Senate Members - American Pharmacists Association ... Your... · Web viewPolicy Booth at your school ...6 Policy Forum ....8 Policy at Patient Care Events .…..12 ... Write a script

HOW YOUR CHAPTER CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE: GUIDE TO ORGANIZING POLICY EVENTS

i. Pizza and Policy………………………………………………………………..1ii. Policy Corner in chapter meetings…………………………………….4iii. Policy Booth at your school……………………………………………...6iv. Policy Forum…………………………………………………………………....8v. Policy at Patient Care Events……………………………………….…..12vi. Debates……………………………………………………………………………14vii. Voter Registration Drives…………………………………………..…….19viii. State of the Union Socials…………………………………………………22ix. Campaign canvassing and involvement………………………..…..25

I. Pizza and Policy

Pizza and policy events are informal meetings organized outside of the APhA-ASP general chapter meeting at which chapter members can come together in order to discuss current policy and advocacy events occurring within the world of pharmacy.

To Do List: Connect with your state association.

o Historically, we have found that state pharmacy associations are very excited about helping to educate students about the policy and advocacy events relating to pharmacy. State associations are often very up-to-date on the issues currently being debated on both the state and national level.

Connect with professors, especially those who are well versed in state and pharmacy law. Connect with local pharmacists who are active in state and national pharmacy associations.

How Your Chapter Can Make a Difference - Page 1 of 26

Brainstorm topic ideas.o Seek out expert advice on hot topics in pharmacy from your connections at

your state association, your professors or local pharmacists.o Review the “Advocacy Issues” listed under the “Get Involved” tab on

www.pharmacist.com

o Look at various news resources. Many pharmacy organizations send out daily or weekly updates on

hot topics in pharmacy. Newspapers often publish information on drug topics under the

“Health” section of the paper. Washington Post New York Times Bloomberg Business Week MedPage Today Reuters News


http://www.pharmacist.com/

Schedule the event.o Reserve a room on campus or off campus.o Ensure that it allows for easy conversation between a large group of people.

Invite representatives from your state association, professors or local pharmacists to participate in your Pizza and Policy event.

o Be careful not to get too many “experts” involved in the event as this could overwhelm student participation and become more of a panel presentation than a round-table discussion.

Announce the event to your chapter members.o Announce the event at chapter meetingso Send out an email informing them of:

Location, Date and Time Topic for discussion Expert guests attending RSVP deadline

Post a sign-up sheet to collect RSVPs so that you know how much food to order. Create a powerpoint or agenda that outlines the topics and questions to be

discussed. Order the food.

o Some schools have found local sponsors to help fund the foodo Other schools pay for the food out of their APhA-ASP account

Send thank you letters to your expert guests after the event.

Number of Weeks to Plan: 2 – 3 weeks

Advertising: Emails to chapter members Flyers around campus to advertise the event

Number of Students Needed/Assignments: 3 – 4 students Pizza and Policy Coordinator – in charge of scheduling the event and ordering food.

o Reserves the room for the evento Sends out emails to chapter memberso Prepares and posts flyers advertising the event around campuso Posts the sign-up sheeto Orders food based on the number of members attending

Student Liaison – in charge of contacting and communicating with the expert guests.

o Invite them to the evento Inform them of the topico Share discussion questions


o Introduce the guests to students at the actual evento Send thank you letters to the expert guests after the event

Student Policy Pro – in charge of researching the topic for discussion and organizing the powerpoint.

o Research current hot topics in pharmacyo Brainstorm discussion questionso Create a powerpoint or agenda to help guide the conversation

Location of the Event: This event can be held on or off campus. It is important that the room in which the event is held is open and conducive to a

round-table type discussion so that the meeting is more of a conversation between all attendees rather than a lecture from the experts in attendance.

II. Policy Corner in Chapter Meetings

Policy Corners held during chapter meetings are a way to keep chapter members up-to-date on the current events happening within the world of pharmacy. During the school year, students can get busy with school work and lose connection with the outside world. These information sessions help keep students informed of the happenings within pharmacy on a local, state and national level so that students can be knowledgeable advocates for their profession.

To Do List: Stay up-to-date with current events happening in pharmacy.

o Review the “Advocate Issues” listed under the “Get Involved” tab on www.pharmacist.com



o Become familiar with your state association’s website. State Associations often list state legislation that relates to

pharmacy on their websites.o Look at various news resources.

Many pharmacy organizations send out daily or weekly updates on hot topics in pharmacy.

Newspapers often publish information on drug topics under the “Health” section of the paper.

Washington Post New York Times Bloomberg Business Week MedPage Today Reuters News

Brainstorm topic ideas for discussion and keep an ongoing list of current events in pharmacy.

Create a 1 – 2 page powerpoint to present at your chapter meeting in order to inform chapter members of current events happening within pharmacy.

Time Needed to Plan: 30 minutes per week to stay up-to-date on current events within pharmacy.

Advertising: Introduce the concept of a Policy Corner at your first chapter meeting. Get students excited


o Encourage students to submit policy or advocacy questions that you could seek out answers to.

o Ask the chapter members questions at the beginning of each chapter meeting concerning current events in pharmacy in order to introduce the topics that will be discussed in the policy corner.

Number of Students Needed/Assignments: 1 student Policy Corner Coordinator – in charge of staying up-to-date on current policy and

advocacy issues within pharmacyo Spend 30 minutes per week researching current hot topics within pharmacy.o Develop a 1 – 2 page powerpoint for each chapter meeting

Include 3 – 4 current events happening at the local, state or national level that affect pharmacy.

Could include audience questions and answers.

Location of the Event: Regular chapter meeting location.

III. Policy Booth at Your School

Policy Booth’s are another way to keep students involved and encourage participation in pharmacy-related policy and advocacy events. The booth set-up is similar to the policy and advocacy booth held at the APhA Annual Meeting. It allows students to learn the important role that pharmacists play in the health care setting, view and familiarize themselves with www.pharmacist.com, sign-up to be Advocacy Key Contacts and contact members of Congress concerning key issues that affect pharmacy and are currently being discussed. A great time to hold a booth such as this could be during a week in October for American Pharmacists Month. If there are no important issues to educate legislators on at that particular point in time, you can always send a letter out to your representatives introducing yourself as a pharmacy student and tell a story about how you have improved patient care. Include the flyer “Did You Know What Your Pharmacist Can Do for You” (found in the virtual binder) with the letter out to representatives.

To Do List: Reserve a computer cluster or have students bring 3 – 4 computers (depending on

the size of your campus and the number of participants you expect to stop by the booth) to a central location on campus every day during lunch for a week.

Open up the specific applications on each computer that students who stop by the booth will need to access or create quick links for them on the desktop.



Draft a letter to send to legislative representatives or use a template found on www.pharmacist.com that addresses the appropriate topic. (See the letter writing portion of this virtual binder in Section 3.)

Create educational materials concerning the benefits of becoming an Advocacy Key contact (see document “Benefits of Becoming an Advocacy Key Contact in Section 2 of the Virtual Binder), current issues affecting pharmacy today (the “Get Involved” tab on www.pharmacist.com contains a link on the left hand side of the page to “Advocate Action.”), a printed copy of any electronic letters that you will be encouraging students to send to legislators.




Train 3 – 4 individuals to supervise the booth, help participants complete the tasks and answer participants’ questions when individuals stop by to participate in the booth.

Announce the event to chapter members, other students, faculty and staffo Explanation of what a Policy and Advocacy Booth iso Location, date and times the booth will be open


Advertising: Create flyers to post around campus. Send out emails to faculty and students and invite them to stop by the booth during

their lunch hour.

Number of Students Needed/Assignments: Approximately 10 students to take turns manning the various roles.

Logistics Coordinator – in charge of reserving the computer lab or coordinating the computers and advertising the event.

o Reserve a computer lab or space on campuso Ensure enough computers are available and working during the allotted

timeo Create a flyer telling people about the event, it’s location, days and timeso Send out an email to invite faculty, staff and students to stop by the booth


Resource Coordinator – in charge of making sure that all of the appropriate information is available for use during the times that the booth is open

o Ensure computers are workingo Load appropriate documents and links on to the computerso Make copies of all educational materialso Train individuals manning the booth how to access and hand out all of the

necessary materials Educational Resource Coordinator – in charge of drafting the educational materials.

o Draft copies of any handouts that will be given to participants who stop by the booth

Information on the benefits of being an Advocacy Key Contact Hard copies of electronic letters that are sent to legislators Information about the impact that pharmacists have within the

healthcare setting Booth Volunteers – in charge of manning the booth during its open hours

o Educate individuals stopping by on the important issues impacting pharmacy and help them to understand the important role that pharmacists play in their healthcare

o Walk participants through how to sign-up on www.pharmacist.com to become an Advocacy Key Contact

o Walk participants through how to find their congressional representatives and send them a letter concerning an important topic in pharmacy or educating their legislator on the importance of pharmacists within healthcare

Location of the Event: Computer lab on campus Easily accessible area on campus where laptops can be set up and connected to an

electricity source

IV. Policy Forum/Panel Discussion

A policy forum is a more formal opportunity for an expert or group of experts to come and address an audience on a key issue affecting the field of pharmacy. At the end of the presentation, the floor is opened up for the audience to ask questions of the expert presenters.

To Do List: Connect with pharmacy experts within the community

o Reach out and introduce yourself to your state pharmacy association.



o Connect with local pharmacists who are active in state and national pharmacy associations.

o Network with local pharmacists through job activities.o Get to know your professors and learn what areas of pharmacy they have

expert knowledge in. Brainstorm topic ideas.

o Seek out expert advice on hot topics in pharmacy from your connections at your state association, your professors or local pharmacists.

o Review the “Advocacy Issues” listed under the “Get Involved” tab on www.pharmacist.com


hot topics in pharmacy.



Newspapers often publish information on drug topics under the “Health” section of the paper.

Washington Post New York Times Bloomberg Business Week MedPage Today Reuters News

Schedule the event.o Reserve a room on campus or off campus.o Ensure the room is large enough for your expected audience.o Ensure the room will allow for a lecture or panel discussion from the group

of experts that present (can all audience members easily see and hear the presenters?)

Invite one, two or a panel of experts to present on the hot pharmacy topic that you have chosen

o Send a formal letter or email inviting the individuals to speak at the event Explain the purpose and set-up of the event Include the date, time and location of the event Identify the topic they will be presenting on Identify the amount of time the speakers will have to present Include information concerning whether or not the presenters will

have access to electronic presentation tools such as power point, etc.

Include a date by which you will need to know if the individuals are able to present

Announce the event to your chapter members and anyone else you would like to attend.

o Announce the event at chapter meetingso Send out an email informing them of:

Location, Date and Time Topic for discussion Expert guests attending

Send thank you letters to your expert guests after the event.

Number of Weeks to Plan: Approximately 4 to 5 weeks in order to give expert guests enough time to adequately prepare their presentations.

Advertising: Create flyers to post around campus Send out emails to students and faculty and invite them to attend the informational

session


Send a formal letter to state legislators inviting them to attend (especially if the topic being presented pertains to issues that are currently being discussed in the state legislature

Number of Students Needed/Assignments: 3 – 4 students Topic Development should be brainstormed and developed by the team that is

organizing the Policy Forum so that one person is not left to develop the topic alone Logistics Coordinator – in charge of reserving a room on or off campus for the policy

forum and ensuring that the room is set-up appropriately for the presentation and question/answer time

o Reserve a location for the policy forumo Ensure that the room has adequate space for the expected number of

attendeeso Ensure that there are enough microphones available if it will be held in a

large roomo Ensure that there audio/visual equipment is available and working (if

necessary) Liaison to the Policy Experts – in charge of inviting and communicating with the

expert panelistso Invite the expert policy panelistso Share the topic that has been chosen for discussion, date and location of the

event and the format for the event (panel presentation on specific aspects of the topic, followed by a question and answer period)

o Develop a list of talking points that you would like the panelists to share information about

o Greet the panelists prior to the event and get them settled before the event begins

Send thank you notes to the panelists following the event to thank them for attending and sharing their knowledge on the specific topic

Advertising Coordinator – in charge of advertising the event to faculty, students and the community

o Creates flyers to be spread around campuso If the outside community is welcome to attend, you may place an ad in the

local newspaper or take out an ad on a local radio stationo Send emails to faculty and students explaining the topic for discussion

(giving a little background on the topic may help to get people excited) and inviting them to attend the event

o Send formal letters of invitation to any state legislators or law makers that you would like to invite to the event (ask in the letter that they RSVP through email or phone call)


After sending out these invitations, follow-up with a phone call to the staff of these individuals in order to see if they are planning to attend

Greet any legislators or law makers that will be attending the event, introduce yourself, welcome them and direct them to their seats

Send thank you notes to these individuals following the event to thank them for taking time out of their busy schedules to attend and learn more about the specific topic

Location of the Event: On or off campus in a room that can serve as a lecture hall. You may want to ask

student and faculty attendees to RSVP in order to ensure that the location you choose is not too big or too small for your event.

V. Policy at Patient Care Events

Patient Care Events are a great venue at which to educate the general public about the value of pharmacists and the impact that pharmacists have in the general community. It is also a good forum in which to make the public aware of hot pharmacy topics that are currently being debated at both the state and national levels and encourage individuals to contact their representatives in order to support pharmacist’s vital role in patient care.

To Do List: Create a fact sheet that lists what pharmacists can do and describes how having

pharmacists involved in patient care can improve patient outcomes.o Include any important issues that relate to pharmacy and are currently

being debated at the state and national levels.o Include contact information for legislative representatives.o APhA has templates of such handouts that can be found at:

http://www.pharmacist.com/AM/Template.cfm?Section=State_Resources&Template=/CM/HTMLDisplay.cfm&ContentID=21764

Meet with the coordinators of the patient care events to:o Ensure that you are able to hand out advocacy materials at the eventso Find out the day, time and location of the events

Host a short training session (30min to 1hour) for students interested in grassroots policy and advocacy

o Educate them on the information presented in the flyer





o Educate them on how to talk to people in the community about the benefits of having pharmacists involved in health care

Create a sign-up sheet for individuals who have been trained as policy representatives to sign-up to attend the various patient care events

Number of Weeks to Plan: 2 – 3 weeks It will probably take 1 – 2 weeks to create the flyers. Once they are created you will

need to ensure that a policy representative is present at the event to hand out flyers and answer patient questions.

Advertising: Announce the opportunity to train as a policy representative at a chapter meeting. Email students to inform them of the date, time and location of the policy

representative training session. Email policy representatives to inform them of the date, time and location of up-

coming patient care events that they can attend as policy representatives.

Number of Students Needed/Assignments: 2 – 3 Students Policy and Advocacy Information Coordinator – in charge of creating an informative

handout and communicating with patient care event coordinators.o Create an informative handout to educate patients on the benefits of having

pharmacists involved in patient care and outlining key topics affecting pharmacy that are being discussed at the state and national levels.

Include specific numbers on how pharmacists involvement in patients’ care helps to improve outcomes.

Provide information on how patients can contact their legislators and encourage them to support pharmacists.

o Contact the patient care event coordinators in order to find out the date, time and location of events and discuss the opportunity of incorporating policy and advocacy into these events.

Policy Representative Trainer – in charge of setting up the date, time and location for the training and educating the student attendees on how to inform patients of the key roles that pharmacists play in patient care.

o Reserve a room where the training session can take place.o Announce the date, time and location of the training session at a chapter

meeting.o Send out an email inviting interested students to attend the training session.o Present the policy and advocacy handout to the student attendees and

educate them on how to interact with patients, helping patients to understand the importance of pharmacists in the healthcare setting.


o Create a sign-up sheet for students who have been trained as policy representatives to sign-up to attend patient care events.

Location of the Event: On or off campus.

o These policy events will take place in conjunction with the patient care activities.

o Flyers will be handed to patients who participate in the patient care event.

VI. Debates

Debates are formal events that allow for individuals on opposite sides of an issue to come together and discuss their differing points of view. Debates can be held in order to educate people on the different sides of an important issues relating to pharmacy or to educate voters on candidates for an upcoming election.

To Do List: Decide the purpose of the debate:

o Is the debate to educate attendees on both sides of a topic affecting pharmacy?

o Is the debate to educate attendees on the stance of individuals running for public office?

Connect with pharmacy experts within the communityo Reach out and introduce yourself to your state pharmacy association.o Connect with local pharmacists who are active in state and national

pharmacy associations.o Network with local pharmacists through job activities.o Get to know your professors and learn what areas of pharmacy they have

expert knowledge in. Connect with individuals running for public office

o Decisions made by many different local boards and commissions also affect the pharmacy profession. When considering who to invite to participate at the local level, do not overlook certain areas of government. Building relationships at the local level serves two purposes: 1) to develop an influential relationship with regard to health care issues, and 2) locally held elected offices are usually the “incubators” for advancement to statewide or nationwide office. The local relationship can be an important state relationship and the state relationship can be an important national relationship in the future.

o Local Public Officials


Members of county Board of Supervisors County Administrative Officers Managers Human Resource Personnel Health Officers Members of City Councils City Managers School Board Members Special Districts Fire Water District Attorneys Police Chiefs County Sheriffs State Public Officials

o State Public Officials Senate Members Assembly members Key Staff Members Chief of Staff Personnel assigned to handle health issues

o Research the individuals that are running for office. Find out what their stance on various healthcare topics is. Find out what issues are important to voters in your area, especially

issues related to healthcare.o Look online to discover how to contact their campaign staff.

Brainstorm topic ideas.o Seek out expert advice on hot topics in pharmacy from your connections at

your state association, your professors or local pharmacists.o Review the “Advocacy Issues” listed under the “Get Involved” tab on

www.pharmacist.com




hot topics in pharmacy. Newspapers often publish information on drug topics under the

“Health” section of the paper. Washington Post New York Times Bloomberg Business Week MedPage Today Reuters News

Decide on the topic to be debated. Reserve a location (on or off campus) where the debate can take place.

o Ensure the room is large enough for the expected audience.o Ensure microphones are provided for each debate participant, the

moderator and audience (if you plan to open the floor to audience questions).

Outline the rules the debate will follow. For example:o Depending on the agreed format, either the moderator or an audience

member can be the one to ask questions. o Typically there are no opening statements, just closing statements.o A coin toss determines who gets to answer the first question and each

candidate will get alternate turns. o Once a question is asked, the candidate has 2 minutes to answer the

question.


o After this, the opposing candidate has around 1 minute to respond and rebut her/is arguments.

o At the moderator's discretion, the discussion of the question may be extended by 30 seconds per candidate.

Obtain a timer and create a time warning device.o Something as simple as yellow and red slips of paper can be used to alert

the debate participants to 30 seconds remaining and time being up, respectively.

Send formal written invitations to the individuals that you would like to participate in the debate.

o Specify the date, time and location of the debateo State the purpose of the debateo Identify the issues to be debatedo Explain the rules that the debate will follow

Write a script for the moderator to read.o Introduce all of the participants in the debate.o Explain the rules that the debate will follow.o Outline the list of questions that will be asked of all debate participants.

Invite students, faculty and the larger community to attend.o Create flyers to hang up on campus that list the date, time, location and

purpose of the debate.o Send out emails to faculty and students inviting them to attend the debate.o Contact local radio and news stations in order to advertise the debate.o Invite local news stations to attend the debate.


Advertising: Create flyers to hang up on campus that list the date, time, location and purpose of

the debate. Send out emails to faculty and students inviting them to attend the debate. Contact local radio and news stations in order to advertise the debate. Run an add in the local newspaper to advertise the debate. Invite local news stations to attend the debate.

Number of Students Needed/Assignments: 4 – 5 Students Logistics Coordinator – in charge of reserving the room and ensuring that all of the

audio-visual equipment is working.o Reserve the location for the event, ensuring that the room is large enough

for the expected audience.


o Set-up all audio-visual equipment (computers, powerpoints, microphones) and ensure that they are in working order.

Policy Pro – in charge of organizing the topic development and writing the script for the debate.

o Research hot topics that are currently of key importance in pharmacy.o Organize a brainstorming session with the event planning team in order to

brainstorm topic ideas and questions to use in the debate.o Write out the rules for the debate.o Write the script for the debate moderator to use during the debate.

Resource Coordinator – in charge of contacting the debate participants and selecting a moderator and time keeper for the debate.

o Research individuals who are knowledgeable of the topic that will be debated.

o Write a formal letter inviting individuals to participate in the debate. Identify the date, time, location and topic of the debate. Include a brief outline of the rules for the debate. Request a response by phone or email.

o Nominate individuals to act as a moderator and time-keeper for the debate. Organize a dress rehearsal with the moderator and time keeper

prior to the debate in order to run through the questions and the timing allotted to each speacker.

Advertising Coordinator – in charge of advertising the event both on and off campus.

o Announce the debate during a chapter meeting.o Create flyers announcing the date, time, location and topic of the debate to

be posted around campus.o Email faculty and students inviting them to attend the debate.o Contact the local newspaper and place an advertisement to invite

individuals in the community to attend.o Contact local radio stations and ask them to announce the debate.o Invite local television news stations to cover the debate.

Location of the Event: The debate can take place on or off campus.

o Ensure that the room provides adequate space for the expected audience.o Provide podiums for the debaters to stand behind or tables for them to

stand next to so that they have a place to set a bottle of water or notes.o Ensure that the room has appropriate outlets for microphones and audio-

visual equipment.


VII. Voter Registration Drives

Voter Registration Drives are great activities for your chapter to get involved in during an election year. You may participate as an individual in a drive off campus or your chapter can coordinate a voter registration drive on campus to get voters registered and encourage them to vote. Unfortunately, due to federal laws regarding voter registration drives, this is NOT an opportunity for you to provide registered voters with information on where each candidate stands in relation to important issues in healthcare.

To Do List: Contact your Local Election Office and League of Women Voters in order to obtain

basic nonpartisan registration materials (flyers, buttons, booklets).o Your Local Election Office can also educate you on the regulations for voter

registration. (Some states require you to take an oath to become an honorary registrar.)

o You can also use the National Voter Registration Form available on the Federal Election Commission website (www.fec.gov) and print as many copies as you need.

o Ensure that the following statement is on all registration materials that you hand out to registrants and posted at your booth. This is a Federal Election Commission Regulation!

Our voter registration services are available without regard to the voter’s political preference. Information and other assistance regarding registering or voting, including transportation and other serviced offered, shall not be withheld or refused on the basis of support for or opposition to particular candidates or a particular party.

Reserve a location on campus where the Voter Registration Drive will be held.o Ensure that it is a public place with easy access by all individuals on campus.

Advertise the Voter Registration Drive.o Create flyers to post around campus.o Place an advertisement in the local newspaper.o Email faculty, staff and students to alert them to the upcoming drive.

Host a training session to teach individuals who will be manning the booth how to help individuals fill out forms and register to vote.

o Share a list of frequently asked questions with these volunteers. (See the document “Questions You May Be Asked By Individuals Registering to Vote”)

o Share sample forms with these individuals so that they can familiarize themselves with the process.


Set-up the booth and help people register to vote. Collect all of the forms and drop them off at the Local Election Office.

Number of Weeks to Plan: 3 – 4 weeks Be sure to schedule the event early enough so that the participants in the drive are

registered for the upcoming election. We suggest holding the drive at least a month before the upcoming election to ensure that all registrants are able to vote in the upcoming election.

Advertising: Create flyers to post around campus. Place an advertisement in the local newspaper. Contact a local radio station and run an advertisement on air announcing the date,

time and location of the upcoming voter registration drive. Email faculty, staff and students to alert them to the upcoming drive.

Number of Students Needed/Assignments: Approximately 10 Students Election Office Liason – in charge of contacting the Local Election Office and the

League of Women Voters.o Obtain necessary forms for the voter registration drive.o Create any additional resources that are necessary. (Ensure that all

materials are nonpartisan.)o Find out the state laws associated with setting up a voter registration drive.o Return the forms to the Local Election Office after the Voter Registration

Drive is complete. Logistics Coordinator – in charge of setting up the date, location and time for the

voter registration drive.o Reserve a location on campus where the voter registration drive can take

place.o Reserve a table to use for the drive.o Obtain a sealed box to place the completed voter registration forms in.

Advertising Coordinator – in charge of informing all faculty, staff, students and the greater community of the dates, times and locations for the voter registration drive.

o Create flyers to post around campus.o Place an advertisement in the local newspaper.o Contact a local radio station and run an advertisement on air announcing

the date, time and location of the upcoming voter registration drive.o Email faculty, staff and students to alert them to the upcoming drive.o Create a sign that states the following to be placed at the Voter Registration

Booth:


Our voter registration services are available without regard to the voter’s political preference. Information and other assistance regarding registering or voting, including transportation and other serviced offered, shall not be withheld or refused on the basis of support for or opposition to particular candidates or a particular party.

Voter Registrant Trainer – in charge of organizing a training session to educate individuals who have volunteered to man the booth on how to be nonpartisan voter registrants.

o Reserve a location on campus for the 30min-1hour training session.o Create a powerpoint with responsibilities, dos and don’ts for a voter

registrant based on information obtained from your Local Election Office.o Announce the event at a local chapter meeting.o Send emails out to students to encourage them to be volunteers for the

Voter Registration Booth.o Create a sign-up sheet for the session.o Make copies of the “Questions You May Be Asked By Individuals Registering

to Vote” and the Voter Registration Form.o Create a sign-up sheet for volunteers to sign-up to man the voter

registration booth. Voter Registrants – in charge of manning the Voter Registration Booth during open

hours.o Attend the Voter Registrant Training Session.o Sign-up for times to man the booth.o Help booth attendees register to vote and answer their questions.o Collect all voter registration forms and return them to the Election Office

Liaison.

Location of the Event: The Voter Registration Drive should be held on campus in an area that is easily

accessible by a large number of people.o Cafeteria during lunch-time.o Student Union during lunch or dinner.o Entrance to the Library.

Signs may need to be placed on campus directing campus visitors to the location of the drive if you are expecting a large number of individuals from the greater community to attend.

VIII. State of the Union Socials


A State of the Union Social is a way to encourage students and faculty to educate themselves on the current state of our government by coming together to socialize, network and watch the President’s State of the Union Address. This event can be as formal or casual as you would like. Your chapter may even decide to incorporate fundraising into the event by charging a ticket price and then hosting appetizers and beverages for attendees. Have fun and be creative! You may even decide to incorporate audience polls during commercials by using an audience response system for multiple-choice questions.

To Do List: Determine the date of the State of the Union Address. Reserve a location where the State of the Union Social can be held.

o Ensure that there are enough television screens or large projector screens to broadcast the event to the entire room.

o Test the audio-visual equipment prior to the event to ensure that it is in working order.

Decide how formal the event will be.o Is it more of a jeans and hot dogs event?o Is it a semi-formal events with fancy appetizers?

If food and beverages are to be served, contact the catering service that you wish to use and place an order for the expected number of people.

Advertise the event.o Announce the event at a chapter meeting.o Send emails to faculty and students announcing the event.o If you want to open the event up to the larger community, take our an

advertisement in the local newspaper and have local radio stations announce the date, time and location of the event.

Welcome people to the event and encourage them to network and socialize prior to the state of the union.

If audience response devices will be used during the event, ensure that they are working prior to the event and have participants at the event practice using them prior to the start of the State of the Union Address.


Advertising: Announce the event at a chapter meeting. Send emails to faculty and students announcing the event. If you want to open the event up to the larger community, take our an



Number of Students Needed/Assignments: 4 Students Logistics Coordinator – in charge of reserving a location for the event and setting up

all of the audio-visual equipment.o Determine the date of the State of the Union Address.o Reserve a location for the State of the Union Social that is large enough for

the expected audience.o Set-up televisions and/or projector screens to stream the State of the Union

Address. Catering Coordinator – in charge of ordering the food and coordinating the

decorations.o Contact the caterer and order food for the event.

Ensure that there are vegetarian options available. In order to get an idea of how much food you need, you may want

to create a sign-up sheet for students and faculty to RSVP to the event.

o If this is a more formal event, arrange or table cloths and centerpieces to decorate the event space.

o Decorate the event space in a patriotic theme in order to get people excited about the event.

Advertising Coordinator – in charge of advertising the event and keeping track of the number of people who plan to attend.

o Announce the event at a chapter meeting.o Send emails to faculty and students announcing the event.o If you want to open the event up to the larger community, take our an


o Create a sign-up sheet or set-up an email address to allow individuals who plan on attending the event to RSVP. This will help to ensure that appropriate amounts of food are ordered.

o If this is a fundraiser: You will also want to have tickets printed. Coordinate individuals to sign-up to sell tickets ahead of time and at

the door. Have individuals sign-up to collect tickets at the door.

Master of Ceremonies – in charge of writing a script for the evening and coordinating the flow of events at the social.

o Write a script for the State of the Union Social. Welcome everyone to the event. Encourage individuals to socialize and network before the start of

the State of the Union Address. Quiet everyone down when the State of the Union Address begins.


o Coordinate any audience response questions that will be used at the event.o Thank everyone for attending.

Location of the Event: The event can occur on or off campus. When determining the location, keep in

mind the size of audience that you are expecting and the audio-visual needs that you have in order to stream the State of the Union Address and ensure that everyone in the audience can hear and see what is happening on screen.

IX. Campaign Canvassing and Involvement

As representatives of APhA-ASP, we are not able to support a candidate for political office unless the organization comes out in support of a specific candidate. However, this does not mean that we cannot get involved in campaigns as individuals. As influential, voting members of society, it is important that we research political campaigns and support candidates who stand for political actions in which we believe. As a SPAN liaison, you can help students get involved and have a voice by educating your chapter on the candidates running for office and their beliefs as they relate to pharmacy and healthcare. A SPAN liaison can also instruct chapter members on how to get involved in political campaigns and support candidates who share their values and beliefs.

To Do List: Research the candidates running for local, state and national office.

o Read information about the candidate on his or her website.o Contact their campaign headquarters to obtain written information.o Ask questions on their stance concerning healthcare issues, especially those

involving pharmacy. Educate chapter members on the various candidates.

o Explain their stances on important issues, especially those involving healthcare and pharmacy.

Encourage chapter members to get involved in and support the political campaign of a candidate that they believe in.

o Educate chapter members on how to contact the candidate’s campaign headquarters.

o Provide contact information on each candidate.o Educate chapter members on the role of volunteers in a political campaign.

Door-to-door canvassing. Answering the phones at headquarters. Calling citizens within the candidate’s district.


Number of Weeks to Plan: Approximately 2 weeks

Advertising: Create an informational handout for chapter members on how to get involved in a

political campaign.o Include contact information for each candidate.o Include each candidates views on important campaign topics.

Send out emails to faculty and students informing them that an informational session will be held to explain how to get involved in political campaigns. (The session can either be held as part of a chapter meeting or at a separate time.)

Number of Students Needed/Assignments: 3 Students Educational Materials Coordinators (2 students) – in charge of creating materials

needed to educate chapter members on how to get involved in political campaigns.o Create a powerpoint outlining the benefits of getting involved in a political

campaign. Include roles that volunteers fulfill:

Door-to-door canvassing Answering phones at campaign headquarters Calling individual households to as for support

Include each candidates viewpoints on important topics.o Create a handout with contact information for each candidate.

Logistics Coordinator – Responsible for reserving a room for the educational event if it is held outside of a regular chapter meeting and advertising the event to students and faculty.o Reserve a room for the event.o Ensure that the audio-visual equipment for the powerpoint is working prior to

the presentation.o Email faculty and students to announce the campaign involvement educational

session. Include date, time and location of the educational session. Encourage participation by stating that involvement in political

campaigns helps individuals to stay knowledgeable of important topics that are being considered and to later influence legislation if the candidate should get elected.

Location of the Event: This event can be held on campus as part of a regular chapter meeting. It can also be held on or off campus outside of regular meeting times.


Documents

Senate Members - American Pharmacists Association ... Your... · Web viewPolicy Booth at your school ...6 Policy Forum ....8 Policy at Patient Care Events .…..12 ... Write a script