The Simons Center follows a strict timeline in order to have efficient and successful programs. Janell Rodgers is the Program and Workshop Coordinator for the Simons Center. She will be your SCGP contact for the organization of your program. Please see the below chart for a general timeline for organizing a program.
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SCGP Program Organizer Timeline |
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Activity |
Deadline |
| Submit program proposal to the Simons Center Scientific Advisory Committee. For complete instructions on how to apply to organize a program at SCGP, please see our Call for Proposals webpage. | Proposals for programs in a given academic year are due by September 30 of the previous academic year. Proposals submitted earlier are welcomed, and can be approved earlier. |
| Use organizer budget excel spreadsheet to create a list of invitees and their support offers.First round of invitations are sent out. | 9 months prior to program start date, or as soon as possible after your program proposal is approved. |
| Online web applications to participate in the program are now open. Deadline for the first round of invited participants to respond to the invitation. | 6 months prior to program start date. *Note: The response deadline for all participants will be set at 4 months prior to workshop start date. |
| Second round of invitations are sent out. | 5 months prior to program start date. |
| Deadline for all invited participants to respond. Program application removed from the SCGP website. The organizers should accept/reject web applicants. | 4 months prior to program start date. |
| Deadline for All participants visit dates and support finalized. The program poster is created, posted online, and sent to all confirmed participants. | 3 months prior to program start date. |
| Deadline to fix the talk time slots. *Note: this is on a first come first serve basis. | 1 month prior to program start date but is suggested to be reserved earlier. |
| Speakers and titles for the next week’s program seminar(s). | Thursday every week; if this deadline is missed, talks will not be announced. |
Program Quick Facts
- By default the Center invites people for a 4-week stay and discourages short-term visits (visits of less than 2 weeks).
- A visitor is allowed to split their 4-week stay into two visits (if travel support is offered, only one trip is reimbursed).
- If a visitor chooses to stay for less than 2 weeks, housing will be covered, but travel will not be reimbursed, unless individually requested by the organizers.
- Any stay longer than 28 days or shorter than 12 days will need to be approved by the program organizers, and the Program and Workshop Coordinator.
- As an organizer, you will receive a program budget excel spreadsheet, which will be used to create the invitation list. Here is some important information regarding the budget excel:
- There are invitee information columns to fill out: first name, last name, email, institution, and region. Please include yourselves, as organizers, in this spreadsheet.
- The number of participants in residence at SCGP (including organizers, excluding locals) is limited by our housing capacity, normally 15-18 people, which will be communicated to you.
- Please put a 1 in the “travel support” column if you wish to offer travel support to that participant. If you do not cover that cost please put a 0. Locals do not cost anything to invite, but please still include them.
- Detailed information on the costs of travel by region and housing is located on the second (locked, uneditable) tab of the spreadsheet.
- If an invitee is only offered housing (no travel), but they cannot attend without travel support, they will have the option to apply for financial aid. The deadline to apply for financial aid and to respond to the invitation will be the same. Participants can respond to their original invitation with a request for additional funds.
- After the web application deadline, the list of all applicants will be sent to the organizers for discussion. Based on the space in the program, you can potentially invite more people among these applicants.
Program Attendee Offer (including for organizers)
The typical offer for a program participant includes the following:
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- Reimbursement for travel between the home institution and Stony Brook up to a maximum of $700 from the U.S./Canada, $1100 from Europe, and $1600 from Africa/Asia/Australia/New Zealand/South America (So that the Center may host a maximum of participants, we ask those participants who can to support their travel expenses from other sources).
- Lodging expenses in SCGP shared faculty housing (1 bedroom) or equivalent for up to one month.
- An organizer who plans to be at the Center for a significant amount of time (e.g., a semester) and those who want to make several shorter visits during the program should discuss financial arrangements with the Deputy Director.
Online Web Applications/Travel Financial Aid
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- The Simons Center accepts applications to participate in our programs via the webpage here. There is a section in this application for requesting travel/housing financial aid.
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- The deadline to apply is four months before the program. At that time, the application will be closed and the list of applicants will be forwarded to the organizers. The organizers can choose to invite any of these people with or without support, subject to space and budget limitations.
- Organizers must decide to accept/reject applicants and all support offers, 3 months before the event start. The list of participants visit dates and support will then be finalized.
Draft Invitation
Below is a sample invitation, note it will be changed based on the individual participant’s offer
Dear Professor {last_name},
The Simons Center for Geometry and Physics is hosting the {event_name} organized by {event__organizers}. This program occurs from {event__date_start} to {event__date_end}. On behalf of the Simons Center, we would like to invite you to spend one month at the Center during this time.
For information on the program, please visit: {event_url}
VISIT INFORMATION
The Center will provide:
1. Reimbursement for return travel from your home institution to Stony Brook up to a maximum of $700 from the U.S./Canada, $1100 from Europe, and $1600 from Asia/Australia/New Zealand/South America*
2. Lodging expenses in SCGP shared faculty housing (1 bedroom) or equivalent for up to one month.
*So that the Center may include a maximum of participants in this program, we ask participants to support their travel expenses from other sources. Those in need of support will be reimbursed as described above. If your planned reimbursed flight is a multi-destination trip, let us know as additional paperwork is needed.
MEALS
You are responsible for your meal costs during your stay, but we will provide you with a discount at the Simons Center cafe.
TO CONFIRM OR DECLINE
1. Log in to the online registration page below to confirm (or decline) your attendance and select your preferred dates. DATE AVAILABILITY IS ON A FIRST COME, FIRST SERVE BASIS.
2. We have a two (2) week minimum stay to receive offer as stated above. If you choose to attend for less than two weeks, no travel will be reimbursed. Visitors may also separate their visit into two visits, but only one set of travel as described above will be reimbursed. Please respond to this email if you are visiting under these circumstances or believe the Center is at capacity during your requested dates. Do not book any travel until your requested dates have been confirmed.
You can access your registration information here: https://scgp.stonybrook.edu/register.
Last Name: {last_name}
Email: {email}
Pin: {password}
HOUSING
Our housing coordinator will arrange your local accommodations. If you should have specific requests (not guaranteed), please email housing@scgp.stonybrook.edu. You will receive housing coverage for both visits (if split into two separate weeks).
INSURANCE
As a visitor of the Center it is your responsibility to hold health insurance or obtain travel medical insurance in case there are any emergency medical expenses (unexpected illness, injury or medical condition) that occur during your stay. By confirming your visit to the SCGP, you agree to this requirement.
We hope you will be present and engaged in the activities of the Center and add your expertise to our programs, lectures, and seminars. If you have any questions regarding your visit, financial assistance, or program questions please feel free to email contact@scgp.stonybrook.edu or reply to this message.
Best regards,
{event__organizers}
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
International travelers: Before confirming your attendance, you must look at your local consulate wait times if you need a visa. Please respond to this message if you cannot obtain a visa before your scheduled arrival date. For more information on travel restrictions, please see the following important links:
– Visa guidelines: https://scgp.stonybrook.edu/about/visitor-info/visa-information
– Publication acknowledgment guidelines: https://scgp.stonybrook.edu/science/acknowledging-the-scgp
– CDC Travel Guidelines: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/ea/covid-19-information.html
Talks
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- As an important part of the Program’s activities, we usually have one or two weekly talks throughout the entire program. For example, you might want to have one of the talks to be a more pedagogical review, while the other to be a more technical seminar. These weekly talk time slots should be scheduled at least 1 month before the event start, but we suggest to reserve them earlier.
- The contact for talk scheduling and announcements is Maria Guetter. During the program every Thursday the speaker titles and abstracts, for the next week need to be received to be announced on the website and sent to our talks list.
Upon Conclusion of Your Program:
Two months after the conclusion of your academic activity at the Center, we kindly ask that you submit a final report detailing your programs academic achievements, including, but not limited to, a formal summary of program participants, key lectures and/or topics, research results, or continuing collaborations. To submit your formal report, please visit this page: https://scgp.stonybrook.edu/programworkshop-final-report
