights (up to $1000) and accommodations for steering committee members to attend the conferences (and the associated committee meeting). Other than the current conference host, committee members are expected to register and attend the conference at their own expense.
• The steering committee will recommend a Registrar for Board approval. The Registrar will be appointmented for a six year (three conference) term renewable at most once.
• The steering committee will recommend a reviewer database and software administrator for Board approval. The database administrator will be appointed for a six year (three conference) term renewable at most once.

Conference Committee Organization

The individual conferences will be jointly organized by the conference host and the program chair together with committee members they (together) recruit.

• The program chair for each conference will be separate from the conference organization host.
• The program chair is responsible for the oversight of the academic content of the conference. This includes the solicitation, reviewing and final presentation of submissions.
• The conference host is responsible for all other aspects of the conference including:
  • Local arrangements (buildings, food, lodging)
  • Website
  • Budget
  • Publicity
• There will be two program chairs, a senior and a junior co-chair.
• Program chairs will be SIGCSE members.
• The target acceptance rate for papers will be around 33%.
• The Program/Review Committee will consist of respected researchers and educators.
• Authors will be provided with at least 4 reviews for each submitted full paper.
• Conference proceedings will be included in the ACM Digital Library.
• The language of the conferences will be English.

Finances and conference proposals

• The steering committee will issue a call for conference site proposals bi-annually.
• The conference proposal must include a realistic budget which projects a profit from the conference.
• Proposals will be submitted to the steering committee by interested parties. A template will be provided. The steering committee will make recommendations to the SIGCSE Board.
• One member of the steering committee (who is not the host for the proposed location) will perform a site visit before a recommendation is forwarded to the SIGCSE Board.
• A registration discount of at least the cost of SIGCSE membership should be provided to SIGCSE members.
• Program chairs are expected to attend the conference. Program chairs will have conference registration fees waived but are expected to pay for their own travel and accomodations. Other members of the committee (those recruited for either the program components or the organizational tasks) are expected to attend the conference and may be given discounted conference fees at the discretion of the host and program chair. This must be reflected in the budget. It is not assumed that all members of the committee will receive free registration. Conference locations and dates

Conference locations and dates

• The conference will move annually and will be offered in countries where there is sufficient interest to run a profitable conference.
• In general, the conference should not be offered in locations where other SIGCSE conferences are normally offered such as the US (Technical Symposium) or Europe (ITiCSE).
• The conference should also avoid countries where in-cooperation-with SIGCSE agreements are in place unless the existing conference leadership seeks a SIGCSE-sponsored conference.
• Conference locations and dates will be approved by the SIGCSE Board.
• Sites will be chosen based on proposals demonstrating strong local leadership and fiscal soundness.
• Ideally conference locations and dates will be established three years in advance.
• The time of year for each conference must be flexible due to local weather, academic schedules, etc. The month/date of the conference will be part of the proposal. Dates will be chosen that do not conflict with SIGCSE-sponsored conferences including the SIGCSE Technical Symposium, ITiCSE and ICER. At gap of at least three to four weeks between conferences will be enforced.

This document and the organizational structure will be reviewed after the first two conferences take place.