SONIC program:
Student Outreach for Networking and Integrating Colleagues
The ASA Student Council is continuing the SONIC program for ASA182 in Denver, CO. We hope this program will continue to develop and benefit both current and future ASA student members. To participate in the program as a new student or guide, please use the links below to fill out the registration form. Registration is open through 11:59pm Tuesday of the conference week.
Note: If you are an experienced student or recent student, please consider volunteering to be a ‘guide’. We need volunteer guides to help make this program a success. This is a great opportunity for you to get involved in the acoustical society student community and gain leadership experience.
Description
The Student Outreach for Networking and Integrating Colleagues (SONIC) program is a networking opportunity where we match new students (NEWBIES) with experienced students or early-career professionals (GUIDES) who are eager to share their experiences, and the program is intended to help ‘newbies’ connect with peers who have similar research interests.
Most new students attending the ASA meetings for the first time are a little overwhelmed by the whirlwind of technical sessions and networking. It’s very helpful to have someone to talk to who is familiar with the meeting events, has similar research interests, and can help with introductions. As a participant in this program, ‘newbies‘ have the opportunity to ask questions, make connections, and immediately engage with the ASA community.
The SONIC program has a few mandatory activities that coincide with the ASA students events, but the program is largely open-ended to allow participants to choose how to interact and share their experience. If you are an ASA student member or recently a student member (early-career professional) who has been to ASA multiple times, please consider volunteering as a SONIC program ‘guide‘ to give something meaningful back to the next group of students following in your footsteps. Your participation could completely change someone’s first-time experience at an ASA conference in a positive way.
Registration and Participation
All participants must be at least 18 years of age and registered to attend the upcoming ASA conference. Both ‘newbies‘ and ‘guides‘ need to provide personal contact information and be available to attend the mandatory activities at the upcoming conference. Follow-on activities are largely at the discretion of individual participants. The registration roster is reset for each conference, so those looking to participate again must re-register at the above link.
Both first-time student attendees and relatively new students who have attended an ASA meeting before are both welcome to participate as ‘newbies‘.
Experienced students and recent students (within 2 years) registering as ‘guides‘ must be a current member of the ASA and have attended at least one ASA conference in the past. It would be beneficial if you have a good understanding of the events, meetings, and sessions that occur at ASA conferences.
Before the conference, ‘newbies‘ and ‘guides‘ will be paired based on technical areas of interest when possible. In some cases, it may not be possible to match every individual perfectly with their primary interests, but the effort will be made to do so. Thus, participation in the SONIC program is dependent on the level of enrollment for that specific conference, and some ‘guides‘ may be paired with multiple ‘newbies‘ if needed. An email will be sent jointly to the ‘newbie‘ and ‘guide‘ to provide contact details, make introductions, and provide instructions for the program.
All participants are expected to have reviewed and adhere to both the Acoustical Society’s Diversity and Harassment Policies at all times in order to maintain a safe environment for everyone. These policies can be reviewed at: https://acousticalsociety.org/diversity-policy/ and https://acousticalsociety.org/harassment-policy/.
Instruction and Guidance
The SONIC program is intentionally open ended to participation, but we do have one mandatory activity on the first day of the conference. All program participants are asked to attend the First-Time Attendee Orientation and Student Meet & Greet on Monday to meet your matched student, get a SONIC program sticker, and join in a SONIC program group photo.
For the rest of the conference you are welcome to meet up and hang out at your leisure, but we would like you to choose TWO of the voluntary activities to do together if possible. Of course if you have other ideas for activities then you are welcome to do those instead.
Mandatory SONIC activities:
- Attend the First-Time Attendee Orientation and the Student Meet & Greet on Monday
- Grab a SONIC program sticker from the SONIC Coordinator
- Meet with your matched ‘newbie‘ or ‘guide‘
- Introduce yourselves and share your personal and academic background
- Join in a SONIC program group photo during the Meet & Greet
Voluntary SONIC activities (please choose at least two):
- Offer to give a short walking tour of the conference
- Attend a specific talk or technical session together
- Meet up again for the student or society social events
- Meet up again for the technical committee meetings
- Invite each other to have lunch or dinner with colleagues
- Introduce them to colleagues, especially those with similar interests
ASA Diversity Policy
ASA Diversity Policy: https://acousticalsociety.org/diversity-policy/
The Acoustical Society of America (ASA) is committed to making acoustics more accessible to everyone, and asserts that all individuals, regardless of racial identity, ethnic background, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, or national origin, must be provided equal opportunity in the field of acoustics. The Society upholds the belief that diversity enriches the field of acoustics, and is working to diversify its membership and the acoustics community in general by identifying barriers to implementing this change, and is taking an active role in organizational and institutional efforts to bring about such change. The Society actively supports efforts by the acoustics community to better engage the knowledge and talents of a diverse population, increase the viability of acoustics as a career option for all individuals, and promote the pursuit of acoustics careers by members of historically under-represented groups.
ASA Statement on Racism and Injustice: https://acousticalsociety.org/asa-statement-on-racism-and-injustice/
ASA Harassment Policy
ASA Harassment Policy: https://acousticalsociety.org/harassment-policy/.
It is the policy of the Acoustical Society of America that all participants in Society activities will enjoy an environment free from all forms of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation. As a professional society, ASA is committed to providing an atmosphere that encourages the free expression and exchange of scientific ideas. In pursuit of that ideal, ASA is dedicated to the philosophy of equality of opportunity and treatment for all members regardless of any other reason not related to scientific merit. Harassment, sexual or otherwise, is a form of misconduct that undermines the integrity of Society meetings. Violators of this policy will be subject to discipline.
Definition of Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment refers to unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. Behavior and language that are welcome/acceptable to one person may be unwelcome/offensive to another. Consequently, individuals must use discretion to ensure that their words and actions communicate respect for others. This is especially important for those in positions of authority since individuals with lower rank or status may be reluctant to express their objections or discomfort regarding unwelcome behavior.
Sexual harassment does not refer to occasional compliments of a socially acceptable nature. It refers to behavior that is not welcome, is personally offensive, debilitates morale, and therefore interferes with work effectiveness. The following are examples of behavior that, when unwelcome, may constitute sexual harassment: sexual flirtations, advances, or propositions; verbal comments or physical actions of a sexual nature; sexually degrading words used to describe an individual; a display of sexually suggestive objects or pictures; sexually explicit jokes; unnecessary touching.
Definition of Other Harassment
Harassment on the basis of any other protected characteristic is also strictly prohibited. This conduct includes, but is not limited to the following: epithets, slurs, or negative stereotyping; threatening, intimidating, or hostile acts; denigrating jokes and display or circulation of written or graphic material that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward an individual or group.
Definition of Discrimination
Discrimination refers to a bias or prejudice resulting in denial of opportunity or unfair treatment regarding selection, promotion, or transfer. Discrimination is practiced commonly on the grounds of age, disability, ethnicity, origin, political belief, race, religion, sex, i.e., factors which are irrelevant to a person’s competence or suitability.
Definition of Retaliation
Retaliation refers to taking some action to negatively impact another based on their reporting an act of discrimination or harassment.
Scope of Policy
This policy applies to all attendees at Society activities, including scientists, students, guests, staff, contractors, and exhibitors, participating in the scientific sessions, tours, and social events of any ASA meeting or other activity.
Reporting the Incident
This policy covers first – person incidents only.
Any individual covered by this policy who believes that he or she has been subjected to harassment should contact the ASA President, Executive Director or other ASA Officer. Other ASA Officers include: President‐Elect, Vice President, Vice President Elect, Treasurer, Editor‐in‐Chief, Standards Director. The list of ASA Officers can be found here. The individual reporting the incident is not required nor expected to discuss the concern with the alleged offender. All complaints will be treated seriously and will be investigated promptly. Confidentiality will be honored to the extent possible as long as the rights of others are not compromised.
You may report the incident anonymously with ASA’s smart phone app. Download here…