By Butch Oxendine, editor in chief

Sick of wasting money and time on lame leadership conferences but don’t know where to find the best ones? Look no further. Check out Student Leader’s “Find the Perfect Conference” searchable database of upcoming conferences and conventions at www.studentleader.com. At the click of a mouse, campus activists, Greeks, volunteers, RAs, Student Government officers, and other movers and shakers can access information on all the conferences relevant to their organizations. Since our editors attend most of the major events held across the country, Student Leader can tell you which ones are the best events. We give you the basics such as times, dates, locations, program themes, and speakers. You can even read reviews from past participants and comment on conferences you’ve attended.

You can search by month, location, or scope—or all of the above. If you still can’t decide which conference to attend, let Student Leader editors recommend one by browsing our top-ranked choices below.

To list your conference in our database, complete the form at www.studentleader.com.

Statewide

CHESS

WHO: The California State Student Association
WHAT:  It’s the CSSA’s annual statewide convention, a “coming together” of 250 student leaders from the California state universities, some from the University of California system, and a few from California community colleges.
WHERE: Sacramento, Calif.
WHEN: February
COST: $100-$150
CONTACT: lkerr@csustudents.org
• www.csustudents.org
• 925 L. St., Suite 320, Sacramento, CA 95814
• 916-441-4514

Student Leader says: Worthy of your time. Held in the state capital, CHESS attracts Associated Students leaders and officers from most CSU schools and branch campuses. CHESS features multiple break-out workshops and keynote presentations by fellow students, other experts, and government officials, including the state university system chancellor and Gov. Gray Davis. Includes plenty of networking time, as well as a reception for CSU alums, legislators, and current students. Participants take a day to lobby legislators and assemblymen on education causes during this event.

FJCCSGA

WHO: The Florida Junior Community College Student Government Association
WHAT:  It’s FJCCSGA’s annual statewide convention, attended by Student Government, Phi Theta Kappa, and other club leaders from 26 of Florida’s 28 community colleges and branch campuses. Must be a member of the Florida Community College Activities Association or guest speaker/presenter to attend.
WHERE: location varies (recently in Sandestin and Tampa)
WHEN: February/March
COST: $140
CONTACT: kwarren@fccj.org
• www.flccaa.org/sga/sga-index.htm
• FJCCSGA State Advisor, c/o FCCJ-Kent Campus, 3939 Roosevelt Blvd, Jacksonville, Fla. 32205
• 904-381-3674

Student Leader says: Worthy of your time. The FJCCSGA conference attracts about 400 SGA leaders statewide. The program includes six ed-session blocks with four to six workshops on leadership topics and issues, and includes the annual campaigns and elections for state and district officers. Most institutions bring scrapbooks of their accomplishments to be judged. Includes plenty of social and networking time.

Regional

NW Student Leadership Conference

WHO: Sponsored by the Oregon Student Association, University of Alaska Coalition of Student Leaders, and other groups
WHAT:  It’s the Northwest’s largest gathering of campus leaders from student government, activities groups, and political organizations, mainly from Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Arizona, and Alaska.
WHERE: Portland, Oregon (Portland State University campus)
WHEN: November
COST: $70-$75
CONTACT: exec@orstudents.org
• www.orstudents.org/nwslc
• 645 NE Dekum, Portland, OR 97211
• 503-286-0477

National

COSGA

WHO: Conference on Student Government Associations
WHAT:  With nearly 600 students attending from 110 schools in 34 states, it’s the nation’s largest gathering of Student Government leaders.
WHERE: Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas
WHEN: February
COST: $168-$212
CONTACT: cosga@stuact.tamu.edu
• cosga.tamu.edu/
• COSGA c/o Texas A&M University, 127 John J Koldus Building, TAMU 1236, College Station, TX  77843-1236
• 979-845-6416 or 979-845-9394

Student Leader says: Awesome. COSGA is simply the best national conference for student government leaders in the land. COSGA features four days of intense programming, which includes speakers, workshops, roundtables, and lectures. Many workshops are presented by veteran campus leaders. The sponsoring committee, a group of 80 Texas A&M students, treats COSGA “delegates” like royalty. This event rivals even the best professional leadership conventions, featuring bright speakers and including a diverse mix of colleges and universities. After the programming is finished, “Night Life” is a big deal—almost too big, as some delegates go overboard partying all night and are too beat for active participation in workshops and roundtables the next day. Don’t miss it.

National Leadership Conference
on Student Government

WHO: Center for Leadership Development at Kansas State University
WHAT:  It’s an “intimate” conference, featuring a stimulating blend of seminars, workshops, and roundtables, which encourages activate participation. NLCSG attracts about 225 students and advisors from mainly smaller private colleges and community colleges.
WHERE: St. Louis, Missouri
WHEN: October
COST: $300-$350
CONTACT: bosco@andy.lan.ksu.edu
• www.dce.ksu.edu
•2100 Hillview Dr., Manhattan, KS 66502
• 1-800-432-8222

Student Leader says: Awesome. This is the best professionally produced conference for SG leaders in America. Take advantage of the one-on-one consulting offered by workshop facilitators, most of whom have been speaking at this event throughout its 23-year-history. Speakers sometimes create workshops “on the fly” to meet participants’ needs based on a roundtable at the beginning of the event. While packed with workshops, speakers, and networking time, the conference sponsor also builds in social time and offers bus service to attractions including the Union Station mall and the famous St. Louis “Arch.” It’s open to any school, but mainly attracts smaller universities, private colleges, and community colleges. Don’t miss it.

ASACC National Conference on Student Advocacy

WHO: American Student Association of Community Colleges
WHAT:  With attendance of 600 to 700, it’s the nation’s largest gathering of community college student leaders.
WHERE: Washington, D.C.
WHEN: March
COST: $275 members/$375 non-members
CONTACT: cleggph@uvsc.edu
• www.asacc.org
• 2250 North University Pkwy, PMB 4865, Provo, UT 84604
• 801-785-9784

Student Leader says: Worthy of your time. ASACC’s national event attracts some of the most thoughtful campus leaders Student Leader has encountered. The conference features numerous workshops, as well as reports by ASACC region directors and officers. The event often attracts big-name speakers such as James Carville and Mary Matalin, as well as numerous members of the U.S. Congress and Senate. During the four days, there’s time built in for sight-seeing, but it’s a working conference (that’s a good thing), with one day totally devoted to lobbying legislators on Capitol Hill. Don’t miss it.

Phi Theta Kappa’s International Convention

WHO: Phi Theta Kappa national honor society for community college students
WHAT:  Attracting 4,000 PTKers, this event may be the largest gathering of student leaders of any kind in America.
WHERE: location varies (most recently Nashville, Tenn.)
WHEN: April
COST: $175
CONTACT: mike.watson@ptk.org
• www.ptk.org
• 1625 Eastover Dr., Jackson, Miss 39211
• 601-984-3521

Student Leader says: Worthy of your time. As the premier honor society for two-year colleges, PTK does it right. This flashy event features big-time speakers, such as Newt Gingrich and James Carville. PTK’s convention includes a truckload of workshops and roundtables, a transfer college fair, and elections for national and state officers. The event culminates with a gala dinner and awards presentation. The event is always held in a major tourist area with built-in time for attendees to relax. It’s well-worth attending just to see how to produce a well-run and executed national convention.

ACCPA’s National Convention

WHO: Association for the Promotion of Campus Activities
WHAT:  It’s kind of the “junior” version of the National Association for Campus Activities, focusing on campus activities, programming, and student leaders at smaller private colleges and community colleges.
WHERE: location varies (most recently Jacksonville, Fla.)
WHEN: March
COST: $139 for members/$189 nonmembers
CONTACT: contact@apca.com
• www.apca.com
• 1-800-681-5031

Student Leader says: Worthy of your time. APCA attracts schools with smaller budgets and fewer resources than NACA, but that’s just fine. The event attracts several hundred students and student affairs professionals and offers 30 workshops and “showcases” for comedians and musicians that schools can hire. If you’ve gotten lost at NACA’s massive national convention in the past, which isn’t hard, APCA may be a good alternative.

NACA National Convention

WHO: National Association for Campus Activities
WHAT:  It’s the annual gathering of student activities directors, student programming managers, directors of lecture series, and some student government leaders from 1,200 member institutions
WHERE: location varies (most recently Indianapolis)
WHEN: February
COST: $250
CONTACT: gordon@naca.org
• www.naca.org
• 13 Harbison Way, Columbia, South Carolina 29212-3401
• 803-732-6222.

See Student Leader’s listing of more than 125 leadership conferences of all types at www.studentleader.com. Look under “Find the Perfect Conference.”

Rankings
Student Leader Editor in Chief Butch Oxendine has participated regularly as a facilitator/workshop presenter at each of these conferences and candidly ranks them as follows:

—Excellent. Well worth your time and expense.
—Good. This one's a good investment.
—Average. You may or may not benefit from this.
—Below average. We think it's overrated.
—Poor. Don't bother!