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The Ohio Higher Education Computing Council (OHECC) was originally organized in
the early 1970s as a quarterly meeting of the directors of computing from 13 public universities throughout Ohio, in order to discuss common problems and solutions. It grew through the addition of assistant directors and senior managers to the group, and by the mid-1980s private institutions began to attend the meeting as well.
Today OHECC is still an informal organization that holds meetings in the spring and
fall of each year, with one of the larger members acting as host on a rotating basis. Typically OHECC attracts about 200 registrants from institutions of higher education throughout Ohio, with a few others from Indiana, Kentucky and Michigan, plus representatives from 15-20 vendors. The host is responsible for all local arrangements and the program.
In order to allow the maximum amount of conferencing in the least possible time, a traditional OHECC schedule calls for travel to the host site on a Thursday morning, although a few travel the night before because of the distances involved. The conference starts with an opening luncheon and keynote talk, and then the afternoon is devoted to a dozen or more break-out sessions on a variety of "hot" topics presented by both institutions and vendors. Concurrently, a vendor display is held, usually in or near the area where breaks are taken. That evening a special dinner and social event is held, often at a facility unique to the host location. It is followed by additional activities at the hotel, such as a hospitality suite and/or a small ballroom with a band for dancing.
On Friday morning a buffet breakfast is offered, and additional sessions are held. They may include another general session, but may also only be in break-out form. Traditionally, these sessions are organized as "roundtables", where more targeted topics about common problems are discussed in 8 or more groups of 25 people or less, much like the original format when only directors attended. Then a farewell final
lunch is offered using box lunches (so those with long return trips can get off as quickly as possible), and a series of door prizes is offered at the end of that lunch. Friday afternoon is devoted to travel back home for the attendees. |