Childcare and Family Resources

We know that scientist is only one part of your identity; many TAGC attendees are parents and caregivers, as well. It is our core belief that excelling in either of these roles should not come at the cost of the other. We want TAGC to be a family-friendly and equitable meeting where parents and caregivers can participate fully without worrying about their childcare responsibilities.

• Guidelines
• On-site Childcare
• Nursing Rooms
• Networking Opportunities
• Childcare and Dependents Grants
• Resources
• On the Blog
• FAQs

Guidelines

TAGC 2024 welcomes attendees with children! 

Children are allowed in plenary, concurrent, and poster sessions; this includes babywearing of young children.

To ensure the safety of all children in attendance and to create a productive and fulfilling meeting atmosphere for all attendees, we ask all parents and caregivers to abide by the following guidelines:

• Children age 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult in all meeting areas.
• Parents and caregivers should do their best to ensure that children are not disruptive to any sessions they attend (including poster sessions). Large sessions will have seating at the back of the room reserved for attendees with children to allow for easy access into and out of the room. These seats will be clearly marked.
• For safety reasons, children are not allowed in the exhibit/poster hall during set-up or break-down times.

On-site Childcare

Dates and Times

Wednesday, March 6 from 2:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Thursday, March 7 from 7:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Friday, March 8 from 7:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Saturday, March 9 from 7:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Sunday, March 10  from 7:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Fees

*A non-refundable pre-registration fee will be charged at a rate of $20.00 per child at the time of registration. This fee is separate from the above-listed costs.

Nursing Rooms

Two lactation rooms will be available for use at TAGC 2024, one on the atrium level of the hotel and one in the meeting space.

The rooms will be open from 7:30 a.m. until 10:00 p.m. and open to all conference attendees. Each room can accommodate multiple people and will provide comfortable semi-private seating, outlets, a refrigerator, sanitizing wipes, and hand sanitizer. The rooms will be near bathrooms for access to sinks.

Space will be available in each room for storing pumping equipment, bottles, etc.; however, the room will not be secured, so any items left are at your discretion. All items must be removed from the nursing rooms at the end of each day and by Sunday at noon.

Networking Opportunities

More information will be added as soon as it becomes available.

Childcare and Dependents Grants

Grant Eligibility and General Information

• Applicants must be 2024 GSA members. Check your membership status here.
• Applicants must be registered for TAGC 2024; please have each applicant’s Badge Number, provided in their registration confirmation email, ready.
  • In the event that they are not granted funds, applicants will be given a five-day period post-award announcement to cancel their registration for no penalty. After that, regular cancellation fees will apply.
• Grants may be awarded for child care, elder care, or other dependent care.
• Funds may be used for:
  • On-site childcare (see above for information on costs)
  • Child- or dependent-care at home (above any normally incurred costs)
  • Travel for a caregiver to the meeting
  • Travel for a caregiver to your home
  • Travel for your child/dependent to the meeting
  • Travel for your child/dependent from home to a caregiver
  • Other scenarios on a case-by-case basis
• Applications are limited to one per household.
• Awards will be paid out via reimbursement after the meeting. Receipts will be required to process reimbursement; written receipts are acceptable for person-to-person services such as babysitters.
• The maximum grant funding available is $1,000 per application. Applicants are not guaranteed to receive the full funds requested.

Deadlines and Important Dates

• November 6: Applications open
• December 13: Application deadline
• January 26: Awards announced
• January 31: No-penalty registration cancellation for applicants who do not receive funding

Resources

Here’s a list of non-GSA childcare resources including services for breast milk shipping, baby gear delivery, babysitting, and more!    

Milk Stork

Baby Quip

Care.com

Sittercity

Family-friendly Activities

Inclusion of resources in this list does not constitute endorsement by the Genetics Society of America.

On the Blog

Oh, Baby, the Conferences You’ll Go! By Madhumala K. Sadanandappa

How can we make scientific conferences better for parents? by Tânia Reis

Welcoming Children to TAGC 2020 by Elisabeth Marnik and Julie Claycomb