Skip to content

Commit

Permalink
Merge pull request #4 from osg-cat/catworks
Browse files Browse the repository at this point in the history
Initial logistics pages (esp. travel)
  • Loading branch information
osg-cat authored Jun 7, 2024
2 parents d2b0b58 + 77c35a8 commit de42029
Show file tree
Hide file tree
Showing 5 changed files with 318 additions and 4 deletions.
48 changes: 48 additions & 0 deletions docs/logistics/hotel.md
Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
@@ -0,0 +1,48 @@
<style type="text/css">
.hi { font-weight: bold; color: #FF6600; }
</style>

# Hotel Information

We reserved a block of rooms at an area hotel for participants from outside Madison.

* [Best Western Premier Park Hotel](https://parkhotelmadison.com/)<br>
22 South Carroll Street, Madison, WI<br>+1&nbsp;(608)&nbsp;285&#8209;8000

<span class="hi">Please note:</span>
We will reserve your room for you, so do not contact the hotel yourself to reserve a room.
Exceptions to this rule are rare and clearly communicated.

Other important hotel information:

* Before the School, we will send you an email with your hotel confirmation number
* We pay only for basic room costs&nbsp;&mdash; you must provide a credit card to cover extra costs
* There is one School participant per room;
to have friends or family stay with you, <span class="hi">please ask us now</span>

## Check-In Time

The (earliest) check-in time at the hotel is 3 p.m. on your day of arrival.

If you are arriving earlier, you have options:

* Ask the hotel if it is possible to check in earlier than 3 p.m.
It is up to the hotel to decide if they can meet your request.
If there is any additional expense required, you must pay that yourself.

* Ask the hotel to put your bags in a safe spot and enjoy Madison until 3 p.m. or later.

* Keep your bags with you and enjoy Madison until 3 p.m. or later.

## Check-Out Time

The (latest) check-out time from the hotel is 12 p.m. (noon) on your day of departure.

If you are leaving later, you have options:

* Ask the hotel to put your bags in a safe spot and enjoy Madison until it is time to leave.

* Keep your bags with you and enjoy Madison until it is time to leave.

You are not required to travel directly from the hotel to the airport,
but if you do, we may be able to help you arrange to use the free hotel shuttle.
45 changes: 45 additions & 0 deletions docs/logistics/index.md
Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
@@ -0,0 +1,45 @@
# OSG School 2024 Logistics

The following pages describe some of the important information about your visit to Madison for the OSG School.
Please read them carefully.
There will be other pages with local details soon.

- [Visa requirements for non-residents](visas.md)
- [Travel planning to and from Madison](travel-planning.md)
- [Hotel information](hotel.md)

As always: If you have questions, email us at <[email protected]>.
Use that email address for all emails about the organization of the School.

## General Information About the School Schedule

### Travel Schedule

Most participants should plan to travel as follows:

- **Arrive on Sunday, August 4, 2024,** by about 5:00 p.m. (if possible).
There is a welcome dinner on Sunday evening for all participants (including instructors),
and then classes begin on Monday morning.
This is a nice way to get to know each other and start the week.

- **Depart on Saturday, August 10, 2024,** any time.
The School ends with a closing dinner on Friday evening,
so it is best to stay that night.

If we offered to pay for your hotel room, we will pay for the 6 nights of this schedule.

**Note:** If we suggested other travel dates to you in an email, then use those dates instead!

### School Hours

The School is generally Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to about 5:00 p.m.,
except Wednesday afternoon.
There will be optional work sessions on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings.

A detailed schedule will be posted before the event.

## Contact Information

If you have questions, do not wait to contact us!

<[email protected]>
164 changes: 164 additions & 0 deletions docs/logistics/travel-planning.md
Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
@@ -0,0 +1,164 @@
# Travel To and From Madison

<span style="color: #FF6600;">Please wait to begin making travel arrangements until we email you about it.</span>
We plan to email everyone about travel in early June,
but are starting with a small group to find and fix issues.

Whether we offered to pay your travel costs or not,
please make sure that we get a copy of your travel plans so that we know when to expect you here and can plan accurately.
(If we offered to pay for your hotel room, we will reserve your hotel room for you.)

Find the numbered section below that applies to you:

## 1. We Offered to Pay for Your Travel

We want to find reasonable and comfortable travel options for you.
At the same time, we must stay within budget and
follow University rules about arranging and paying for your travel costs.
Let&rsquo;s work together to find something that makes sense for everyone.

Here are ideas that have helped some School travelers in past years:

- If you are near Madison, consider driving;
we can reimburse mileage and tolls up to a point, plus parking.
Or look into bus routes, especially from larger cities like Chicago.
The buses are very comfortable, have wi-fi, and run frequently.

- If you fly, we may ask you to consider flying to
Milwaukee (1&frac12; hours away) or Chicago (2&frac12; hours away),
then taking a direct bus to Madison.
In some cases, this option saves a lot of money.

- If you fly, be flexible about departure times &mdash;
early and late flights are often the least expensive.
We do not like very early or very late flights any more than you do,
so we will work hard to find reasonable flight times.

**Note:** Please try to complete your travel plans before about July 4th, when rates may go up.

### Travel by Airplane

<span style="color: #FF6600; font-weight: bold;">Do NOT buy your own airline tickets</span>.
University rules say that our travel agency, Travel Incorporated, must buy your tickets.

**Note:** The University is changing travel agencies on 1 July 2024.
**Please** try to complete air travel arrangements by Thursday, 27 June 2024.

Use the following information to get air travel tickets:

- In the travel email that we sent you,
click the link to Travel Incorporated&rsquo;s &ldquo;UWS Traveler Booking Form&rdquo;
(on smartsheet.com);
on that form:

- **Group Number:** Copy and paste this:
<span style="color: #FF6600; font-family: monospace; font-size: 120%; font-weight: bold;">UWMSN061523</span>
- **Traveler Type:** Select &ldquo;Guest&rdquo;
- **Concur Profile?** Select &ldquo;No&rdquo;
- **Destination Type:** Select &ldquo;Domestic&rdquo;
- **Will a rental be needed?** Select &ldquo;No&rdquo; &mdash; we cannot pay for a rental car
- **Are Hotel Accommodations needed?** Select &ldquo;No&rdquo; &mdash; we will arrange your hotel room separately
- **Guest Information:** Please contact us first to bring guests

- We must review and approve some itineraries.
Travel Inc can purchase tickets directly in many cases.
But if the Travel Inc agent says that your trip must be reviewed, do not worry!
It just means that we need to check the budget, options, and UW rules.
We hope to approve your first choice,
or we will work with you and Travel Inc to find another reasonable one.

Common reasons for a trip needing review are:
total trip cost over $800,
travel starting and ending at different locations,
and travel on dates other than August 4 and 10.

- Approval takes time, so it may take 1&ndash;2 days to get confirmation.
Airplane tickets cannot be held without purchase over a weekend,
so avoid contacting Travel Inc late on Fridays.

- Please be considerate of the Travel Inc agent(s) you work with.
They work hard to find good options for you, but they must also follow our rules.
If you feel that they are not providing the options that you want, you should email **us**.
We will help resolve any issues.
Do not argue with the Travel Inc agents, especially about options you find online&nbsp;&mdash;
there are many reasons why that option might not be available to us.

### Travel by Bus

For some nearby locations,
or in addition to air travel to Chicago or Milwaukee,
it may be helpful to take a bus to Madison.
Bus companies that School travelers have used often in the past are:

- [Van Galder Bus](https://www.coachusa.com/airport-transportation/van-galder/bus-schedule),
especially from Chicago
- [Badger Bus](https://badgerbus.com),
especially from Milwaukee

To get bus tickets, pick one method:

- **Ask us to buy bus tickets for you in advance.**
This is the easiest option all around.
Just email us at <[email protected]>;
include your desired travel dates (tickets are not specific by time),
and start and end bus stations or stops.

- **Buy bus tickets for yourself.**
You may purchase bus tickets yourself **before or on** the day of travel.
If you purchase your own tickets,
you must get approval from the School for the estimated cost first,
then request reimbursement from us after the School.

If you purchase your own tickets,
save the original receipt (even if by email).
It is best to have a detailed receipt
(including your name, itinerary, date of purchase, and total amount paid),
but a regular ticket stub (e.g., without your name or date) should work fine.
Just get what you can!

Be sure to email us with your bus plans, including:

- Transportation provider(s) (e.g., Van Galder bus)
- Arrival date and approximate time
- Departure date and approximate time
- Arrival and departure location within Madison
- Actual or estimated cost (indicate which)

### Travel by Personal Car

If you are driving to Madison,
you will be reimbursed the mileage rate of $0.670 per mile
for the shortest round-trip distance (as calculated by Google Maps), plus tolls.
Also, we will pay for parking costs for the week at the hotel in Madison (but not elsewhere).
We recommend keeping your receipts for tolls.

**Note:
Due to the high mileage reimbursement rate, driving can be an expensive option!
We reserve the right to limit your total driving reimbursement,
so work with us on the details.**

To travel by personal car, please check with us first.
We may search for comparable flight options, to make sure that driving is the least expensive method.

Be sure to email us with your travel plans as soon as possible.
Try to include:

- Departure date from home, location (for mileage calculation), and approximate time of arrival in Madison
- Departure date and approximate time from Madison, and return location (for mileage calculation) if different than above


## 2. We Are Not Paying for Your Travel

If you are paying for your own travel or if someone else is paying for it,
go ahead and make your travel arrangements now!
Just remember to arrive on Sunday, August 4, before about 5:00 pm and depart on Saturday, August 10,
or whatever dates we suggested directly to you.
For other travel dates, check with us first, please!

Be sure to email us with your travel plans as soon as possible.
Try to include:

- Transportation provider(s) (e.g., airline)
- Arrival date and approximate time
- Departure date and approximate time
- Arrival and departure location within Madison (e.g., airport, bus station, etc.)
54 changes: 54 additions & 0 deletions docs/logistics/visas.md
Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
# Documentation Requirements for Non-Resident Aliens

<span style="color: #FF6600; font-weight: bold;">This page is for Non-Resident Aliens only.</span>
If you are a United States citizen or permanent resident or member of the UW&ndash;Madison community,
this page does not apply to you.

For the University of Wisconsin to pay for your travel, hotel, or meal expenses,
we must have certain personal information from you.
We collect as little information as possible and do not share it except with University staff who need it.
Most of what we need comes from the online form you completed after accepting our invitation to attend.

When you come to the School in Madison, we will need to look at and verify your travel documents.
Please bring all travel documents to the School!
See below for details.

## Tasks To Do Now

Please check your passport and visa for travel in the United States now.
Make sure that all documents are valid from now and until after the School ends.
If any documents are expired or will expire before the end of the School:

- Tell us immediately, so that we can help you
- Begin the process for updating your documents immediately
- Do whatever you can to expedite the update process

The University of Wisconsin cannot pay for or reimburse you for costs without valid travel documents.
We have no control over this policy and there are no exceptions.

<span style="color: #FF6600; font-weight: bold;">If you are in the United States on a J-1 Scholar visa,</span>
there are extra steps needed to make the University and Federal government happy.
If you have a J-1 visa and have not heard from us about it already, please email us immediately so that we can help.

## Documents to Bring to the School

When you come to Madison, you must bring:

- Passport
- U.S. visa
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection [form I-94](https://www.cbp.gov/travel/international-visitors/i-94)
- If you entered the U.S. before 30 April 2013, the I-94 should be stapled into your passport — do not remove it!
- If you entered the U.S. after 30 April 2013, the I-94 is stored electronically;
[you can request a copy to print from CBP](https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/#/recent-search)
- If you are Canadian, you may use a second form of picture ID instead of the I-94 if you did not obtain an I-94.
- Additional forms specified in the table below:

| If you have this visa | We will also need |
|:----------------------|:---------------------------------------------|
| F-1 (Student) | Form I-20 (original document, not a copy) |
| J-1 (Visitor) | Form DS-2019 (original document, not a copy) |
| Visa Waiver Program | Paper copy of ESTA Authorization |

Please bring all required information and documents to the School, especially on Tuesday, August 6.
School staff will make copies of the documents and return them to you as quickly as possible.
We will announce further details in class.
11 changes: 7 additions & 4 deletions mkdocs.yml
Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -23,11 +23,14 @@ extra_css:
extra:
social:
- icon: fontawesome/brands/twitter
link: https://twitter.com/OSGUserSchool
link: https://twitter.com/OSGSchool
name: OSG School on Twitter
- icon: fontawesome/brands/facebook
link: https://www.facebook.com/OSGUserSchool
name: OSG School on Facebook

nav:
- Home: index.md
- Logistics:
- General information: logistics/index.md
- Travel:
- Travel planning: logistics/travel-planning.md
- Visa requirements: logistics/visas.md
- Hotel information: logistics/hotel.md

0 comments on commit de42029

Please sign in to comment.