Frequently Asked Questions (F.A.Q.)

The 75^th Annual ICA Conference will take place both in Denver (Colorado, USA) and online, with ICA-wide, theme, and interdivisional sessions held as synchronous hybrid events. The conference dates are Thursday, 12 June to Monday, 16 June 2025. All times associated with the conference will be listed in the local Denver time (Mountain Daylight Time (MDT), UTC -6). All hybrid sessions will be recorded and made available on demand via the app, within 24 hours of their occurrence and for 60 days thereafter.

• Sessions and events: Most are at the Hyatt Regency, though some are at the Grand Hyatt.
• Sleeping room block: Hyatt Regency (headquarters hotel), Grand Hyatt, Aloft, Magnolia, and Populus (all properties are in a 3-block radius of each other). See below for more details on each hotel and rates. More hotels will be added after November. There is also a special student room block, see below.

Expect pleasant days with highs in the mid-80s Fahrenheit (around 29 Celsius), perfect for outdoor adventures. Nights cool down comfortably into the 50s Fahrenheit (around 10 Celsius). Be prepared for the occasional sudden afternoon thunderstorm that can bring refreshing rain. Don't forget your sunscreen and a light jacket for those pleasantly cool evenings!

The “Mile High City” really is a mile high, but according to the tourism bureau, “most people don’t even notice the altitude difference. The air is just thinner and dryer. In fact, many people with respiratory problems move to Denver for the benefits of the dry air.” Golf balls go ten percent further in Denver’s rarified air…but so do cocktails. If you’re not from a high-altitutde area, follow these tips to stay happy and healthy….and locals swear by Liquid IV powder to boost the hydration capabilities of your water.

Yes!

• June is, of course, Pride month, and Denver has a thriving LGBTQ community - The Denver Pride Fest celebrated its 50^th Anniversary in 2024. The dates for the official pride fest in Denver are after our conference (28-29 June), but there will be numerous other events throughout the month that you’ll be able to find via their website’s event page once we get closer to the event.
• Juneteenth occurs on June 19^th, of course, just after the ICA conference concludes; it is celebrated not just in Denver but everywhere in the U.S., as the Biden administration officially recognized it as a national Federal holiday starting in 2020. Denver’s biggest commemoration of the holiday is the annual Juneteenth Music Festival; their link currently still shows 2024 information but will switch to 2025 information once that becomes available. For those not familiar with this American holiday, also called Freedom Day, it celebrates the 19 June 1865 arrival in Galveston, Texas of Union troops announcing Lincoln’s emancipation of enslaved people–nearly two years after it actually had happened. You can find more information about Juneteenth’s origins, how it is celebrated, and why it is so important to Black culture and to the American experience overall at the website of the Smithsonian’s Museum of African American History and Culture.

The overall conference schedule is as follows, almost every year:

• Wednesday: limited preconferences (off-site only), Board of Directors meeting (full day)
• Thursday: onsite and offsite preconferences, full and half day. Registration desk badge pickup opens beginning at 9:00 a.m. in Centennial Ballroom Foyer North (Hyatt Regency 3^rd Floor). Preconferences must end by 5:00 p.m.. The opening plenary begins at 5:45 p.m., followed by the opening reception at 7:30 p.m..
• Friday: The four full days of the conference begin Friday at 9:00 a.m.. Each day runs 9:00 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. followed by Division/Interest Group (DIG) and universities’ evening receptions. Poster sessions and Fellows’ sessions occur Fri/Sat/Sun. Exhibit hall opens Friday morning.
• Saturday: Fellows’ breakfast, full day of sessions. Exhibit hall is open. Presidential Address, Awards Ceremony, Fellows’ Induction, and Member Meeting. Limited evening receptions (mostly universities, and mostly late evening so attendees can use this night to go out on the town).
• Sunday: Past Presidents’ breakfast, kids’ picnic, evening receptions for the other half of the DIGs and universities, presidential reception (invitation only). Exhibit hall closes at noon.
• Monday: Nearly-full day of sessions, closing one time slot early for the closing toast. Registration desk closes at noon for pack-up.
• Tuesday & Wednesday: postconferences (off-site only)

Yes, Denver was originally contracted for 2021 - a plan that was thwarted by the then-continuing COVID-19 pandemic. When we made the decision in 2020 to go fully virtual for ICA21, we sidestepped 100% of the proposed cancellation fees for scrapping a conference of this size (which would have been in the hundreds of thousands of US dollars) by committing to moving the conference to 2025.

When we moved the conference from 2021, we were only four years out from the new 2025 dates, and therefore our choices of dates were fewer than usual (our usual May dates were already contracted by another association). The positive side of this is that evening temps in Denver can be quite chilly in May, whereas evenings in June are pretty close to perfect.

We always request sustainable meal options, but it’s surprising how many hotels and convention centers are still stuck in the “trays of cookies and bags of chips” era, and we are, of course, constrained by choosing from the menu provided by the hotel. We can neither demand that a hotel go out and buy soy milk, almond milk, etc, nor are we permitted to bring in food items of our own due to food safety legalities. We do our best within the limitations of the host venue. However, we are pleased to share with you that Hyatt Hotels of Denver subscribe to Hyatt’s overall global food & beverage philosophy which is grounded in three key principles: Healthy People, Healthy Planet, and Healthy Communities. Find out more about how the Hyatts of Denver incorporate this philosophy into their operation. The ICA team will work closely with the Hyatt teams to offer ICA 2025 participants the most sustainable menu options they can provide, and we think you will be pleased. We are collecting dietary restrictions this year as part of the registration process to ensure that we have accurate numbers of the types of cuisine needed for our ICA-wide events.

• ICA long ago did away with free tote bags and copious registration handouts that constituted the collected detritus of conferencing each year.
• We no longer give away a conference souvenir each year (most of these were found in hotel rooms later, not packed to go home), and instead we have the ICA brand store where attendees can select exactly what they want and it is printed on demand, so there are no excess printings, wasted inventory, or warehouse storage (one sample of each item is displayed in the ICA booth at the conference).
• We phased out the large version of the print program prior to the pandemic, and we make it available as a pdf online for those who wish to refer to it (or even print parts of it on their own).
• We collect and reuse our badge lanyard stock each year; last year, we phased out plastic badge holders in favor of connecting lanyards directly to paper badge stock (some people dislike this option, however, so we do have gently used plastic lanyards still available for those who prefer them).
• We give preference in site selection to LEED-certified venues and those that have signed anti-human trafficking pledges and sustainable business practice pledges, and we ensure that our venues work with local food banks and shelters to which they donate catering excesses.

Upon your arrival in Denver, we recommend using the A-Line train to get from the airport to Union Station (very close to our hotels) for less than US $11 and faster than a car sitting in traffic, and then either walking if you are willing/able, or taking the free MallRide subtle that goes up and dow 16^th street on a circuit and comes within a block of all our hotels. Please see the TRAVEL QUESTIONS section below for more details.

Once you’re settled, the area around the hotels is quite walkable, but to go further afield and explore Denver had numerous bike rental, e-bike, and e-scooter options.

Yes, the optional carbon offset program we are highlighting this year is the Colorado Pika Project, in coordination with the Southern Plains Land Trust. “When you offset your personal carbon footprint by donating through the Colorado Pika Project, 80% of your donation will be used by Southern Plains Land Trust to sequester carbon dioxide by purchasing and permanently protecting endangered prairie habitat and native wildlife. The remaining 20% will be used by Rocky Mountain Wild to conserve climate-sensitive species such as pika. Southern Plains Land Trust uses 100% of the funds generated by purchase of carbon offsets, to purchase and protect more grasslands. In addition to sequestering carbon, the grassland preserves are permanently protected as refuges for prairie wildlife, from bison to butterflies. Without protection, these grasslands could be plowed for agriculture or converted to energy development. Not to mention that the resident wildlife could face heavy hunting pressure. Permanent conservation of grasslands helps advance the goal of protecting at least 30% of our planet’s land and water by 2030 to save the diversity and abundance of life on earth and reverse the negative impacts of climate change.” If you’d like a precise measurement of your/your family’s climate impact, you can try the Cool Climate Calculator developed by the U of California at Berkeley.

Our ICA25 headquarters is the Hyatt Regency at the Denver Convention Center, with multiple overflow hotels within a three-block (less than 0.3 mile) radius, including the Grand Hyatt and the boutique hotels Aloft, Populus, and Magnolia. Please be sure to wait for our hotel block to open in early March - if you call to book at an ICA hotel without going through our interface, they will either turn you away or, if you get someone inexperienced and they do accidentally book you, you’ll pay more than our negotiated rate AND your reservation won’t be protected by our contract.

No. Our hotel just happens to be near it so it’s mentioned in the name of the property.

The room block will be handled the same as the last three years: Friday, 31 January at 12:00 noon ICA Headquarters time is the registration deadline for being in the “early access” group to receive the hotel booking link.

• Monday, 3 March the early-access link is sent to Tier B & C registrants who registered at noon 31 January or earlier
• Tuesday, 4 March the early-access link is sent to Tier A registrants who registered at noon 31 January or earlier
• Wednesday, 5 March the early-access link is sent to everyone who has already registered
• Thursday, 6 March, the code is removed and the link is released to the public via social media

Contracting a hotel block serves five main purposes:

1. It keeps registration fees low. It proves to the hotel that everyone staying there is an ICA attendee, so we get credit for bringing in that revenue, which gets us free meeting space saving ICA hundreds of thousands of dollars which would otherwise be tacked onto the needed registration revenue to break even.
2. It saves your Division/Interest Group from having to pay for session space. When we book all the sleeping rooms in the hotel, they give us the session rooms at no cost, meaning ICA can give divisions and interest groups their session rooms, committee meeting rooms, business meeting rooms, and reception rooms for free instead of for US $2000 to $19,000 per room per two hours.
3. It protects your reservation. It allows ICA to control how the hotel treats you as a guest. When the Hilton in DC tried to send our ICA guests to another hotel upon check-in because Hilton had oversold their rooms, our executive director stood in the lobby and personally ensured that every single ICA attendee was given a room in the hotel…and that it was transient, non-ICA guests who were “walked” elsewhere. They had to listen to us because we’d brought them nearly one million dollars of business.
4. It ensures you get the lowest hotel rate. As part of the contract, hotels sign a “lowest rate” clause, meaning that they cannot offer rooms at a lower rate than what we have negotiated, even to discount sites like Kayak or Travelocity. The same rooms we secured for ICA attendees in Paris at 229 Euros per night were sold at 478 Euros to tourists. The room rate shown on the Sheraton Centre Toronto website for a week-long stay at the single occupancy rate was a whopping 615 CAD per night, whereas ICA’s contracted rate was 232 CAD per night. Even Expedia/Kayak were booking Sheraton at 526 CAD per night. This gives you, the attendee, peace of mind that when you book you are getting the lowest possible rate and you don’t have to go hunting on various websites to bargain hunt.
5. It ensures you have a place to stay. It allows us to guarantee that 90 to 95% of the rooms at the headquarters hotel are our attendees’ to book and won’t be taken up by transient travelers (tourists unaffiliated with ICA) before our attendees are ready to book.

• Hotels don’t give those sites their good inventory. These sites are where hotels offload their worst inventory: the rooms with the obstructed views, the room that hasn’t been renovated, the room near the loud ice machine that will wake you up at two in the morning. They take these undesirable rooms and sell them at a discounted rate (but still not as discounted as ICA’s contracted rate that gives you bulk pricing because of all your colleagues being in the same place at the same time!). They don’t disclose that you’re buying damaged goods and once you show up, you can’t move.
• They aren’t as cost-effective. Even Expedia can’t get as low as ICA’s contracted rate because bringing in thousands of people at once gives us purchasing power. In rare situations where the Expedia or Travelocity rate IS lower, there’s always a reason: it’s a lesser room, it has a terrible view, the air conditioning is broken, the wifi isn’t included, or it has fewer amenities. Make sure when you are comparing room rates between outside sites and ICA’s block that you check whether those rates include things like breakfast, free wifi, taxes (both regular taxes and GST), and maid service. Hotels will not switch you to a better room upon arrival if you came in under one of those Expedia/Travelocity bookings because they sold those at a discount. Your room will be marked as “discount rate do not change.”

To protect you. We absolutely understand that sometimes, you are traveling with family and you need the extra space, or a kitchen (we try to book spaces in the block that have multiple bedrooms and kitchens when possible). When possible, we recommend you use the ICA-contracted housing block for a few reasons:

• It’s safer. Every year, there are one or two attendees who have their Airbnb bookings canceled only a few days before arrival or arrive only to find someone else already staying there, the door locked, or no running water (these are actual examples from past ICA conference attendees' Airbnb bookings). They ask to be rescued and pulled into the hotel - but we can’t always help as the hotel is sold out. Don’t let this happen to you! On another side of the “safety” issue, we’ve also had attendees be mugged or pickpocketed when off on their own down a dark residential street. Of course, crime can happen anywhere, but all else being equal, staying in the headquarters hotel or within a few blocks of the main hotel at another contracted property is usually a safer bet in terms of walking home at night after receptions, because when you’re in a contracted hotel you’re typically walking among a group of people.
• It’s more flexible. In the event that we have to pivot quickly to virtual-only again as we did in 2020, you will be in good stead if you are in the ICA hotel room block, knowing that the hotel won’t even see your credit card information until we’ve given the go-ahead. In 2020, those who booked in the room block via the ICA portal didn’t have to lift a finger to cancel their room registrations - ICA simply purged all reservations in one action and no one paid any penalties. Those who had gone to an Airbnb, Vrbo, or other properties outside the ICA blocks in 2020 were on their own, and many were unable to get refunds for their weeklong stays.
• It helps keep conference prices lower. Booking within the block also supports ICA and your fellow attendees by helping keep registration prices low: if we start to bring fewer and fewer onsite sleeping room bookings to our hotels each year, hotels will start to give us fewer and fewer free meeting rooms (free meeting space is the perk we receive for guaranteeing hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of sleeping room revenue for the hotel), meaning we will have to start paying for meeting space, causing registration rates to increase. The ICA conference is typically a break-even event - we need those free meeting rooms to keep things affordable.

Yes, this is true. We are often victims of our own success. This is more of an art than a science - we have to estimate not only how many people will come in person to the conference, but how many of those won’t book at an Airbnb or stay with friends, and how many nights each person will stay. We base our estimates (which we have to make four to six years in advance) on past years’ performance and then we refine those numbers based on data from the previous year’s conference survey and then the current year’s submission numbers. The goal is to get it just right, because if we make a mistake and overestimate the number of rooms needed, we have to pay attrition fees in the tens of thousands of dollars for rooms we asked the hotel to set aside that weren’t booked…but if we underestimate, we end up with attendees upset they’re staying two blocks away. We do the best we can, and we always pre-negotiate a few contracts, getting them right up until the point of signing but NOT signing them until the block opens and we see if we need them. This is why we sometimes send out a message two days into the block being open saying to “please hold as we bring more rooms online” - we have noticed that we’ve sold through most of the rooms and it’s now safe to sign the new contract, so we do that, and Maritz then uploads that inventory into the system so that you can book it. Sadly, it’s not instantaneous. We do recognize that it’s very stressful for attendees; we do everything we can to make it as streamlined as possible.

These heavily discounted rates negotiated by ICA for our attendees apply for three days before and after the event dates. We publish all contracted rates (not just the single-occupancy rates) on the website, in recognition that universities look at the rates published online when determining what they will reimburse. Upgrades may be available even if rates for upgrades are not listed below; you may inquire using the comment box on the housing website. Please note that it is not customary for American hotels to include breakfast in their nightly rates; with the exception of the student block, the rates below do not include breakfast.

HYATT REGENCY DENVER CONVENTION CENTER (Headquarters hotel, most sessions)
Insider notes: This is a large corporate hotel with a large lobby, an onsite FedEx, three onsite restaurants including a grab-and-go cafe, a central lobby bar, and a lot of seating for groups to congregate.
Location: Corner of 15^th and Welton
Rooms: Standard single/double occupancy US $206, triple $221, quad $236; rates do not include sales tax. Rates include complimentary wifi.
Upgrades? Upgrades are available but are not listed in the block; request when reserving. Note that this property does not have a Club floor or lounge, it was phased out during COVID.

GRAND HYATT DENVER (hosts ⅓ of sessions)
Insider notes: A smaller version of the Hyatt brand with a small lobby, cozy lobby bar with restricted hours, and a smaller restaurant and market. Definitely smaller and less “bustling” than the headquarters.
Location: Corner of 17^th and Welton
Distance from Regency: 0.2 miles/ 321 metres/ 2 blocks
Rooms: Standard single/double occupancy US $206, triple $221, quad $236. Rates do not include sakes tax, but do include wifi.
Upgrades? Upgrades are available but are not in the block; request when reserving or after reservations have been sent to hotels in April.

MAGNOLIA (Tribute Portfolio by Marriott Bonvoy)
Insider notes: Magnolia is a gorgeous, art deco style hotel, renovated from an old bank (it even has a meeting room in the basement that has a huge vault door in the wall). (It’s similar in style to the smaller, boutique Hilton we used in Prague). The rooms have high ceilings and are beautifully appointed. The bar is very small but well equipped for cocktail service.
Location: 17^th and Stout
Distance from Regency: 0.3 miles/ 480 metres/ 3.5 blocks
Rooms: Standard single/double US $206. Wifi and all sales tax, fees, and service charges included.

ALOFT (Marriott Bonvoy)
Insider notes: Aloft is Marriot’s more “fun” and “youthful” brand. This hotel has a lobby of “signature cocktails” and a loud bar, where you might find fellow guests playing cornhole or shooting pool, even at 8:00 a.m.. There are board games and grab-and-go food items, including a fridge stocked with Ben & Jerry’s ice creams for purchase. The rooms are decorated very minimally with a clean, modern aesthetic and no frills. Aloft has laundry machines on some floors which is convenient for those who want to pack light for a long trip.
Location: 15^th and Stout
Distance from Regency: 0.16 miles/ 280 metres/ 1.5 blocks
Room: Standard single/double US $199. Wifi and all sales tax, fees, and service charges included.

POPULUS - the first carbon-positive hotel in the U.S.
Insider notes: The Populus is Denver’s newest hotel, having opened in September 2024. It is the first “carbon positive” hotel in the United States (you can read more about that on their website). Be sure to look at photos of the Populus before booking, as the round windows may make some feel claustrophobic. This hotel has a unique design and is environmentally focused - because of the design, they have very few rooms with a two-bed configuration (please see the link for photographs of the rooms), so this is not the property to pick if you are planning to have a roommate.
Location: 14^th and Court
Distance from Regency: 0.3 miles/480 metres/3.5 blocks)
Rooms: Standard Queen or King US $239. Wifi and all taxes, fees, and services charges included...

SLATE HOTEL (Tapestry by HILTON)
Insider notes: For those of you who are Hilton-loyal, The Slate is a boutique hotel in their Tapestry collection, renovated and repurposed from an abandoned school site. Rooms are well appointed and the building has a ton of character, including a lobby bar called The Teachers’ Lounge.
Location: 13th and Glenarm Place
Distance from Regency: 0.2 miles/2.5 blocks/300 meters
Rooms: Standard King or Queen/Queen room US $229. Wifi included; taxes not included.

STAYBRIDGE SUITES - (IHG Brand) Discounted student block
Insider notes: This block has been especially negotiated with ICA students in mind and the registration link will be sent–separately from the main housing site–directly and ONLY to those who have registered as STUDENT attendees.
Location: 333 West Colfax Distance from Regency: 0.3 miles/480 metres/2.5 blocks)
Rooms: Queen studios with an additional Queen sleeper sofa for US $160 per night (sleeps 2-4 people), or Double Queen Studio Suites + sleeper sofa (3 beds total=sleeps 3-6 people) for $179 per night (this can bring your nightly rate as low as $30 per person). These rates include all taxes, fees, and service charges as well as internet service, in-room kitchenettes, and refrigerators, a daily hot breakfast, a daily social hour with drinks and apps, self-serve laundry facilities, a pool/hot tub, a 24-hour fitness center, and barbecue grills. Additional people can be added for $10 per person per night (to cover their breakfast). Do not attempt to book these without the ICA link, as they currently are running $236-278 per night for our dates without our code.

• I’m environmentally conscious and want my carbon footprint to be as small as possible? Stay at the Populus!
• I’m a student with no travel support from my university? ICA will send you a link to book in the special student block at the Staybridge Suites - if you gather a few roommates you can get the per person cost down to US $30 per night including a free breakfast.
• I’m into history and/or old architecture? Magnolia! It’s built in an old 1920’s bank. It even has an old vault in one of the basement meeting rooms.
• I like to congregate at the lobby bar for a nightcap with colleagues? Hyatt Regency
• I like to avoid the crowds and pretend I’m not at a conference? Magnolia
• I love meeting new people and hanging out doing fun stuff? Aloft
• I want to be close to all the main events due to mobility issues? Regency, our headquarters. If you have a mobility limitation and need assistance with obtaining an ADA-accessible room in the headquarters hotel, please email Christopher Rochette for assistance.
• I am very tall? The Magnolia! This historic hotel has tray ceilings that are several feet higher than your typical hotel ceiling.
• I want to drop off my child at childcare in the morning? Grand Hyatt
• I am Team #DogsofICA and want to bring my best friend, Growl Lazersfeld, with me? All of the hotels allow dogs except for the Hyatt Regency.
• I am Team #CatsofICA and I want to bring my trusty companion, Elihu Catz, with me? The hotels’ websites are noncommittal on cats; please call the hotels directly to confirm their cat policy prior to making your reservation through the ICA portal.
• I’m a swimmer? The biggest pool is at the Hyatt Regency.
• I’m a runner? The Grand Hyatt has the Skycourt – an impressive rooftop outdoor jogging track, tennis court, fitness stations, and shuffleboard in addition to their fitness center. Locals also recommend the trail through Cherry Creek Park.
• I am bringing my family and need a place that has more than one bed/bedroom and a kitchen? We may have a few rooms set aside that fit this profile for family use - please email ICA Executive Director, Laura Sawyer, to inquire.

Yes, the student room block is 2 blocks (0.3 mile) from the Hyatt Regency and has suites with kitchenettes. If you require access to a room with a kitchen due to disability issues, please contact Christopher Rochette.

Yes! We have a signed contract for a student housing block that is two blocks (0.3 mile) from the Hyatt Regency, at the Staybridge Suites (IHG Brand), 333 W. Colfax Avenue. As with the student block in the Gold Coast, we will send the link to book within this student block–which will be separate from the main housing block–in a separate email to those who have registered as the student membership type prior to the January 31 cutoff (according to the same timeline as above). The student block has two types of rooms:

• Queen studios with an additional Queen sleeper sofa for $160 per night (sleeps 2-4 people), and
• Double Queen Studio Suites + sleeper sofa (3 beds total=sleeps 3-6 people) for US $179 per night (this can get your nightly rate as low as US $30 per person).

Both of these room rates include all taxes, fees, and services charges, internet service, in-room kitchenettes and refrigerators, a daily hot breakfast, a daily social hour with drinks and apps, self-serve laundry facilities, a pool/hot tub, a 24-hour fitness center, and barbecue grills. Additional people can be added for US $10 per person per night (to cover the additional breakfast). Do not attempt to book these without the ICA link, as they currently are running US $236-278 per night for our dates without our code.

The Grand Hyatt Denver is a dog-friendly hotel, and “will warmly greet your pup with treats to make them feel at home.” Pet Fee: 1–6 Nights: US $125 / 1 STAY; 7–30 Nights (Additional fee): US $125 / 1 STAY. Weight Limits apply, maximum pets=2. The student block hotel allows dogs under 80 pounds with vaccination records provided. The Aloft, Magnolia, and Populus also all allow pets (Aloft and Populus charge a small fee; Magnolia does not charge). With any hotel, please call to confirm that they allow your type of pet before booking.

Unfortunately, there’s no way to do both. These services typically make a commission on each sleeping room they book, which means the reservation can’t go through our site (per their contract with the university, typically). There is no way around this rule imposed by universities. Fortunately for you, this rule typically means your university is paying for your lodging, so whether you get the ICA rate is not as much of a concern to you personally.

If you are a citizen of one of the 41 countries that participate in the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) with the United States, you will not need a visa to enter the US. Other countries’ citizens will want to make an appointment with their local consulate to apply for a B1 visa. For more information on the B-1 Business Visitor Visa and what information to include in your application, click here. This can take anywhere from days to months of waiting for an appointment depending on your country of residence, so we recommend that you apply for your visa as soon as you are sure you’re coming (we send out acceptances 15 January so that’s a good time to start).

Due to the small size of our staff, ICA is unable to personally assist individual attendees in obtaining visas. However, we do take several steps in advance of your application to set you up for success.

• Over a year before the conference takes place, ICA’s Executive Director contacts the immigration authorities for the host country and registers ICA’s conference as an official, legitimate, and accepted event, letting the local/national authorities know the purpose of the conference and how many people we are anticipating (and from which countries). In many cases, the country hosting the conference will issue ICA a code for attendees to put on their visa applications; this varies by country. If we are given a code, we will communicate that to attendees and it will be included on the acceptance letter given to accepted presenters. If that process exists in the host country, when you go to the consulate in your nearest major city to apply for your passport, they will already have ICA’s information so that they can link you to our conference as a legitimate reason for traveling.
• Accepted Paper Authors: Once your paper is accepted, you will be able to download a personalized visa invitation letter from the ICA submission management system (in your own profile and your messages inbox) after 15 January, when acceptance decisions are sent. The letter will have your name and the name of the presentation that has been accepted, plus wording about how important it is that you attend; it also usually gives the name(s) and university addresses of the local host(s), as USA citizens/residents who can “vouch” for all 3,000+ attendees (when the conference is in the US, this is unnecessary, as the ICA headquarters is US-based, so headquarters itself serves this purpose). If you have checked your personal profile in ScholarOne-> Messages -> Invitations and you do not have a letter or it needs a modification, please contact Katie Wolfe, Senior Manager of Conference Services.
• Attending without presenting: We are able to provide non-presenters with a visa invitation letter upon request; however, you must first register to attend the in-person conference. We can not provide letters for those who are not registered to attend in person, as this is a dereliction of our duty as international hosts to vouch for each of our attendees as legitimate scholars with a valid reason for entry. Due to a preponderance of false, “scam” requests submitted in recent years as a means of using associations to gain access to visas, this process does require a few forms of proof of your legitimacy as a member of the communication field.
• If your application requests it, the contact information for the ICA office (the “conference host”) is 1500 21st St NW, Washington, DC, 20036, USA. The local address for hte conference location is the Hyatt Regency Denver Convention Center, 650 15th Street, Denver, CO 80202, United States of America. Phone +1.303.436.1234.

In addition to your valid passport and your visa (if you are required to have one), at the border control station you may be asked for the following documents, so it’s a good idea to have them with you:

• Your visa (if applicable)
• Proof of accommodation (print out your hotel booking information with dates of stay)
• Proof of your return ticket (print out your airline booking confirmation) as proof that you do not intend to stay permanently in the US
• Proof of your profession, such as your business card, your conference itinerary, or even a print of your university’s web page showing your position and what classes you teach
• Proof of your private health insurance (your insurance card), if applicable
• If traveling with children, you may also want to have a letter from their non-accompanying legal guardian, if applicable, especially if your surnames do not match (as is the case with many of us). The letter should state that they have the other guardian’s permission to leave the country - especially useful for very young children who can’t verbally verify that they are traveling with their legal guardian.

No. While we have arranged an official airline with a discount code for the past several conferences, there was so little use of the code that we are discontinuing this practice as there does not appear to be a demand for it among ICA attendees.

Denver International Airport (DEN), ranked as the third-busiest airport in the U.S. and the sixth-busiest airport in the world, welcomes hundreds of direct flights from international and domestic destinations every day. There is also a smaller regional airport nearby, but your best option is to select DEN when searching for flights.

BEST RECOMMENDATION: Take the A-Line commuter rail from inside the airport to downtown which will get you to Union Station, within one mile of all the hotels in our housing block, within 30 minutes door to door. Click here to see a video of where to go in the airport to find the A-Line train, how to buy your ticket, and how to board. The cost to ride the train is less than US $11.00 and your pass can be used for the rest of the day on all Denver transit systems. Right in front of Union Station you can hop on the FREE 16th Street shuttle, which runs a circuit all day up and down 16th Street’s pedestrian corridor, passing within a block or so of all our hotels. See this map for its typical route: our blocked hotels are #s 2, 5, 25, and 26 on the map (Populus is so new it’s not represented on the map yet). Please note that as of our site visit in August 2024, there is construction on 16th street that is pushing the shuttle slightly off-path onto surrounding streets (sometimes even closer to the hotels). We will provide you with an up-to-date map of the exact shuttle path in early June 2025.

Other options: The cab/Uber ride from the airport to downtown can be expensive, and traffic can take up to 45 minutes (the absolute fastest car trip from the airport to Hyatt Regency, if there is no traffic late at night, is 37 minutes). There are also shuttle bus companies that offer service between the airport and downtown, but they will also sit in traffic and thus will take longer than the train and won’t get you any closer to your hotel (they also drop off at Union Station).

• 600+ in-person sessions
• 23 to 70 ICA-wide hybrid sessions, completely supported by professional A/V tech personnel. This includes the opening plenary, presidential address, Fellows’ sessions, Theme sessions, interdivisional sessions, and more. The exact number of additional interdivisional and theme sessions we have beyond the standard ICA-wide sessions will be determined once submissions have closed on 1 November.
• Three in-person poster sessions, hosting 90 posters total, with an ICA-Wide Top Poster competition each day
• The usual Blue Sky Workshops, satellite events, receptions, business meetings, etc.

That is correct. Regardless of the type of session (in-person or hybrid), #ICA25 WILL NOT UTILIZE PRE-RECORDED SESSIONS OR PAPERS. Live sessions are more dynamic, more useful for the presenters in getting real-time feedback, and have more viewers than recorded sessions. The only recordings that will be made available are ON-DEMAND, ENCORE PRESENTATIONS of previously-occurring livestreams (these will be particularly useful for Regional Hubs and for those who were in non-conducive time zones for watching the original, live sessions). The on-demand recordings of previously-live sessions will be accessible within 24 hours of the original session time. None of the remote content for #ICA25 will be available primarily as pre-recorded video; we are prioritizing live presentation of all content. The only possible exception to this rule may be certain regional hub presentations that, due to the time zone of the hubs themselves, are impossible to present live during Denver’s conference hours.

Yes, but only to limited types of sessions. Divisions and interest groups will not accept remote submissions independently but will collaborate to create interdivisional hybrid sessions from work submitted to that category. The theme committee will create hybrid theme sessions from work submitted to the theme. Those who may need to present remotely should therefore submit to one of the four following options:

• The conference theme (as a pre-formed panel),
• The conference theme (as an individual paper),
• The interdivisional section (as a pre-formed panel comprising three or more DIGs), or
• The interdivisional section (as an individual paper).

In the submission system’s drop-down list, the interdivisional section and the conference theme are separate options from the names of the 33 divisions and interest groups. Please note that “DIY” Zooming-in to present in an in-person DIG session will not be permitted.

In-person presentations cannot be switched to remote. Due to the stress it puts on planners and chairs, the unfair situation it creates for other presenters, and the overall feedback of audience members, DIY “zooming in” to give one’s presentation within an in-person session will not be permitted. Do not ask your chair to facilitate this; chairs are instructed to deny these requests. If you have a presentation accepted on the program within a division or interest group and something happens that keeps you from being able to attend in person, you will have the same two options available to you that one had prior to the pandemic:

• Ask a colleague to present your paper (or to bring and put up your poster) so that it stays in the program and is presented by a physically present person, or
• Email conference@icahdq.org to have your presentation removed from the program.

No, any submission found to have been submitted to multiple modalities will be disqualified from both and removed from consideration or the program.

No, anyone can submit a presentation to ICA. However, if you are accepted you will want to join to obtain the heavily discounted member rate before registering.

No. Our submission management system and our registration system are not connected. You must register yourself when the registration system opens in mid-January. You do not have to present a paper in order to register to attend, but you do have to register in order to present.

Every attendee, whether attending remotely or in person, is required to register. This includes (but is not limited to): accepted presenters, non-members, ICA members (including Life & Sustaining), Regional Hub organizers, all members of ICA leadership (Board of Directors, DIG group leadership, committee & task force members), etc. Even if your attendance fee is waived (such as for Life members) we need to know you are coming for planning and logistics purposes, so please register! If you have any questions about registration, please email the membership department.

Registration will open 15 January at 12:00 (noon) ICA headquarters time (EST), at the same time we release acceptance decisions. Please double-check your accepted submissions to ensure they have the correct authors, correct university affiliations for each author, and note whether your papers are accepted as paper presentations or posters. Be sure to join/renew and pay your membership dues before registering so that you are not charged the much higher non-member rate!

No, the United States does not have VAT, but it does impose other taxes (most of which do not affect visitors). The federal government raises money primarily through the income tax system paid by US citizens and residents. State and municipal taxes are typically not as high a percentage as VAT, but are also not recoverable by rebate program as many VATs are. States and local governments establish and collect their own sales taxes; you will see a tax of approximately 15-16% applied to your hotel reservation, for example.

• All ICA-wide content, which will be presented as LIVE hybrid sessions that have in-person and remote presenters completely supported by professional A/V tech personnel, with the ability to participate remotely via the app Q&A. “ICAwide content” includes the Opening Plenary; Fellows’ sessions; Presidential Address, Awards Ceremony, and Fellows’ Induction; New Member Orientation; Steve Jones Internet Lecture; Student & Early-Career Scholar Business Meeting; the REACHing Out Session; and the Affiliate Journals session; as well as all theme sessions, interdivisional sessions, and special presidential sessions chosen to specifically appeal to a global remote viewership.
• The ability to present one’s own research LIVE as a remote presenter in either a Theme session or an Interdivisional Session (as well as ICA-wide sessions if one is a special invited speaker for one of those).
• Online access to all uploaded full papers of accepted presentations (if uploaded by their authors)
• Access to all On-Demand video content (encore presentations of the hybrid sessions) during the conference and for 60 days thereafter

All of the above items, PLUS:

• The ability to attend and/or present in any of 600+ LIVE, in-person division and interest group (DIG) sessions
• The ability to view and/or present any of 90+ LIVE, in-person posters over three days
• Social events including DIG business meetings, awards ceremonies, and receptions; university receptions; satellite events; book launches; the opening reception; the closing toast; the ice cream social; and ICA-curated tours
• Invaluable face-time spent in hallways, after sessions, at lunch, in the lobby, and even in the elevator, making new connections and reconnecting with old friends, not to mention sightseeing and just getting out and about in a new place (hiking in the mountains, gliding through a new museum)
• Eligibility to participate in an escalator session with a one-on-one mentor (or to be a mentor!) and to participate LIVE in the welcome meeting (if applicable) and business meeting(s) for your Division/IG(s)
• Blue Sky Sessions (most of these will not be available remotely)
• An inexhaustible supply of delicious, piping hot hotel coffee (in all seriousness, we are working with the hotels to further improve food and beverage options each year, with more sustainable options and more variety, as well as more attention to the needs of those with food restrictions).

As you know, there is a complex pricing structure with three regional tiers, several career levels, and early-bird pricing. The base price is controlled by the ICA Board of Directors and is rarely increased. A small percentage increase, phased in over the next two years, was approved at the 2024 Board of Directors meeting in Gold Coast. The full registration fee schedule will be calculated in consultation with the ICA Treasurer and will be linked here by early December.

For the most part, the feedback we received from ICA24 was very positive, indicating that we don’t need to change much for ICA25. The most significant change–based on three years of feedback and data–is the aforementioned scaling-back of our hybrid program, meaning that our hybrid offerings will be focused on providing remote access to our ICA-wide sessions, theme sessions, and interdivisional sessions. The theme and interdivisional sessions are the only sessions to which one may submit if one wishes to present remotely; the other ICA-wide hybrid sessions are all invited-speaker sessions. Division and interest groups will not be accepting remote submissions.

• The 9 a.m. start time.
• A curated tour program
• Social events like Running with Presidents, ICA Kid’s Picnic, LGBTQIA+@ICA Reception, and the Black Scholars’ Noirée
• The Scholars at Risk panel and reception
• The mobile app
• Professional A/V technicians in the hybrid rooms
• “Blue Skies” including five subcategories. Blue Sky: Big Ideas Session will be used solely for “outside-the-box”conversations. Proposals for Skills-Based, Pedagogical, or Administrative Workshops will be submitted–and if accepted, they will be labeled–as such, so that those interested in any of those areas can clearly find what they need. For more information on how to submit a blue sky please click here. The deadline is 1 November.
• Daily poster awards
• A robust offering of eight Regional Hubs

The conference begins with the Opening Plenary at 5:45 p.m. on Thursday, 12 June 2025.

All ICA staff will be on-site at the conference in Denver from the Sunday prior to the conference until the end of the day Monday the 16^th (the last day of sessions). Typically, staff are available at the registration desk from 9 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. local time (they work longer hours than this behind the scenes as things arise, but those are the “office hours”). The ICA registration desk closes at noon on the final day so that staff can tear down the registration desk and pack the shipment to be sent back to headquarters. Please note that ICA staff are not “on the clock” after the closing toast on Monday as they have been working 15-hour days for 10 days straight at that point and need to be on their way home to their families. The ICA office closes for a two-week reset period following each year’s conference.

The conference will run from 12-16 June 2025. From 16 June through mid-August, remote and in-person attendees will have access to view all encore presentations (on-demand, captioned video recordings of events that took place as live hybrid events) via the app.

All times associated with the conference will be listed in the local Denver time, Mountain Daylight Time (MDT), or UTC -6. In-person sessions will start at 9 a.m. and end at 5:45 p.m. Denver time. As always, sessions will be 75 minutes long each with a 15-minute passing time. All headline/keynote sessions (like the presidential address) will follow their usual timing (exact schedule to be released at the beginning of March). We recognize that this will create some issues for those in other time zones that need to participate in hybrid sessions based in Denver - unfortunately, however, we cannot make sessions in Denver occur at 2:00 a.m. Denver time in order to accommodate other time zones, because the hotel/conference center will not allow people on the meeting floors in the middle of the night, due to security issues. Any hybrid sessions must occur at the time they occur in the regular program in local Denver time, between 9 a.m. and 5:45 p.m., which may be inconvenient for you to watch in real time depending on your time zone. Please take the potential of this inconvenience into account when you are deciding whether to register as a remote attendee. An almost universal comment from the past few years of conference surveys has been that while sometimes it’s a necessary option, attending a conference remotely is never going to measure up to an in-person event in terms of engagement, social interaction, and networking. Attendees who stay home generally feel less connected to their ICA community and have a hard time unplugging from the demands of daily home life to fully focus on the conference. It also can present significant barriers in terms of time zones, depending on where you are located (we conduct all sessions in regular conference hours in the time zone corresponding to the in-person meeting). The in-person conference really is your best choice if you are in good physical health and able to secure a visa.

The regional hub application for #ICA25 was open from 8 August to 30 August 2024. We received a record 18 hub applications overall this year, and were able to accept only eight. The approved hubs for ICA25 will take place in Kenya, Nigeria, China, Egypt, Pakistan, India, Indonesia, and New Zealand.

Hub organizers may wish to plan to incorporate the opening plenary of the conference, for example, on the second day of their Hub, so that they can utilize the recording at a time that is convenient for their Hub’s time zone. Alternately, one may wish to start one’s Hub on Friday, in order to use the Thursday opening plenary as an opening event. This is up to Hub organizers. As each Hub conducts its conference differently in terms of the balance of “main conference” content and local, in-person content. ICA staff are happy to help by connecting Hub organizers with speakers they wish to contact; please contact Christopher Rochette.

Yes, sessions are split between two Hyatt properties this year. The Hyatt Regency and the Grand Hyatt are two city blocks apart (two-tenths of a mile, or approximately 300 metres). About ⅔ of the sessions will be at the Hyatt Regency, and ⅓ at the Grand Hyatt. As we have done before in split properties, we will work to streamline each DIG’s experience so that each DIG is primarily in one building per day, not running back and forth between buildings. If we take Mobile Comm, for instance, they may have all their sessions at the Regency on Friday and Saturday, and at the Grand on Sunday and Monday. (We understand that this does not help individuals who belong to more than one DIG, but it’s the best we can do).

So that we can avoid exacerbating difficulties for attendees with mobility issues, please let us know as soon as possible if you are a presenter with mobility needs so that we can ensure your presentations are not back to back in different areas and we can keep your movement back and forth between properties to a minimum (we can also help you with planning which building to book your sleeping room in based on where your sessions are). If you have mobility needs we have not been alerted to ahead of time and somehow it ends up that you are presenting in back-to-back sessions in different properties, please contact us immediately so that we can help fix the situation. The person to contact is Christopher Rochette.

No.

Voting at a DIG business meeting is not allowed, whether in person or remote. All binding votes (such as changes to bylaws, changes to fees, changes to name or mission, or creation of a new fund or award) must be conducted via the annual ICA election, which occurs online each September/October. Business meetings are for making announcements, informing the membership of the latest news affecting your segment of the field, getting a sense of the room for new ideas, and in some cases, the extremely important task of handing out beverage tickets for the reception.

ICA headquarters bases room assignments and timing on the rankings that planners for each DIG give the accepted sessions. If your session is ranked 24 out of 32 sessions by your planner, you are likely to be assigned to a smaller room and/or a less desirable time than a session that is marked in the top five. We caution planners to use their rankings wisely based on what they think the biggest “draws” will be on their program - the top-ranked sessions (determined by the planner) are given top billing: right before the business meeting, for example, or noon or 1:30 on Saturday. However, even that is an inexact science and sometimes they miscalculate how popular a topic will be, leading to it being given a smaller room and thus, becoming a standing room only event. Sometimes, there may be extenuating circumstances you don’t know about - you may have someone in your panel who specifically, confidentially requested that the panel you are also in NOT be scheduled on any day other than Friday because of travel issues, and the only room available on that day that wasn’t already used by the division happened to be in a small room. There are a million little factors that go into room assignments. While it can be uncomfortable to be in a standing room only situation in a too-small room, I think most would agree that that is preferable to having ten people show up for your talk in a 200-person room. It’s all relative, and I promise we do the best we can to “right-size” everything. We do want everyone to be happy, but we can’t see the future.

Yes, there will be numerous opportunities to see the sights and taste the tastes that Denver has to offer! If you want to have a reception onsite (in the hotel’s function spaces/restaurants or in the conference center), please contact the headquarters office to arrange it (you must go through us, the hotel won’t work with you unless you are introduced as an approved event by ICA); to do so, please fill out this Event Request Form. Please note that ICA staff are not able to help you find offsite venues for your functions, as we have too few staff and must concentrate our efforts on what goes on within the confines of the conference hotel(s). Please contact the Local Host Committee for ideas about offsite venues (the local host committee was introduced in the September ICA newsletter, you can find their names and email addresses there).

The conference schedule will be released to the public on 21 February 2025. ICA will accept changes to the program (such as name corrections, additional authors, university affiliation changes) until 11 April. This is a strict deadline.

Whether you are an ICA member, a university communication department, or a corporate partner, you can request a room for your event by submitting an Event Request Form. Please do not email the office with your request as all requests must go through the form to ensure no requests are misplaced. You will not receive a room assignment until we have assigned all sessions, to ensure we have enough space left over for satellite events.

Acceptances go out on 15 January at noon headquarters time. Any session with the word HYBRID in all caps at the beginning of the title is a Hybrid session presented in a hybrid room - this will apply to ICA-wide sessions only, including special presidential panels, theme sessions, and interdivisional sessions. Division and interest group submissions will not be accepted as hybrid presentations. If you submitted to a division or interest group and are accepted, your submission is an in-person presentation.

There are no changes to the pre/postconference process or format this year. Each pre/postconference will be run separately and individually by the organizers, as always. Pre & postconference organizers were informed of acceptance decisions the first week of September; the page with information on all pre- and postconferences and their CAlls for Papers will be available on the conference website in a few weeks.

The proposal period for pre- and postconferences was 8-30 August. Decisions have been made and communicated and the submissions are now closed.

Registration for pre/postconferences (if available) will open on 15 January 2025, the same day as the main conference. You will be able to find the registration link for each pre/postconference on the ICA25 website in January.

Yes, there are unique sponsorship options available, including some special opportunities related to ICA’s 75^th anniversary. We will have the information online once available. Until then, if you have questions please contact Katie Wolfe, Senior Manager of Conference Services, to receive an exhibitor/sponsor prospectus.

Yes, we plan to have our usual exhibit hall in Denver, and we anticipate a large demand given the location and the occasion of our anniversary - the exhibitor prospectus will be available soon. The exhibit hall will be in the same ballroom as the registration/badge pick up area, coffee/food breaks, and posters. If you have questions please contact Katie Wolfe, Senior Manager of Conference Services.

Some of the major provisions for the ICA 2025 Conference will include:

• Accessible sleeping rooms available for booking in all hotels
• Personalized accessibility assistance from ICA staff, who will work with our providers to obtain what you need (please indicate your need for services in the registration form)
• Non-alcoholic beverage options easily accessible at all ICA-wide events
• Availability of ICA-subsidized childcare through an accredited provider during conference hours, including free childcare for student parents (we also have a new parent-supervised playroom this year, in addition to our Kids’ Picnic and Baby Feeding rooms)
• AA meetings, a Quiet Room, and a Religious Observance Room available throughout the conference
• Gender-neutral restrooms throughout the main venue
• Every ICA-utilized area of both Hyatt properties is wheelchair accessible.
• A private ‘family room’ for attendees with infant-related needs (nursing mothers, refrigerated storage for breastmilk, etc) in both venues.

Check out our Accessibility and Inclusion page.

For evenings and times not covered by ICA's subsidized daytime childcare, the concierges at both Hyatts can provide information on babysitting agencies they work with regularly. To find out more information and to book a babysitter to come to your hotel room, please contact your hotel. For a multiplicity of reasons including insurance liability restrictions, ICA is not able to provide evening childcare.

The closest large hospital with a trauma center is Intermountain Health St. Joseph’s Hospital, about 1.3 miles to the East.

If you have a non-emergency but “urgent care” need such as sore throat, a sprain, or other injury, the closest urgent care is Denver Health Downtown Urgent Care Center, which is only 500 feet from the Hyatt Regency (exit the Regency on California St, turn right, cross 15th and it’s halfway down the block on California). However, the hours are somewhat limited (mostly weekdays) - please be sure to check the link above for hours before stopping in. If that location is closed, the next closest urgent care is a 16 minute cab/Uber ride from the Hyatt Regency and is open every day with longer hours: this facility, UCHealth, also features an online system that allows you to book a spot to get in line in advance.

The area immediately around the hotels is quite walkable, or you can hop on the FREE 16^th Street shuttle, which runs a circuit all day up and down 16th Street’s pedestrian corridor, passing within a block or so of all our hotels. See this map for its typical route: our blocked hotels are #s 2, 5, 25, and 26 on the map (Populus is so new it’s not represented on the map yet). That entire corridor is being transformed into a green space with outdoor patio seating and garden areas as we speak, hopefully to be completed by June 2025!

If you’re venturing further afield, Denver has Uber and Lyft like other major urban areas, as well as pedi cabs for hire, and rentable e-bikes and e-scooters. There are loads of quirky and fun neighborhoods nearby to the area where the hotels are - don’t just stay in the commercial district! Denver is a huge brewery town but also has great ice cream shops, vibrant neighborhood cafes, and playgrounds. There’s also kayaking on the river and biking alongside it, not to mention any of the fun excursions we’ll be putting together with our tour partner.

The best print shop is the FedEx near the Grand Hyatt; the FedEx in the Hyatt Regency’s lobby is good for smaller jobs and for shipping and receiving. For really small things like printing one or two pieces of paper, both Hyatts have small printing stations in their lobbies.

You can dial 55 from any house phone (or if you forget, dial 0 and the operator will connect you). The Hyatt has active security and police on duty at all times, as well as medical personnel.

As with any destination, it is important to:

• Remove your badge when outside the venue/your hotel (this is the #1 mistake we see attendees making while out and about!). Be aware of your surroundings, especially if a stranger suddenly engages you in a lively conversation (often a distraction technique for pickpockets).
• Do not blatantly stare at maps/your phone’s GPS while walking, which sends a clear message that you are a tourist.
• Take care when crossing the street, especially if traffic goes in a different direction than what you are used to at home.
• Be discreet about the cash you’re carrying, and use your hotel safe to store your passport rather than carrying it with you if possible.
• As with any downtown area, safety can vary by neighborhood. If you do decide to stay outside the ICA housing block, please be careful when booking your lodging and cross-reference your location with several sources to ensure you are in a safe area. Always tell a conference “buddy” where you’re going to be for the evening if you’re going “off plan.” We have had conference attendees go temporarily missing before and it has scared everyone involved - please don’t let that be you!

ICA takes its attendees’ safety seriously. By registering for the conference, every attendee, exhibitor, sponsor, and speaker has agreed to abide by the Conference Code of Conduct. You have the right to attend the conference without being the subject of harassment based on your ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or any other issue. If you are being harassed, notice that someone else is being harassed, or have other concerns about inappropriate behavior, please contact a member of conference staff immediately. Conference staff can most easily be found at the registration desk, and will be wearing ribbons that say STAFF (please take care to find actual ICA staff and not student volunteers who may also be working in this area – volunteers are typically wearing round buttons that say “I’m a volunteer!”). You may also email both Julie Arnold, Director of Governance & Member Services, and Laura Sawyer, Executive Director, directly with any concerns. Information shared will be kept confidential. We will be happy to help participants contact hotel/venue security or local law enforcement, provide escorts, or otherwise assist those experiencing harassment to feel safe for the duration of the conference, and to take action to remove those acting inappropriately. We reserve the right to revoke access to the conference for anyone harassing another individual. We keep a record of all incidents and reserve the right to ban individuals from future conferences. Thank you for keeping ICA a safe and collegial environment for everyone.

Yes! ICA gives out over US $75,000 each year via the Michael Haley Travel Fund. There are also waivers and grants available through each of the 33 divisions and interest groups (for these, contact the DIG officers directly for their guidelines). The application for Haley travel grants will be available when registration opens on 15 January.

Each year, ICA depends on student member volunteers to help run pre-registered badge pickup at the registration desk, staff the ICA booth on the exhibit floor, assist attendees, and more. Volunteers receive waived conference registration as well as a modest stipend. The Call for Volunteers will open in late February/early March 2025. Click here for more information.

If you’re not already a member of the general ICA mailing list, you can sign up on the ICA website. In addition, follow ICA on social media for any 2025 updates and great content all year long.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/international-communication-association;
Twitter: https://twitter.com/icahdq;
Mastodon: https://mastodon.online/@ICAHDQ;
The Link: https://link.icahdq.org/thelinkhome.

Follow us on our social media accounts: Facebook and Twitter, you can also join our community platform The Link, open only to ICA members. Use the #ICA25 hashtag when posting, and make sure to subscribe and follow our official social media accounts if you haven't already!

Please note that conference registration will not be available until 15 January. If you would like to renew your membership or join early to ensure you get a discounted conference rate, you can do so here. If you need assistance please contact our Membership department.

Information on becoming an exhibitor or sponsor can be found in the Exhibitor Prospectus beginning in December. Until then, if you have questions please contact Katie Wolfe, Senior Manager of Conference Services.

You can email the Conference Team. Please note that we have only three staff planning the conference and helping thousands of attendees, so we ask that you do a quick CTRL +F search of the FAQs prior to contacting us to ensure your question isn't already answered above. Thank you!

Questions not covered here can be sent to one of the following:
Membership & registration questions: membership@icahdq.org
Other conference questions: conference@icahdq.org.