2022 Conference
Child-Friendly Conference Policies: An FAQ
Can I bring my infant to the NEMA Conference?
NEMA is a family-friendly conference. We welcome new parents and their small museum fans!
We strongly encourage that you bring along a second care-taker if possible, to allow you to focus in sessions and to allow your small museum fan relaxation time and the option to be their exuberant, noisy self in non-conference spaces. Quiet or sleeping infants are welcome in conference events, and we will support your right to bring your child to sessions so long as they are not disrupting the experience of other conference attendees. Should any attendees approach you with concerns about your baby’s presence, please direct them to NEMA staff at walk-in registration for a clarification on NEMA’s policies. (However, you’re more likely to find yourself and your small museum fan very popular instead!)
If you’d like your second caretaker to join you at meals and events, please use the “Guest Registration” option so that they have tickets and are included in meal counts (and be sure to mention any dietary restrictions while you’re at it!). On-site/day of registration does not include meal options, so please register in advance for any ticketed events, or take your chances with spare ticket availability at walk-in registration.
What accommodations are available for nursing/pumping parents or other private feeding locations?
We suggest that if you are able to book yourself a room at the conference hotel, that will be the most comfortable, flexible, and private option for pumping, nursing, and feeding. However, if you are day-tripping to conference or are otherwise unable to book a room at the conference hotel, NEMA will do our best to accommodate (if given enough notice)!
The spaces available vary from year to year given the space constraints at each hotel. The space we’re able to provide might be a spare hotel room, a breakout room with a lockable door, or an office space. Just ask at walk-in registration and the staff or volunteers on duty will hand over the key and point you in the right direction! Please don’t forget to return the key when you’re done so we can have it available for any other attendees who need the space.
If you have a cooler or other gear that you need intermittent access to over the course of the day, we will store it for you at walk-in registration or in the conference volunteer headquarters. Please just check at walk-in registration and we’ll point you in the right direction.
What does the NEMA staff need to know in advance to be as helpful as possible?
It helps to know in advance how many attendees might be needing special accommodations! Please give the NEMA office a call (781-641-0013) or email (conference@nemanet.org), or write us a note on your conference registration to let us know what you think you might need for a more comfortable conference experience. We will do our best to work with you within the constraints of the conference location and timeline.