STC Summit 2024 – Come join us!

Hey, friends! The Instructional Design and Learning Special Interest Group (IDL SIG) has special plans for the 2024 STC Summit. We hope you can join us as we share our superpowers and grow closer as colleagues and friends.

Summit dates are Thursday, May 16 – Sunday, May 19. The events are open to all Summit attendees. Schedule information may change. For the latest content, please check the conference app.

All Week

Look for Maralee Sautter, Melanie Murphy, and Viqui Dill. Say hello and we will have stickers and other swag for you.

Thursday 16 May @ 6:45 pm

Join the STC IDL SIG for dinner at the Rainforest Cafe (Dutch/Separate Checks).

Mall of America 306 South Avenue, Level 3, turn right

Everyone welcome. No need to identify as an Instructional Designer.

After dinner, we are going to waddle down to the Duck Donuts shop for dessert and then take a lap around the mall.

 

Thursday 16 May after dinner (8:30 pm?)

Join the STC IDL SIG after dinner. We are going to waddle together for a lap around the mall.

Everyone welcome. No need to identify as an Instructional Designer.

Friday 17 May @ noon

During the Summit, on Friday, May 17, come sit with us for lunch.

Pick up your box lunch at the Sky Bridge, and bring it to Minnetonka A. We’ll have an informal IDL SIG gathering and enjoy our lunch together.

 

Saturday 18 May @ 1:30 pm

STC IDL SIG Panel at STC Summit 2024: Are You a Uni-Duck? The Intersection of Instructional Design and Technical Communication

Lakes Ballroom B

Have you ever wondered if what you do is more “technical communication” or is it more “instructional design”? What’s the difference? Are there differences? Do they even intersect? In this fun and interactive session, we’re going to explore the nuances of both, where they overlap, where they differ, and all the points in-between.

Panelists:
* Viqui Dill (Moderator/Emcee)
* Melanie Murphy
* Maralee Sautter

 

Questions? 

Join the conversation on Slack.

MiniConference schedule, presentations and presenters

STC IDL SIG & WDCB Fall Frightfest MiniConference: What scares you and how you faced it down

Register on Eventbrite, if you dare!

Come and talk about what scares you and how you faced it down.

When? October 21, 2023

  • 10:30 am – 16:00 ET
  • 09:30 am – 15:00 CT
  • 08:30 am – 14:00 MT
  • 07:30 am – 13:00 PT

Where? Zoom (of course)

Registration prices:

  • Free to Students, academics, retirees, volunteers and presenters (to volunteer, email programs@stcidlsig.org)
  • STC IDL SIG Members $5.00
  • STC Members $20.00
  • NonMembers $40.00

The all-day virtual MiniConference provides a variety of educational sessions related to technical communication, instructional design, and learning.

We are excited to announce that our keynote speaker will be Phylise Banner, a recognized superhero and pioneer in the LX design space. Read more about Banner on her website and share in our excitement.

Our day will be both educational and fun. Grab your Zoom-friendly Halloween costume, play a few warmup games, and maybe even win a prize. See the schedule and read more about the presentations and presenters below.


Schedule of Eerie educational sessions with nightmarish networking breaks

All times Eastern

  • 10:30 am – Grisly games and intimidating intros with Villainous Viqui Dill
  • 11:00 am – Killer Keynote with Phrightful Phylise Banner
  • 11:45 am – “Caldron Bubble: Incorporating Cookbook Design Elements into Technical Documentation” with Jittery Jamye Sagan
  • 12:30 pm – Buzzworthy BioBreak #1
  • 12:45 pm – “Somebody’s Watching Me: Make Presenting on Zoom Not-So-Scary” with Rogue Rachel Eichen
  • 1:30 pm – “Are your presentations frightfully ineffective? Let’s do better.” with Terrifying Traci Nathans-Kelly, Ph.D
  • 2:15 pm – Bewildering Break #2
  • 2:30 pm – “We Need New Blood: Creating Video Content” with Murderous Maralee Sautter
  • 3:15 pm – “Supercharge your Documentation through Storytelling Superpowers” with Alex Hale
  • 4:00 pm – Beastly BioBreak #3 to get in costume
  • 4:20 pm – Wicked Wrapup and Chilling costume prizes: Villainous Viqui Dill
  • 5:00 pm – Go home happy!

Presentations and presenters

Killer Keynote with Phrightful Phylise Banner

We are excited to announce that our keynote speaker will be Phylise Banner, a recognized superhero and pioneer in the LX design space. Read more about Banner on her website and share in our excitement.


Caldron Bubble: Incorporating Cookbook Design Elements into Technical Documentation with Jittery Jamye Sagan

Cookbooks not only contain a treasure trove of not only delicious recipes and anecdotes, but also serve as prime examples of solid technical communication. After all, recipes use words and images to help explain how to prepare a specific dish.

In this presentation, we will examine several examples of effective recipe design elements from various cookbook recipes. These examples will focus on the following elements of cookbook recipes:

  • Overall layout, including columns and use of space
  • Images, including photographs and drawings
  • Text, including font styles and the wording itself.

As we examine each design element, we will also learn how they help make instructions – the recipe –easy to understand. We will then show how to apply them in our own technical communication deliverables, including job aids and quick reference guides.

Thus, cleanly-formatted and well-worded recipes from cookbooks can serve as the recipe for success in creating clear and concise technical communication.

About the Speaker

As the Pharmacy Communication Advisor for H-E-B, Jamye helps design training programs and materials for various projects and initiatives within the pharmacy department. She also manages communications between the corporate office and the store pharmacies.

An Associate Fellow of STC, Jamye serves as the current President of the South Central Texas chapter. She also volunteers with the Instructional Design and Learning SIG as its Treasurer and Survey Manager and belongs to various SIGs. Jamye has also volunteered at the Society level in various roles, including the Community Affairs Committee, the Community Achievement Award and Pacesetter Award committees, and the Associate Fellow committee. Over the past several years, she has reviewed several publications for the Technical Communication journal.

When not making “sense out of the seemingly senseless” in the tech comm world, Jamye enjoys transforming yarn into pretty and useful objects. She lives in San Antonio, TX.


Somebody’s Watching Me: Make Presenting on Zoom Not-So-Scary with Rogue Rachel Eichen

Rachel Eichen has a varied career history across multiple fields of communication, technology, and training. She has over 10 years of in-person and remote teaching experience in a variety of industries including: casinos, financial institutions, restaurants, hospitals, libraries. She even taught computer classes on a cruise ship! She has experience training all sorts of software applications including Microsoft Office and Adobe Photoshop, and web applications such as Google Apps and Facebook. In a former life, she was a technical writer where she learned about the software lifecycle and documented instructions. She also has a variety of technical skills, including a mix of programming, networking, and web-design. Rachel holds a Master’s degree in Library & Information Science and a bachelor’s degree in Technical Writing.


Are your presentations frightfully ineffective? Let’s do better with Terrifying Traci Nathans-Kelly, Ph.D.

Currently serving as the Robert N. Noyce Director of the Engineering Communication Program in the College of Engineering, Cornell University. Nathans-Kelly has a special interest in social justice and techquity issues, along with online teaching modalities. She interacts daily to help engineers and pre-professional engineers to hone their technical messaging, whether it be via presentations, on paper, in meetings and teams, or online channels. Read more and connect with her on LinkedIn.


We need new blood: Creating video content with Murderous Maralee Sautter

IDL’s own co-manager will talk us through her latest challenge: making a recruiting video for volunteers. Sautter has been a technical writer and instructional designer in the industries of high-tech/software, health, science, transportation, education, and government (Intel, Xerox, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Cambia, Regency/Blue Cross, City of Vancouver (WA), and more). Her favorite title is educator since she was an adjunct instructor at Portland State University for over 12 years. Currently, she is the manager of the Instructional Design & Learning SIG. Connect with her on LinkedIn.


Supercharge your Documentation through Storytelling Superpowers with Alarming Alex Hales

Alex Michael Hales will take us on a wild ride, using Marvel and DC characters (and their powers) as metaphors for different writing techniques and tools practitioners can use day to day. Hales is a Technical Writer based in Mesa, Arizona. He loves researching, brainstorming, conceptualizing, and drafting content.

Find out more and connect with Hales on his website.


Horrifying Hosting by Villainous Viqui  Dill

Viqui Dill is an STC Associate Fellow who loves connecting people to communities and giving everyone a voice. Dill loves a good story. She can’t remember a time when she did not want to grab a guitar and start a sing along. As worship arts pastor for the exchange church in Winchester, VA, she gets to live the dream every other week. The Dills have a family band, the Dill Pickers, and Dill sometimes plays in a mostly girl band of mammas, Hot Flash. She describes herself as “Technical writer, wife and mom, bass player, worship leader, I’m happiest when folks sing along with me.” Connect on LinkedIn or just google her unusually spelled name to connect.


 

June 2021 events are AWESOME!

Hey IDL friends – Your buddies in the STC IDL SIG have been pulling together several exciting events for June. We hope you can join us. Many events are open to all, even if you’re not going to the Summit, even if you’re not a SIG member, and even if you’re not a member of STC. Here we go:

Social Event on Monday, June 7 at 7pm EDT

Please join the IDL SIG on Monday night of the Summit (June 7) after the magic show. We are hosting a fun social time from 7 to 8:30 pm (Eastern) where you can network with folks in the IDL SIG and other attendees. This event is free and you can invite your spouse or friends to attend as well (each participant needs their own camera, on a desktop, laptop or phone).
Please register for the event so we can stay in touch with you and send you friendly reminders. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/each-of-us-is-you-nique-idl-cop-sig-summit-social-event-2021-tickets-154919764185

 

Summit Honors on Tuesday, June 8 at 1 pm EDT

We will send out more information about the Honors Event. Watch your inbox and this website for updates.

Open House on Wednesday, June 9 at 12:45 pm EDT

Join the IDL SIG  during the Open House. You don’t need to be registered for the Summit! Drop by and say hi to our volunteers and enter to win a door prize to be drawn at the AGM!  Mark your calendars and join using the Zoom link  https://zoom.us/j/95239076337?pwd=Wi9RTWdwbkEyYllHUllJWTVQaENiQT09. *
* This link is tentative, so be sure to check the IDL SIG website for an update post if it changes

Check out our list of IDL SIG Members to Present at STC Summit, June 7-9, 2021 while you’re at it!

2021 is a great year for #TechComm. Come celebrate with us!

Programs update

Your IDL SIG has a great lineup of webinars planned for the winter. SIG members attend our webinars for free and have access to a complete library of past webinars as a benefit of membership. Register now for our webinars and make a serious investment in your #techcomm career.


March 19

It’s time to get your networking game on in time for #STC20!

Engineering Your Networking Experiences webinar with Kelly Schrank

"Engineering Your Networking Experiences" webinar with Kelly Schrank


Programs update Fall 2019

Your IDL SIG has a great lineup of webinars planned for the fall. SIG members attend our webinars for free and have access to a complete library of past webinars as a benefit of membership. Register now for our webinars and make a serious investment in your #techcomm career.


March 19

It’s time to get your networking game on in time for #STC20!

Engineering Your Networking Experiences webinar with Kelly Schrank

"Engineering Your Networking Experiences" webinar with Kelly Schrank