Conference Proposal

As I watch an awesome sunset behind the hills across the bay, I think about the week's events and wonder what could possibly come next. I've had an incredibly busy week, finished up a big project, brought someone new into the company, knocked out some very big contract preparation activities, and then there is today's big news. Today I got word that my abstract was accepted and I am on the schedule to present at the PNG Science & Technology Conference 2010. Yes, that's right. My name is officially listed in the program as one of the presenters on Wednesday afternoon, August 18, 2010, at 2:00pm. The presentation before mine is "A comparative analysis of attrition rates of the first year engineering maths students of the Papua New Guinea University of Technology" by Augustine Moshi, and I am followed by "Community education: Alternative for the country", by Michael Kapari. Mine is listed in the program as "Public-private partnership in delivery education programs", and my name is there in print too!

The venue for this prestigious gathering is "Divine Word University" in Madang. I've not been to the northern coast of PNG yet, so I am really looking forward to the trip. Still, there are some drawbacks too. Namely, that I haven't a CLUE what to expect! I mean, I know my topic, and feel relatively confident that I can provide a decent paper. I'm really hoping my presentation might spur some to action and encourage the kind of partnerships that I have envisioned to actually be established. But as far as presenting a topic at a conference like this, well, I'm actually clueless on how to proceed.

So, my next game plan will involve me checking in with some of my academic resources back at TTU, my putting in some long hours tweaking my paper until it is ready for prime time, then observing day one and day two of the conference to get an idea of what I am going to actually do on day three! I am so very excited, so please, wish me luck. Uncharted waters are nothing new to me. I'm always nervous, but I always get through it. Here's hoping that I hold to my standard and actually survive this!